"To accept one's past - one's history - is not the same thing as drowning in it; it is learning how to use it." (James Baldwin)
In parts 1 and 2, I explored how the specific privileges of white racism can operate in education. I did this by analysing a reckless blog post from a prominent teacher in the social media edu-sphere.
Here, in the third and final part, I pose some questions to consider.
1) Will we be more open? We could renew our efforts to process any hostile reactions so that we can be more open to discussing, reading, and listening about whiteness.
For example, consider why the mere mention of 'decolonisation' or 'whiteness' provoke anger, incredulity, or mirth in some?
Or why literally everything done in education is inherently political yet only acts of resistance to white supremacy are seen as such?
Or why the effects of 'whiteness' are something you may never have been aware of before? It's remarkable that in 2019, one might not be aware of these things; if anything demonstrates the power of whiteness, it's the ignorance it wills in to people racialised as white. Maybe be more open than the gentleman who tweeted this response to a questioning of the whiteness of the UK national curriculum:
The dismissal of marginalised knowledges and ways of knowing as ‘identity politics’ is tried and tested white resistance. It is a rhetoric that conceals the real and enduring identity politics behind the claims of 'universal' and 'canonical' knowledge. This is the 'white sleight of hand' that feigns neutrality in order to maintain unequal distributions of power.
2) Can we be more open? This may be hard, especially because people racialised as white tend to live in social environments that protect them from race-based stress, even in educational spaces that are superficially diverse. This "insulated environment of racial protection builds white expectations for racial comfort while at the same time lowering the ability to tolerate racial stress, leading to 'White Fragility'" (Diangelo, 2011).
3) Can we update our definition of racism? Racism encompasses the personal and the institutional; it is part of our economic, political, social, and cultural structures. It encompasses the micro, meso, and macro. It's the embodiment, actions, and beliefs that systematize and re(produce) unequal distributions of advantages, resources and power between people racialised as 'white' and people racialised as 'of colour'. Racism is concerned with impact, not merely (and, often never) intention. It is also, undeniably, real. And students of colour have suffered because of it in education. At this point it might be timely to state that prejudice against white people is race-based prejudice. It is not 'racism'.
3) Would we reflect on our approaches with Black and People of Colour (BPOC) students?
Imagine this learning environment: there are firm rules and proper accountability for behaviour, but it's not punitive. You are aware that there is a power imbalance inherent in the traditional student-teacher relationship, but you do the best you can to be fair. You stick to an agreed routine and levels of expectation, so that all learners can thrive. But. You now become aware that you are likely to be biased. You are likely to be biased towards noticing the behaviour of Black and People of Colour (BPOC) students more closely than their white peers. And misjudging it as fractious. And further, you are more likely to penalise those students of colour more harshly, particularly if they are racialised and/or self-identify as black. You now realise that this racialised hyper-vigilance and disproportionate discipline have the potential to snowball, causing your relationship with them to deteriorate (especially if they have experienced this with previous white teachers in primary and secondary). The learner's stress and anxiety of this is now an additional cognitive (and emotional) load that their white peers do not have to bear. It is a daily 'undesirable difficulty', that may impact on their capacities to remember, to relate, to learn, to grow. It may then reduce their sense of belonging and academic self-efficacy. In turn, you wonder if this is compounding the latent racialised stereotypes that society and media have given you, and the stereotype-threat given to them. You wonder if this is adding to the other barriers to learning and achievement that BPOC students face with marking, setting, representation, and peers.
4) Can we be culturally-responsive? Find the place where we are recognised as the subject-matter expert in the room, but where we are an equal human with our learners. Recognise that the respect that we have assumed when we start the year is an assumption on both our parts; that we have to then justify that respect by respecting them. Do we elevate them? Do we help them connect the planned new learning to their current knowledge? Do we work with them to connect that new learning to their lived experiences? Do we help broaden their cultural horizons whilst connecting their social backgrounds and ethno-cultural heritages? And do we broaden ours by seeking to understand theirs?
Encourage leaders to support us to reflect on and educate our learners about the values and history that came to produce the knowledge we teach, and why it was chosen to be taught. Be honest and open about our choices. Whether it's microbiology, components of fitness, E.M. Forster, product design, food technology, music...much can be done to help us understand the world we live in. Help them understand whiteness. Do this by learning about the history of racism, so that we can better articulate it. Do not tell them they are guilty for the actions of their descendants but instead explore systemic and institutional oppression, and individual prejudices and racism.
I'll finish by suggesting we ask for advice from BPOC experts in the area. And when you do, pay them, and cite them.
In parts 1 and 2, I explored how the specific privileges of white racism can operate in education. I did this by analysing a reckless blog post from a prominent teacher in the social media edu-sphere.
