When Speaking Up Becomes a Risk
I never imagined that advocating for students would put my career at risk. As a teacher, I entered this profession because I believed in education as a tool for empowerment. I imagined schools to be a place where every child, regardless of ability, identity, or circumstance, could find belonging and possibility. But over the past few years, I've watched that vision erode, not because of individual failures, but because of systemic practices that quietly and consistently exclude the very students we claim to serve. And when I spoke up, I was disciplined for advocating. In many schools, exclusion does not always come in the form of a formal suspension or expulsion. It shows up more subtly. Students are sent home early, placed on reduced timetables, or not allowed to attend a field trip. Students are informally removed from class, first to the hallway, then to the office, and eventually to an alternate learning environment. These unspoken practices are rarely documented, rarel...
