‘Equity’ hire at Hinsdale District 86 is latest example of how CRTL standards will politicize Illinois classrooms – Wirepoints

By: Ted Dabrowski

The new rules “have nothing” to do with the curriculum and classrooms, ISBE tried to tell us when we warned that the new “Culturally Responsive Teaching Standards” would heavily politicize Illinois’ K-12 classrooms with Critical Race Theory.

“The standards do not impact teachers licensure or evaluation,” ISBE said in a direct response to our coverage CRTL. In a separate WTTW TV interview, the executive director of teaching and learning at ISBE, Jennifer Kirmes, said, “The standards are for teachers not students, and nothing in them is about what the conversation in the classroom has to be.”

We didn’t buy those arguments then and we don’t buy them now. For evidence why, just look at the recent “equity” hire at Hinsdale’s District 86. It captures what’s really happening in many districts across the state.

There, the district has filled a new equity position with a $115,000 hire – the Director of Instructional Equity, it’s called. The school district’s superintendent defined the position as follows: “This position was created, in part, to support the work and goals of our equity statement, which include designing and implementing a culturally responsive curriculum, helping our faculty develop culturally responsive teaching practices, and cultivating the social and emotional skills in our students so that they can grow into engaged global citizens.”

That’s precisely what we’ve warned about. The new rules – and hires – help displace critical thinking in the classroom with a “culturally responsive curriculum,’ heavily influenced by critical race theory. The rules open up a Pandora’s Box where school curriculum and children become yet another political football every time there’s a major shift in political power. And they are a distraction from what really matters for students – reading, writing, arithmetic and science. Today, nearly two-thirds of Illinois elementary children fail to meet requirements in English language arts and math readiness, according to the Illinois Report Card.

If you missed the debate over the “Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards,” read this for background.

But there’s still plenty that can be done by parents at the local level and that means challenging your local school boards about what precisely they are implementing when it comes to “equity” and critical race theory. Do you know what your school board is up to?

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Teroressian Stillmoon
2 years ago

Why is this under crime & Safety? Not even sure why this is news Worthy.

Rose Norman
2 years ago

The Marxist influence needs to be called out and parents need to vocally denounce this practice of political teachers pushing a unAmerican agenda shame on our governor and all pushing this.
Kids need America I love my country teachers period

Juicy Smollier
2 years ago

Godless whites joining the godless 3rd worlders.

All leftist ideology is covetousness enacted by thievery and jobs programs that spoiled people (and covetous americans with low iq 3rd worlders) fall for.

Streeterville
2 years ago

Background to these CRTL policies is, of course, is demonstrated general academic underperformance of most POC (“Black” and “Brown”, but not “Yellow”) students as compared to white (and Asian!) students. No longer is “student academic performance” considered an evaluation standard for teachers, or even an assessment of family educational and/or socio/economic background of said underperforming students. Nope, if a student fails to perform to academic standard for grade-level, then it must be “curriculum racism” that has failed student. Vola! Neither the school district, nor the school teachers are held accountable – it’s society’s fault, or history’s fault, but certainly not… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Streeterville
debtsor
2 years ago
Reply to  Streeterville

This past November, CA voters, by a wide margin, voted against repealing the affirmative action ban. Yes, affirmative action is banned in California. However, the board of Trustees in CA (lead by Janet Reno) ignores ACT and SAT scores because it is an end run around affirmative action. Why? Because there are too many asian students. By focusing on more subjective criteria (grades, letters of recommendation), they can increase BIPOC admissions by reducing Asian/White admissions, without using affirmative action.

That is what this is all about.

Also, why are Black and Brown good, but Red and Yellow bad?

debtsor
2 years ago
Reply to  Streeterville

This past November, CA voters, by a wide margin, voted against repealing the affirmative action ban. Yes, affirmative action is banned in California. However, the board of Trustees in CA ignores ACT and SAT scores because it is an end run around affirmative action. Why? Because there are too many asian students. By focusing on more subjective criteria (grades, letters of recommendation), they can increase BIPOC admissions by reducing Asian/White admissions, without using affirmative action.

That is what this is all about.

Also, why are the colors Black and Brown good, but Red and Yellow bad?

Last edited 2 years ago by debtsor
Daskoterzar
2 years ago
Reply to  Streeterville

Yep, this is perfect for the teachers, this lets them all off the hook for any sort of measurable performance. Just what they wanted…excellent.

me
2 years ago

All this boloney can be solved by parents teaching kids to RESPECT their fellow human being. How simple is that!

chet
2 years ago

Well, my question is: what kinds of individuals become teachers, and why ? what are the sociocultural backgrounds and life experiences they bring to the role of “teacher ?” Who exactly is teaching our kids ?

