Engaged Educator Coalition

Welcome to this space for Wisconsin educators to work together in community to support high-quality standards-based teaching that affirms, responds to, and sustains students' cultural and linguistic identities.fd

Reclaiming Joy within Teaching and Learning

Reclaiming Joy

It can be tough to find a way toward joyfulness when you’re overwhelmed, but you can reset and reignite your energy for teaching. Lessons from Dr. Gholdy Muhammad in her books Cultivating Genius and Unearthing Joy help us get started. 

Engaged Educator Coalition

This hub provides resources for professional learning, reflection, and collaboration so that educators have regular opportunities to engage in the following:

  • build their knowledge of and reflect on the history of race, racism, and exclusion in the United States and build their skill for discussing this history with students in the context of lessons and class discussions
  • increase their own self-awareness of how their various social identities in terms of race, class, gender, language, etc. shaped their own educational experiences and shape their definitions of success and their interpretations of student behavior
  • deconstruct, reflect on, and design lessons that support the active valuing, engagement, and development of the whole child
  • learn about the neuroscience of learning; those signals that trigger a “threat” response especially for students of color as well as strategies explicitly designed to decrease stress and generate a sense of calm and well-being
  • develop a repertoire of approaches for building trust, especially across race, class, and culture.

Social Emotional Learning & Equity - National Equity Project

Transforming Education Through Restorative Justice

This hub supports Maisha Winn’s four stances described in her book, Justice on Both Sides: Transforming Education Through Restorative Justice (2018):

  • History Matters: To collectively access painful histories and address the historical wrong-doing in education and in school communities.
  • Race Matters: To commit to practicing anti racism using an ongoing process of learning, self reflection, and unlearning to self-critique, discover, and shed the racist ideas consumed over a lifetime of socialization into a culture of white supremacy in which ‘whiteness’ is made invisible to uphold power hierarchies.
  • Justice Matters: To educate young people for ‘collective freedom’ through cultivating conditions in which each person is honored as worthy, treated with respect, dignity, and mutual concern, and students and educators learn to be in positive relationship with each other.
  • Language Matters: To provide tangible tools for addressing the complex work of reconciling history, race, and justice.

Navigating WISELearn

WISELearn support specialist Joanna Schimizzi provides an explanation of how to navigate WISELearn.

Creating Learner-Centered Instructional Plans

Historically Responsive Education

Leaning into Dr. Gholdy Muhammad’s research of ancient Africa and 19th-century Black literary societies in Cultivating Genius, Wisconsin educators are cultivating the genius in young people by actively nurturing and working at the nexus of students’ identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy. Dr. Muhammad’s framework expands students’ “capacity to read, write, and think in the context of understanding power, privilege, and oppression.” This section contains professional learning videos and example instructional plans to support educators with developing instructional plans that center the learner and cultivate their genius. 

Where do we start?

Develop a deep understanding of the underpinnings of Dr. Gholdy Muhammad’s framework in this 28-minute video, which orients educators to where to begin instructional planning - with the genius of their students.

Reflections from Educators

Educators teaching in the areas of science, social studies, world langauges, environmental education, and gifted and talented participated in a year-long cohort to explore how how equity and excellence emerge through the engaged learning practices outlined the research-based text, Cultivating Genius: A Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad.

In the vidoes and resources that follow, you can see how teachers integrate the five learning pursuits: identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy into the learning process. 

Bringing Joy into Learning

World Languages educator Danielle Chaussee and her students at Oconomowoc High School discuss how equity and excellence emerge through the engaged learning practices outlined the research-based text, Cultivating Genius: A Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad. 

As you view the video, listen for the impact of teachers who integrate the five learning pursuits: identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy into the learning process. 

View the lesson plan, peer feedback table, and author reflection that correspond to lesson featured in this video.

Connecting Learning to Students' Place

World Languages educator Josh LeGreve and his students in Green Lake discuss how equity and excellence emerge through the engaged learning practices outlined the research-based text, Cultivating Genius: A Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad. 

As you view the video, listen for the impact of teachers who integrate the five learning pursuits: identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy into the learning process. 

View the lesson plan, tourism impact handout, and UN SDG task that correspond to lesson featured in this video.

Engaged World Citizens

German teacher Carley Goodkind and her students at Greenfield High School discuss how equity and excellence emerge through the engaged learning practices outlined the research-based text, Cultivating Genius: A Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad. 

As you view the video, listen for the impact of teachers who integrate the five learning pursuits: identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy into the learning process. 

View the lesson plan that corresponds to this video.

