Schools seeking guidance to teach diversity, combating bias

By: Mary Ann Koruth
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey

..... Starting this school year, [2021-2022] New Jersey's K-12 schools are required to include diversity and inclusion instruction in their curricula - but the state Department of Education has not yet provided guidance or sample lessons on how to do so in accordance with the law.
..... The one-page law, which took effect in March, [2021] requires the Commissioner of Education to provide guidance and sample lessons to school districts on developing instructional materials that promote themes of diversity, and equity, and examine the impact of unconscious bias and economic disparities in society.
..... The law has kicked in at a time when discussions about how K-12 curricula should reflect diversity initiatives have come to a head, dividing communities and turning board of education meetings into shouting matches.
..... The state Department of Education did not directly address the question of whether the sate has provided guidance. After repeated requests asking if it had issued guidance or sample lessons to educators, a spokesperson said via email: "The Department is actively working to provide school districts sample learning activities and resources to support school districts in the implementation P.L. 2021,c.32."
..... The Governor's office also deflected answering a question about what materials the Department of Education has provided to districts to support the new law, saying in a statement that Governor Phil Murphy was proud to sign a law ensuring that students learn about diverse voices and perspectives.
..... However, many of the main ideas enshrined in the law - to highlight diversity and equity in K-12 school curricula - were already being adopted and put in place in New Jersey's schools within the last decade, long before Murphy signed a law mandating this across the state, say educators. Momentum from this have begun to tackle race and anti-racism more intensionally in school-wide practices and culture.
..... "I think that what the law has done is put into writing what schools were already doing in reality," said Karen Binget, executive director of the New Jersey Principals and supervisors Association.
..... Bingert, who retired this summer [2021] after serving as a high school principal and vice principal in the Hillsborough school district in Central Jersey for 22 years, said that the goal of a law like this is to create a safe and welcoming environment for all students.
..... "The premise of attending public schools in New Jersey is to recognize students for who they are, their unique contributions. this law has just given schools the means to embed these ideas in their curriculum, but it is what was already happening," she said. "It is intended to help students see themselves in history and see the contributions of people, who are just like them recognized, to build up confidence in them."
..... An example of this would be the recent trend toward expanding the selection of novels for English Literature curricula to bring out a broader pocking of cultures, themes and authors than were historically available.
..... An example of this would be the recent trend toward expanding the selection of novels for English Literature curricula to bring out a broader picking of cultures, themes and authors than were historically available.
..... Some schools are embedding these ideas by embracing curricula like the Anti-Defamation League's No Place for Hate program, which provides K-12 lesson plans that encourage in-class critical thinking and discussion about current events.
..... In Wayne Township, which uses the No Place for Hate program, three parents are running for the school board on the grounds that they disagree with proposed changes to curricula recently highlighting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
..... Heated debates around creating such curricula have become a defining issue in board of education races that will be decided in next week's [11/02/2021] midterm election.
..... Mark Toback, superintendent of Wayne schools said the sate has not provided school administrators with any direction on how to implement the law. he was responding to a question about the backlash from parents who say the district's new DEI-themed mission, which reflects the priorities outlined in the new law, is controversial and limits academic success.
..... "The law is very broad and whenever any goal or direction is established, a lack of planning or specific guidance is a hindrance to implementation," he said in an email.
..... Most of the educators contacted were not aware of any specific guidance sent out from the state regarding the law.
..... A list of broadcast memos to district administrators that the Department of Education publishes on its website do not appear to contain any direction or sample lessons.
..... Efforts made by districts in New Jersey to incorporate diversity and inclusion in their instructional materials pr-date the law, but these initiatives have been undertaken with support from the state, educators said.
..... Janina Kusielewicz, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction at Clifton Public Schools, said her district implements requirements that fall within the New Jersey Learning Standards and does so "in an age, grade and developmentally appropriate manner with a focus on understanding, tolerance and inclusion of those other than ourselves."
..... Colleen Murray, chief academic officer for the Haddonfield School district in Camden County, said she was not aware of any instructions coming from the state on how to implement the law, but that the district independently made changes in its curricula over the last two years to reflect diversity and inclusion. she said specialists from the department of education frequently discuss practices and share resources specific to this law at monthly meetings of the Camden county Curriculum consortium.
..... "Well before the law was enacted, we reviewed the curriculum to see if it was representative of traditionally marginalized groups. It's a big nut - sample lessons would help but my assessment is that the state is trying to facilitate conversations about these topics."
..... Her district worked with Rowan University to review the curriculum for equity and to see if it had representation from under-represented groups. The district made changes in its curriculum based on the university's recommendations over a two-year period. During that period, Murray said her district also set up a social studies committee of 20 people comprised of teachers, board members and parents who took a close look at the curriculum from a diversity and inclusion lens. The district also has an equity council that meets several times a year to review instruction.
..... The New Jersey Education Association, New Jersey's largest public school teachers union, has said that it supports the law. It said in a statement that it recommended to the law's sponsors that they expand incorporating instruction on diversity and inclusion to all grade levels, not just in high school.
..... There is a very intensive process used to develop curriculum in schools, including approval levels in the board of education in a way that matches the values of each community but aligns with the law, noted Bidget. The new law also requires that instruction in schools include the impact of "unconscious bias," a hot-button topic that fueled a Texas law, passed in June, [2021] that is opposite in spirit to the New Jersey law. That law explicitly prohibits educators in Texas from discussing unconscious -a term used to refer to the internalizing of racist and biased views.
..... "Teaching the impact of unconscious bias is really about refraining stereotypes," said Bingert, alluding to how prejudices are universal and need not be pinned to specific races or genders. "Stereotypes lead to unconscious bias."
..... Jessic Taube, director of conflict resolution and anti-bias initiatives at the New Jersey State Bar Foundation, a nonprofit that provides free workshops for educators, said implementing a law that requires examining topics like unconscious bias and anti-racism without formal training or guidance could be problematic.
..... Educators need guidance in how to implement laws like these, even though these discussions have been ongoing in the public school system, Taube said.
..... "For schools as a whole, formal training is really important. to implement these initiatives school-wide, there should be a common understanding, and a common language. These can be uncomfortable conversations to have, but they are also incredibly important conversations."

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