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Should Early Childhood Teachers Discuss Bias?
August 11, 2023
Being good is easy, what is difficult is being just.
-Victor Hugo, 1803-1885, French writer
-Victor Hugo, 1803-1885, French writer
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Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey ousted the state’s early ed director over a teacher training manual that mentioned bias, privilege and racism. The governor told reporters that educators instead need to stick to the 'basics of education.'
Iheoma Iruka, a professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and a coauthor of the manual, said that child care and preschool require far more than that. “For children to actually fully lean into and engage, they need to also feel safe; they need to feel comfortable,” Iruka said. “So, I think that’s a problematic lack of understanding about child development and how things are actually integrated, especially in the early years. That’s why a lot of our standards don’t just say, 'Teachers, teach reading.'”
Studies show bias is a big problem in early education programs, and experts say not enough has been done to address it. |
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Comments (3)
Displaying All 3 CommentsEugene, OR, United States
Francis, yes, yes, yes. Low pay and status, and the devaluation of care are directly related. I feel we need more discourse (followed by action) inspired by Carol Garboden Murray's book Illuminating Care. She tackles this head on.
SVC
Anacortes, WA, United States
That Dr. Barbara Cooper's deep understanding and years of expertise and leadership in early childhood were lost to the children and families of Alabama due to Governor Ivey's lack of ethical backbone is a great loss.
University of Phoenix/ Red Rocks Community College
Denver, Colorado, United States
Let's never forget that the biggest bias in ECE programs is the horrible pay and benefits of teachers and caregivers, most of whom are women and many women of color!
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