In recent years, there has been an overwhelming push toward the erasure of important aspects of American history when it comes to issues of race and identity from school curricula across the country.
July 17, 2023 by EdTrust 
In recent years, there has been an overwhelming push toward the erasure of important aspects of American history when it comes to issues of race and identity from school curricula across the country.
Since 2021, 44 states have introduced bills or taken steps toward restricting the teaching of so-called critical race theory (CRT), banning books, and or censoring the ways in which race can be discussed in classrooms. These unwarranted bills prevent schools from proactively teaching the root causes of systemic racism, tie the hands of teachers rather than support them, and hold students back from grappling with and helping to solve real challenges facing our society. And the threats continue.
By not teaching students the imperfect history of our country, we are failing to prepare them to be problem solvers and effective citizens in a multicultural society. Students need edification, not indoctrination — and America’s brutal truths cannot be swept under the rug in place of rosy fairy tales.
We are focused on taking a stand against the threats waged on schools and educators who dare to teach true American history in classrooms. Our campaign, “Can’t Be Erased” (#CantBeErased) highlights the importance of the various banned books by Black, LGBTQ+, and Latino authors, and how a continuous move towards repression is ultimately regressive education.
We’ve compiled a list of reading materials and resources that are useful in the fight against censorship. Take a deeper dive below.
@edtrust All students deserve to learn an accurate & honest #USHistory. #criticalracetheory #crt #classroomcensorship #bannedbooks #education #fyp ♬ ■ News News-Drone-IT-AI(963995) – ImoKenpi-Dou
@edtrust All students deserve authentic family engagement to improve their academic outcomes. #education #parentsrights #classroomcensorship #bannedbooks #history #fyp ♬ ■ News News-Drone-IT-AI(963995) – ImoKenpi-Dou
@edtrust ALL students benefit from diversity, equity, & inclusion efforts. #education #dei #classroomcensorship #highereducation #bannedbooks #parentsrights #history #fyp ♬ ■ News News-Drone-IT-AI(963995) – ImoKenpi-Dou
@edtrust Quality of representation is essential for diverse curriculum. Learn more at edtrust.org/booktool
@edtrust There has always been representation in curricula & that representation is predominantly White. In a study that looked at 300 books, we found that almost 1/2 of the people of color centered in these books were stereotyped. That’s why we created a new book tool for representational balance to help curriculum publishers understand how people, groups & topics are represented in material. Check it out here: https://edtru.st/BookTool.#Teachers #teachersoftiktok#BookBans #representationmatters ♬ original sound – The Education Trust – EdTrust
@edtrust Cultural representation in grade school books matter. After examining hundreds of books, we determined that a book’s story or characters can be classified into 3 categories: Limited, partial, and complex. We created a new book tool for representational balance to help curriculum publishers understand how people, groups & topics are represented in material. Check it out here: edtrust.org/booktool #BannedBooks #BookTok #TeachersofTikTok ♬ original sound – The Education Trust – EdTrust
March 14, 2024 by EdTrust At the state and local level, decision-makers across the country continue to issue book bans and look for other means to restrict students’ access to honest history and a diversity of voices.
February 02, 2023 by EdTrust As we celebrate Black History Month, Ed Trust asks, what stories are educators allowed to tell students about Black history?
