Like the workplace, school becomes the first or only place where some students, teachers, counselors, principals and others encounter a diverse and varied society. That presents opportunities for enlightenment — and potential for misunderstanding.
For a high school on South Dakota's Rosebud Reservation, culturally responsive curriculum may be the best antidote to the violence, poverty and growing cultural disconnect hindering student success.
The announcement on November 20, 1969 from 89 American Indians – mostly students from colleges and universities – that they were taking over Alcatraz Island, set in motion what would become the longest occupation of a federal facility by Native Americans to date. This report aired a year later on NBC News, in December 1970, six months before the occupation ended.
In Minnesota, yet another group is organizing backlash against equitable teaching practices. It's an all-too-common threat—and a reminder that educators need more support.