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FH has been working to help schools understand the historical legacies of inequity and it's of a personal interest to me as well. It's no easy, but it's worth trying to dismantle and rebuild. My intention is to enter with a curious mindset and listen to participants and learn along with each of you as one of your facilitators. I'm excited to be in the space with you soon.

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Albert Einstein

Curiosity is an important trait of a genius. I don't think you can find an intellectual giant who is not a curious person. Thomas Edison, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Richard Feynman, they are all curious characters. Richard Feynman was especially known for his adventures which came from his curiosity.

But why is curiosity so important? Here are four reasons:

1. It makes your mind active instead of passive
Curious people always ask questions and search for answers in their minds. Their minds are always active. Since the mind is like a muscle which becomes stronger through continual exercise, the mental exercise caused by curiosity makes your mind stronger and stronger.

2. It makes your mind observant of new ideas
When you are curious about something, your mind expects and anticipates new ideas related to it. When the ideas come they will soon be recognized. Without curiosity, the ideas may pass right in front of you and yet you miss them because your mind is not prepared to recognize them. Just think, how many great ideas may have lost due to lack of curiosity?

3. It opens up new worlds and possibilities
By being curious you will be able to see new worlds and possibilities which are normally not visible. They are hidden behind the surface of normal life, and it takes a curious mind to look beneath the surface and discover these new worlds and possibilities.

4. It brings excitement into your life
The life of curious people is far from boring. It's neither dull nor routine. There are always new things that attract their attention, there are always new 'toys' to play with. Instead of being bored, curious people have an adventurous life.

Now, knowing the importance of curiosity, here are some tips to develop it:
1. Keep an open mind
This is essential if you are to have a curious mind. Be open to learn, unlearn, and relearn. Some things you know and believe might be wrong, and you should be prepared to accept this possibility and change your mind.
2. Don't take things as granted
If you just accept the world as it is without trying to dig deeper, you will certainly lose the 'holy curiosity'. Never take things as granted. Try to dig deeper beneath the surface of what is around you.
3. Ask questions relentlessly
A sure way to dig deeper beneath the surface is asking questions: What is that? Why is it made that way? When was it made? Who invented it? Where does it come from? How does it work? What, why, when, who, where, and how are the best friends of curious people.
4. Don't label something as boring
Whenever you label something as boring, you close one more door of possibilities. Curious people are unlikely to call something as boring. Instead, they always see it as a door to an exciting new world. Even if they don't yet have time to explore it, they will leave the door open to be visited another time.
5. See learning as something fun
If you see learning as a burden, there's no way you will want to dig deeper into anything. That will just make the burden heavier. But if you think of learning as something fun, you will naturally want to dig deeper. So look at life through the glasses of fun and excitement and enjoy the learning process..
6. Read diverse kinds of reading
Don't spend too much time on just one world; take a look at another worlds. It will introduce you to the possibilities and excitement of the other worlds which may spark your interest to explore them further. One easy way to do this is through reading diverse kinds of reading. Try to pick a book or magazine on a new subject and let it feed your mind with the excitement of a new world.

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4 Reasons Why Curiosity is Important and How to Develop It

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Albert Einstein Curiosity is an important trait of a genius. I don't think you can find an intellectual giant who is not a curious person. Thomas Edison, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Richard Feynman, they are all curious characters. Richard Feynman was especially known for his adventures which came from his curiosity.

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I am a tenth grade teacher in an urban district and I have experienced inequities at the district and school level. My intention for this PD is to understand culturally responsive teaching.

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As a student teacher in an urban school, I have experienced first hand how the systemic and institutionalized inequities in this country affect our youth today. My intention for this PD workshop is to step out of my comfort zone and have conversations with educators and professionals about these issues.

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As professional in the education/counseling field for over 10 years, I have experience of working with children and young adults, especially  with LGBTQ youth and students with disabilities. My tention for this PD workshop is to become more culturally competent and increase my awareness to better myself as an education.

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I have been teaching in CMSD for 18 years and live in a suburban district.  The educational inequities between CMSD and other districts as well as within CMSD itself are glaring and frustrating.  My intention is to leave this PD with strategies to help me became a more culturally responsive educator and better able to serve my students.

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I was a special education teacher in the suburbs for 4 years before switching to Cleveland.  The differences between the suburbs and the urban school are appalling.  I am speaking about what I witnessed in the special education departments but the issues cross all academic areas. The majority of students in the suburbs were white and it was much more racially diverse in the urban school. The first thing I noticed is the attitudes.  In the suburbs understood that a student on an IEP processed information differently or had a different learning style than the majority of students.  The staff and administrators in the urban schools assumed that any student on an IEP is just a behavior problem. In urban school, I taught a class in an old janitor closet and did not have access to books or resources.  However, in the suburban school, the principal would ask me what I needed and he made sure I had it (usually in less than 1 day).  During my first year in the urban district, I questioned why my students have not received any information about college and was asked what difference it made because none of my kids would go to college.  In the suburbs, EVERY student had access to all post-secondary options.  The above mentioned are just a few of the discrepancies I have experienced working in the urban district.

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My intention is to listen and learn from our participants. The journey toward equity involves all of us, and I am eager to collaborate with all of you who are participating in the workshop.

