You witness microaggressions in the classroom. How can you support teachers in addressing them?

Patterns and reactions are the key things to observe. Taking action straight away may not always be necessary. Be aware that students may also be developing friendships and their own sense of humour with what can be perceived as micro aggressive actions and comments. If your professional judgement deems intervention, you can move students away from each other during class without disclosing your reasoning. Stating "I'm the teacher and I ask you to move so I am confident you are focusing on the lesson". After, you can intervene with students individually to clarify that if their actions are harmful to each other, with emphasis that they can't be harmful to their education.

From my perspective, supporting teachers in addressing microaggressions involves providing training on recognizing and responding to such incidents effectively. Encourage open discussions about diversity and inclusion to foster a supportive environment. Offer resources and strategies for teachers to create a classroom culture where all students feel respected and valued.

Implement regular "circle time" discussions, where everyone sits in a circle to ensure equal participation and a safe space for sharing. This works wonders. Use visual aids like posters or comics that depict scenarios of microaggressions and prompt discussions on how to handle them. Additionally, incorporate multimedia resources such as short films or podcasts that address microaggressions, followed by guided discussions. These techniques not only make the conversations more engaging but also help students and teachers develop a deeper understanding and proactive strategies to address microaggressions.

Organize workshops and webinars featuring experts on diversity and inclusion to provide hands-on training and foster a supportive community of practice. Additionally, design printable posters and infographics summarizing key concepts and response strategies to display in staff rooms and classrooms. These creative techniques ensure that teachers have the knowledge and tools at their fingertips to effectively address and educate about microaggressions.

Let's not overcomplicate things here! Children need to feel 2 things with a teacher.... Trust and safety. They need to trust the teacher and feel safe with the teacher and the environment. Remove one of those things, and everything else escalates. Teachers that don't spend time fostering positive relationships with students will more often that not, experience more challenges with students or a student, than a teacher that has spent time building positive relationships. For principals managing this, it needs to be a daily focus and part of teaching practice throughout the whole school.