E4E-LA Focuses on Anti-Racism, Culturally Relevant Education & Teacher Sustainability

We had a busy 2023-24 school year in Los Angeles, focusing on three major campaigns, and some wins, for students and educators throughout LAUSD. We began the year celebrating our antiracist microcredential launching in LAUSD. Then we worked with educators to focus on culturally responsive education throughout the district, ultimately leading to a major win for both us as a chapter and LAUSD. Finally, we are ending the year in the throes of our Teacher Sustainability campaign, continuing towards our goal of improving education for all throughout LAUSD.

ANTI-RACIST MICROCREDENTIAL

At the beginning of the year, we celebrated the launch of the anti-racist microcredential in LAUSD, and a lot of the work we accomplished this year was based on the success we had established with this win.

In the 2022-23 school year, a group of E4E-LA teachers met regularly to identify key needs in the district and successfully launched the first-of-its-kind antiracist instruction micro-credential in LAUSD. This credential focuses on ways to reflect on our internal biases, and confront difficult conversations about racism at grade-appropriate levels. I strongly encourage all E4E members to enroll in this free course as it is a key to creating truly culturally relevant and conscious classrooms.

CULTURALLY RELEVANT EDUCATION

In a 2022 survey of Los Angeles teachers, Only 37 percent of L.A. educators agreed that “our curricula are culturally relevant for our student population.” High-quality culturally relevant curriculum leads to stronger outcomes for kids, and so E4E teachers got to work advocating for change!

This year, LAUSD Teachers gathered across Los Angeles to evaluate their current curriculum using a rubric developed by the NYU Steinhardt School. Dozens of educators participated, and the results showed great strengths and clear areas for improvement. With these evaluations, teacher-written op-eds, and over 200 petition signatures, we gathered a core group of teachers who met with the LAUSD Chief Academic Officer, Dr. Baez to present these findings and make the ask of the district to implement this rubric across all schools.

With the work of these educators, and with your voices amplifying these needs to the district, we successfully aided LAUSD in implementing this rubric into the curriculum adoption process moving forward starting with the next textbook adoption. This is a massive win for students throughout the district, and we could not have done it without your voices.

TEACHER SUSTAINABILITY

Only 16% of teachers would recommend the profession to a close friend or family member. This year a group of educators gathered to propose real solutions to make the profession more rewarding, dynamic, professional, and sustainable. These teachers hosted focus groups with colleagues across the district and interviewed over 50 educators to gather their thoughts on education sustainability. They also reviewed case studies and conducted policy research to ensure they had the best information when crafting their recommendations for increased teacher prep time for teachers in the district. They have proposed policy recommendations in three key areas: compensations and workload, mentorship and leadership opportunities, and teacher evaluations. 

We will continue this work throughout the summer and into next school year, and we will need your help elevating these issues to LAUSD leadership. Take action today to call on LAUSD to increase teacher prep time!

Want to be part of our critical work moving forward? Sign our Declaration, sign our petitions, and get involved in a teacher action team. We must work together to ensure that we get the best possible education for students in Los Angeles.