“Hey Ya’ll” - ABK

“Often, without knowing it, we are waiting for a new idea to come and cut us free from our

entanglements. When the idea is true and the space is ready for it, the idea overtakes everything.

With grace-like swiftness, it descends and claims recognition; it cannot be returned or reversed”

-John O-Donohue, Beauty

Assumption of Rightness

• It is logical to assume that the culture and practice of schooling work well for all students

• Those who do not achieve are not intelligent or home environment is inadequate

• The deficiency lies in the child or home, not the system.

Luxury of Ignorance

• “I’m doing OK in school, but it’s just that every day seems like an away game” African American athlete.

• The neighborhood school in the suburbs is a direct reflection of the home environment of middle class white students. It’s a home game every game.

Legacy of Priviledge

• White flight to “good schools” aka “White schools”- to the current phenomenon of “Green Flight”.

• Human and economic resources continue to dwindle in core cities and the most challenging environments.

• Furthering the gap between rich and poor.

Transformationist Educators, What We Know…

• Race matters• Change begins with us• Beliefs determine outcomes• Teaching is a calling, not just a job

Transformationist Educators, What To Do?

• Reject assumptions and take responsibility• Consider alternate worldviews• Choose consciousness over dysconsciousness• Break through the blindness of our privilege• Move away from shame and blame• Know + DO

“We cannot solve a problem from the same level of thinking we were at when we created the problem” –Albert Einstein

• P134

“In our role as educators we are either acting in complicity with the forces of dominance that underlie

the achievement gap, or we are consciously and actively seeking to subvert these dynamics and

inequities in the service of our students” (Tatum, 2003)

• There is no such thing as neutral ground in teaching• Every act of teaching is a political act

Final Thought