Equity & Diversity

States Have Restricted Teaching on Social Justice. Is Teacher Preparation Next?

By Brooke Schultz — May 22, 2024 5 min read
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media, March 7, 2023, at the state Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla.
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

When Andrew Spar first started teaching music to elementary students at Turie T. Small Elementary School in Daytona Beach, Fla., he assumed they all would know to be gentle with instruments.

Spar, now president of the Florida Education Association (FEA) and a vice president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), quickly learned the importance of understanding the differences between his upbringing and that of the students he served.

He grew up in a middle-class neighborhood in the suburbs of New York City, and was a trained violinist from an early age. But Spar was teaching in a school where he said a majority of students lived in poverty, he said, and his students hadn’t had the same opportunities to play instruments like he had.

The concept of preparing teachers to understand their students’ backgrounds—and how systemic racism and sexism impact those backgrounds—has been a growing feature of many teacher-preparation programs, some of which pride themselves on integrating social justice themes into their coursework.

Now, that’s being called into question as more state legislatures take aim at how those issues can be taught in teacher preparation. The efforts have left educators and advocates concerned it will encompass culturally responsive teaching methods, and fearing it will ultimately negatively impact student learning.

Earlier this month, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a measure prohibiting teacher training and education preparation programs from delving into “identity politics,” and teaching that “systemic racism, sexism, oppression, and privilege are inherent in the institutions of the United States and were created to maintain social, political, and economic inequities.”

The measure was part of an effort to “fight back against indoctrination in education and the workplace,” DeSantis said in a news release. It appears to build on the state’s other similar efforts, including a law that restricts what teachers can say about LGBTQ+ individuals in their classrooms.

(DeSantis’ office did not respond to a request for comment before publication.)

Republican Florida Rep. Berny Jacques, a sponsor of the legislation, said in an email to EdWeek that the legislation addressed concerns lawmakers have about teaching about race and oppression.

“This legislation will allow students to be taught by teachers focused on delivering exceptional education,” he said.

The recent Florida law is part of a larger, years-long effort to restrict discussions of racism or sexism in schools, taking particular aim at educator preparation. Broadly, at least nine states have enacted legislation in the last three years to prohibit mandatory professional development or training of public school teachers on topics such as racism or sexism, according to data from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Legislation is pending in at least four others.

Several states have introduced similar bills or taken other steps that would limit how teachers can discuss racism and sexism in the classroom. Those efforts have faced legal challenges in some states, even as some social studies groups have started training teachers to navigate these so-called “divisive concepts” laws. However, momentum has largely been slowing for measures targeting “divisive concepts,” and research has found most lessons are kept politically neutral.

Spar said he had to learn to adapt to his students’ backgrounds to effectively teach them early in his teaching career. (The FEA, a major political opponent of DeSantis, criticized the Florida legislation as harmful.)

“I think it’s just so important, and it required me to really open my horizons and open my view of the world so that I could better interact and support the students I was teaching,” he said. “It’s something you have to be able to do if you’re going to truly connect with the kids, and it doesn’t happen unless we’re deliberately having that discussion.”

Educators worry the legislation will impact student learning

Dr. Kai Mathews, the director of the California Educator Diversity Project at the University of California, Los Angeles’ Center for the Transformation of Schools, says it’s taken time for teacher-preparation courses to begin embedding culturally responsive teaching. The 2020 racial reckoning following the public killing of George Floyd and protests of injustices against Black people nationwide fueled that work, she said.

“It’s not just for the historical knowledge and facts. It is also when we’re including students from a diverse background, to see themselves in the making up, and in the composite of, history and of society, and we’re bringing it into the classroom,” Mathews said. “There’s a relatability that then comes with the content that we’re teaching. It’s not just math for math’s sake.”

With schools facing a student chronic absenteeism crisis and competing with student apathy, connecting students to their education is even more vital, she said.

“I don’t know how many more ways students need to show us that disengagement is attached to our inability to make our education relevant and meaningful,” she said.

Dr. Omiunota N. Ukpokodu, a professor of education at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, said so often she hears from student teachers that their classes are struggling academically, with many testing two grades below their level. She pointed to the 2023 results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which showed a significant decrease in 8th grade students’ civics scores.

There’s a gap caused by teachers being afraid to teach critically about racism in the wake of laws restricting class discussions, she said. That’s troubling when the U.S. is multicultural and multiracial, and the world is becoming more and more interdependent, she said.

“How are they being prepared to take this responsibility of preparing the young for the world that we live in, that they will be part of in a workforce that is diverse? How can they learn to become participatory citizens when they don’t have the critical thinking skills that they need to engage?” she said.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the June 12, 2024 edition of Education Week as States Have Restricted Teaching on Social Justice. Is Teacher Preparation Next?

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Literacy Success: How Districts Are Closing Reading Gaps Fast
67% of 4th graders read below grade level. Learn how high-dosage virtual tutoring is closing the reading gap in schools across the country.
Content provided by Ignite Reading
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar
AI and Educational Leadership: Driving Innovation and Equity
Discover how to leverage AI to transform teaching, leadership, and administration. Network with experts and learn practical strategies.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School Climate & Safety Webinar
Investing in Success: Leading a Culture of Safety and Support
Content provided by Boys Town

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Equity & Diversity Opinion The Fight Over DEI Continues. Can We Find Common Ground?
Polarizing discussion topics in education can spark a vicious cycle of blame. Is it possible to come to a mutual understanding?
7 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Equity & Diversity Opinion You Need to Understand Culturally Responsive Teaching Before You Can Do It
Too often, teachers focus solely on the content. They need to move beyond that and get out of their comfort zones.
11 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Equity & Diversity Opinion How Can Educators Strike a Healthy Balance on Diversity and Inclusion?
DEI advocates and opponents both have good points—and both can go too far.
6 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Equity & Diversity Opinion Equity or Equality: Only One of These Sets Students Up for Success
Three educators offer ideas for how to create an equitable classroom learning experience for students.
9 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty