@jdm1906 Dr. Mike Robinson: Are you in favor of schools restarting in-person learning before the summer begins?
Dr. John David Marshall: I believe in public education. I think the schoolhouse must be the foci change. I do not think we're there yet.
I know and want to get kids back in school - when it is safe. I am speaking as a researcher, father, educator, and Black man. I am not speaking for the school system I serve.
Dr. Mike Robinson: What benefits are there for students, in your opinion for students relative to in-person learning?
Dr. John David Marshall: A benefit is socialization and face-to-face (sound) teaching. Be that as it may, we need to remember that Black students (in many [urban] districts) have the lowest sense of belonging - at no fault of their own. They had it post COVID-19. Thus, when we talk about returning to school, what are students returning to:
This is what we must ask:
● What are Black minds and bodies returning to?
● Have schools upended or even tried to address racial inequities between the covers of books and the walls of the classroom.
● Have authentic steps to a curricular overhaul been redressed?
New articles and research on curriculum violence show the academic and psychological agony it causes on the Black mind. Such articles bring attention to the trauma that many Black minds face daily.
To be fair, along with education, there are Maslowian needs that school can provide:
● Warmth
● Food
● Shelter
● Books
But jail has all of those things as well.
We need schools open when the timing is right. We need them opened and changed en masse. We need to be willing to vaccinate against the pandemic of racism as well as vaccinate the virus. The downcast on needing the schoolhouse opened is that the system sees the limited need in upending the oppression it causes in many/some cases.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Do you believe that all was done or could have been done to make distance learning more effective for students?
Dr. John David Marshall: No. Innovative and creative, and culturally responsive lessons were not a priority in most districts. This is not to say that some did not thrive in this new setting. The clamoring for distant learning did not mandate a change in context or content. It focused on having a computer. Which is a start but far from a finish. (In many cases)
There is room to improve distance learning. In truth, the opportunities are vast and exciting. Be that as it may, digitizing dead white men and dull discourse is simply a recycling of whiteness that does not critically teach or reposition other aspects and histories and culture.
I predict that distance learning will become, if educators are not vigilant, a way to alter behavioral schools while continuing the disproportionate suspensions of Black youth. It could camouflage racism via watering down or corroding (in)equity. (i.e., the Black child is no longer suspended, said the district has now enrolled her/him into a remote learning school). Such a placement should be done on a severe special need basis. The curriculum should still be inclusive and inviting.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Are schools the only way for students to have socialization to benefit their development?
Dr. John David Marshall: No. The school has never been the only way Black children socialize. Yet, schools are a great way to socialize. Church, playing outside, Sunday dinners, sports, etc., are ways to socialize. The conundrum is when a whole community is peeled away from those venues due to a pandemic. What options do we have?
I believe that many schools do not have plans to allow for socializing anyway. Science says that it is deadly or dangerous.
We laud schools as hallowed grounds. They could be. Some/Many are. But the schoolhouse needs a societal scrubbing that goes beyond wiping down desks and cleaning HVAC systems. The schoolhouse should (and in many classrooms, it is) be a place where society and learning converge for betterment. A sick system cannot heal anyone - nor can it socialize students adequately, let alone wholly.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Should schools reopen if all teachers have not received the vaccination?
Dr. John David Marshall: No.
Further, there is something inherently wrong about a country, county, or state that knows the Coronavirus's science; however, it chooses to inoculate the middle age people first while ignoring the/our elders. We must also remember that there is a substantial amount of multi-generational households in urban cities. To that point, even as teachers and staff get the vaccine and children potentially ward off the disease with regards to showing symptoms, the elders in that house and in that community can still get sick or worse. Everyone should be vaccinated.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Do you think students do not take distance learning as seriously as they should because they hear adults say it is not working?
Dr. John David Marshall: Not all students, but some.
Dr. Mike Robinson: If schools are considered the HUB of their community and the community is high exposure to COVID, should schools reopen in-person learning? High exposure to COVID-19?
Dr. John David Marshall: No. Multi-generational households. Non-vaccinated households could catapult the Coronavirus. I believe the ever-changing CDC guidelines say the same thing today.
John David Marshall D. Ed.