Here, in the third and final part, I pose some questions to consider.
1) Will we be more open? We could renew our efforts to process any hostile reactions so that we can be more open to discussing, reading, and listening about whiteness.
For example, consider why the mere mention of 'decolonisation' or 'whiteness' provoke anger, incredulity, or mirth in some?
Or why literally everything done in education is inherently political yet only acts of resistance to white supremacy are seen as such?
Or why the effects of 'whiteness' are something you may never have been aware of before? It's remarkable that in 2019, one might not be aware of these things; if anything demonstrates the power of whiteness, it's the ignorance it wills in to people racialised as white. Maybe be more open than the gentleman who tweeted this response to a questioning of the whiteness of the UK national curriculum:
 |
| Hostility, ridicule, and misunderstanding; no serious advocate for decolonising the curriculum is saying this. |
 |
| Decolonising is not about mindlessly removing white people; it is a challenge to received wisdom and a pursuit of 'diverse' insights. |
 |
| Skin colour is not the primary tool for selection, but it is intertwined with whiteness/colonialism; failure to critique and act on this is problematic. |
The dismissal of marginalised knowledges and ways of knowing as ‘identity politics’ is tried and tested white resistance. It is a rhetoric that conceals the real and enduring identity politics behind the claims of 'universal' and 'canonical' knowledge. This is the 'white sleight of hand' that feigns neutrality in order to maintain unequal distributions of power.
2) Can we be more open? This may be hard, especially because people racialised as white tend to live in social environments that protect them from race-based stress, even in educational spaces that are superficially diverse. This "insulated environment of racial protection builds white expectations for racial comfort while at the same time lowering the ability to tolerate racial stress, leading to 'White Fragility'" (Diangelo, 2011).
3) Can we update our definition of racism? Racism encompasses the personal and the institutional; it is part of our economic, political, social, and cultural structures. It encompasses the micro, meso, and macro. It's the embodiment, actions, and beliefs that systematize and re(produce) unequal distributions of advantages, resources and power between people racialised as 'white' and people racialised as 'of colour'. Racism is concerned with impact, not merely (and, often never) intention. It is also, undeniably, real. And students of colour have suffered because of it in education. At this point it might be timely to state that prejudice against white people is race-based prejudice. It is not 'racism'.
Imagine this learning environment: there are firm rules and proper accountability for behaviour, but it's not punitive. You are aware that there is a power imbalance inherent in the traditional student-teacher relationship, but you do the best you can to be fair. You stick to an agreed routine and levels of expectation, so that all learners can thrive. But. You now become aware that you are likely to be biased. You are likely to be biased towards noticing the behaviour of Black and People of Colour (BPOC) students more closely than their white peers. And misjudging it as fractious. And further, you are more likely to penalise those students of colour more harshly, particularly if they are racialised and/or self-identify as black. You now realise that this racialised hyper-vigilance and disproportionate discipline have the potential to snowball, causing your relationship with them to deteriorate (especially if they have experienced this with previous white teachers in primary and secondary). The learner's stress and anxiety of this is now an additional cognitive (and emotional) load that their white peers do not have to bear. It is a daily 'undesirable difficulty', that may impact on their capacities to remember, to relate, to learn, to grow. It may then reduce their sense of belonging and academic self-efficacy. In turn, you wonder if this is compounding the latent racialised stereotypes that society and media have given you, and the stereotype-threat given to them. You wonder if this is adding to the other barriers to learning and achievement that BPOC students face with marking, setting, representation, and peers.
4) Can we be culturally-responsive? Find the place where we are recognised as the subject-matter expert in the room, but where we are an equal human with our learners. Recognise that the respect that we have assumed when we start the year is an assumption on both our parts; that we have to then justify that respect by respecting them. Do we elevate them? Do we help them connect the planned new learning to their current knowledge? Do we work with them to connect that new learning to their lived experiences? Do we help broaden their cultural horizons whilst connecting their social backgrounds and ethno-cultural heritages? And do we broaden ours by seeking to understand theirs?
Encourage leaders to support us to reflect on and educate our learners about the values and history that came to produce the knowledge we teach, and why it was chosen to be taught. Be honest and open about our choices. Whether it's microbiology, components of fitness, E.M. Forster, product design, food technology, music...much can be done to help us understand the world we live in. Help them understand whiteness. Do this by learning about the history of racism, so that we can better articulate it. Do not tell them they are guilty for the actions of their descendants but instead explore systemic and institutional oppression, and individual prejudices and racism.
I'll finish by suggesting we ask for advice from BPOC experts in the area. And when you do, pay them, and cite them.
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