Module 8: How are students supposed to behave at school?
“I define culturally responsive teaching simply as . . . An educator’s ability to recognize students’ cultural displays of learning and meaning making and respond positively and constructively with teaching moves that use cultural knowledge as a scaffold to connect what the student knows to new concepts and content in order to promote effective information processing. All the while, the educator understands the importance of being in a relationship and having a social-emotional connection to the student in order to create a safe space for learning.” (Hammond, 2014, p. 15)
Overview
A Message From Shaheen
In our continued exploration of ableism in schools, we turn to the question “how are students supposed to behave in schools?” Many scholars have argued that public school is a white middle-class institution that enforces normalcy by mandating white middle-class behavioral norms. As a result, these scholars argue, schools pushout Black girls and funnel Black and Brown children (especially disabled boys) into the criminal justice system. This process is called the school-to-prison pipeline.
This module, we explore the ways in which schools oppress disabled, Black, Brown, and Indigenous ways of being and how we, as educators and other professionals, can disrupt these patterns by choosing to embrace ways of being that are different from our own (disabled ways, Black ways, Brown ways, Indigenous ways).
I encourage you to approach this module’s Engage sources with an open mind. These sources will challenge many of the things you have been taught about behavior.
This topic is an emotionally challenging topic to explore. The Engage sources contain content that many will find triggering. In particular, the Engage sources that address oppressing disabled ways of being heavily cover state sanctioned violence.
Musical Moment
Eliza Hull – Running Underwater (Official Video)
|
Component |
Estimated Time to Complete |
|---|---|
|
Engage |
20 mins-1 hr 20 mins |
|
Reflect |
1 hr |
|
Chat |
1-2 hrs |
|
Self-Assess |
10-15 mins |
Engage
Required: Embracing Disabled Ways of Being
|
Source |
Summary |
Estimated Time |
|---|---|---|
|
Teaching Isn’t About Managing Behavior By Christopher Emdin |
This article discusses reality pedagogy: the idea that teaching is about creating a safe space for dialogue about real world experiences. |
4-7 mins |
|
Marcel: Open Caption By Dan Habib |
This video discusses racial disparities in education and how cultural responsiveness is important. |
7-14.5 mins |
|
Black Lives Matter at School Book Trailer By Haymarket Books |
This video describes institutionalized racism as it functions in schools and describes how teachers can combat this with antiracism. |
1.5-3 mins |
|
The Power of the Autistic Stim By Devin S. Turk |
Devin Turk shares their experiences with stimming and how they wish the world would view it. |
3 mins |
Pick 2-3: Oppressing Disabled Ways of Being
|
Source |
Summary |
Estimated Time |
|---|---|---|
|
Black Girls With Disabilities Are Disproportionately Criminalized By Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Dr. Subini Ancy and Vilissa Thompson |
This article discusses how the intersections of race, disability, and gender lead to the adultification, criminalization, and overall harassment of Black disabled girls. |
3.5-6 mins |
|
“I Can’t Breathe.” It Happens at Schools, Too. By Jennifer Smith Richards, Chicago Tribune, and Jodi S. Cohen with ProPublica Illinois |
This article discusses how schools use restraints to control and punish students, leading to their trauma, injury, and horrifically, their death. |
3.5-6 mins |
|
On ABA: They Hate You. Yes, You. By Shannon Des Roches Rosa |
This blog post discusses the history and effects of ABA therapy on the autistic community. |
7-12 mins |
|
This article discusses systemic issues Black and disabled students face in schools, and the need to include, and value Black and disabled perspectives when working on “special” education policy, structures, and regulations. |
2-4 mins |
Optional
|
Source |
Summary |
Estimated Time |
|---|---|---|
|
It’s Not About Behavior By Alfie Kohn |
This blog post critiques the restrictive and generally ineffective nature of behaviorism as it is applied in K-12 education. |
3-5 mins |
|
To the Disabled Students Heading Back to School, I See You By Kathleen Downes |
In this blog post, a disabled woman reflects on her time in school and the ableism she confronted. |
2-4 mins |
|
What about the other kids in the room? By Alex Shevrin Venet |
This article discusses how to address behavior in a way that includes the “other kids” in the room and how to make your classroom a safe space for everyone. |
4-7 mins |
Reflect
Use the prompts below as a jumping off point. Do not let the prompts confine your reflection.
To create classrooms that value and embrace many ways of being, including disabled ways of being, we must first examine our culture and what our culture has taught us about learning and behavior. Hammond (2014) suggests the following questions to prompt that exploration:
- Surface-level Reflection (pick 2 questions)
- What is the story of your family in America? Has your family been here for generations, a few decades, or just a few years?
- How would you describe your family’s economic status—middle class, upper class, working class, or low income? What did that mean in terms of quality of life?
- Who were the heroes celebrated in your family and/or community? Why? Who were the “bad guys”?
- What family stories are regularly told or referenced? What message do they communicate about core values?
- Deeper Reflection (pick 2 questions)
- Review primary messages from your upbringing: What did your parents, neighbors, and other authority figures tell you respect looked like? Disrespect?
- How were you trained to respond to different emotional displays—crying, anger, and happiness?
- How were you expected to interact with authority figures? Was authority of teachers and other elders assumed, or did it have to be earned?
- What got you shunned or shamed in your family?
- What earned you praise as a child?
Chat
Use the prompts below as a jumping off point for a conversation with others in your class or community.
- What issues are addressed in the Engage sources? What evidence does the author provide about those problems?
- What can these Engage sources teach us about behavioral expectations in school?
Self-Assess
- What idea/concept from this module was the CLEAREST to you?
- What idea/concept from this module was the MUDDIEST to you?
- Rate your knowledge on the ideas discussed in this module
- Expert
- Mastered
- Competent
- Still Developing
- Undeveloped
FAQ
Q1: If we know that the strategies being used (e.g., isolation rooms, ABA, etc.) are causing harm, why are they still being used?
A1: This is a great question that is difficult to answer in short form. From our perspective, systemic ableism, diverse perspectives, and the slow pace of educational change are some of the causes. As you work through the rest of the Guidebook, continue to ponder this question.
Q2: How does ableism intersect with other forms of oppression in schools?
A2: Think about the stories and experiences you just read about intersectionality. What were the intersecting identities of the students? All their identities play a role in who they are and how they are treated by society, and in school. Similarly, various forms of systemic oppression interlock and thereby magnify harm. For example, in the Overview for this module, Shaheen talks about how systemic ableism and racism interlock to form the school-to-prison pipeline.
