A quote I am pondering

After watching the video on cultural humility referenced below, I cannot help coming back to this quote from Hacking Deficit Thinking.

Recommended listens/watch

The Art of Advocacy with Dr. Sheldon Eakins – The Necessity of Soul Care and Critical Self-Reflection for Equity Centered Educators – I’ve highlighted episodes of Dr. Eakins’ playlist in previous Friday Shares. New episodes of the podcast drop every Monday. Dr. Eakins also has a live stream he does on Thursdays at 6 p.m. called the Art of Advocacy. If you are able to check out the livestreams, you will have a chance to interact with the guests via the YouTube chat feature. If not you can still catch the replays on YouTube. The episode from December 15 featured Dr. Mel. The timing for this episode was perfect as educators head into their December break.  Dr. Mel highlighted the importance of slowing down, self-reflection, and avoiding perfectionism. Dr. Mel also shared a great series on Cultural Humility (see below). Check out the whole episode here and you will see that Dr. Mel definitely lives by her recommendation to “choose joy.” You can learn more about Dr. Mel’s work at Scholars for the Soul.

Cultural Humility – This video from August 2012 is just under 30-minutes. From the description on YouTube: “Cultural Humility is a communal reflection to analyze the root causes of suffering and create a broader, more inclusive view of the world.  Originally developed by Doctors Melanie Tervalon and Jann Murray-Garcia (1998) to address health disparities and institutional inequities in medicine, Cultural Humility is now used in public health, social work, education, and non-profit management.”

The first portion of the video talks about the difference between Cultural Humility and Cultural Competence. A major takeaway from this was the fact that cultural competence often indicates an end point and a checked box, but when we talk about this in relation to learning about other cultures, how could we ever be fully competent. Cultural humility, on the other hand, is an ongoing process. One line that resonated on the topic of cultural humility was: “It is a collaborative investigation that equitably involves those affected by an issue, and is meant to educate and create social change.”  

One other portion that I keep thinking about is an Audre Lorde quote that ties into the vulnerability that goes along with humility – “The fact that we are here and that I speak these words is an attempt to break that silence and bridge some of those differences between us, for it is not difference which immobilizes us, but silence. And there are so many silences to be broken.”

Time for Teachership Podcast – Beyond “Performative Partnership” with Afrika Afeni Mills

This episode of the Teachership podcast is from January 2021 and Dr. Lindsay Lyons talks with Afrika Afeni Mills, who is the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for BetterLesson, and an Education Consultantabout, about moving beyond performative work to enact partnerships that can create real change in our schools and communities that result in more equitable schools and classrooms. Ms. Mills 

Cult of Pedagogy Podcast – How to Build Psychological Safety in Professional Development

This episode of the Cult of Pedagogy podcast with Jennifer Gonzalez features Bright Morning’s Elana Aguilar in a discussion on how to provide a space where psychological safety is prioritized for Professional Development. As Aguilar notes in the episode, “Learning requires us to be vulnerable and yet facilitators often don’t create the psychological safety, the conditions in which we can be vulnerable, take risks and say, I don’t know.” The episode goes on to highlight the portion of a The PD Book from Aguilar and Lori Cohen which focuses on the ways we can build an environment for Professional Development that allows educators to feel psychologically safe so they can fully engage in the learning experience. The podcast shares 5 Ways to Build Psychological Safety for Teachers from chapter two of the book and the strategies that Aguilar uses for adult learning spaces are equally important for setting up successful learning spaces for students. Aguilar notes the following: “Safe is the minimal required condition for learning.” The thought by the facilitator and the collaborative processes needed are described in great detail. Check out this episode and The PD Book which I discussed back in November. 

Speaking of Bright Morning and Elana Aguilar, check out her episode from this week on setting yourself up for success in 2023. Elana shares some tips on helping to become more reflective and gets into it a bit deeper on the Bright Morning Instagram account. 

That’s it for this week. Happy New Year! Wishing everyone a 2023 that is full of joy both personally and professionally!