In Joanna Walker’s (she/her) IB Language and Literature 11 classes, students analyze a diverse collection of work by both white and non-white artists. When she started working at Inglemoor 18 years ago, the curriculum consisted only of white male writers.
“Don’t get me wrong, these are wonderful pieces of literature worth studying. However, it’s in the title of the program: it’s international IB,” Walker said. “So we were able to gain consensus that it was really important to offer students a range of voices in the literature that truly reflected the international community of the world.”
Teachers of color currently constitute about 16% of Inglemoor’s educators, while 48% of students are people of color. Although Walker said this is a significant increase from when she started teaching, she said she thinks it would be wonderful to have more diversity.
“I just think, having experience in diverse spaces, there’s a richness of conversation, of beliefs, of language, of ways of thinking, ways of expressing oneself, senses of humor,” Walker said. “And isn’t that wonderful?”
Walker, who is multiracial, said that she tries to incorporate conversations about race and identity into her curriculum. Walker said she never encountered literature written by non-white authors in her English classes when she was in high school. Although she always loved English class, she said that discovering writers like Toni Morrison and Ralph Ellison in college was a transformative experience.
“I’ve seen firsthand how powerful it is to read something by an author who looks like you and shares your identity,” Walker said. “To read amazing literary works and to have your identity embedded in that narrative is pretty powerful, and I want that for my students earlier. I don’t want them to have to wait to go to college to look at a text and see ‘This mirrors who I am.’”
Beyond the curriculum, however, Latino American English teacher Ismael Garcia (he/him) said that his identity influences how he interacts with students. He said that it’s helped fuel his passion for teaching but has also added some extra pressure.
“It put some fire under me, too, knowing that I feel like I have to perform every day because I want to be a good representation, and I want to be a good role model for students,” Garcia said.
Similarly, African American English teacher and Black Student Union advisor Omar Omar (he/ him) said that as a minority in his occupation, he feels that there is a responsibility to represent his racial group positively.
“As a teacher, you have a professional responsibility, but I think that also heightens when you’re a teacher of color because sometimes you may deal with micro- aggressions or slick comments, and that’s something that you have to navigate in a strategic manner,” Omar said. “I’m aware that folks in this area may not have a lot of interactions or come across people of color or, specifically, Black people. I tried to reflect that in the curriculum, to give them an insight into a world that they’re not privy to or have experienced.”
Data from the 2020 census shows that 5.8% of Washington’s population was Black or African American. At Inglemoor, Black students consist of 2.5% of the student body.
“I think the most effective way of learning is directly from the source and by lived experiences,” Omar said. “And I do appreciate teachers that have a diverse curriculum and teach students about aspects of the world that they may not be privy to, but at the same time, that’s theoretical, almost. You’re kind of theorizing or not having that lived experience or lived interactions.”
In recent years, Walker said she feels that students have become less open to discussing race in the classroom, which she attributes to an incendiary political climate. However, she said she has always viewed teaching as a form of social justice because aside from creating a safe learning environment in the classroom, students should feel that their classwork represents them.
“I don’t take lightly that the experience that I provide in this classroom might reinforce biases, but it also might help us to loosen those biases and work on them,” Walker said. “And then that affects the fabric of society that all of you are participating in as you go out into the world.”
Garcia said he thinks that the education system is becoming more progressive with the introduction of more authors of color to curriculum and that it’s inspiring for teachers like him. He views his teaching role as a way to empower students and encourage them to pursue higher education, which he believes is the key to being really successful.
“I really would love to see more teachers of color, not in our area, but just everywhere,” Garcia said. “Because I think it takes one person to really believe in somebody like a high schooler, and we don’t necessarily always hear that from somebody who we don’t look like or maybe someone we don’t identify with.”
