Last week, our superintendent introduced me to Margaret Wheatley, who describes what it means to be a warrior of the human spirit: “A Warrior is simply a decent human being who aspires to be of service in an indecent, inhumane time. We want to be of service without adding to the confusion, aggression and fear now so prevalent, so we train ourselves well and form as a strong, supportive community.”  Regardless of our political stances, we bilingual teachers recognize the unsettled feelings the presidential election results have had on many of our bilingual students and their families. Teaching for biliteracy poises us all to take on the role of warriors of the human spirit at our schools.  In this blog post, I will share some inspiring ways those around me have embodied the characteristics above in service to bilingual students.

Fifth Grade teacher, Kristen Scott, relied upon her instincts to be responsive to her students needs.  Like many other educators on the morning of November 9th, Kristen had little time to prepare a plan of support.  She and colleagues at our school faced a ten-hour work day of teaching followed by parent-teacher conferences into the evening following the election. In response to the outcome and its impact, Kristen revised her 15 minute conference plan, and used this window of face to face interaction to listen and support those students and families in need.  She has since reflected on the role she can play: “For so many of our families, immediate needs are incredibly pressing – food, shelter, winter gear. I have found in the past couple of weeks that my righteous indignation is a mere trifle compared to what some families are struggling to accomplish for their children. I have shifted my focus away from my despair so that I might be of some practical  use to my students and their families.”  

Kristen’s pragmatic approach is shared amongst other teachers, but in different ways. First Grade teacher, Maestra Wendy, has adapted little in her teaching or parent communication.  Wendy argues the most powerful way she can support her students is by offering the highest quality instruction possible.  From her training in trauma and homelessness, Wendy gleaned that the best way to provide security and stability in school is by changing nothing and offering predictability and quality instruction to her students.

All teachers seemed to agree with the mission of providing a safe space where all feel welcomed. Family volunteers quickly created posters in English and Spanish displaying this message around our school.  Profe Nobel Perez, who teaches fourth grade, made a sign reading “abrazos gratis” to wear all day. She explains,  “This is a time many feel vulnerable and yet, school/work is not a place to particularly display vulnerability. The sign gave many a social permission to show this vulnerability.”

Profe Nobel has also been leading restorative justice circles with her class. The circle provides a space for members to share their feelings in an open way, and to collectively brainstorm healing and resolution.   Our principal, Joshua Forehand, facilitated a restorative justice circle with teachers and staff as a means for all of us to process change and learn how to support our students and families in processing change.  He then collaborated with community organizations to lead circles with families at our monthly family-school community meeting. Mr. Forehand chooses to lead in a way that reflects our school’s mission, “to lay a strong foundation of knowledge and skills that allows our students to develop into young people with active and creative minds, a sense of understanding and compassion for others, the courage to act on their beliefs, and who are ready to meet the opportunities and challenges of a multilingual and multicultural world.”  Mr. Forehand strives to position our school within the broader movement in our community.

Mr. Forehand is one of many leaders grappling with the challenge of how to empower teachers to be strong supports of others AND simultaneously meet  the teachers’ own needs to be supported as people and as practitioners.  Faculty and staff at Edgewood College have worked with community organizations to provide immediate support to Dreamer students at the college. Faculty member Sheila Hopkins wrote the below message to her students:  “Part of seeking an ESL license includes the search for our own understanding and stance toward diversity, bilingualism, and inclusion in this country and in our schools and neighborhoods.  Thank you all for everything you do to daily strive for equity and to support our children from different backgrounds and cultures who may be feeling unwanted, confused, or a bit fearful right now.”  Ms. Hopkins recognizes the need to equip educators with forming their own belief systems and rationale for doing this work. She sees these times as an opportunity to do just that.

We have values, beliefs, and practices as bilingual educators that ground us during these periods of change. We can revisit the three sociolinguistic premises underpinning Urow and Beeman’s Teaching for Biliteracy: 1. Spanish is a minority language within a majority culture, 2. Students use all the resources in their linguistic repertoire to develop literacy, and 3. Spanish and English are governed by distinct linguistic rules and cultural norms. Now is the time to revisit this foundation!  It’s possible that what undergirds these premises is a community that embraces bilingualism and the experiences of bilingual learners.  Let’s unite as warriors of the human spirit to make it possible for all humans to reach their fullest human potential.

School leaders, teachers, staff, families: How have you supported students and families in responding to change? Why this approach?