“Ethnic Studies teachers are traditionally siloed and probably more so now. We hope this team can build community and capacity.”  This is how Daniel Diaz, Director of the UCLA History-Geography Project recently explained the collaborative goals of the Ethnic Studies Grade Group.  To lead the Ethnic Studies Grade Group, Daniel will be joined by Jason Muniz, Academic Program Coordinator at the UC Berkeley History Project, and a longtime Ethnic Studies teacher in Oakland. Together Daniel and Jason will host discussions, presentations, and lesson demonstrations that center local communities along with student social and emotional health.

The Ethnic Studies Grade Group members will explore concepts of identity, intersectionality, and systems of oppression, resistance, and liberation in K-12 classrooms.  Daniel and Jason look forward to discussions about how local history shapes school communities.  “We will be sharing strategies like the “Tree of Life” to explore our identity as teachers and to also help students explore their personal stories,” Daniel recently described.  Activities like this also work to support students’ mental health and healing.  Building community and exploring identity while teaching remotely are challenges that all educators are facing, but navigating strategies to do this effectively is especially important for Ethnic Studies teachers.

The Grade Group series is specifically designed to provide teachers with the resources and support they will need to teach this fall.  The Ethnic Studies Grade Group – like all other groups – will offer educators from across the state the opportunity to talk with each other, share new ideas, and think together about how best to teach their particular content  and address students’ social and emotional needs in this new and admittedly difficult context.

The Ethnic Studies Grade Group will meet Wednesdays, from 4 - 5:30 pm, starting November 18.  Subsequent sessions will be held on December 2, January 20, February 10, March 3, and March 24. 

For more information about the Grade Groups series, click here.  Registration Fee:  $185. To register online via credit card, click here.  To register via check or purchase order, click here.