Social Justice Belongs In Our Schools | Sydney Chaffee | TEDxBeaconStreet

Summary

This transcript discusses the role of education in promoting social justice. The speaker emphasizes that education should not only focus on teaching subjects but also on developing critical thinking, problem-solving, and activism in students. By connecting historical events like apartheid to current issues, students are encouraged to see themselves as agents of change. The speaker highlights the importance of teachers supporting students' voices, even when it challenges authority, fostering a learning environment where social justice, civic engagement, and critical thinking are central to education.

Takeaways

• 📚 Education can be a tool for social justice, helping students connect learning to real-world issues.
• 🧠 Teachers don't just teach subjects; they teach people, and must acknowledge students' identities and historical context.
• 🤔 Social justice in education encourages students to think critically, collaborate, and engage with history in meaningful ways.
• 👥 Teaching social justice means preparing students to understand systemic issues like racism and inequality.
• 🚶‍♂️ Schools are crucial spaces for activism and helping students become active, engaged citizens.
• 📊 Engaging in activism not only helps students learn leadership and critical thinking, but also improves their civic participation.
• 🔗 Historical events like the Soweto Uprising help students see connections between past struggles and current movements for justice.
• 🎓 Teachers should encourage students to explore diverse opinions and lead difficult conversations about justice and activism.
• ⚖️ Educators should give students the freedom to protest and use their voices while ensuring their safety and guiding their learning.
• 💡 Justice and education go hand-in-hand when schools support critical thinking, activism, and the development of civic-minded citizens.

Q & A

What is the speaker's definition of social justice?

The speaker defines social justice as the notion that all people in society deserve fair and equitable rights, opportunities, and access to resources.

Why does the speaker believe social justice has become controversial?

Social justice has become controversial because discussions about what working for social justice actually looks like have become unclear and divisive.

How does the speaker relate education to social justice?

The speaker believes that education can be a tool for social justice, as teachers don't just teach subjects, but they teach people, and everything students experience in classrooms is tied to historical context.

Why does the speaker reject the notion that teachers should not be social justice warriors?

The speaker rejects this notion because teachers are responsible for shaping students’ identities and views, and to act as if education happens in a vacuum would do students a disservice.

How does the speaker address the issue of racism in schools?

The speaker highlights systemic racism, referencing a study that shows 80% of white people harbor subconscious biases against black people, and uses this as an example of why social justice should be taught in schools.

What historical example does the speaker use to teach students about injustice?

The speaker uses the Soweto uprising during apartheid in South Africa, where students protested a law requiring them to learn in Afrikaans, a language they considered oppressive.

How did the speaker's students connect their learning about apartheid to their own lives?

The students began to ask themselves about their own political power, agency, and whether adults would listen to their voices, drawing connections between the Soweto uprising and their own potential for activism.

What role does the speaker believe schools should play in fostering activism?

The speaker believes schools should encourage students to engage in social justice work by teaching skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, and collaboration, and supporting students when they choose to take action.

What example does the speaker provide to show students’ activism in action?

The speaker shares a story of students organizing a walkout in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and how the school decided to support their activism rather than prevent it.

What is the speaker’s view on rebellion in students?

The speaker believes that when students rebel and push back thoughtfully, it should be seen as a sign that they are becoming engaged, critical thinkers, which is a positive outcome of education.

Outlines

00:00

⚖️ The Importance of Social Justice in Education

The concept of social justice involves ensuring fair and equitable rights, opportunities, and access to resources for all in society. It has become a controversial subject, especially in the context of education, where some argue that teachers should focus solely on teaching subjects rather than advocating for social justice. The speaker rejects this idea, emphasizing that education is about teaching people, not just subjects. Racism, as demonstrated by studies and societal inequalities, is an example of why social justice is crucial in schools. Schools must teach students to engage with the world around them and work towards justice.

05:01

📚 Apartheid and the Role of Youth Activism

This paragraph discusses the South African apartheid system, specifically the 1976 Soweto uprising, where students protested a law that required them to learn in Afrikaans, a language of their oppressors. The protest, which ended in tragedy, highlighted the role of youth in challenging unjust systems. This historical example is used to inspire students to reflect on their own potential for activism and the power they hold to create change. The narrative encourages students to see themselves as agents of political power and advocates for social justice, just like the young activists in Soweto.