Could it be that is part of the equation as well?

debtsor
2 years ago
Reply to  chet

Progressive lunatics are teaching our children. Conservatives have been made to feel unwelcome and they are discouraged from even entering the profession. It’s even worse in academia, where professors openly acknowledge they wouldn’t feel comfortable eating lunch with a fellow professor if they knew he/she/it voted for Trump. I can’t find that survey at the moment but it’s out there somewhere. Why would any conservative want to join that system?

James
2 years ago
Reply to  debtsor

I think you’re right that people who have more traditionally conservative values “need not apply” in most larger cities and likely in either the more affluent or even socially disadvantaged suburbs of such large cities. They will be continually under psychological stress when their values clash with those of school management and the communities they serve. Those kinds of teacher candidates would likely find more compatible working environments in middle-class suburbs and rural areas, generally speaking. Woe to those who get hired in incomptatible communities; most will regret it soon enough.

Joan
2 years ago

Exactly right. They are LIARS.

NB-Chicago
2 years ago

I think it’s interesting whenever you read about a school hiring a “CRTL–equiy hire” its always in some tonie school district like Hinsdale, Naperville, top CPS selective enrolment school, etc and not at your average middle/moderate income schools. Exposing the whole CRTL / blm deals true colors, that in reallity its 99% about upperincome libs trying to out spend/ out virtue signal/out guilt shame each other on equity hires. Are there any requirements in new ISBE–CRTL requirements on HOW MUCH $ schools are to be spent on CRTL by each of Illinois crazy 600+ school districts? Since supposedly CRTL is… Read more »

Mike
2 years ago
Reply to  NB-Chicago

There are equity positions in CPS district wide and Elgin, for example. Rockford School District 205 contracted with National Equity Project for their program. There are other examples too, including smaller school districts. It is not just rich whites that are on the equity train. And equity is just one car on the DEI (Diversity Equity Inclusion) train. DEI is an entire industry and movement with stakeholders including associations, non-profits, foundations, and consultants, and education is just one industry segment in the DEI movement. Back to CRTL. There are plenty of people of color and all income levels who support… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Mike
debtsor
2 years ago
Reply to  Mike

Surveys show that CRTL and DEI are wildly unpopular in the greater general population. It’s perceived popularity is a function of the progressives that run school boards and the educators/administrators they hire, and the corporations that have jumped on the bandwagon. Unfortunately, CRTL and DIE are baked into the culture of the education profession. https://defendinged.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/National-Education-Poll-Topline-Results.pdf CRTL and DEI will need to be extricated and ripped out with pliers like a dentist removes a rotten tooth. In reality, most Boards, teachers and administrators will need to be removed entirely and rebuilt from scratch. It’s happening slowly in red states but the… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by debtsor
Willowglen
2 years ago
Reply to  debtsor

I was surprised at the relatively mediocre ranking of Illinois State University, a source of many teachers in the State. Their education school must be a critical race theory/very progressive department. Maybe I am wrong – the offspring of my high school friends who went to ISU make this seem to be the case. This material is easy to memorize and regurgitate back, and does not inculcate critical thinking skills. By the way, I am not being arbitrary – my parents were Illinois State University education grads – and while modestly educated at best, they became productive doers – just… Read more »

NB-Chicago
2 years ago
Reply to  Mike

Mike-great response, thanks! But what, if any, are the spending requirements that new CRTL legislation requires each school or school district to spend? Is a low income/ depressed tax base school in Harvey required to spend the same amount on CRTL-equity hires as upper income/ wealthy tax base school in Hinsdale? Is state picking up any of the tab for any new CRTL-equity hire requirements? Or is each school district on their own to figure out how to fund CRTL requirement? And therefore CRTL requirements, if any, are just another state unfunded mandate that ironically discriminates against low income black… Read more »

Mike
2 years ago
Reply to  NB-Chicago

The CRTL rules apply to public and private college and universities who wish to have an ISBE certified educator preparation program(s). ISBE has many such classifications. An educator preparation program is a program leading to a degree in teaching, administration, or school support personnel (nurses psychologists, etc. not ESP’s). The CRTL rule does not directly apply to the preschool (preK) – 12th grade public or private schools. So the CRTL rules do not require that the public or private preK, elementary, meddle, or high schools and districts spend any money to comply with the college CRTL rules. The CRTL rules… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Mike

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