Critical Race Theory in K-12 Education Pt 1
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- Critical Race Theory in K-12 Educationby Alex MayoDecember 16, 2021
- Hi there! Follow along to learn about Critical Race Theory with me!
- What is Race? What is Racism?
- I've been Iooking into school systems around Waterville, ME, trying to see what their Social Studies curriculum is like and how they approach racism and Critical Race Theory in K-12 schools.
- Theorists are trying to acknowledge racial injustice in the past, and teach others how to avoid it in the future. It was previously only taught in upper-level graduate programs, but now there have been many school board debates on whether to integrate CRT into K-12 education. It is a rapidly growing political and social issue!
- Essentially, the core theory of Critical Race Theory is “that race is a social construct, and that racism is not merely the product of individual bias or prejudice, but also something embedded in legal systems and policies”
- Some people say that this theory is "targeting white people" and that it is teaching young white children to hate themselves and their country. This is not the case!
- Senator Ted Cruz and Representative Burgess Owens have introduced the "END CRT Act" to ban CRT from being discussed in classrooms, and Idaho has already banned CRT from all public schools and universities. 26 states have laws restricting the way teachers can talk about racism and sexism in class. School boards across the country are currently debating the integration of CRT into public schools.
- Considering all of these debates, many parents and educators have different opinions on the topic - it usually aligns with politics, and parents are worried that their child is learning something they do not agree with. I was curious what people were thinking in Waterville, and in Maine. I wanted to see what the curriculum was like, if there was any mention of CRT, how schools approached racism, and if this differed significantly by state.
- I found that Maine has no state mandated curriculum (different than CT, which does). All schools have to follow the standards of Maine's System of Learning Results, but these are extremely broad standards. Waterville High School's social studies curriculum is extremely freeform - there are only a few guidelines the teacher has to hit for the unit (and there is no mention of CRT). This is different than my public high school in CT - Guilford High School's curriculum has significantly more standards and guidelines, as well as instruction on how to approach and teach topics like slavery and racism.
- Today: Critical Race Theory!
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