Hey, blogging friends! I’ve decided to come off of my hiatus (be back soon, will update you later) to cover a topic that is near and dear to my heart. You may or may not have known that some of your teaching blogging buddies of color (including myself) often feel underrepresented or too often not represented at all… in this wonderful community of teachers, bloggers, and TPTers.
We all know inclusion as the act of including. Simple I know, but too often this doesn’t appear to be standard practice. Teachers of color, myself included are often left feeling devalued and excluded. By no means do I think it’s done intentionally, however, that excuse has gotten old. So as more of us are speaking up please show your support by adopting a new practice of inclusion. Here we go!
Speak Up
Join us in advocating, acknowledging, and supporting teachers of color. Check out how other teachers use their platforms to inform and practice being socially aware in the blogging world and in the classroom. Sarah from http://www.sarahplumitallo.com has some great pieces on this very topic and more. I know it is not easy stepping out on such an uncomfortable topic but the more people that advocate for minorities it will become the norm. So do what you do best and EDUCATE!
Create with us in mind…
This one is probably the most difficult because not everyone is an expert in multicultural content. So consider this when creating wonderful clip art, and activities for TPT. Try to include minorities in your creations. This could be as simple as using clip art that represents minorities on those awesome product covers we design. I promise this will increase your product sales! Consider creating products that appeal to and promote minority figures or topics that are relatable to minorities. Just give it a try! Just don’t limit black history or Hispanic heritage products to a certain time of the year only.
Include us.
Let’s start with those wonderful lists of favorites or teachers you should follow. We’ve all seen them… Those popularity lists of top teachers, bloggers, or TPT sellers. Please try to include educators of color and don’t forget the male teachers that are out there building brands too. This one happens often and my buddy Vera sums it up best with her post titled, “But what about me”. You may not know that we are out there, but we are and Tamara has created her own list of teachers of color you should follow, check it out at tamaravrussell.com. I know how hard it is to connect with us so I’ve created an Instagram link-up called Teacher of Color you should know! Search the hashtag #chocolateteachers ( love Tamara for coming up with this one LOL) or #teachersofcolor
Thanks so much for reading and I hope you were enlightened and encouraged to practice being more socially aware. I believe in education and the power of advocacy so with greatness in mind let’s practice inclusion on all platforms. I’d love to hear your thoughts leave them in the comments below. Happy Teaching!
Disclaimer
This post is not meant to blame or offend anyone but to inform and enlighten while offering suggestions that you may not have considered. This post is also meant to promote unity among our exceptional group of educators, bloggers, and TPTers. The memes used in this post are intended to provide comic relief through a very serious subject matter.
Thank you so much for creating this entry. I stumbled across your blog as I searched for new blogs to follow my course in Integrating Technology in the Classroom. One of the reasons that I chose to follow you because I felt that I could relate to you as a woman of color. I have been teaching for three years and as I look for resources to further my teacher, I do not often come across people that look like me. It is refreshing and motivating to know that there is more of us out there that are passionate about teaching.
Wow! Thanks so much for your kinds words! That truly makes my heart smile.