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November 3, 2022

IDRA's Knowledge is Power is a national resource for educators and advocates to help you do your work for equity and excellence in education in the midst of classroom censorship policies.

In this edition…

• The Texas State Board of Education Needs to Hear from Civics Education Advocates to Teach the Truth
• Just Out! Lemonada Media Podcast Episode: Fighting Back Against Classroom Censorship
• Webinar Recordings for Educators Now Available On-Demand
• IDRA Launches New CulturED Lesson Plan Series for Teaching about Race & Culture
• Survey on the Effects of Classroom Censorship

See previous editions of Knowledge is Power and related resources online.

The Texas State Board of Education will meet November 16-18, 2022, to take a final vote on the civics education learning standards, within the social studies TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills). These were required by the state’s classroom censorship law to be adopted by December 31 of this year.

At its September meeting, the state board declined any amendments to the proposed civics education standards. This came after a prior board decision to delay its anticipated social studies standards review to 2025, which would have provided a decade of updates to social studies content. Because of the delay, the proposed civics education standards are not inclusive of diverse individuals who have contributed to American traditions, civic engagement and democracy.

Board members need to hear from Texans who want inclusive and accurate civics education to be taught in public schools. You can submit a public comment on the proposed civics education standards through November 14, 2022. Interested advocates who would like to testify at the November State Board of Education meeting in Austin can learn more through the Teach the Truth Coalition (IDRA is a member).

Public Comment Workshop Tonight

Thursday, November 3, 2022 • 7 pm CDT



The Children's Defense Fund - Texas and friends are holding a free virtual session tonight to help advocates learn more about submitting public comments and raise our voices together.

There's a nationwide effort to censor classroom discussions on racism and inequality. And it's not okay.

In a new podcast episode of No One is Coming to Save Us with Gloria Riviera, Morgan Craven, the director of Policy, Advocacy and Community Engagement at IDRA, debunks some of the misinformation about what is being taught in public schools.

Then Ben Hodge, a teacher at Central York High School in Pennsylvania, tells the story of what happened at his school when an all-white school board tried to ban over 300 books written by and about people of color.

6 Steps to Revolutionary School Leadership

Get the context, empowerment and concrete actions you need to dismantle racist policies and practices in your school. We are excited to feature IDRA board member and award-winning former superintendent, Dr. Gregory C. Hutchings, Jr. In this session, we discuss the six steps aligned with the book co-authored by Dr. Hutchings, Getting Into Good Trouble at School: A Guide to Building an Antiracist School System.

Tools for Teaching About Race and Culture

In today’s climate of classroom censorship, tools for culturally sustaining teaching can be hard to find and implement. In this session, you will get tips for using our latest four-part lesson plan series (see below) that will facilitate thoughtful high school classroom discussions of real-world issues and solutions. This session is led by the developers of the lessons for IDRA, Dr. Marlon C. James and Dr. Kelly N. Ferguson, of Equality and Equity Group, LLC.

Developed by Dr. Marlon James and Dr. Kelly Ferguson, this four-part lesson series integrates the America Is Me framework for building students' intercultural skills as they learn about the history and impact of culture and race concepts. These and other resources for culturally-sustaining schooling are available free on IDRA's School Resource Hub – We All Belong.

#GotCulture?

A Lesson on How Culture Shapes Us

Introduce students to important elements of culture, both surface and deep culture. Students will come to understand how culture shapes the way we see ourselves, others and the world. Through a video analysis, students have the opportunity to discuss cultural similarities and differences in a respectful and supportive manner.

See Lesson #1

#E-Raced

A Lesson Uncovering the False Science of Race

Introduce students to the history of race. Our modern understanding of race was introduced starting in the 1600s as European scientists and philosophers conducted pseudo-research to prove that humans were not made or evolved equally. Students will learn that modern research disproved virtually all of these claims of racial superiority even though the story is passed on despite the lack of scientific evidence.

See Lesson #2

They #E-Raced Us

A Lesson for Exposing the Link Between Racial Discrimination and Research

This lesson explores the history of the American Psychological Association (APA), which was founded in 1869 and, unbeknownst to many, until 2021 played a key role in creating research used to promote race as an idea and racial discrimination.

See Lesson #3

#Free Your Mind

A Lesson for Overcoming Racial Stereotyping

All cultural groups teach future generations cultural understandings that help to shape their identities and interactions with other groups and society at large. Past lessons have explored that race is not culture, but it is a story we tell ourselves to further political aims. Yet, research has confirmed that experiencing acts of discrimination or being exposed to them over social media has a negative impact on the mental and emotional health of minority youth. Students will engage in thoughtful reflection and peer-to-peer discussions to build their empathy and support for creating healthy schools and classrooms.

See Lesson #4

How has classroom censorship affected you?

By design, the new School Resource Hub is responding to the needs of educators, students and families. Please help by letting us know how classroom censorship policies are affecting your classroom, your child or your own education. Help us spread the word!

IDRA's Knowledge is Power is a national resource for educators and advocates to help you do your work for equity and excellence in education in the midst of classroom censorship policies.

See previous editions of Knowledge is Power and related resources online.