{"id":2881,"date":"2020-07-12T10:18:00","date_gmt":"2020-07-12T15:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itslitteaching.com\/?p=2881"},"modified":"2025-08-08T16:44:57","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T20:44:57","slug":"5-tips-for-white-teachers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itslitteaching.com\/5-tips-for-white-teachers\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Tips for White Teachers Who Want to Do Better"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you don’t know me, I am a white teacher. And when I say white, I mean, I glow<\/em>. My background is pure privilege: two parents who are still together, middle-class homes in the suburbs my whole life, parents who were able, through hard work and planning, to pay for my college tuition for me. So when I walked into an incredibly diverse Title 1 school on my first day of teaching, I was completely unprepared. <\/strong>This job has forced me to really look inward, examine my own biases and prejudices, and learn to do better. In this post, I want to share 5 tips for other white teachers who also want to do better for our students of color. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission, at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products that I personally use and love, or think my readers will find useful.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #1: Learn Your Students’ Names<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I shouldn’t even have to write this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And, this tip isn’t just for white teachers teaching students of color. This is basically a tip for anyone who just wants to be a decent person: learn how to pronounce people’s names!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alas. One year I had to co-teach with another white teacher who could not figure this out. She was new to the area and had only ever worked at a mostly-white school before. Our diverse student population was new territory for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One thing she just could not get over was the “unusual” names in our school. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was one student in particular who’s name sounded<\/em> differently aloud than it may have looked on paper if you were following standard English phonetics. She absolutely refused to pronounce this poor student’s name properly, but instead insisted on saying it the way she thought<\/em> it should be pronounced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This student was an incredibly quiet child. Every time she yelled out his name improperly, I could see him shrink in his seat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I tried to correct her. I pulled her aside a few times to let her know the correct pronunciation. She insisted that her mispronouncing the name was an inside joke between her and the student.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the student had had enough. He told her that he didn’t like the way she said his name.<\/strong> He corrected her pronunciation and asked that she please use his real name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you know what? She refused. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

She continued using the same, incorrect pronunciation. Each purposeful mispronunciation was a microaggression against this student. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(And guys, our school was not under the best leadership at the time. I promise you–I went to our vice principal. I was told I wasn’t “trying hard enough” to work with this co-teacher and that I was the problem.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you refuse to use a student’s given or preferred name, you’re denying their identity.<\/strong> You’re telling them that you don’t care enough to learn it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I do attendance on the first day, I tell my students: “I am bad at names. It will take me forever to learn them. But I want to learn them. <\/em>Correct me. Correct me every single time I mispronounce a name.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Names matter because our students matter.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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Pinterest pin for blog post: \"5 Tips for White Teachers Who Want to do Better\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Tip #2: Incorporate Voices of Color Into Your Curriculum<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This will probably be controversial, but I cannot stand “African American Lit” units. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because when there’s an “African American” anything unit, educators tend to adhere to the curriculum, check off “black author\/historian\/change-maker” off of their to-do list, and then go right back to the white canon. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have to do better. Voices from people of color need to be woven throughout our curriculum<\/strong>. They need to be an integral piece that cannot be separated from the whole. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Look for places in your curriculum where you can add these voices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One great example is the To Kill a Mockingbird<\/em> Unit. There is so much debate about whether or not we should be teaching this book still. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to teach To Kill a Mockingbird<\/em> to analyze Harper Lee’s writing style, characterization, or analyze plot, sure, go for it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if you’re teaching To Kill a Mockingbird<\/em> because you want your students to know that racism is wrong, I have a problem with that. It’s not that TKAM isn’t worth teaching, but that it often replaces the perfect<\/em> slot for black voices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Too often To Kill a Mockingbird<\/em>–a book that centers around a white character, her white family, and praises the white savior archetype–is presented as the core of an anti-racism unit.<\/strong> The last thing we need when talking about race is more white voices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So look for the places where you can add in voices of color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big note!<\/strong> This will probably mean that you’ll need to read and research more people of color yourself, so you can make informed curriculum choices!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every school will vary when it comes to the flexibility of curriculum. You’ll have to feel it out. But you’ll certainly be able to add<\/em> in supplementary material.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you can’t do a whole novel or a big unit, add in some poems. Add in news articles. Try Ted talks or art from people of color. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then, challenge a white-washed curriculum every chance you get.<\/strong> At meetings, try offering new curriculum ideas<\/a>. Ask your principal if you can try something new. Heck, shred the textbook and just don’t tell them about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

White teachers, we need to act as allies and do the work<\/em> to incorporate more voices. We can’t throw up our hands and blame decades-old lesson plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We owe our students an inclusive curriculum.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n

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Pinterest pin for blog post: \"5 Tips for White Teachers Who Want to do Better\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Tip #3: Make Books by POC Available to Students<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Everyone wants to be represented. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you play video games, you probably always choose a character avatar that resonates with you in someway. With movies, we often identify with people who look like us or come from different backgrounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The same is true, of course, with books. <\/strong>Our students are already not reading enough. Let’s make sure that when they do, they feel seen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(This is part of my sneaky mission to get them all addicted to books.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have a classroom library, be sure that your library is diverse. (If you don’t have a classroom library, it’s time to start one!)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Teachers<\/a>
In this literature circle unit, students will choose between three Black Lives Matter movement-inspired novels: The Hate U Give, Dear Martin, or All American Boys. As students read, they’ll also prepare a social justice speech. Click here <\/a>to learn more!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Pay attention to the authors in your classroom. If you’ve been buying books on autopilot, it’s time to stop and audit your classroom. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is important if you work in a diverse school. If 40% of your students are black, but only 10% of your books are, then you have a problem. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, your library shouldn’t be a perfect mirror. You want to include voices and perspectives that allow students to see outside of their everyday experiences too. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I work very hard to include diverse voices in my classroom library, but I know I’m not perfect. I think I do well with incorporating black authors, but I know I really need to work on acquiring books from Latinx authors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, even though we have almost no Muslim students in our school, I work hard to get Islamic voices on my shelves because I want students to think outside of their neighborhoods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It will forever be a work in progress, but it’s work worth doing. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you need resources, check out #weneeddiversebooks, #projectlit, and FirstBook Marketplace<\/a>. If you need recommendations, check out my Lit Literature Reviews. <\/p>\n\n\n\n