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Black Educator Skillfully Destroys the Idea That Black Girls Act Out in School Because They Are Just Bad

In an exclusive sit down with Education Week last week, Adrienne D. Dixson, Associate Professor of Education Policy, Organization and Leadership at the University of Illinois College of Education, discusses why Black female students may act out in the classroom.

In the interview, Dixson says that educators must be patient and take more time to understand why kids behave the way they do.

“Sometimes when kids feel oppressed or repressed they respond in the language that they know,” Dixson explains. “Schools should recognize that…they’re responding to an environment that doesn’t help them feel free.”

According to Dixson, when Black students act out they are exercising their agency in a suppressed environment. The educator goes on to say that Black students do not need to be heavily disciplined or surveilled — they need a freer environment.

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