10:03

🌍 Activism Builds Skills and Shapes Civic Engagement

Students’ involvement in activism, such as protests, helps them develop important skills like leadership and critical thinking. Research indicates that working for justice enhances students’ political participation and civic engagement, leading to stronger commitments to their communities later in life. Despite the fears of adults that activism may lead to danger or confusion, it is essential to support young people in their efforts to create a more just society. This support helps students see that their voices matter and that they have the power to make a difference in the world.

15:06

🗣️ Embracing Rebellion and Critical Thinking in Education

Rebellion in students, particularly when they question authority and challenge injustice, should be viewed as a sign that educators are fostering critical thinking. Although this might be uncomfortable for teachers, it is a vital part of preparing students to engage with the world and recognize injustice. Schools should be places where students are allowed to grapple with difficult issues, make mistakes, and learn from them. The goal is to create an environment where students feel empowered to take action, learn from failure, and work toward positive change in their communities.

🚀 Justice as an Engine for Change in Education

The final paragraph explores the idea of transforming justice into an active engine driving education. It draws inspiration from Cornel West's famous quote: 'Justice is what love looks like in public.' Schools must go beyond simply teaching subjects; they must empower students to change the world. Teaching is inherently a political act, and educators should not fear their students' power. Instead, they should provide opportunities for students to practice making the world a better place, starting in the classroom. This is the essence of education as a tool for social justice.

Keywords

💡Social Justice

Social justice refers to the concept that everyone in a society should have fair and equitable rights, opportunities, and access to resources. In the video, the speaker emphasizes that education can serve as a tool for promoting social justice by equipping students with the skills to recognize and combat inequality. The idea is connected to the mission of schools and teachers, where students are encouraged to become active citizens.

💡Education

Education is portrayed as more than just teaching subjects; it’s about teaching people and empowering students. The speaker argues that education should connect to the world outside the classroom, helping students understand the historical context of current events and fostering their ability to enact change. This expands the traditional view of education, linking it to activism and social justice.

💡Implicit Bias

Implicit bias refers to unconscious attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding and actions. The video highlights a study from the University of Chicago, revealing that 80% of white people harbor subconscious biases against Black people. This example illustrates how systemic racism persists in society and why addressing these biases is essential in the pursuit of social justice, especially within educational settings.

💡Activism

Activism is defined as the effort to promote or impede social, political, or environmental change. The video shows how students, through learning about historical injustices such as apartheid in South Africa, are inspired to engage in activism, like participating in protests. The speaker argues that engaging in activism builds essential skills such as critical thinking, leadership, and civic engagement.

💡Critical Thinking

Critical thinking involves analyzing and evaluating information and arguments in a clear and logical manner. The speaker highlights the importance of fostering critical thinking in students so they can question injustice, form their own opinions, and actively participate in societal change. Teaching students to explore history as a series of interpretations, rather than a static narrative, is one way to develop these skills.

💡Systemic Racism

Systemic racism refers to the ways in which racial inequality is embedded within the laws, policies, and institutions of society. The video references historical and contemporary examples, like apartheid and police violence, to demonstrate the ongoing impact of systemic racism. The speaker argues that education plays a key role in dismantling these systems by teaching students to recognize and challenge them.

💡Student Voice

Student voice emphasizes the importance of listening to and valuing the perspectives of students. The speaker describes instances where students exercise their political power, such as walking out in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. Encouraging student voice in schools fosters a sense of agency, empowering them to contribute to discussions about justice and equity.

💡Historical Context

Historical context involves understanding past events and how they shape the present. In the video, the speaker explains that teaching students about history in a dynamic, interpretive way helps them draw connections between past and present struggles for justice. The study of apartheid is one example where students see parallels to current racial injustices, prompting them to think critically about their own role in history.

💡Apartheid

Apartheid was a system of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination in South Africa. The speaker uses it as a case study to show how students can learn about injustice through history. The Soweto uprising, where students protested the imposition of Afrikaans as the medium of instruction, is an example that illustrates youth activism and the power of students to bring about social change.

