By: Damian Ramsey, MSW
Picture this scenario: A student asks their teacher, “Which party do you believe upholds the most democratic principles, Democrats or Republicans?” How should the teacher answer? Imagine another student tells their teacher, “I dislike that you said people don’t vote because it’s dangerous. That’s your personal opinion, and it’s fear mongering for you to talk about voting that way.” What should the teacher do? How should the teacher respond? With ‘divisive concepts’ legislation emerging in states across the country, teachers are struggling to know what to say and do when asked for their opinion or when confronted with a student complaint during instruction. Culture wars roil many of the nation’s schools, and teachers have been caught in the crossfire. Learn4Life recently released a toolkit to help Georgia educators navigate these uncertain times.
Georgia’s Protect Students First Act, commonly referred to as the ‘divisive concepts law’ – for the nine concepts it prohibits Georgia teachers from discussing in classrooms, has had a chilling effect on many educators, who worry that the law’s vague and unclear language opens them up to potential liability based on subjective interpretations of American history. These concerns amplify the stress many teachers are under as they work to bounce back from the pandemic. Teachers are the highest in-school predictor of a student’s academic performance, but 41% of Georgia teachers want to leave the profession within the next five years due to frequent job-related stress. The added burden of navigating the divisive concepts law is cause for concern.
Learn4Life partnered with district equity leaders from across metro Atlanta to help reduce the burden on teachers. With support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Learn4Life and district equity leaders engaged Versa Impact Group to develop a toolkit to promote a greater understanding of the law and its implications for metro Atalnta educators and families. The toolkit provides resources and protocols to ensure compliance with the law while continuing to create environments that are supportive and inclusive for all students. Drawing on insights from surveys, interviews, and focus groups of parents and staff in participating school districts, as well as equity leaders from demographically similar districts in Florida and Tennessee, the toolkit comprises 15 tools across three sections:
- Best Practices I – Teaching Sensitive Topics: includes a sample protocol for addressing students complaints in the classroom, guidelines for reviewing supplemental instructional material, and a process to determine if a concept is divisive
- Best Practices II – Administration of Equity in Teaching Sensitive Topics: includes tools to support the development of Employee Resource Groups, a Social Studies Disclaimer, and resources for administrators to create a learning environment that encourages critical thinking and discourse around topics that may be considered divisive
- Best Practices III – Communications Guidance: includes email templates, forms to address parent complaints, and guidance around handling conflict on social media
The toolkit also has a glossary of terms, key takeaways from Georgia’s Extended Framework for Teaching, and examples of parents’ complaints in Georgia and beyond. It can be tailored to each district and school’s unique set of challenges with the divisive concepts law, and can help guide academic instruction, school culture and climate, operations, and family engagement.
By sharing these resources, Learn4Life hopes educators in metro Atlanta and across the state of Georgia will be equipped with some language and tools to better understand the divisive concepts law and its implications, so they may proactively mitigate potential concerns, and responsively address student and parent complaints. We hope educators will feel empowered to communicate a shared understanding of the law, and opportunities it offers to advance equity. The full toolkit and communications guide is available on the Learn4Life website.
For specific questions about the toolkit, readers may contact Ashleigh Dennis, Founder & Managing Partner of Versa Impact Group.
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