Thread by @MrBarltrop

Today I'm going to #LiveTweet my reading of "Anti-racism and Universal Design for Learning (building expressways to success)" by @FritzTesha

This book covers two very important topics all teachers should choose to bring into their classroom.

#EdChat #LitChat #UDL #Teaching

xi - oppressive systems of white supremacy are built into our school systems, which disadvantage the abilities for black students to learn and express themselves.

x - black students are asked to conform and comply by adhering to White standards of expression, identity, and beauty.

These systems prevent students from feeling safe and must be disrupted.

xi - it is integral that teachers have communication with families. This could be achieved by emailing all parents letting them know what's going on in the classroom, and looking for suggestions on what could be brought in to the classroom for individual students or the community

xiii - black students are very often mislabeled in the education system. By using Universal Design to pre accommodate for the needs of our students, we remove the need to label (and thus mislabel) many of our students.

2 providing the option for extra help after school may allow the teacher to feel good, but it may disadvantage students as it removes other opportunities that would better fit their needs for extra help. This may lead to the teacher feeling they have already done enough.

5 it is important to confront the five aspects of structural power. It may be beneficial to have a professional development session with your department or school to discuss what those aspects look like in most classrooms, allowing you to better disrupt them.

6 it's better to adhere to a code of honor that acknowledges the purposeful intent and actions to abolish the existing power structures, while reflecting on how we can best empower our students by creating opportunities for them within learning communities

10 one and done snapshot assessments at a specific time on a specific day should never be used to determine a student's ability or lack of ability, as it does not allow for a full understanding.

18 when you learn about all the difficulties your students face you can either choose to cry, or you can accept that what you do in the classroom will impact what happens tomorrow and decide to teach your students.

21 when you are trying to get and educator to buy into something new, it is important to show them the results. Once somebody has tasted a delicious meal they will be far more interested in looking at, and studying the recipe to recreate it for themselves.

22 - when students are presented with opportunities to learn and reflect, knowing that there is no formal project or assessment at the end of it, they will begin to choose strategies that aid in the pleasure of their learning, which will help them on all later assessments.

29 make time for post round table metacognitive self-reflections. Well it might seem valuable to allow all voices the full class to speak, it is important to prioritize metacognition so that students begin to prioritize the use and understanding of those skills.

32 a list of strategies for excellent pedagogy.

33 educators cannot be forced to practice anti-racism in their classroom, it must be a choice. It is very important that teachers understand the value of anti-racist pedagogy so that they make that choice and commitment on their own for the benefit of all students.

41 explicitly teach problem solving skills, and expectation setting by using timed activities like the circle maker.

48 all of our students want to learn and want to be able to demonstrate their learning. It is poor instructional design that holds them back.

49 many people say that the education system is broken. However another way of looking at it is that the educational system is performing exactly as intended. It "allow[s] White privilege students to succeed and move ahead while others are held back."

49 three things for there to be strong authentic learning. Student interest first needs to be activated, then the information needs to be presented in a way that they can comprehend, finally students must be offered a way to demonstrate what they have learned in a useful fashion.

53 every teacher has seen a new government come in and create a new document, or push a new fad, but the thing about Universal Design for Learning is that it is an underlying pedagogical framework that can be strengthened in regardless of the current flavor of the month.

60 traditional classrooms welcome a student's intellect, but often force them to keep their creativity boxed away until the end of the school day.

Universal Design for Learning allows students to demonstrate their intellect through their creativity to best show their learning!

65 we dishonor our students when we force them to depend on us for the decision-making.

We can honor our students by including them in the development of learning, and self-selection of direction forward. UDL allows for this through differentiation while adhering to standards.

72 teachers need to understand that not all students have the same end goals. Teachers need to learn, and value students individual life goals.

By sharing their own goals teachers can show they are still reaching towards things, which will help students understand the process.

73 when creating assignments it is important that students submit their work to an actual authority, not just let their work and on the teacher's desk.

This was the entire rationale behind my publication project.

whatbinder.com/2019/06/26/the…

75 what happens in the classroom needs to connect to the story of the school's community, showing all of the positive aspects while not shine away from the negative aspects.

Students need to see their community reflected in the teaching.

