As a Language Development Coach (LDC), I have the privilege of learning about all of the new transfer students by reviewing their files, learning about their cultural-linguistic background, and their immigration history. This year, I was amazed by the diversity of our incoming students. I look forward to getting to know each of their unique assets, how they will acculturate and add value to our Woodlawn community.
Before I show the numbers revealing the increases in student diversity, please remember our value statement: “Every student, every school, every day.” We need to make sure that EVERY student is successful in our system.
Although the current Illinois Report Card on Woodlawn does not include 2018 numbers (Illinois Report Card, Woodlawn MS, 2017), we see as indicated by the yellow bars that the the percentage of white WL students has dropped from 64% to 60% from 2013-2017; black students have remained at 2%; Hispanic students hovering about 10-11%; Asian students increasing from 16% to 23%. For comparison, in D96 as displayed by the green bars, white students have also decreased from 63% to 54%.
Additionally, if we look at "Projections of the Size and Composition of the U.S. Population: 2014 to 2060" (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015), we see that projections that the white population will decrease by 16,174,000 from 2014 to 2016; black population projected to grow by 17,654,000; American Indian and Alaskan native to increase by 1,650,000; Asian to increase by 21,882,000; Native Hawaiian to increase by 400,000; two or more races to increase by 18,027,000; Hispanic to increase by 63,635,000. Therefore, we can expect that our student population will continue to be less white and more racially/ethnically diverse every year!
If we can expect our students to increase in racial/ethnic diversity, what can we do to support our mission to ensure that every student achieves his or her maximum potential?
In "How Can White Teachers Do Right by Students of Color?" Justin Minkel (Education Week, April 2018) identifies and describes a variety of easy strategies to ensure that all of our students are represented in the class, provided equitable opportunities, and supported to reach their maximum potential. The Marshall Memo 749 synthesizes this article with some practical solutions (August 2018). See below to read this synopsis copied and pasted from the Marshall Memo 749.
“Small daily actions–
‘Our students of color are often starved for anything and anyone relevant to their identities and experiences,’ he says. His first graders were enraptured when he showed a YouTube clip of the Hamilton cast performing at the White House.
Literature-
‘Children of color need books to be mirrors as well as windows,’ says Minkel. There’s no shortage of material, starting with Scholastic’s We Need Diverse Books catalog https://bit.ly/2MEaiX3. High-quality books and magazines need to be prominent in guided reading groups, read-alouds, and classroom libraries for independent reading. Texts about people of color shouldn’t shy away from issues of oppression, but there should be a balance. One mother reported that her children had this to say about the books they were reading in school: ‘It’s always about slavery and racism. Once in a while, can’t we read about black kids just chillin’?’
Guest speakers–
There are all too many negative images of African Americans and Latinos in the media, says Minkel: ‘We have to provide our students a constant stream of writers, artists, mathematicians, scientists, engineers, and other competent and caring men and women of color to counter that poisonous programming.’
Upstanding–
‘When you hear other white people – including fellow teachers – make racist comments, speak up,” says Minkel. ‘It’s OK if your face turns red, you blurt out something that doesn’t quite line up as a sentence, or it takes you 12 hours to come up with the line you wish you had said. The important thing is to make a little gash in that conversation so the comment does not go unnoticed or unchallenged. Part of white privilege is the ability to speak against racism without being quickly discounted by white people in power as people of color often are.’
Listening –
‘I continue to marvel at the patience, kindness, and generosity of spirit shown to me by African-American and Latino friends and colleagues,” says Minkel. ‘To learn from them, I have to remind myself to stop talking and instead listen deeply to their experiences, perspectives, and advice… We can’t be afraid to ask a question of a colleague of color for fear we’ll look foolish or clueless,’” (Marshall Memo 749)
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