President & Lead Consultant- KaKeKo Education Equity Consulting
Dr. John David Marshall: I believe in public education. I think the schoolhouse must be the foci change. I do not think we're there yet.
I know and want to get kids back in school - when it is safe. I am speaking as a researcher, father, educator, and Black man. I am not speaking for the school system I serve.
Dr. Mike Robinson: What benefits are there for students, in your opinion for students relative to in-person learning?
Dr. John David Marshall: A benefit is socialization and face-to-face (sound) teaching. Be that as it may, we need to remember that Black students (in many [urban] districts) have the lowest sense of belonging - at no fault of their own. They had it post COVID-19. Thus, when we talk about returning to school, what are students returning to:
This is what we must ask:
● What are Black minds and bodies returning to?
● Have schools upended or even tried to address racial inequities between the covers of books and the walls of the classroom.
● Have authentic steps to a curricular overhaul been redressed?
New articles and research on curriculum violence show the academic and psychological agony it causes on the Black mind. Such articles bring attention to the trauma that many Black minds face daily.
To be fair, along with education, there are Maslowian needs that school can provide:
● Warmth
● Food
● Shelter
● Books
But jail has all of those things as well.
We need schools open when the timing is right. We need them opened and changed en masse. We need to be willing to vaccinate against the pandemic of racism as well as vaccinate the virus. The downcast on needing the schoolhouse opened is that the system sees the limited need in upending the oppression it causes in many/some cases.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Do you believe that all was done or could have been done to make distance learning more effective for students?
Dr. John David Marshall: No. Innovative and creative, and culturally responsive lessons were not a priority in most districts. This is not to say that some did not thrive in this new setting. The clamoring for distant learning did not mandate a change in context or content. It focused on having a computer. Which is a start but far from a finish. (In many cases)
There is room to improve distance learning. In truth, the opportunities are vast and exciting. Be that as it may, digitizing dead white men and dull discourse is simply a recycling of whiteness that does not critically teach or reposition other aspects and histories and culture.
I predict that distance learning will become, if educators are not vigilant, a way to alter behavioral schools while continuing the disproportionate suspensions of Black youth. It could camouflage racism via watering down or corroding (in)equity. (i.e., the Black child is no longer suspended, said the district has now enrolled her/him into a remote learning school). Such a placement should be done on a severe special need basis. The curriculum should still be inclusive and inviting.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Are schools the only way for students to have socialization to benefit their development?
Dr. John David Marshall: No. The school has never been the only way Black children socialize. Yet, schools are a great way to socialize. Church, playing outside, Sunday dinners, sports, etc., are ways to socialize. The conundrum is when a whole community is peeled away from those venues due to a pandemic. What options do we have?
I believe that many schools do not have plans to allow for socializing anyway. Science says that it is deadly or dangerous.
We laud schools as hallowed grounds. They could be. Some/Many are. But the schoolhouse needs a societal scrubbing that goes beyond wiping down desks and cleaning HVAC systems. The schoolhouse should (and in many classrooms, it is) be a place where society and learning converge for betterment. A sick system cannot heal anyone - nor can it socialize students adequately, let alone wholly.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Should schools reopen if all teachers have not received the vaccination?
Dr. John David Marshall: No.
Further, there is something inherently wrong about a country, county, or state that knows the Coronavirus's science; however, it chooses to inoculate the middle age people first while ignoring the/our elders. We must also remember that there is a substantial amount of multi-generational households in urban cities. To that point, even as teachers and staff get the vaccine and children potentially ward off the disease with regards to showing symptoms, the elders in that house and in that community can still get sick or worse. Everyone should be vaccinated.
Dr. Mike Robinson: Do you think students do not take distance learning as seriously as they should because they hear adults say it is not working?
Dr. John David Marshall: Not all students, but some.
Dr. Mike Robinson: If schools are considered the HUB of their community and the community is high exposure to COVID, should schools reopen in-person learning? High exposure to COVID-19?
Dr. John David Marshall: No. Multi-generational households. Non-vaccinated households could catapult the Coronavirus. I believe the ever-changing CDC guidelines say the same thing today.
John David Marshall D. Ed.
President & Lead Consultant- KaKeKo Education Equity Consulting