Search

In an ever-changing, racially-charged society, topics of race and racism are frequently being broached in schools. However, reaching the desired racial change after engagement in these discussions on race and racism requires concerted intention on the part of educators and stakeholders. While there is no specific formula in moving toward more racially just environments in our schools, educational leaders must acknowledge barriers, such as institutionalized racism, neutrality, and colorblindness, which serve as veils of oppression, in order to keep discourse on race and racism from becoming circular in nature

Individualized Learning Plans (ILPs), an effective strategy to promote students' college and career readiness, are increasingly used in US school systems as a mechanism to encourage students' career exploration and identification of career goals. After describing features of ILPs, we provide an example of the ILP process developed and implemented in the junior high schools in McLean County (Illinois) Unit District No. 5. Based upon this experience, we share important factors for school leaders that can affect successful implementation in their schools.

Prior research has shown that teacher-centred factors such as teacher participation in decision making, teacher morale, and shortage of teaching staff, can affect school performance. In this study we examined how these factors differ between White-majority and White-minority schools both before and after controlling for school characteristics such as school type, socioeconomic status, student-teacher ratio etc. Our results indicate significant differences in teacher morale and shortage of teaching staff between White-majority and White-minority schools, with these differences persisting even after controlling for basic school characteristics. Implications are discussed.

In an ever-changing, racially-charged society, topics of race and racism are frequently being broached in schools. However, reaching the desired racial change after engagement in these discussions on race and racism requires concerted intention on the part of educators and stakeholders. While there is no specific formula in moving toward more racially just environments in our schools, educational leaders must acknowledge barriers, such as institutionalized racism, neutrality, and colorblindness, which serve as veils of oppression, in order to keep discourse on race and racism from becoming circular in nature [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]