Tonight, I watched a recording from Open Ed 2021 entitled “Creating OER for Racial Equity and Social Justice through Inclusive Innovation.” The panelists included students and teachers. Jenny Bradbury from Digital Promise started with the why for this program: the need to help support teachers internationally in “building the capacity to effectively foster discussions and academic work focused on racial justice and equity.” Their goal is to create open justice scalable professional development resources. Noor Salameh is a junior in high school and has been an advocate for equity within the education system. As a Palestinian American, Salameh is committed to educating students about history and equity and how things are not always equitable for all… nor is it possible for all to achieve the American Dream. Noor provided a powerful student perspective. Dr. Thomie Timmons presented the Reynoldsburg City schools’ demographics of students and teachers side by side. Nicholas Keith spoke about the need to engage students in authentic learning that uses relevant skills. Schyvonne Ross, an assistant principal at Reynoldsburg City Schools, spoke about bringing students, parents, and teachers to the discussions in culturally competent ways. Lisa Floyd-Jefferson is a Deeper Learning Coach at Reynoldsburg City Schools and explained the importance of allies. Kim Smith, Executive Director of the League of Innovative Schools from Digital Promise explained what they look into and what happens when communities can implement and sustain practices. The inclusive innovation model they use starts with connect & commit and then inquire & investigate, design & develop, implement & iterate, and sustain & scale. The panelists then responded to questions. The first one asked was a tough one: how do you encourage continued participation from those that have been used by the system and approached over and over? Bradbury talked about tapping those who have so much to offer than haven’t been invited as codesigners and compensation. I appreciate how Bradbury described the importance of compensation for the people who contribute their time and perspectives to projects. Floyd-Jefferson said there “is no option to not be part of the work” when asked what drives them despite challenges to continue to build community. Lately, messages such as these are coming to me not from faculty, but from students, advisors, and staff doing really progressive things…
