Antiracism Starts With Us: School Counselor Critical Reflection Within an Multitiered Systems of Support Framework

Abstract

Due to ongoing inequities, discrimination, and injustice, the antiracist movement has gained momentum in all parts of society, including education and school counseling. A foundational aspect of antiracism is self-reflection to increase awareness, identify biases, and build cultural proficiency. Multitiered systems of support (MTSS) is an evidence-based framework widely used throughout K–12 education in the United States to assist with every student’s school-related success. In this article, we propose an antiracist approach to the MTSS framework, in which reflection serves as the foundation. We provide practical activities and reflections to facilitate growth and promote antiracism within MTSS.

A Quantitative Exploration of School Counselors’ Evidence-Based Classroom Management Implementation: Investigating Culturally Sustaining Practices and Multicultural Competence

“…For instance, Mayes and Byrd (2022) developed an antiracist framework for evidence-informed school counseling, encouraging school counselors to (a) co-create safe, humanizing, and affirming schools; (b) interrogate and dismantle oppressive school-based practices; and (c) co-create policies that supplant the dismantled oppressive policies, while intentionally including student and family voices in decision-making processes. Similarly, Betters-Bubon and colleagues (2022) developed a framework for school counselors merging antiracism and MTSS, offering sage guidelines such as (a) engaging in ongoing introspection regarding one’s biases, values, beliefs, and assumptions; (b) identifying culturally disaffirming school, district, and community practices; (c) developing an action plan to supplant culturally disaffirming policies with those that affirm students’ cultures, lived experiences, and identities; and (d) regular, ongoing progress monitoring. Likewise, Edirmanasinghe et al (2022) conceptualized school counselors’ MTSS utility using antiracist and critical race theory lenses.…”

Supporting All Students: Multitiered Systems of Support from an Antiracist and Critical Race Theory Lens

“…First, in considering areas where they can begin to conduct antiracist work, school counselors should develop their own critical consciousness related to racism’s impact on their values, beliefs, and biases. Activities for interrogating school counselors’ own professional identity are detailed by Betters-Bubon and colleagues (2022). School counselors also may hold many different spaces related to antiracist work.…”

“…With the increased emphasis on antiracism in the United States, including in K–12 education, the TMS school counseling team approached their building administrators, suggesting the need to evaluate their school through an antiracist lens and explicitly acknowledging that: (a) the education system may primarily benefit students identifying with historically privileged populations (i.e., White, Christian, cisgender male, heterosexual, and able-bodied; Mayes, 2021), (b) antiracist work is ongoing, and (c) such work begins by critically examining one’s own values, identities, and biases (Betters-Bubon et al, 2022). The TMS administrators were supportive and asked the school counselors and the MTSS team to work together due to their overlapping focus on school-wide data, systems, and practices (Goodman-Scott et al, 2020).…”

“…As a first step, the school counseling team led an activity in which administrators, school counselors, and the MTSS team reflected on their views on racism and how they may impact students' perspectives (Betters-Bubon et al, 2022). For instance, this team (school counselors, administrators, and MTSS team) discussed: (a) how racism impacts the greater society, (b) the impact of White privilege on the K-12 education system, and (c) their feelings around racism (Pieterse, 2009).…”

Assessing the Influence of Multitiered Systems of Support Training on School Counselors’ Perceptions of School Counseling Activities: Results of a National Study

“…Scholars have suggested that school counseling programs and the MTSS framework (i.e., RTI, PBIS, and MTSS) share aspects including a multitiered framework for serving all students based on need; the use of data to guide decision-making; evidence-based practices; collaboration with multiple stakeholders; and cultural responsiveness, advocacy, and equity (Goodman-Scott et al, 2016, 2019, 2020; Ockerman et al, 2012; Ziomek-Daigle et al, 2016). More recently, scholars have also recommended aligning school counseling programs and MTSS using an antiracist lens (Betters-Bubon et al, 2022; Edirmanasinghe et al, 2022). Beyond conceptual articles suggesting the school counselor/MTSS alignment, this research line has been expanding.…”