Finding Joy in Criticality

Listen to an educator reflect on planning and teaching for students’ criticality and joy in this 1-minute video. 

Lessons in Identity

Listen to an educator reflect on planning and teaching for students’ identity in this 2-minute video. 

More resources coming soon

Additional reflections from educcators coming soon! 

Plans for Learning

Educators teaching in the areas of science, social studies, world langauges, environmental education, and gifted and talented participated in a year-long cohort to explore how how equity and excellence emerge through the engaged learning practices outlined the research-based text, Cultivating Genius: A Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad.

In the plans for learning that follow, you can see how teachers integrate the five learning pursuits: identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy into the learning process. 

It's Getting Hot In Here

Coming soon! A unit plan for thermal energy in a middle school science classroom 

Where We Live

We live in a global community and it’s important that all members feel welcome no matter where they come from. Elements of welcoming communities include such things like access to recreation, grocery, markets, health care; and other places and services.In this unit, students will explore life and accessibility in various communities and how it compares with their own, conducting interviews around community engagement, with the goal of communicating, assisting and making connections with members of local and global communities.

Additionally, this unit connects with multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals, including #10 Reduced Inequalities, and #11 Sustainable Cities and Communities, as well as touching on many others. 

Access it here: https://wlresources.dpi.wi.gov/courseware/lesson/3031

Food in Our World and in Our Lives

Food is an essential part of our daily life. It is not only important to sustaining life, but it is also important to traditions, celebrations, and personal identity. However, there are many global issues surrounding food today. Food production, consumption, and waste are impacted and impact both local and global economics and well-being. From sustainability practices, to food access, to choices in what we eat, there are many complex issues that we need to answer as a global society in the next few decades.

Additionally, in our interconnected world, the food choices made in every community has a global impact. In this unit, we will explore why we eat what we eat and how we can make a difference in ways food is produced, accessed, consumed and wasted in our local and global communities. First, we will investigate food habits around the world and compare them with our own habits through reading various texts, class discussions, and surveying others. Then, we will take action by creating our own texts to share with others and inform them of issues surrounding food at a local and/or global level.

This unit connects with multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals, including #2 Zero Hunger, #3 Good Health and Well-being, and #12 Responsible Consumption and Production, as well as touching on many others.

Access the Google Doc through WiseLearn: https://wlresources.dpi.wi.gov/courseware/lesson/3032

Unit Planning Template

World languages educators teaching participated in a year-long cohort to explore how how equity and excellence emerge through the engaged learning practices outlined the research-based text, Cultivating Genius: A Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad.

This unit planning template provides an opportunity for teachers to integrate the five learning pursuits: identity, skills, intellectualism, criticality, and joy into the learning process. Log into your Google account and click "Use Template": https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YXgnTkC65gEZEM3RL3grkbGBM_m3XJka8vudOczNNmE/template/preview

Teaching Hard History

Learning for Justice developed a comprehensive guide for teaching and learning about the role slavery played in the development of the United States and how its legacies still influence us today. They have created frameworks for grade K-5 and 6-12 to ensure developmentally appropriate texts and teaching tools. https://www.learningforjustice.org/frameworks/teaching-hard-history/american-slavery 

Selecting Learner-Centered Instructional Resources

Resources in this section will support you in selecting and teaching with learner-centered instructional resources to include addressing challenges, facilitating critical conversations with students, and promoting civil discourse within the classroom.

When selecting resources for the classroom, educators need to consider the curriculum (what we teach) and the instruction (how we teach). This means that we want to be intentional in our selection of all resources, bringing our lens of criticality to all materials that we are using throughout students’ learning experiences. Not only is it imperative that educators select instructional resources that do not promote existing stereotypes, create new ones, or prevent students from acquiring accurate and valid information, educators must also select instructional resources that are representative of our pluralistic social, cultural, political, and historical society. This section contains tools and professional learning videos and slideshows to support educators in selecting  representative instruction resources that are free from harm.

Evaluate Instructional Resources for Bias: Comprehensive Tool

This resource is a comprehensive tool that will support educators in 1) grounding themselves in a shared understanding of how identity is developed, 2) understanding how specific identity biases have been constructed, 3) reflecting on their own lived experience, critically examining these biases within their lives, and seeking out counternarratives to society’s stereotypes and systems of privilege and oppression, and 4) critically evaluating instructional resources for bias and privilege as well as for how the instructional resource will amplify students’ identities and will promote joy in learning. Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-O33hHhbLipxovqK5o4fcKtJFDGALRiS_J89-xLIUwI/edit#

Evaluate Instructional Resources for Bias: “Push to Practice” Tool

This resource is for educators who have an understanding of how identities are developed and have been examining their own identities within systems of privilege and oppression. This tool jumps right into the “push to practice” in that it provides a quick-reference sheet for educators to critically evaluate instructional resources for bias and privilege as well as for how the instructional resource will amplify students’ identities and will promote joy in learning. Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1udn-4hfq813lCTS_LfwHERhkRXUOvGwVkqZgrPsneT4/edit. 

