"We Know What's Right for Kids": Washington State Educators for Racial Justice Speak Up and Speak Back

• In Event: Communities-of-Color-Based Research for Racially Just Transformation in a State's Public Education System

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to provide a snapshot of the perspectives on educational justice of a variety of mainly public school educators of color with a commitment to racial justice in the state of Washington. We wanted to know what educational justice meant to them, what they saw as barriers and ways forward to reach it as well as their journeys and experiences to and within their roles. Differently from other studies, this exploration included teachers, principals, counselors, paraeducators, transportation staff, clerical staff, and custodial staff.

Theoretical Perspectives

Using Critical Race Theory, we viewed the perspectives of educators of color as (counter) stories (Kohli, 2009; Sleeter, 2017), which underscores the value of experiential knowledge both as a way for people of color to speak from their own experience but also to draw on and use these experiences as a way to make shifts in policies and practices.

Methods and Data Sources

We interviewed 42 educators (39 of color and three being white) during the period of remote teaching and learning/Covid from August 2020 to February 2021 from 12 districts across Washington state. The interviews were a mix of 60-120 minute sessions in either focus groups or one-on-one interviews, and they were conducted over zoom and were transcribed. A thematic analysis was conducted to identify themes and patterns, which were the basis of the findings and recommendations of this study.

Findings

The six main findings that came through of the educators were the following: (1) they saw themselves as different kinds of educators; (2) their views of education tended to be more holistic and interconnected to other societal issues; (3) they had many experiences with racism and other forms of discrimination, also in their own roles and positions (4) many wanted their unions to play a more active role in educational and racial justice; (5) there was some variation among the educators we interviewed, especially those in different geographical locations; and (6) many had either seen or desired some positive movement in terms of educational justice in their professional experiences so far.

Significance

In most of the literature, educators are studied and viewed within their subgroups and roles. By conducting all these interviews together, it was remarkable to see and be able to document some of the important overlaps in terms of their experiences and vision. We saw how committed all the educators of color interviewed were about changing schools and education especially through a racial justice lens. This translated into drawing on and using their own life experiences as a foundation for their vision and care for students and families. By and large, most also equated education to go beyond that of students’ academic achievement, which many saw as a distraction or potentially harmful when it was set as a target for students of color. It was also illustrative to witness the difficulties in terms of the hierarchies experienced due to their roles; this was especially the case for non-certificated staff, mainly transportation, clerical and custodial staff.

Author

• Manka M. Varghese, University of Washington