Tag Archives: African American Studies

Julie Landsman: “We Can Create Radical Change”

December 6, 2015

Julie Landsman

Guest post! Minneapolis writer and teacher Julie Landsman has found reason–two reasons, to be exact–to feel hopeful about the Minneapolis Public Schools.

Over the past five years I have written blogs and editorials critical of Minneapolis Public Schools. I have worried that we are operating in a state of testing mania. Even more concerning is that Minneapolis has built a regimented instructional strategy around these tests. As a consequence, we have alienated many of our students. These concerns remain, along with my despair about how our kids are doing without art or music or poetry or theater in many schools. Observing my six –year- old grandson I have often wondered about the lack of recess time and the insistence on the unnatural stillness required of young children for much of the day in our schools. The job of a young girl or boy is to move, to learn about the world through motion, play and activity. We sacrifice their natural physical impulse in order to spend more time to prepare for meaningless tests.

However, in contrast to these continuing frustrations, is the great hope and relief I feel about progress made by two separate things. First: the Office of Equity and Diversity has implemented, in all our high schools, a course in African-American History. This course counts as Social Studies credit. Licensed teachers who received summer coursework and optional, ongoing professional development training throughout the year teach these classes.  African-American and African Studies professor Dr. Keith Mayes, of the University of Minnesota, has been instrumental in helping the Minneapolis schools develop the course. This is a start, and an important one. Curriculum is dear to my heart. I believe that what we teach, combined with high expectations and a caring relationship, can reach our students and support our teachers.

There is also a plan to include a Native American History course as well as Latin American and Asian American courses over the coming years. Schools in districts in California and Arizona are working to provide this kind of history for many of their students. It has taken too long for this to happen in our schools here in Minneapolis, but we can celebrate when change happens, no matter how late.

Who had input to what would be taught, or even in the planning of African-American studies? Not sure. From what I gather from teachers, not enough teacher input went into this, but some did.  There has also been discussion about whether this should be counted as a US History credit. It will not. Some teachers have expressed concern that it furthers institutional racism to “other” African American History in this way; that somehow it is not the “real” history but is one you can choose to know or not know. I agree. The ideal required United States history course would be utterly revamped if I had my way, so that a large amount of time would be given to all perspectives. It could even be taught over a two-year period. Then we might not need African-American history as a separate entity.

But we do not live in ideal times. This new course is a clear step toward including the unique story of African-Americans in our curriculum. Students, both black and white, tell me that they want these classes. They know they live in a multicultural and diverse environment; they know the history of people of color is often given short shrift in their classes. Perhaps students will someday be required to take courses in Ethnic studies. 

Second: The other development out of Michael Walker’s Office of Black Male Student Achievement is the elective classes he has worked to set up in four high schools and four middle schools called Building Lives, Acquiring Cultural Knowledge (B.L.A.C.K.). Teachers, community members, parents and most importantly students  were at the table to help create the course. It is not a course to “fix” Black males but rather it is a course to empower students right now with what they need in order to be heard, to succeed and to navigate the educational and urban world in which they live. Students will learn about culture, arts and literature of African-Americans over time.

Because Black males will be teaching these classes, students will see before them on a daily basis, models for achievement. Tutoring will be part of the week’s schedule, as will be strategies for studying and writing. Each week there will also be an ”open mic” day when classmates will be able to bring up issues they want to talk about and reason through with the help of a caring adult. And it is this adult who is the key to the classes’ success: he is a teacher who is concerned for the welfare of each and every young man in his charge and who has built a relationship with students grounded in trust and persistence.

Michael Walker believes that it is this relationship, as much as the curriculum that will create the environment for members of the class to excel. Such a connection can be the bridge we need to truly welcome Black male students into our schools. Black students have been marginalized, not only by institutional racism but by our unconscious biases as well. Black males bring a wealth of assets, yet we have not provided an inclusive space for their brilliance and creativity to flourish.

Because there are so few black male teacher in the district, Community Experts will be in charge of these courses along with guidance from the University of Minnesota.  These Community Experts are observed and are provided with a teacher mentor. They are teachers in the system and are held to the same responsibilities as a trained teacher. I hope the Davis Center is giving him the budget that allows them to succeed.

As someone who has conversations with students about race and inclusion, I know there is a hunger for just such a class, not only here but all over the country. Already this fall the Building Lives Acquiring Cultural Knowledge classes are in demand. White students also want to have conversations around the topic of race and culture. Perhaps one day a month these classes could include white students in a frank and open discussion of issues in our community. Right now, I believe the emphasis has to be on reaching Black males. As we have seen in the recent shooting of Jamal Clark, supporting Black youth is imperative. At the same time, we can hope that teachers in all their classes will have the important and uncomfortable conversations with their students around race, as well as celebrations of culture. All students need to have time to participate in truthful, factual explorations of the history of racism and its connection to our present moment in time.

The tough thing will be to acknowledge how long true progress takes.  I am always amazed to hear teachers in schools where I consult say, “We can’t change our (History, Literature, Science) course to explore Black perspectives, issues or literature: our content is already determined for us by AP or IB restrictions.” Many teachers are challenging such restrictions; many are questioning the very definition of who gets to be designated “gifted” and how we determine who gets a chance to enter programs defined as such. We have work to do. It is starting. With its caring teachers, its hard-working staff, and these new courses, Minneapolis is beginning to explore ways to turn an old corner and demolish a fortress of institutional racism.

The fear I have, is that the pressure to produce the “data” will happen too soon, so that the demand will come before these courses have had a chance to test the waters, regroup, reorganize and go back and try again. Education in the US does not allow for the time it takes to create lasting change. Perhaps Minneapolis will allow these new courses to flourish without insisting on instant success.  There is no quick fix or sudden cure for the depth of racial biases in our educational system. From the preschool child’s experience to that of the high school senior we can create radical change.

I just hope that these steps taken by the Office or Equity and by the Office of Black Male Student Achievement along with their staff and teachers will be the beginning of real transformation for Minneapolis Schools.

Julie Landsman (www.jlandsman.com)
Julie is the author of three books on education: Basic Needs: A Year with Street Kids in a City School (Milkweed Editions, 1993) A White Teacher Talks About Race (Rowman and Littlefield 2001) and Growing Up White; a Veteran Teacher Reflects on Racism (Rowman and Littlefield, 2008). She is also the editor of many collections of essays stories and poems, the most recent being Voices for Diversity and Social Justice, A Literary Education Reader, with Paul Gorski and Rosanna Salcedo, (Rowman and Littlefield 2015) She is a retired teacher from the Minneapolis public schools, and consults and teaches seminars on education, writing, race and culture.