💡Civic Engagement

Civic engagement refers to individual and collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern. The video highlights how participating in social justice movements, like the Black Lives Matter walkouts, fosters a deeper commitment to community and political participation in students. This engagement helps students practice the skills needed to be active, informed citizens.

Highlights

Social justice is a simple concept: everyone deserves fair rights, opportunities, and access to resources.

Education can be a tool for social justice, helping students engage with the world in meaningful ways.

Teaching goes beyond subjects; it’s about teaching students and their identities in a historical context.

Racism, like subconscious biases, affects students’ experiences in schools and should be addressed.

Social justice belongs in schools, as they are crucial spaces for shaping active citizens.

Skills needed for social justice like problem-solving, critical thinking, and perseverance are already built into the work of schools.

Understanding history as a series of events with multiple interpretations helps students connect with current movements for justice.

Soweto Uprising is an example of youth activism profoundly changing global views on apartheid.

Students are increasingly realizing their own political power, drawing inspiration from historical events.

Supporting students' activism, like walking out for Black Lives Matter, helps them practice their rights for social justice.

Research shows that working for justice improves students' leadership, critical thinking, and civic engagement.

Students today are more engaged in activism, with 8.5% of freshmen in 2015 indicating a high chance of protesting during college.

Rebellion in students should be seen as a positive sign of critical thinking and readiness to challenge injustice.

Teachers should be thought partners who help students grapple with complex issues, not just provide right answers.

Justice is what love looks like in public – education should drive students to change the world for the better.

