Maren Oberman and Debi Khasnabis in ASCD Express: “Aspiring Educators Need to Know the History of Race in America”

Their piece, “Aspiring Educators Need to Know the History of Race in America,” supports centering issues of race, identity, and justice with education students. Drawing on their own instructional practices. Oberman and Khasnabis share some of the resources, materials, and strategies that they use in their courses (Maren for aspiring school leaders and Debi for aspiring teachers) to achieve their common goal of preparing a generation of teachers and school leaders who can identify and disrupt racially inequitable policies.

The faculty members say, “The pattern of manipulation and movement of Black people for the benefit of White people is one that students more fully uncover through these activities. Our aspiring teachers and school leaders learn to scrutinize modern-day schooling policies as they become familiar with these patterns of oppression. They begin to view more critically school choice policies that have resegregated communities by providing a new medium for White flight. As they enter the field, they are poised to analyze the mechanics and consequences of policies and practices that promote inequity.”

Ultimately, their objective is to prepare a generation of education professionals who are powerful agents of change in their communities: “Through these activities, we build the capacity of the next generation of teachers and school leaders to promote justice and fulfill the promise of Brown v. Board. We support their ability to transcend racial barriers by cuing them to the human experience of segregation and recognizing the patterns of racial discrimination and oppression that span time and space in U.S. history.”