Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/anti-bias-education-in-challenging-times/5023266/
Anti-bias education is inherently about change. This means embracing some level of uncertainty while holding tight to the vision of a more just world. Demographic changes, shifts in social views and polarizing political issues, widely disseminated during the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, present challenges and complexities as we seek to be more inclusive and equitable in our early childhood programs. The pervasive and easy access to media daily brings issues and current events into our lives. Children are aware of and influenced — sometimes harmfully — by media messages as well as adults’ reactions to them (Costello, 2016).
Some of the more contentious issues we are hearing from teachers, families, and the media include: changing gender dynamics, transgender rights, systemic racism and violence, terrorism, religious intolerance, and immigration. The list is long and yours may differ. In addition, the shift towards greater visibility and inclusion of people previously marginalized in our society also leads to more explicit opposition from people already in the mainstream. For instance, the visibility that came when same-sex marriage was finally legalized or the recent debate about the needs of transgender students, may mean having to deal with pushback from some colleagues, families, and members of the ...