Thread by @lynnshon

Beware when "resilience" is used to replace "grit".

I believe resilience is a powerful trait that a school community can embody.

But asking individual Ss to "be resilient" can be just as harmful & racist as "have grit". 1/

Resilience is one of my school's core values, and I've been thinking about how this value has been used to celebrate, and to motivate, individual students.

Although this is all being done in good faith, it is unfair, misleading, and harmful. 2/

Resilience is a COMMUNITY trait that is fully dependent on ppl deeply caring for one another, & the collective work being done to remove structural barriers that disengage and divide students in the first place. The barriers need to be addressed, not the children. 3/

As we wrap up our 2nd cycle of remote PT conferences, we hear/feel the extreme disparities across Ss that were once a part of shared classroom, more intensely than ever. Even as a tireless optimist, the concept of a single classroom “leveling the playing field” is laughable. 4/

No one can "be" resilient on call. Resilience depends on that school community implementing policies that actively address social and environmental inequities. More than ever, we teachers are seeing how our students’ ability to engage & learn are dependent on their zip codes. 5/

“Rather than hoping a child is tough enough to endure the insurmountable, we must build resilient places- healthier, safer, more nurturing and just- where all children can thrive.” Please read @monahanaa's piece @nytopinion, which led me to reflect on the use of "resilience". 6/

"But how long can we ask people born in the wrong ZIP code to 'rise above' and persevere in circumstances beyond their control, no matter how central the idea of overcoming is to our archetypal American identity?" nytimes.com/2020/05/12/opi…

Thanks @maimizunooo for sharing this piece.

Thank you @EduColorMVMT #educolor for being that community. We are resilient.