🎒 Who can teach in Pittsburgh schools?

The Pittsburgh School District has approved a controversial policy that provides a “balanced approach” to pressing issues. Under the new rules in Norwin School District, teachers can discuss controversial topics, but should avoid “indoctrinating” students. Proponents believe the rules protect against teaching critical theory of race, which is commonly intended for law students at the graduate level, while those who oppose it say such policies will have a blatant impact on Norwin’s faculty. (Full disclosure: I consulted with Norwin on art education with culture in mind in the previous role.)

This was just the latest example of an increasingly tense educational environment at both the regional and national levels, characterized by sharp board meetings and student departures. Although much of the hostility was originally aimed at mandate masks and other mitigation measures COVID, conservative parents and council members are increasingly uniting around the CRT as their main issue. In several educational institutions, councils have adopted policies like Norwin that limit the ability of teachers to discuss topics through the prism of racial justice.

The question began to pop up last July, when the Sevicli Academy, a private school, fired several teachers and administrators including his head on diversity, equity and inclusion after the parent group put significant pressure. Students in the academy have since held several protestssaying the school has created a culture of fear and now refuses to listen to students and parents of color. In August, the school district of Mars adopted “amendment to patriotism” which explicitly forbade teaching anything that might cause students “guilt or suffering” because of race, gender, or sexuality.

Meanwhile, Grove City College, a private Christian school, has become the first local example of a higher education institution that openly opposes the CRT. College conducted a special investigation in this matter, and his council issued a statement condemning the theory. According to the results of the investigation, a report was published on April 13 recommends changing coursework perceived as CRT-related. Grove City students more than 90 percent white.

It is unlikely that the problem will disappear soon. Now many parents are facing a variety of solutions, including how to resolve disputes with their children, who to elect to local school boards and even whether to remove their children from schools by adopting policies with which they disagree. Other problems like increase in school fights did not make these decisions easier.