An Educator in Action: Evaluating an Instructional Resources for Bias

In this video clip, Christina Spears models her thinking while she is using the “Push to Practice” Tool to evaluate To Kill a Mockingbird for bias.

Professional Learning Webinar: Evaluating Instructional Resources for Bias

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, CESA 2, and ISKME teamed up to lead a year-long professional learning series, the Engaged Educator Coalition Learning Series, that focuses on how to develop instructional plans and assessments that center students and work towards healing and our collective liberation by using Dr. Gholdy Muhammad’s 5 Pillars - Identity, Skills, Intellectualism, Criticality, and Joy. In this webinar (video, transcript, slides) the Engaged Educator Coalition Team steps Wisconsin educators through the process of evaluating instructional resources for bias.

Ensuring Instructional Resources Respond and Sustain Students’ Cultural and Linguistic Identities - Coming Soon!

Engaged educators are constantly reflecting and asking questions in an effort to ensure instructional resources respond and sustain students’ cultural and linguistic identities. This resource is designed to support educators as they critically interrogate their instructional resources to ensure that they are culturally and linguistically responsive and sustaining. It is grounded in the research of Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, Dr. Django Paris, and Dr. Gholdy Muhammad.

Teaching with Learner-Centered Instructional Resources

As you are selecting representative instruction resources that are free from harm to use in your classroom, be in relationship with students, families, and community members. Resources in this section will support you in teaching with learner-centered instructional resources to include addressing challenges, facilitating critical conversations with students, and promoting civil discourse within the classroom.

Challenges to Instructional Resources

Being in relationship with students, families, and community members as partners in learning is important. If you experience a challenge to an instructional resource, reach out to your local school librarian. Together, you and your librarian can connect with the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC), which is a local resource to support you in responding to challenges against materials in libraries and classrooms. The CCBC confidentiality assists Wisconsin librarians and teachers when they are facing potential or actual book challenges. You can call or email here: https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/intellectual-freedom-2/intellectual-freedom/#:~:text=If%20you%20are%20a%20Wisconsin,education.wisc.edu).

Facilitating Critical Conversations with Students

Educators play a crucial role in helping students talk openly about the historical roots and contemporary manifestations of social inequality and discrimination. Learning how to communicate about such topics as white privilege, police violence, economic inequality and mass incarceration requires practice, and facilitating critical conversations with students demands courage and skill. This guide offers classroom-ready strategies you can use to plan discussions and to facilitate these conversations with your students.  https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/publications/lets-talk

Promote Civil Discourse in the Classroom

Now that we have selected instructional materials that have been evaluated for bias and alignment with culturally and linguistically responsive and sustaining teaching, we want to explore how to lean into - not away from - teaching a wide range of topics with a wide range of students. Learning for Justice has a four-part series that introduces educators to basic tools for teaching civil discourse in any subject area. Although the resource is designed for your adolescents, it can be adapted for students of any age. Link: https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/publications/civil-discourse-in-the-classroom

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Learning Opportunities

Training Schedule

Educator Workshops

Online Learning

Coming soon! 

Resources for Training

Coming soon! 

Community Partnerships

WI DPI and the Engaged Educator Coalition welcome the partnership with the Sikh Coalition and their goal of working towards the realization of civil and human rights for all people.

The resources below are part of the collaboration to ensure educators have access to resources that are culturally and linguistically responsive and sustaining. Use the black arrows to toggle between resources.

Introduction to the Partnership of the Sikh Coalition and WISELearn

Harman Singh, (he/him) / ਹਰਮਨ ਸਿੰਘ, Senior Education Manager at The Sikh Coalition, discusses how partnering with WISELearn supports the overall goals of ensuring that all children deserve a safe and inclusive learning environment. The Sikh Coalition is leading efforts to promote Sikh awareness and prevent bullying in our nation’s public schools. Their goal is to build resilience and pride among Sikh American youth.

Featured Resource: Sikhism - An Educator’s Guide

This resource, found on both the Sikh Coalition page and on WISELearn, is featured in the collection in order to help provide an introduction for educators. 
 
