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When I was in fifth grade and new to suburbia, my teacher introduced the concepts of racism, civil rights and fairness. And she began the task of helping 10-years olds—all of us white—learn how to talk about race in constructive ways. I’d moved from a gritty urban neighborhood where whites, blacks and Puerto Ricans lived together rather warily. My parents maintained a chilly silence on the issue of race, although they forbade racial epithets; on the street I heard plenty. In this place, the black kids came mostly from the projects, the Puerto Ricans lived in apartments and the better-off among the white families might have an entire house. I knew that race divided.

May 31 marks the anniversary of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. Here's why this history must be told.

Educators often have a hard time getting real about race. This toolkit for "Excerpt: Getting Real About Race" provides questions to guide reflection and discussion on how the physical, social, legal and historical constructions of race impact students and educators.

Richard Milner explains why ignoring race equals ignoring the identities of students—including white students.

What is the fundamental outcome of educators growing their racial competence? Learning.

It happens in every class. We’re discussing a text, a publication, a current event, a poem. The content doesn’t matter. It’s the phrase that counts. A student comments and uses the phrase “African American” or even “black people.” The student is white. The reaction of the class – almost all white – is swift. As if choreographed, all eyes turn to the one student of color. The spotlight of eyes shines down and he or she blinks back as if staring into the sun. The teacher should use this moment to open a discussion.