Welcome to Leading-Within Wednesdays. Every other Wednesday, I will share a little bit about one of the 10 competencies introduced in the book, Leading Wihin Systems of Inequity in Education: A Liberation Guide for Leaders of Color.
First up….
Demonstrate self-awareness.
In the book, I talk about Bobbie Harro's cycle of socialization and how it has led us to internalize and act in ways that only continue to oppress the oppressed unless we interrogate ourselves.
Demonstrating self-awareness is recognizing that just because we may look like our students it does not automatically ensure that we aren’t perpetuating and harming our students. We need to be consciously aware of the impact of our actions and inaction.
Some reflections questions to help you think about this competency:
What experiences in your cycle of socialization had the most impact on your current approach to leadership?
In what situations does whiteness show up the most for you? What are you doing to actively combat your affinity with whiteness?
More explanation of this competency, how to practice it, and additional reflection questions and resources are in Chapter 3. Two study guides are also available on the ASCD website - one for leaders of color and one for white co-conspirators.
If you started reading the book, let me know what you think!
See you next time, when I give a brief preview into Competency #2: Operate outside your comfort zone.