Supporting Black Student Achievement and Dismantling Anti-Black Racism at the TDSB
I thought you may be interested in the following presentation that was prepared for our colleagues in other levels of government.
The TDSB is committed to helping all students succeed by providing learning experiences, opportunities and access that keep students engaged and excited about school. Each and every student is capable of success. Our focus is ensuring that all students can succeed by having access – the same access – to opportunities, learning, resources and tools; with the goal of improving the outcomes of the most underserved students. This is the TDSB’s equity commitment.
As part of this commitment, we are focused in particular on supporting Black student achievement. The TDSB is equally committed to combating anti-Black racism.
The Board’s work in these critical areas are highlighted and summarized in a presentation prepared by staff - you can find it
here.
The highlights are not a complete list of all the strategies, actions, programs and services now in place to improve Black student achievement or to respond to anti-Black racism. For example, TDSB teachers use a number of teaching and learning strategies and resources that are sometimes unique to their classrooms or schools that may not be listed in this document.
The TDSB does not have all the answers. Underachievement of Black students persists. The Board’s own data on student achievement shows this to be true. We collect data on race-based achievement levels and share it with the community and educators across the system. This allows the Board to work in partnership with our communities to gain a better understanding of what is working and what is not working with respect to our equity goals.
Anti-Black racism, it is deeply entrenched in Canadian institutions and our schools. On a monthly basis, the Board is made aware of and has investigated or is investigating acts of anti-Black racism in schools, playgrounds and on social media platforms. Some acts are subtle, even unintentional. Others are not. Over the years, and even today, some attempts to address it have worked and some have fallen short of the expectations of staff, students and their families.
The TDSB is committed to reviewing and making improvements to its policies, procedures and practices with respect to identifying, investigating and resolving incidents of anti-Black racism in schools.