NYC Gazette

Teachers in the U.S. have long fulfilled many roles—educator, arbitrator, counselor, psychologist, tutor, politician, cheerleader, among others—that can feel thankless given the job’s long hours, stressful working conditions, and stagnant salaries. Additionally, a slew of new laws restricting what teachers can say about race, history, and LGBTQ+ issues has brought confusion and the threat of professional, social, and legal consequences to classroom discussions.

In response to these challenges, NYU Steinhardt Assistant Professor Shamari Reid is urging educators to remember their humanity. Reid's work focuses on creating equitable opportunities in schools. In his new book "Humans Who Teach: A Guide to Centering Love, Justice, and Liberation in Schools," he reflects on his experiences teaching elementary through high school students and shares lessons on safeguarding personal well-being while navigating a climate of fear.

“I was socialized to believe that my pedagogy was going to rescue my Black students and students experiencing poverty from racism, classism, and other social ills. I was no longer human; I was a teacher,” Reid writes about the outsized expectations often placed on teachers.

Reid's book includes exercises such as an “identity pie” for teachers to sort through their most prominent identities (e.g., race, age, sexuality), a chart for calculating time spent on teaching-related tasks during and outside work hours, and prompts for exploring how one's teaching promotes student growth while addressing their challenges.

He emphasizes that recognizing one's own needs is crucial for effective teaching. “If even just one of us weren’t here, the whole world would shift. So we must take care of ourselves as we cannot be replaced.”

NYU News distilled several lessons from Reid’s book regarding self-care and maintaining resilience amid challenging times:

On Love of Self:

“For me, an overwhelming work week was not the only evidence that I was out of balance. I noticed upon reflection that I often skipped lunch did not drink enough water throughout the day and did not have enough moments to breathe and process.”

A diagnosis of exhaustion led Reid to focus more on his well-being. He now advocates caring for physical health (e.g., sleep, nutrition), emotional health (therapy sessions), and spiritual health (activities sparking joy).

“Cultivating a healthy sense of self-regard made me not only a much more joyful human but also a much more effective human who teaches.”

On Teaching with Love:

“Once you learn about challenges students face then you can use your teaching to respond to things complicating their lives,” says Reid.

He suggests allowing students to share their experiences through activities like icebreakers or journaling. One popular assignment involved creating album covers based on their lives.

Reid also encourages speaking up against mistreatment faced by students from various sources: “Love moves us to stand up against corrupt coworkers...and ourselves when we make mistakes.”

On Conquering Fear:

“[Many] are working within states with limitations on content sharing...We have a choice: engage anyway or give in to fear.”

Reid advises breaking down larger goals into realistic steps. He recounts introducing multimodality in his classroom despite initial overwhelm by starting small.

“My students’ growth required transforming my teaching practice,” he explains.

On Disrupting the Status Quo:

“We perpetuate status quo by remaining silent about marginalization issues...not committing unlearning oppressive beliefs/actions."

Reid suggests methods like attending anti-racist book clubs with colleagues or incorporating stories from minoritized communities into curricula.

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