Communities are deeply rich in human capital—regardless of the zip code. But educators in some schools may struggle to understand how to build on the many talents and assets of community—perhaps because in order to recognize and acknowledge expertise in community we, as educators, must see the brilliance of the students with whom we work.
As an urban teacher educator, I have often heard teachers and administrators in underresourced schools talk about what their students, parents, and communities lack in disheartening ways. I've heard comments like:
- "These students' parents do not care about education—they don't even show up for parent-teacher conferences."
- "These students' families don't help them with their homework or school projects."
- "There is so much violence in their communities. They don't value life."
But every single student in our schools, including those often placed on the margins of learning, should be viewed as vessels of knowledge and knowing: Black and brown students, students whose first language is not English, Muslim students, immigrant students, students with ability differences, LGBTQ+ students, and students who live below the poverty line—all of these young people come to school with significant intellectual and cultural assets. Yet because our educational system has been relentless in "schooling" students to become less of themselves, rejecting important features of their identity, we miss out on what education can actually be and can actually mean for advancing a truly democratic, pluralistic society.
Mwalimu J. Shujaa and his colleagues (1994) stressed that we should advance education over schooling. And education that honors and builds on students cultural assets, I would argue, involves educators deliberately learning about and expanding their community knowledge to inform action.
Community Outreach for Educators
It is well established by research (Banks, 2015; Shulman, 1987) that educators' knowledge informs what they do. So a pressing question is how educators can build their knowledge of community to inform their instruction and support for students inside classrooms. Here are some suggestions, adapted from research I conducted while working in an urban middle school and discussed in my book Start Where You Are But Don't Stay There (Harvard Education Press, 2010).
Community Learning. I observed a white teacher over a period of two years who initially informed me that his main focus was to "just teach science" to his racially, socio-economically diverse students. But eventually he realized that understanding his students and their communities was essential to the teaching and learning process. In other words, as an outsider to the community, he could not "just teach science" until he developed tools to understand his students and their broader ecological reality. Students, families, and community members, this teacher came to understand, are the experts of their experience, and educators should intentionally listen to the wisdom and insights of those who know them best.
Community Immersion. In their research on pre-desegregation schools, Linda Tillman (2004) and Vanessa Siddle Walker (1996) have highlighted the value of teachers living in the communities in which they taught. Such residential arrangements can provide for powerful trusting relationships and layers of knowledge through experience that educators are able to incorporate in their work. When they live in students' communities, teachers are able to build lessons and come up with meaningful examples that bridge content, instruction, and learning. Living in the area can also help educators understand the nuances of the community in ways that allow them to make better professional judgments.
Community Engagement. Even when they are not able to live in the same neighborhood as their school, educators can build knowledge about the community by reading and talking about the goings-on in students' lives and by immersing themselves in the fabric of the community. They can attend community meetings, council meetings, religious ceremonies, and community events and deliberatively reflect on their own lived experiences as educators in relation to those of their students. Engagement in the life of a community, as opposed to mere participation or observation, is the key. Engagement means that there is real commitment—long term, persistent, and consistent immersion in the actual affairs of the community for learning, understanding, and development.
Community Attendence. When teachers immerse themselves in a student's community, they get a first-hand view of the student's life outside of the school environment. I have learned in my work with teachers that some of them believe that their involvement with students should end after the school day (or perhaps after they have coached basketball or lacrosse practice or directed a band concert or school play). But attending students' activities outside of school—from baptisms or bar mitzvahs to Little League events or even a pickup basketball game—is a necessary aspect of professional learning for educators at all grade levels. Such attendance allows educators to learn about students' interests and talents outside of school, demonstrates a level of care to parents and students (a necessary feature of building trust), and gives educators an opportunity to engage in informal conversations that can enhance knowledge and inform lessons.
Commuity Investment. Educators can also build community knowledge and show real commitment by advocating for business and economic development in their schools' and students' neighborhoods. In addition to their time, educators should spend some of their economic resources in the community—at grocery stores, gyms, and gas stations. I recall that my mother, who owned a beauty salon in our community, dressed several of my teachers' hair when I was a student. Of course, I am confident there were conversations about my academic performance during those appointments—but that investment showed a real level of commitment on the part of my teachers. They were building knowledge about me, the community, and other students in the community, because my friends' parents also visited my mother's shop.
No Neutral Spaces
Education is a political act and teaching is political work (Freire, 1998). Although teachers' practices may be complex and less than perfect, there are no neutral spaces in the work of teaching—educators are either working for equity or they are working against it. In this respect, building a knowledge base about the community is a central part of working in schools: It gives you a better understanding of the students and shows that you value their background and are on their side.
