The violence this past weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia, shocked the country with the display of actions by the groups present. As a nation, we struggle to balance our founding father’s belief in freedom of speech for all Americans with civil discourse. Across the country, citizens acknowledged that acts of violence are intolerable. The video footage we witnessed provided a powerful reminder that there is still a tremendous amount of work to be done when it comes to issues of race. Have we come as far as we thought we have? Are racial tensions on the rise and with whom? Why does race continue to matter today? Is it relevant to our students today?

Discussions regarding race can feel difficult to navigate. When incidents like Charlottesville happen, how do we discuss them in a meaningful and safe way with students? It begins on the first day of class, and it is reinforced every day by our actions.

Teachers generally feel the greatest success and create safe havens by:

• Setting ground rules for civility WITH their students. Take time to set the stage on how you and students will listen to and speak to/about with civility.

Example: The Four Agreements when having courageous conversations

1. Stay Engaged. Even when the topic is difficult, it’s important to continue the conversation.
   
2. It’s okay to experience discomfort. Conversations about race can be difficult. Recognize that discomfort but don’t let it dictate your level of engagement.
   
3. Speak your truth. Your experiences are your own and they matter; so it’s important not to minimize where you come from..
   
4. Expect/Accept non-closure. We all have different viewpoints and experiences and we will not always agree and some discussions won’t come to a finality. As you have conversations, look for understanding as opposed to figuring who is right.
   

• Providing students the opportunity to journal to reflect on their feelings about various topics. Free writing can be a great outlet for some students; especially if they’re not concerned about punctuation, grammar, syntax, and spelling.

• Teaching students to use “I” or “My” statements as they share their viewpoints or beliefs. Model this yourself, and hold students accountable for their own experiences so they have the opportunity to tell their truth.

• Creating and maintaining safe spaces for your students. Students (and adults) need reminders of the ground rules and to be held accountable for following them to build spaces where students feel emotionally safe to learn.

• Acknowledging that complex issues can’t be solved in 5, 10 or 30 minutes, but that as we dialogue with civility, we begin to understand each other.

Want to know more strategies to facilitate difficult conversations?

Let's Talk! Discussing Race and Racism with Students

How one teacher in Charlottesville will talk to her students about what happened

Welcome back as SPS celebrates its 150th year educating students. Hopefully, over the summer you've had the opportunity to rest, recuperate, and grow in your learning to support students and families. The Equity & Access Office is excited for the upcoming year to continue sharing various resources and viewpoints. One of our roles is to support students and families navigate the school system. Especially if people have had negative experiences with school (regardless of the district). As our student population continues to shift, it's important to include those multiple voices/perspectives. As educators, we must continue to increase our level of competence in order to make student experiences engaging, relevant, and personal.

Feel free to use the Canvas Equity & Access page which includes additional curriculum resources with diverse perspectives. We will continue to add resources throughout the year. Please let us know if there are certain topics you would like for us to cover.

Equity & Access Canvas Page

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