Why there should be more Teachers of Color in our Schools

By Chenoa S. (Grade 9 Advisory Journalism Class) 

“I’m in 9th grade and I’ve only had 3 Black teachers; this is unacceptable because cultures connect when learning. 

(Video: Mr. Marvin Sims, Founder of STRIPES University - 100 percent college acceptance rate for students of color that participated in his MN program.)

St. Paul, Minn...Increasing the percentage of teachers of color in the workforce is not just important and beneficial for students of color. Students of all racial backgrounds can benefit from a diverse teacher workforce that represents the nation's overall demographics. Because the vast majority of American social networks are made up exclusively, or nearly exclusively Of people of the same race or ethnic background, many children and adults miss out on opportunities to interact with people of other races. 

Desegregation exists in the teaching profession as well. In 40% of US schools, there are no teachers of color on staff. As a result white students and teachers in the schools may miss opportunities to question assumptions about race, class, and privilege that they might encounter in their communities and to break down stereotypes about people of color. Certainly, it is not the responsibility of teachers of colors to facilitate Conversations about race and disapproval assumptions, but greater diversity within the teaching profession supports the overall effort. Increasing teacher diversity is an important aspect of improving educational equity for all students especially for students of color. Another important aspect of quality education is ensuring that teachers have the knowledge and skill to provide excellent instruction, which can be accomplished in part by more carefully selecting who becomes a teacher and how that person achieves that role. 

Personally, I’ve only had about three (3) teachers of color which is really unfortunate because we need to feel that personal connection to one another, not saying that it’s a problem that we have white teachers but it would be really helpful for us to have more teachers of color. I feel like if we had more teachers of color so much stuff would be different, like the way we think about school and getting an education.

Works Cited in this article 

There Aren't Enough Black Teachers in the US — and We Desperately Need to Change That

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