A Black educator has taken the opportunity to draw attention to how connecting with her kids led to her termination from the classroom.
According to The Independent, Jania Ashay disclosed on TikTok the reasons for her dismissal from her previous position a year ago.
According to the former sixth-grade ESL student teacher, a TikTok video was the reason she was dismissed. An altered version of “Beez in the Trap” by Nicki Minaj was performed with some of her kids over lunch, and one student later posted the video. “I’m a cool teacher, so of course I’m going to say yes,” Ashay said on TikTok. “And while they’re in there, they ask if we can do a little TikTok.”
Even though the school’s policy prohibits students from using their phones during lunch, Ashay said she was happy to comply. When she agreed to their request, two pupils were summoned to the principal’s office and instructed not to tell Ashay about the meeting. Regardless, the knowledge was passed forward to her by the kids.
Next, Ashay recalls being treated like a kid by the principal, according to TikTok. To her ultimate dismay, she discovered the video was flagged by a parent as “unprofessional.” “We’re going back and forth, she takes me to HR that day, of course, they have her back, and that’s it. I was fired,” she shared.
According to Ashay, she had several unfavorable experiences with the school district even before she lost her job as a result of microaggressions. There are concerns as to whether or not she was dismissed because of the widespread use of TikToks by instructors.
In spite of the setback, Ashay is still working hard to get her degree and license.