77 creating an interactive community map can be a great way to allow students to add little explanation videos, and links, and pictures of the places that are important to them to share their story with the world.

A communal Google map might be the best way to do this?

80 parents need to understand what is happening inside of the classroom in order to enhance it at home. A video classroom tour could be helpful (check into the legalities), and requesting encouragement videos from parents to show privately the students in class could also help.

86 word problems in math and other subjects almost always favor the white experience. Questions about a ferris wheel may not be as inclusive as questions about a hula hoop.

If the end goal is to think about a circle, one must use an example that connects with all students.

87 a co-constructed classroom resource that students create sharing examples, videos, and articles that relate to the current subject area or technique will enhance the learning of all students, well honoring their input.

Google slides might be the best tool for this?

88 Many students force themselves to sit through lessons that reflect the teacher's experience, and what the teacher is passionate about.

A strong Universal Design for Learning teacher will sacrifice what they are passionate about, to frame the lesson around student passions.

93 teachers need to ask themselves if people of color are represented in the posters they have on their wall.

When somebody walks into the room they are able to tell a lot about the space by looking around. Many teachers probably don't even think of these things.

98 at the beginning of the year you can show the students the specific curricular expectations the government says must be covered for them to attain a credit.

Then you can have them discuss all the different ways they can demonstrate those curricular skills, giving them control

103 if a teacher actually wants students to be interested in their lessons, it is important that the teacher connects those lessons directly to student interests, and links them to real life problems that students are facing.

109 when teachers identify a student's talents, they should be pushing them to use them outside of the classroom. A strong writer can be directed towards a local magazine. An artist can be pointed towards a gallery. A musician can be shown how to submit music to radio stations.

111 providing strong sentence starters isn't making a task easier, it's providing equal footing for everyone to best demonstrate all of their learning.

All students should be provided with the number of strong sentence status that help focus the task at hand.

115 it's important to remember that not all students thrive on competition. While many people enjoy competitive games, it can hinder the experience for others.

Personally I prefer cooperative board games over competitive ones. Although, I still enjoy competitive ones I know.

115 "historical events that feature an oppressed people group should never be used in role-playing experiences. We don't need another generation enacting problematic race relations or oppressive historical events for the sake of perspective or word problem solving."

118 standardized testing creates a cycle of hopelessness that prioritizes white experiences, leaving a message leading black students to feel that they are a failure because they are disadvantaged by a system that expects them to perform better or else it will get them in trouble

118 why do standardized tests always prioritize the white experience? Why are the questions not written in a way that gives black and urban students the upper hand?

121 consider long-term impact of failure rather than short-term.

Parents view a failure today as a learning opportunity for tomorrow, and the years to come. They reward attempt. Classrooms need to do the same, not holding today's failure against the student's future evaluation.

125 descriptive feedback is like a gps. The student has already set the destination, but the teacher is customizing the best path for them to get from where they are to where they want to be.

127 Expert Learners know that failure is never final. But, they also know that success is never final, too.

Each of them is just one stop in the lifelong journey of learning. Each of them is just as important as the other, as they provide opportunities to chart the way forward.

131 implementing a new framework into your teaching is like construction on the highway. It may look messy and slow things down while the change is happening, but once the construction is finished the road is safer for everyone, and your classroom will run much more smoothly.

137 black and brown voices have been marginalized for a long time. It is important that you ensure that those voices are invited into the center of your classroom, into the center of your teaching.

140 it is incredibly important to find your teaching tribe. You need to surround yourself by like-minded educators who are excited to challenge themselves, and challenge you to be better. As a community you will all strengthen each other. They will keep you in check.

141 new educators are constantly coming into the profession. When a new teacher comes to your school, be sure to invite them into your community. Use this as an opportunity to spread the joy of Universal Design for Learning, and strengthen your community of like-minded educators.

153 Universal Design for Learning is a personal choice to stand for what is right.

154 teachers have to be willing to release their own power in order to empower their students and amplify their voices, their concerns, and their choices as well as their destinations.

And that brings me to the end of this book by @FritzTesha .

Thank you very much for this learning opportunity!

As the @tdsb moves towards Academic Pathways it's integral that all #teachers understand and implement #udl in their classrooms.

#onted #osstf #tdsb #antiracism #etfo