Transcripts

social justice what do you think of to

me social justice is a simple concept

it's the notion that all people in a

society deserve fair and equitable

rights opportunities and access to

resources but it's become controversial

and nebulous because we've stopped

talking about what working for social

justice actually looks like working for

social justice can look like this or

this it can look like this or it can

look like this or my favorite it can

look like that those are my students and

whenever I'm asked to articulate my work

or my priorities as a teacher I explain

that I believe education can be a tool

for social justice but a few months ago

I logged onto Twitter as I do and I saw

that a fellow teacher had taken issue

with that belief teachers he said should

not be social justice warriors because

the purpose of education is to educate

and he ended his argument by saying I

teach my subject but I reject that

simplification because teachers don't

just teach subjects we teach people when

our students walk into our classrooms

they bring their identities with them

everything they experience in our rooms

is bound up in historical context and so

if we insist that education happens in a

vacuum we do our students a disservice

we teach them that education doesn't

really matter because it's not relevant

to what's happening all around them and

what's happening all around them well

racism for one in 2016 the University of

Chicago released a report that revealed

that according to results of the

implicit association test fully eighty

percent of white people harbored

subconscious biases against black people

believing them to be less intelligent

lazier and more dangerous than whites

and that's just one concrete example of

the insidious effects of historic and

systemic racism on our country for more

evidence we could look at incarceration

rates we could look at statistics on

police violence against black people we

could look at the opportunity gap in

education so yeah

social justice belongs in our schools

social justice should be a part of the

mission of every school and every

teacher in America if we want liberty

and justice for all

to be more than a slogan because schools

are crucial places for children to

become active citizens and to learn the

skills and the tools that they need to

change the world so what are those

skills okay here's a secret many of the

skills that people need to orchestrate

the kinds of change that will lead to

justice are already built into the work

of schools things like problem solving

critical thinking collaboration

perseverance none of that should be

revolutionary on its own combine that

with the ability to understand history

not as one static and objective

narrative on which we all agree but as a

series of intertwined events about which

there can be countless interpretations

if we deliberately choose to explore

history with our students rather than

just teach it we help them understand

that history is ongoing and that it's

connected to current movements for

justice and we help them see themselves

as potential players within a living

history so those are the skills I'm

talking about when I say that education

can be a place to help kids learn how to

work for justice but maybe the reason

that my Twitter critic wasn't happy with

that idea is because he doesn't agree

with my definition of justice

fair enough maybe he and I don't see eye

to eye politically but here's the thing

our aim is to encourage students to

articulate their own opinions not to

coerce them into agreeing with us so it

actually

doesn't matter if he and I agree what

matters is that we're helping students

have those conversations with each other

and that means that as adults we need to

learn how to become effective

facilitators of our students activism

we've got to help them learn how to have

really tricky conversations we have to

expose them to different opinions and we

have to have to help them see how what

they're learning in school connects to

the world outside so here's an example

of that every year my students study the

history of apartheid in South Africa as

a case study of injustice now for those

of you who don't know apartheid was a

brutally racist system and the white

ruled government in South Africa imposed

racist laws to oppress people of color

and if you resisted those laws you

risked jail time violence or death and

around the country other around the

world of other countries governments

including ours in the United States

hesitated to sanction South Africa

because well we benefited from its

resources so in 1976 the South African

government passed a new law which

required that all students in South

Africa learn in the language Afrikaans

which was a white language and many

black South Africans referred to that

language as the language of the

oppressor so not surprisingly students

of color were outraged at this law they

already attended segregated schools with

overcrowded classrooms a lack of

resources and a frankly racist

curriculum and now they were being told

to learn in a language neither they nor

their teachers spoke so on the morning

of June 16th 1976 thousands of kids from

the township of Soweto walked out of

schools and they marched peacefully

through the streets to protest the law

at an intersection they met up with the

police and when the kids refused to turn

back the police officers set dogs on

them and then they opened fire and the

Salado uprising ended in tragedy

apartheid itself didn't end until almost

20 years later but the activism of those

kids in Soweto profoundly changed the

way the world viewed what was happening

in

of Africa news outlets all around the

world published this photo of 13-year

old Hector Pieterson who was one of the

first people killed by police in Soweto

and it became nearly impossible to

ignore the brutality of the apartheid

regime in the months and the years that

followed the Salado uprising more and

more countries exerted political and

economic pressure on the South African

government to end apartheid and it was

largely due to the activism of those

kids in Soweto so every year my kids

learn about this and invariably they

start to draw connections between those

kids in Soweto and themselves and they

start to ask themselves what kind of

political power and agency they have

they ask themselves whether there would

ever be a reason they would risk their

lives so that a future generation could

live in a more just world and most

profoundly for me every single year they

ask themselves whether adults will ever

listen to their voices a few years ago

my principal got an anonymous email from

one of our students it informed him that

the following day the students planned

to walk out of school this was in the

wake of Michael Brown's death in

Ferguson Missouri and the students were

planning to join a walkout and March in

support of the black lives matter

movement so at this point the staff at

the school had a decision to make would

we use our authority and our power to

try to control the students and prevent

them from leaving or would we support

them as they put into practice the

principles of social justice that we had

taught them about since their ninth

grade year so the next morning the kids

left school on mass and they gathered on

the lawn and one of the seniors jumped

up on a picnic table and went over

safety expectations and the younger kids

took it very seriously and as teachers

and as staff we told them okay be safe

and we watched as they marched off the

