The Pursuit of Educational Justice in Boston

While it may be adapted for a range of secondary-level classes, this inquiry is designed primarily for eighth-grade civics or history students. Throughout, there are suggestions and additional resources to support adapting the inquiry for high school students. 

This inquiry is expected to take seven to nine 50-minute class periods. 

Teachers are encouraged to adapt the inquiry​ in order to meet the needs and interests of their particular students as well as the available class time. Resources can also be modified as necessary to meet individualized education programs (IEPs) or Section 504 plans for students with disabilities.

In the activities for Supporting Question 2, students work extensively with a timeline of events related to the pursuit of educational justice in Boston from the 1950s until the early 1970s. Consider hanging the timeline around the classroom before beginning this inquiry to build student interest and anticipation in advance of those activities.

This inquiry is designed to help students explore, through a focused examination of the pursuit of educational justice in Boston in the 1960s and 1970s, the meaning of educational justice and how we can participate in bringing it about in our communities today. The inquiry is intended to supplement a civics or US history course. 

Over the course of this inquiry, students will consider the power that a variety of individuals, groups, organizations, agencies, and political officeholders had to either help solve or worsen issues of educational injustice in Boston in the 1960s and 1970s. In order to engage more deeply with the content and activities of the inquiry, it is helpful for students to already have some foundational knowledge about the following:

• The powers, responsibilities, and jurisdictions of federal, state, and local governments
• Some ways in which citizens, both individually and through organizing, can interact with government to address community problems and concerns

It may also be useful for students to be familiar with the meanings of race, class, and socioeconomic status. Both the lesson The Concept of Race and the reading Inventing Black and White can help introduce students to the idea of race as a social construct and how it has been used to justify exclusion, inequality, and violence throughout history. In addition, since students will be confronting ethnic and racial stereotypes in this inquiry, we strongly recommend teaching the lesson Stereotypes and “Single Stories” if you have not yet introduced students to those concepts.

While these are not prerequisites for engaging with this inquiry, there are a number of historical topics that closely relate to the history of the pursuit of educational justice in Boston in the 1960s and 1970s. If you are implementing this inquiry in a US history course, look for opportunities to help students connect the content of the inquiry with the topics listed below:

• The civil rights movement in the United States, both in the South and the North
• Twentieth-century urbanization policies and programs (including redlining and urban renewal) 
• The impact of immigration laws such as the Page Act (1875), the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882), the Immigration Act of 1924 (Johnson-Reed Act), and the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965
• The history of Puerto Rican, Caribbean, and Latinx migration and diaspora

The term “Negro” is used in some primary sources in this inquiry. While outdated and offensive today, it was used by both white and Black Americans as a standard term for African Americans during the time of desegregation. It is important to explain to students that this antiquated term is now considered offensive.

This inquiry details efforts to pursue educational equity by the Latinx community. We recognize that the use of the word Latinx is complex, and we use it in the spirit of inclusivity for our teacher-facing materials. There will be times when the words Latino(s), Latina(s), and Hispanic are used in the primary sources. We have chosen to keep this language to reflect 1) the language and usage of the time and 2) the range of preferences that Latinx people have about what words best describe their communities.

Race and ethnicity classifications are complex, and they are not sufficient to capture the diversity that exists within any single group. Nevertheless, an important part of learning about the history of educational justice in Boston in the 1960s and 1970s is understanding how race and ethnicity were conceptualized at the time. In this inquiry, we have attempted to use terms denoting racial and ethnic groups with care and intention.

Before sharing the Boston Community Profiles with students in the Staging the Compelling Question activities, review the document “A Note on Racial and Ethnic Classifications” for important information about how this inquiry uses these terms. You might use the information in the document to support your ability to provide clarity and guidance to students. You might also choose to share and discuss the document itself with the class.