A long-anticipated report, commissioned by the Board of Education (BOE) on the school system’s curriculum and overall educational culture, was presented last week at the BOEs Curriculum Instruction and Assessment Committee meeting. The report found both areas of success and for concern, though generally headed in the right direction.

The report on School Culture and Pedagogy in Guilford School District was conducted by a consultant, Dr. Donald Siler Ph.D. Guilford schools tasked Siler to conduct a “curriculum audit,” in September 2020, coordinating with the district’s English and Social Studies departments in grades 5-12 to review the specific curriculum and how they teach it.

Siler said in the report that the purpose was “part of Guilford’s overarching effort to explore, better understand, and improve the experiences and outcomes of minoritized students (Black students in particular) in the district and community. Through a series of student focus groups and individual interviews, I examined the role that school environment, curriculum, and pedagogy have had on those specific students.”

Siler noted that overall, Guilford teachers he interviewed and monitored were engaged and enthusiastic to sensitive cultural issues and appeared to be already implementing aspects of what he ordinarily recommends to other districts in audits of their systems.

“One of the central, and more encouraging, themes to arise was that teachers want this work to be done in ways that do not harm them or students. There is some natural concern that addressing content in less ‘neutral’ ways might get them into trouble or cause harm to students,” Siler cited in the report.

However, the report did find that some GPS teachers have genuine concerns on about “getting it wrong” when it came to certain topics, and the pressure they feel to juggle the myriad responsibilities they encounter when teaching potentially harmful or sensitive subjects. The report also concluded that the teachers they interviewed and monitored expressed a need for more administrative guidance in what methodology should be utilized in preparing to instruct sensitive topics in their classrooms.

BOE Chair Kathleen Balestracci said she was eager to continue discussions on what and how best to implement the report’s recommendations.

“I look forward to a full discussion of how we as board members can really support this on multiple levels, because I think we have an important role here in its ultimate success, not to overstate our role…I think there are things in Dr. Siler’s report that really speak to a role that we have, whether helping to support policy or other things,” Balestracci said at the meeting. “I, too, really like the idea of using workshop meetings for this, so that we can, all together, figure out how that work aligns.”

The conclusions concerning student culture and morale, especially among minority students, had positive and negative findings, the nuances of which are best comprehended by reading the actual report via the BOE site. Siler’s report is detailed in who and how interviews were conducted and relates examples and student responses as a method to delineate the body of his report and its conclusions.

“They also expressed disappointment in what they saw as the district’s passive push for assimilation. To them, this would require losing their language and culture. One Hispanic/LatinX student loudly proclaimed, ‘I am here, this is mine!’ in reference to using Latin music as a way to embrace their own culture. For the Black students, the consensus was around how they are perceived and treated as being less intelligent and/or too aggressive by peers and teachers. They argue that their experiences are constantly diminished and questioned and that assumptions are made based on their backgrounds and race. This, they said, was coming from teachers as well as peers.”

However, the report did stress that though minority students “noted a sense of feeling isolated and unheard in specific incidents of bigotry,” and cited numerous concerns and issues that students from every background are dealing with, overall the students “love” their schools, citing their peer relationships and the “caring staff.”

Siler said recommendations include clearer administrative support, a clearer policy document, and increased teacher evaluations and retention efforts.

However, Siler did note the district overall has a solid and motivated foundation supported by their curricula.

“…GPS has already undertaken several equity initiatives. The district has changed the high school mascot, issued statements affirming a focus on meeting the educational and social needs of all learners, and initiated reviews of curricula and pedagogy to make them more inclusive of marginalized voices and perspectives. The district has also hired a family equity liaison with a background and expertise that makes them a key ally in the ongoing initiatives to better meet the needs of all Guilford students.”

Siler ultimately concluded that in regard to GPS’s programming and curriculum, the school system has “a shared desire to develop an open, authentically inclusive learning community that does not avoid issues of race, culture, bigotry, or past injustices,” while also citing a need for the district to continue building on its current program.

The report concluded further: “There are several reasons to be optimistic about the future of inclusion and equity work in Guilford Public Schools. The teachers who have been involved in this process so far have shown initiative, eagerness, and openness to make their content areas and classrooms more accessible and welcoming…Administrators and instructional coaches have likewise expressed their desire to support and affirm teacher work. The district, at all levels, is also looking at equity as a concept that goes well beyond what happens in the classrooms.”

The full report is available via the Town of Guilford at www.ci.guilford.ct.us and Board of Education at www.guilfordschools.org.