kids who chose to stay spent that

afternoon in class they debated the

merits of protest they talked about the

history of the black lives matter

movement and they went on with classes

as scheduled and those who chose to

leave pretty

Cepeda din a citywide student walk out

and raise their collective voice for

justice but no matter where they chose

to spend the afternoon our kids learned

valuable lessons that day they learn

that the adults in their lives would

support them even as we worried for

their safety and they learn that they

didn't need us to tell them how or when

or even why to protest they learned that

they were members of a community of

young people with a shared vision of a

more equitable society and they learned

that they had power within that society

they learned that events like the Soweto

uprising are not ancient history and

they don't have to end in tragedy and

that's what education as a tool for

social justice can look like and here's

the thing our kids are ready for this

kind of work so in 2015 incoming college

freshmen were surveyed and eight point

five percent of them said that they were

there was a very good chance they would

participate in a protest sometime during

their college career

and that might not seem very impressive

but consider the fact that it's the

largest number of students to say that

since 1967 and seventy-five percent of

those kids said that helping other

people who are having difficulty was a

very important or essential goal for

them again the highest number of people

to say that since the late 1960s and

research shows us that working for

justice doesn't just follow from

building all those skills I talked about

earlier it actually goes the other way

too

so working for justice engaging in

activism helps students build skills

like leadership and critical thinking

and it correlates positively with their

political participation and their civic

engagement and their commitment to their

communities later in life so in other

words students are telling us that

social justice matters to them and

researchers are telling us that it helps

students learn so now it's up to us to

listen and that might not be easy

in 1976 one of those kids who

participated in Soweto in the uprising

he said that that event represented

divorce between black children and their

families because their families had

grown up under apartheid

and they knew how dangerous it was to

speak out they wanted their kids to lay

low and stay safe and when our kids

threatened to walk out a lot of the

adults in our community were really

conflicted too some of us worried that

they might encounter violence other

people worried that they would walk out

but they wouldn't really know why they

were protesting and some including some

students families were really angry that

the school hadn't done more to prevent

them from leaving and all of those fears

that adults have about getting this

stuff wrong all of those fears make

total sense but despite those fears

we've got to prove to our students that

we will listen to their voices and that

they do have the power to affect change

it's our responsibility to equip our

students with the tools and the skills

that they need to insist on a more

equitable world and then sometimes to

get out of their way and let them apply

those skills to things that they care

about and living up to that vision is

going to require that we are flexible

and it's going to require that we're

creative it's gonna require that we're

brave enough to stand up in the face of

people who try to silence or D

legitimize dissenting voices and hardest

of all it's going to require accepting

the fact that sometimes we will be the

ones our students will rebel against

sometimes they're gonna point out ways

in which systems that we have created or

in which we are complicit contribute to

inequity it's going to be uncomfortable

and it's going to be painful as they

push us to question our own assumptions

and beliefs but what if we change the

way we think about rebellion in our kids

when our kids rebel when they

thoughtfully push back against our ideas

or the way that we do things what if we

chose to see that as a sign that we're

doing something right and that they're

becoming liberated I know it would be

easier if their critical thinking skills

manifested in more convenient ways on

their essays or their standardized tests

I get it convenience and justice do not

often go hand in hand and when our kids

learn to think critically about the

world around them they become the kinds

of engaged citizens who will recognize

and question injustice when they see it

and work to do something about it

welcoming rebellion into our schools is

going to require some rethinking about

what teaching and learning look like

because there's this misconception that

if we give students any wiggle room

they're gonna walk all over us and

classrooms and dinner tables will

devolve into total chaos and if we

expect kids to sit silently and

passively receive knowledge from us then

their voices will always feel

overwhelming but if we accept instead

that learning is sometimes messy that it

requires opportunities to brainstorm and

mess up and try again that our kids

dislike chaos and want to learn when

they come to school then we can set up

schools to facilitate that kind of

learning so do me a favor and close your

eyes for a second and imagine schools

where teachers are thought partners

letting students grapple with complex

hard issues and not necessarily giving

them the right answers and imagine

schools where we let students make

choices we trust them enough to do that

and we let them experience the

consequences of those choices

imagine schools where we let students be

humans with all of the messiness and the

uncertainty that is bound to come with

that and whatever you just imagined it's

not mythical it's not unrealistically

idealistic because teachers all over the

country are already pushing the

boundaries of what teaching and learning

can look like with amazing results for

kids they're doing that in all kinds of

schools and there are countless models

for teachers who want to get better at

helping students learn in a way that's

more authentic and engaging and

empowering I was reading a book recently

it's called the students are watching

and is by Ted and Nancy sizer and in

that book they said that the work of

education is often described as a series

of nouns like respect honesty integrity

and they say those nouns sound really

impressive but often they fail to

actually mean anything in practice but

verbs they say are active no less

demanding but requiring constant

engagement verbs are not structures but

rather engines and so as I've read that

I wondered how do we make engine how do

we make justice into an engine driving

our work as teachers what's the verb

form of Justice I think there might be

an answer to be found in the words of

Cornel West who famously said that

justice is what love looks like in

public and all of my nerdy English

teachers in the crowd know that love can

be a noun and a verb school has to be

bigger it has to mean more than I teach

my subject school has to be about

teaching people to change the world for

the better if we believe that then

teaching will always be a political act

we can't be afraid of our students power

their power will help them make tomorrow

better but before they can do that we

have to give them chances to practice

today and that practice should start in

our schools thank you very much

[Applause]

you