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I am a 6th grade social studies teacher who previously worked in a boarding school in New England. I am inspired by my students, but notice significant educational inequities. Our student population is very diverse in a wide variety of ways, which is wonderful and also challenging given the dramatic range of abilities. My intention is to become more culturally competent in several ways: 1. personally and 2. supporting/fostering student's academic conversations.

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As director of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice I often facilitate workshops on identity, specifically race. I have become more and more educated of how racism has historically and contemporaneously created such drastically inequitable outcomes for people of color - especially African Americans. Leading dialogues about the history and root of terms like White supremacy and White privilege is often best understood when connected to laws, policies, and practices  and their disproportionate impact on non-White people. Such inequities are evident in our schools to this day, which some people are surprised by because they have not had to see.

One intention is to learn something new or see something with which I am familiar through a different lens in order to continue the work of facilitating with a deeper, more nuanced understanding as it relates to
inequity and race.

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I work for the Cleveland School District but in Central Office. I hope to hear and learn the perspectives of those who are in the classrooms and understand how this work is applied in the classroom.

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I am the Director of Curriculum and Instruction at Urban Community School. I took a break from the classroom to study Urban and Education Policy a fews years ago. My time in and out of the classroom has shown me the systemic barriers our students, families, and schools must overcome to ensure true equity in our society. One intention  I have is to hear the different perspectives of the participants and facilities and to further develop my own framework for how to empower our  students to be changes agents in our society.

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One Piece of Knowledge:

Lately I've been reflecting on how much mindset plays a part into a teacher's efficacy when it comes to equity based teaching. We've been trying to shift the conversation in my school community from, "what," and, "how," to use equitable strategies  to, "why," we teach and what we believe about our students. It's helped me challenge the thoughts we believe. Move the conversation from what to do and focus on the things we believe about our students. I feel that strategies, practices, and procedures can fall short if we hold misinformed beliefs and low expectations for our students and their families. That has to be addressed as well as the actions and results that come from our actions. Otherwise we get caught in a cycle of reactions instead of building a strong foundation that we can build relationships on.

One Set Intention:

I hope this session gives me more context, more language, and more practice in challenging the thoughts and beliefs of those around me. I feel I have a willing staff who is sincerely eager to learn more, so I'm trying to explore the limits that I can push them and keep them engaged. I want to keep their eagerness afloat, but simultaneously push them to have some really uncomfortable reflections. I find that these spaces help develop that balancing act. I hope to gain more insight, practice, and language to use when challenging my peers, my community, and myself.

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I have been teaching at Urban Community School for 16 years. I have noticed many different inequities, but also many success stories. I want to be able to continue to reach ALL of my students and give each and every one of them what they need to be successful.

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One piece of knowledge that I bring tomorrow is that school quality, as with many facets of contemporary society, is often not what it seems from quick observations. After spending five years at a highly-rated charter school that perpetuated systematic oppression on a daily basis, I’m now in a school with lower ratings that empowers students of color to challenge their oppressors. The former school put money into appearances and nearly all instructional time into test-prep while my current school encourages artistic expression and creative license. As with most issues in our society, the groups who suffer the most from this are already our most vulnerable and marginalized communities. Michelle Alexander argues in The New Jim Crow that the Age of Colorblindness will be the most difficult form of social control and oppression to conquer yet since it is less explicit. This same issue applies to a system of education that rewards schools for oppressive policies with high report card scores. Some charters may seem to end educational inequity, just like colorblindness seems to solve systematic racism, but what truly lies underneath? As far as intentions go, I look forward to having boldly open, honest, and vulnerable discussions. I intend to assume best intentions and explicitly enter dialogue on issues that we cannot wait to solve. Lives are in jeopardy every minute we wait.

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Expertise/Knowledge:
In my role as Director of Equity and Inclusion, my thought process is to work is to act with urgency and think/plan strategically in that the impact of systemic racism is felt daily by students of color yet to get folks, particularly staff understanding of it and build their capacity, the work needs to be strategic, thoughtful, and ongoing.

Intention:
My intention is to be present and soak in the content FHaO has to offer to grow both personally and professionally and to build/deepen connections with other individuals and educational institutions resettling with similar questions.

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I am a student teacher in CMSD 9th grade world history. We have an incredibly diverse student body. Many students I know to be very intelligent, are struggling to perform and I mean to gain a better understanding in ways I can modify my practice to help promote success in those students.

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I am new to teaching, but I think one of my strengths is my ability to adapt when I learn new information about my students, or when I learn something new about how to be a better teacher in a diverse classroom. My intention for this PD is to listen to and learn from the experiences and insights of the other attendees.

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Knowledge: In my past role as a theology high school teacher, I learned about and taught about the Eugenics movement with FHAO resources. I look forward to building upon this learning, especially for its application to educational inequities today.

Intention: It's been a hectic week for me personally, so I hope to be fully present to the day--to the opportunities to learn from one another and be stretched personally and professionally.

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I am a few months into student teaching in an urban context, and am growing my understanding of what inequity actually looks like and how it continues. My goal is to learn with humble and open ears and to gain knowledge and skills that will help me to both reflect on my own teaching practices and how I may consciously or unconsciously be perpetuating a system of inequity.

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Not yet an expert, but I do see often the differences in educational opportunities afforded to people of different intersectionalities. As a teacher at Saint Martin de Porres High School, I'm trying to listen and hear the needs of my students.