There are more than 25 million Sikhs around the world, which makes Sikhi (also known as Sikhism) the fifth-largest major world religion. Yet the Sikh tradition remains largely unknown in the US and is often absent from the K-12 education system. Where it has been present, Sikhi has often been represented inaccurately.
 
These problems have contributed to the serious challenges that many Sikh students and Sikhs at large experience today, including bullying and harassment, negative stereotypes, discriminatory policies, vandalism and violent hate crimes. This guide aims to help facilitate learning about Sikhs and Sikhi in K-12 classrooms, provide educators with information about issues faced by Sikh children in schools, and give basic reference information about the Sikh tradition.

Introduction to Sikhism

CNN's United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell features an episode on the Sikh American community, entitled "Sikhs in America." In this clip, W. Kamau Bell joins Harpreet Singh, Sikh Coalition co-founder and Harvard University faculty member to discuss the basic tenets of the Sikh faith. Content courtesy of CNN.

 

 

Featured Resource: What do things I wear say about me?

Another featured resource is a collaboration between C3 Teachers and the Sikh Coalition provides a strong starting point for engaing students in meaningful discussion.

This third-grade inquiry lesson expands students’ understandings of how groups represent themselves through what they wear. The compelling question—“What do things I wear say about me?”—engages students in an examination of material culture by considering the factors impacting their own choices of what they wear such as geography, culture, and religion. Students will examine the similarities and differences they share with their classmates, as well as diverse cultures in their communities and around the globe.

Curated Collection of Resource from the Sikh Coalition

In this Collection, you can find the 11 resources that have been provided by the Sikh Coalition. Some of the resources, such as the Discussion Guides, are remixable and can be customized on this platform.

Oak Creek Public Library’s Sikh Culture Collection

 

The Oak Creek Public Library, in conjunction with the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, has put together a collection of books about Sikhs and Sikhism. This WISELearn resource contains a list of the books in this collection and an Excel spreadsheet that can be downloaded. 

 

To unveil the collection, an open house at the library will be held on Saturday, April 9 from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. with brief remarks scheduled for 11:00 a.m. The list of speakers includes the following:
 

  • Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes
  • Mayor of Oak Creek Dan Bukiewicz
  • Oak Creek-Franklin Joint School Board President Frank Carini
  • Sikh community leader Dr. Kulwant Singh Dhaliwal
  • Former United States Attorney James Santelle
  • Oak Creek Public Library Director Jill Lininger


Light refreshments will be served. This event is open to the public, and registration is recommended; RSVP by visiting oakcreeklibrary.org/rsvp.

 

WI DPI and the Engaged Educator Coalition welcome the partnership with the African American Jewish Friendship Group and their goal to identify resources that support the development of an accurate, integrative, and comprehensive social studies and U.S. history curriculum for K through 12 grades, with a focus on the critical role African Americans have played in the country’s development.

The African-American_Jewish Friendship Group, Education Committee and Our Collaborative Work with WISELearn

The African American/Jewish Friendship Group, Inc. was formed by Gerald (Jerry) and Merle Sternberg in 1990 to improve race relations in Dane County. Over the years, the organization has grown and thrived with lively and honest discussions about the Group’s respective histories and current and continuing problems that impede progress in race relations and the quest for true equality within Dane County and the United States. The Friendship Group has been involved in several projects to promote the improvement of race relations, equality, equity, and inclusion. The Education Committee has taken on one of the major projects that have been established. The goal of the Education Committee is to identify resources to support the development of an accurate, integrative, and comprehensive social studies and U.S. history curriculum for K through 12 grades, with a focus on the critical role African Americans have played in the country’s development. To that end, the Education Committee created a proposal in 2019, "Reframing American History”, to share with Wisconsin school districts.

Reframing American History: Recommended Resources for Integratng the History of African Americans into the American History Curriculum

African American/Jewish Friendship Group member Jamie Murray-Branch explains the Resource Guide and the three goals behind its creation.

Resources

African American/Jewish Friendship Group member Dr. Gloria Hawkins explains how and why the Committee created "Reframing American History" which provides recommended resources for integrating accurate accounts of African American history into Social Studies and History courses. Here is a list of all of the resources. 

 

List of AAJFG Resources

Bundled Curriculum

African American/Jewish Friendship Group member Jamie Murray-Branch explains how the African American/Jewish Friendship group worked with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to create bundled curriculum resources.

Curated Collection

Please visit the Collection, where you will find resources that the Education Committee has carefully curated for educators.  Resources are remixable and can be customized on this platform.


 

Groups