Interrupting the -Isms Everyday: One Teacher’s Story

On a regular basis, the teachers I coach and teach say something to the effect of, “I agree with you that we need to stand up for what’s right for our students, but I can’t do it alone.” Upon hearing these words, I offer the following 3-pronged response:

1. You’re correct! No single person can change the entire education system.

2. With that said, there is work that you can do in your classroom and school to fight for justice.

3. It’s important to join individual educational justice work with that being done in collectives!

Because I wanted to give my grad students and other educators a tangible story to hold onto, I asked a former student and current elementary educator to speak with me for my podcast (Interrupt the Narrative).

I interviewed Heather—an elementary educator—about her journey as an aspiring anti-racist educator. Hannah paints a picture of what it looks like to interrupt oppression daily in the classroom. With vulnerability, honesty, and wisdom beyond her years, Hannah demonstrates the challenges and triumphs anti-racist teachers face when committed to educational equity.  

In this episode, Heather and I surfaced the following points:

• The importance of staying true to yourself in the work of interrupting oppression in education.

• The reality that this work is a marathon and not a sprint. 

• Navigating power structures when educators are low in the school’s hierarchy.

• The importance of seeing students in the fullness of their humanity when doing this work.

Among the many gems Heather shared, here is one that I’ll leave you with for now: “But in terms of diversity, equity, inclusion, I think it's self-work and it's work that you're engaging with others. Part of it is you're meeting people who are at different places, you're meeting children, but you're also working with adults and it's a pretty high turnaround job of who you're interacting with year-to-year. So you might have knowledge of something that someone else doesn't have yet, and you also might need to support them in redirecting, or them you, so it's not fixed. I think you have to keep your eyes open to doing that work and staying present to it, I think. So you're never finished, I think.”

Intrigued? Want to know more about how you can interrupt the narrative and begin freedom dreaming toward educational justice? Tap into the rich offerings here in the Educators’ Freedom Dreaming Collective. We hope to see you soon!

In solidarity,

Pam