#BARWE215
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  • About Us
  • Inquiry Series 4 (2021-22 SY)
    • September: How do we prepare ourselves for a year of striving towards being antiracist educators?
    • October: How can we take action when doing anti-racist work in spite of real or perceived risks?
    • November: How can we build lasting partnerships with co-conspirators?
    • December: What is a risky topic in my curriculum and how do I lean into that topic instead of shying away?
    • February: What barriers exist to forming partnerships with our students?
    • March: How would a commitment to equity principles increase our capacity to build authentic partnerships with BIPOC colleagues?
    • April: How would a commitment to equity principles increase our capacity to build authentic partnerships with BIPOC colleagues?
    • May: How do we develop a better understanding of Black educators’ realities in order to better support them?
  • Inquiry Resources
    • How to Start a BARWE Group
    • Norms
    • Problem of Practice Protocol
    • Discussion Protocols
    • Bringing in Coconspirators
    • Facilitators Troubleshooting Guide
  • Summer Series 2021
    • Why are we accepting payment this year?
  • Inquiry Series 3 (2020-21 SY)
    • September: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in ourselves and our institutions?
    • October: How can we as white educators center Black joy in our classrooms and schools?
    • November: How can we more deeply reflect and/or apply what we learned about white supremacy culture and Black Joy?
    • December: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
    • January: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
    • February: How can we create classroom culture that resists white supremacy and that nourishes Black joy?
    • March: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our classroom culture? How can we co-create joy with students?
    • April: How can we help develop staff culture that resists white supremacy culture and makes space for Black joy?
    • May: How can we help develop staff culture that resists white supremacy culture and makes space for Black joy?
  • Summer 2020 Reading Series
    • Summer Reading 2020: Purpose
    • Zoom Meeting 1: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 2: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 3: We Want to Do More Than Survive
    • Zoom Meeting 4: We Want to Do More Than Survive
  • Inquiry Series 2 (2019-20 SY)
    • September: What does it mean to develop an anti-racist identity as a white educator?
    • October: How do our implicit biases affect our students?
    • November: How could incorporating ethnic studies in our classrooms and schools help make our curriculum more antiracist?
    • December: How can we ensure that our school discipline policies are equitable and do not push girls of color out of school spaces?
    • January: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February: How can we recruit and retain more Black teachers in our schools?
    • March: How can White educators be accountable to their colleagues of color?
    • April: How can we interrupt anti-AAPI and xenophobic narratives in our classrooms and school communities?
    • May: How do we support our students during this crisis and connect to the larger fight to dismantle race and class oppression in our communities?
  • Summer 2019 "Seeing White" Discussion
  • Inquiry Series 1 (2018-19 SY)
    • August 2018: Why do white teachers need to talk about race?
    • September 2018: How can our curriculum challenge dominant and oppressive ideologies?
    • October 2018: How can we identify and challenge implicit bias in our own practice?
    • November 2018: How does whiteness affect our practices, relationships, and expectations in the classroom and the school community?
    • December 2018: How do we disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline?
    • January 2019: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February 2019: Why are teachers of color so important for our schools and how can we increase their numbers?
    • March 2019: How can we support colleagues of color and build anti-racist work environments?
    • April 2019: How can we implement culturally relevant teaching to challenge the culture of power that exists in schools?
    • May 2019: How do we push our schools, classrooms, and communities to incorporate more equitable disciplinary practices?
    • June 2019: How do we move this conversation forward and include more educators?
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Inquiry Series 4 (2021-22 SY)
    • September: How do we prepare ourselves for a year of striving towards being antiracist educators?
    • October: How can we take action when doing anti-racist work in spite of real or perceived risks?
    • November: How can we build lasting partnerships with co-conspirators?
    • December: What is a risky topic in my curriculum and how do I lean into that topic instead of shying away?
    • February: What barriers exist to forming partnerships with our students?
    • March: How would a commitment to equity principles increase our capacity to build authentic partnerships with BIPOC colleagues?
    • April: How would a commitment to equity principles increase our capacity to build authentic partnerships with BIPOC colleagues?
    • May: How do we develop a better understanding of Black educators’ realities in order to better support them?
  • Inquiry Resources
    • How to Start a BARWE Group
    • Norms
    • Problem of Practice Protocol
    • Discussion Protocols
    • Bringing in Coconspirators
    • Facilitators Troubleshooting Guide
  • Summer Series 2021
    • Why are we accepting payment this year?
  • Inquiry Series 3 (2020-21 SY)
    • September: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in ourselves and our institutions?
    • October: How can we as white educators center Black joy in our classrooms and schools?
    • November: How can we more deeply reflect and/or apply what we learned about white supremacy culture and Black Joy?
    • December: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
    • January: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
    • February: How can we create classroom culture that resists white supremacy and that nourishes Black joy?
    • March: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our classroom culture? How can we co-create joy with students?
    • April: How can we help develop staff culture that resists white supremacy culture and makes space for Black joy?
    • May: How can we help develop staff culture that resists white supremacy culture and makes space for Black joy?
  • Summer 2020 Reading Series
    • Summer Reading 2020: Purpose
    • Zoom Meeting 1: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 2: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 3: We Want to Do More Than Survive
    • Zoom Meeting 4: We Want to Do More Than Survive
  • Inquiry Series 2 (2019-20 SY)
    • September: What does it mean to develop an anti-racist identity as a white educator?
    • October: How do our implicit biases affect our students?
    • November: How could incorporating ethnic studies in our classrooms and schools help make our curriculum more antiracist?
    • December: How can we ensure that our school discipline policies are equitable and do not push girls of color out of school spaces?
    • January: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February: How can we recruit and retain more Black teachers in our schools?
    • March: How can White educators be accountable to their colleagues of color?
    • April: How can we interrupt anti-AAPI and xenophobic narratives in our classrooms and school communities?
    • May: How do we support our students during this crisis and connect to the larger fight to dismantle race and class oppression in our communities?
  • Summer 2019 "Seeing White" Discussion
  • Inquiry Series 1 (2018-19 SY)
    • August 2018: Why do white teachers need to talk about race?
    • September 2018: How can our curriculum challenge dominant and oppressive ideologies?
    • October 2018: How can we identify and challenge implicit bias in our own practice?
    • November 2018: How does whiteness affect our practices, relationships, and expectations in the classroom and the school community?
    • December 2018: How do we disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline?
    • January 2019: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February 2019: Why are teachers of color so important for our schools and how can we increase their numbers?
    • March 2019: How can we support colleagues of color and build anti-racist work environments?
    • April 2019: How can we implement culturally relevant teaching to challenge the culture of power that exists in schools?
    • May 2019: How do we push our schools, classrooms, and communities to incorporate more equitable disciplinary practices?
    • June 2019: How do we move this conversation forward and include more educators?
#BARWE215

