The Diversity In Our Teachers
Image courtesy of the Washington Post
By KAYLA MATHIEU ‘21
During an unusual moment of relaxation in my Honors Bio class, my teacher excitedly announced that there was an African American female candidate interviewing for a position in the science department. We were informed that she was being sought after by many other independent schools and that he was really hoping to have her at Milton. This revelation got me and the only other brown student in my class thinking about the lack of diversity throughout all of Milton’s teaching departments, but in particular in the science department. On the walk back from Pritzker, we began trying to count all of the the black and brown teachers in our community and were able to count all of them on our fingers.
This begged the question: why is there a lack of representation among teachers of color in the teaching community?
A study done by the National Association of Independent Schools revealed that often times the problem is not gaining teachers of color, but rather retaining them. In the study, teachers of color at independent schools were asked whether or not they felt they had more demands on them than other teachers. Over half of the teachers interviewed responded yes. They cited burdens such as, “the expectation of supporting all students and parents of color, the pressure to be "perfect" to negate stereotypes, being expected to be the spokesperson/expert for one's race, and coordinating diversity work including educating the community about diversity.” Though it may seem like an oxymoron, when hiring teachers of color, highlighting that they’re of color is not always necessary. Sure, a teacher of color’s identity will help them bring interesting perspectives and new approaches to a school, but it is not the only thing that should be emphasized regarding his or her professional life.
Having a diverse teaching pool is one of the most powerful tools that an institution can provide, as teachers inform the future. Greater diversity in the teaching community will tremendously help students of color in predominantly white spaces. But, a more diverse teaching community helps white students equally as much. Being exposed to teachers who look different from what students are used to helps create a more complete and accurate picture of the world outside of a school environment.
For students of color, a more diverse teaching community can provide a learning experience more tailored to the way a person of color moves about the world. For white students, a more diverse teaching community can help broaden the way those in the majority think of minorities. In this case, this modeling would be as authoritative figures who have something to teach them.
Teachers have one of the most powerful jobs in that they can influence what the future looks like based on what they are teaching to the future leaders of the world. As such, it is crucial that schools make it a priority that the informers of the future be more diverse than what is currently being displayed in the American education system.
It would be a major step forward if the candidate that my biology teacher spoke so fondly of were hired (especially given the lack of diversity in the science department), and I hope that in the very near future we look at candidates like her as a normality instead of an anomaly.