Introduction
We, the 2020 Advisory Committee, see the
diversity of our community as a strength and tremendous asset for MPS. As such, we support the Minneapolis Public
Schools promise to the community to provide an inspirational education
experience in a safe, welcoming environment for ALL learners where our students
can acquire the tools and skills necessary to engage confidently in the community.
It is important that the district
understand that a diverse learning community is an asset for our students
whether they are academic standouts or struggling in school. Too often, integration is proposed as a
solution from a deficit rather than being properly seen from a growth mindset.
We request that the school board honor the
Equity and Diversity Impact Assessment (EDIA) process when making district-wide
resource decisions and especially when the decision is related to significant
resource allocations and/or significant impact on MPS services to students
across the district.
My
Comments:
This
introduction is not clearly written, presaging a general problem with this
document as it moves toward the detailed recommendations.
I
would simplify the introduction and avoid the usual jargon as follows:
We
request that district decision-makers overhaul curriculum for knowledge
intensity, for delivery in grade by grade sequence throughout the PreK-12
years, as detailed above [in my rendering of other sectional categories]. We
are of the conviction that all students except those with significantly unusual
challenges can master such a rigorous curriculum and acquire the knowledge and
skill sets with alacrity. Such a
curriculum will necessarily include the entire international community and the
representatives of that community residing in the United States. Teachers and staff will be trained to honor and inform themselves about the major
aspects of all cultures across the international community, with special
attention to those cultures represented in the Minneapolis Public Schools;
…………………………………………………………………………..
The
first category given for emphasis and detailed recommendations is as
follows; my own comments are save until
the end of the presentation of this category.
Inclusion
and Access
In alignment with MPS Equity and Diversity
Policy 1304 we, the 2020 Advisory Committee, request that the school board
remain committed to this policy and the underlying accountability message:
Every
student deserves a respectful learning environment in which their racial and
ethnic diversity is valued and contributes to successful academic
outcomes. Minneapolis Public Schools is
committed to identifying and correcting practices and policies that perpetuate
the achievement gap and institutional racism in all forms in order to provide all
of its students with the opportunity to succeed. Learning and work environments are enriched
and improved by the contributions, perspectives, and very presence of students
in each of our school and to our mission statements.
Equity, inclusion, and valuing diversity must remain a core value
for the district. We believe that MPS
needs to place greater emphasis on commitment to these beliefs that are
embedded at the school and classroom level.
Strategies must extend beyond a simple look at school-by-school
demographics. The presence of a diverse
student body is not evidence of inclusion, if all parts of that student body
are not provided opportunity to participate in many of the programs within a
school.
More intentional consideration must take
place for the student, family, and staff experience within MPS. Do all feel welcome in the school? Are student supports available to ensure that
students of any background can succeed?
Are the voices of all families well represented in school decisions, not
just a vocal and privileged minority?
Are hiring practices equitable?
Self-Evaluation
We request that the school district perform
a mandatory self-examination and assessment of the current equity, diversity,
and inclusion practices within our schools/learning community, and the
district. This self-examination should
be performed for all students in all racial groups and communities including
students with disabilities; in all areas
of the school (classrooms, hallways, after school programs, etc.); and for all types of programming, from IB
programs to Special Education.
As schools and programs are undergoing what
may be a difficult and painful self-assessment, it is important to stress the
harm that is being done not just to those students being left our of certain
programs, but that is being done to the students who are learning without the
full benefits of a diverse classroom that would provide them with a richer
experience.
Assessments of inclusion must include the
voices of all families in the school, not just a vocal and privileged minority. It is critical to understand the perspective
of families who have felt excluded in the past.
Advisory
2020 Recommendations--- Inclusion and
Access
>>>>> One measure of the cost effectiveness or
a program must be whether it advances district goals of academic excellence,
equity, and inclusion. Programs or
communities that historically limit access to certain student groups and
habitually exclude others must be asked to take corrective action.
>>>>> Access should be viewed very broadly,
such that schools are encouraged to look beyond their walls to the rich
experience in the community outside (e. g., neighborhood groups, social
services) for ideas and assistance in ensuring students and their families feel
valued.
>>>>> Inclusion also means that the rich
diversity of students is reflected in the classroom, school, curriculum, and in
the teaching staff. Schools should be
proactively working to ensure their schools reflect the diversity of our
community.
>>>>> Students need to be the drivers of the
way they are learning, including individualized learning plans, student voice,
student-led education, project-based learning, and having curriculum that
reflects the students including race/ethnicity, disabilities, etc.
>>>>> Based on our conversation with high
school students, there is a need for fewer distractions from other students in
the class.
>>>>> Students have asked for broader access
to life skills such as arts and financial literacy in school.
>>>>> There is also greater need for
partnerships with local companies and internship possibilities.
>>>>> Ethnic studies should be a requirement
for graduation.
My
Comments:
The
document has gotten repetitive at this point, so that key points are in danger
of getting lost in the profuse verbiage.
In the document that I would rewrite, I would shorten the length to two
or three pages (from eight and not repeat what I have laaredy driven home
concerning the need to embed equity and respect for the cultures of the
international community in the delivery of a knowledge-intensive,
skill-replete, logically sequenced curriculum to be imparted by retrained
teachers capable of imparting such a curriculum.
A number
of recommendations of the committee are lamentable.
Consider,
from this section on Inclusion and Access:
Students
need to be the drivers of the way they are learning, including
individualized
learning plans, student voice, student-led education,
project-based
learning, and having curriculum that reflects the students
including
race/ethnicity, disabilities, etc.
Ethnic studies should be a
requirement for graduation.
Students
should not be the drivers or leaders of the way that they are learning. That is the responsibility of teachers who
are imparting a knowledge-intensive, skill-replete curriculum
in the manner of village elders passing on the cultural inheritance of
the human past. Students should be given
ample opportunity to express their views on all manner of topics featured in
the curriculum and by the time that they get to high school they should be
given ample curricular options for pursuing their driving personal academic
interests and individual interests pertinent to the fine, technological, and
vocational arts. Content of ethnic
studies should have already been covered in curriculum at the K-5 and grades
6-8 levels, so that specialized courses in history and literature will serve at
a more sophisticated level the intent of the 2020 Committee.
The next article in this series will feature the 2020 Advisory
Committee’s recommendation concerning Literacy and Curriculum, with my comments
on those recommendations.
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