October: How do our implicit biases affect our students? 

*If this is your first time doing a BARWE discussion group, we recommend starting with the August 2018 materials. If this is your first year doing this series, we recommend that you follow the 2018-19 Inquiry Series 1 Discussion Guides. Here is this month’s guide from Inquiry Series 1.

Don't forget to give us feedback!

Overview

Implicit bias is something that all people have. We get messages from all areas of society about who is smart, who is good, and who to be afraid of. It is important that educators explore their own implicit biases and work to challenge them in the classroom. As part of this inquiry series, we are particularly focused on how implicit bias ingrained in White educators contributes to anti-Black racism in classrooms and schools. The first step of this process is recognition of our biases, and through critical reflection, over time and with support, we can work to change our actions to make our classrooms more just. 
​

This month’s reading is a website put together by the MIT Teaching Systems Lab. We encourage participants to read the website before meeting in order to think about why bias matters, how bias can surface in teaching, and how schools and educators can improve. We suggest you use the video created by Race Forward (about a third of the way down on the site) to start off your group inquiry meeting this month. In the video, young Black high school students describe their experiences dealing with implicit bias from their teachers and schools. Note, the video ends with the students asking what they can do to foster change. We believe the answer lies not with the students' behaviors but with our own thoughts and actions that are affecting their educational opportunities and experiences.
​

Primary Articles

  • Primary Video: Race Forward video
  • ​Primary Article: Unconscious Bias in Teaching

​Guiding Questions

​
  • How do our implicit biases affect our students? 
  • What racist ideas lie behind our implicit biases?
  • How does implicit bias play out in your school or work setting?
  • How can we identify and challenge implicit biases in our own practices?

Additional Readings


  • The insidiousness of unconscious bias in schools
  • (Biased) Grading of Students’ Performance: Students’ Names, Performance Level, and Implicit Attitudes

Facilitation Information

  • Set a day and time for your group to meet - during lunch, before school, after school, whatever works best for participants. Make sure to send reminders. Also, snacks are always a good idea!
  • Send this month’s Primary Article to your group. You could even send this to a broader group of your colleagues - maybe it will pique someone’s interest! Also look through the additional readings to see if there is another reading that might be better suited to your group and its interests.
  • Prepare yourself to facilitate by reading through our Norms and Discussion Protocol. Choose the protocol that works best for your group in this month. If you have a large group, maybe ask a colleague to help facilitate.
  • Pass the Hat at the end of your discussion and collect donations for Journey 4 Justice this month.
  • Complete the Feedback Form.
  • Prepare yourself for November by setting a date and time, inviting colleagues, and looking out for our next Discussion Guide on November 1st.

Feedback Form

We want to know who is using these resources, what they find useful, and any recommendations for improvements in the future. We hope that one person in your group can take a few minutes to fill out our feedback form to let us know how it went.

Here are a few takeaways from previous meetings:
  • “Always such thought-provoking readings that pack a punch”
  • "I'm...working this year on creating a more positive and empowered classroom environment where we all work together to hold one another accountable for exploring systems of privilege and power in U.S. History without shutting down/giving into white fragility."​
  • “We're really feeling our 7th Agreement--making commitments to take outside of the space that lead to anti-racist changes in our lives and at school!”

​
Thank you all for you feedback so far, please keep it coming!

Pass the Hat

In addition to being accountable to our colleagues and students of color, we believe it is important to be financially accountable to people of color who are doing this work on a daily basis. Each month, we will recommend an organization led by people of color, in education and beyond, doing the work of pushing for justice.

At the end of each monthly discussion, pass a hat (or a box) and collect donations for the designated organization. You can then have one group member go online and donate in the name of your school. If you want, you can add “Building Anti-Racist White Educators” after your school name.

This month, we encourage you to donate to Journey 4 Justice, an organization founded and run by Black educators and organizers which aims to create more racially just school systems.
​

If you are looking to buy refreshments for your session, we recommend supporting businesses owned by people of color, especially Black-owned businesses, if at all possible. In Philly, we recommend Amalgam Comics & Coffeehouse, Franny Lou’s Porch, and Uncle Bobbie’s Coffee & Books.
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