Discussions About

DiversityIn the Classroom

Comfort Zones!

Gather your belongings, and find a new seat.

Here are the rules for relocating:

1. You may not sit in the section where you “normally” sit.

2. You may not sit with anyone from your department.

3. No complaining.

Who Are We?

Every instructor brings his or her own range of diversity issues to every classroom. It’s wise not only to be aware of the diversity of our students, but to also acknowledge our own differences and how they affect our teaching and our students. Pretending that diversity doesn’t exist and doesn’t affect the classroom environment obstructs the educational process.

Kathy is white, female, middle-aged, middle class, well-educated, employed, former military brat, Southern born.

Kellee is white, female, middle-class, well-educated, employed, raised in a family of teachers and entrepreneurs.

Who are you?

Who Are Our Students?

Diversity in college classrooms includes:

Race

Ethnicity

Religion

Socio-economic status

Sexual orientation

Age

Physical, emotional and learning abilities

Unpacking Our Invisible Knapsacks

"I was taught to see racism only in individual acts of meanness, not in invisible systems conferring dominance on my group” ~Peggy McIntosh

What is white privilege?

What are the effects of white privilege?

How do we “fix” it? “White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, codebooks, visas, clothes, tools and blank checks.” ~Peggy McIntosh

Examples of White Privilege

1. If I should need to move, I can be pretty sure of renting or purchasing housing in an area, which I can afford and in which I would want to live.

2. I can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of my race represented, into a supermarket and find the staple foods which fit with my cultural traditions, into a hairdresser’s shop and find someone who can cut my hair.

3. Whether I use checks, credit cards or cash, I can count on my skin color not to work against the appearance of my financial reliability.

4. I can swear, or dress in second hand clothes, or not answer letters, without having people attribute these choices to the bad morals, the poverty, or the illiteracy of my race.

5. I am never asked to speak for all the people of my racial group.

Implicit Association Tests

IATs are computerized (usually), rapid tests that are meant to uncover implicit attitudes about social objects that people are unwilling or unable to recognize in themselves. IAT tests can measure bias about many different issues, including race but also including presidential candidates.

Social psychology researchers Anthony Greenwald and Mahzarin Banaji proposed the idea that implicit and explicit memories affect our attitudes and behavior.

Measures bias not prejudice.

Taking an Implicit Awareness Test

Visit the following website: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/selectatest.html (or Google “Implicit Awareness Test”)

You can test your hidden bias on age, sexuality, race, politics, weight, disability, etc.

Keep in mind that these are only indicators of bias; these tests do not assess actions or intents!

Describe what is happening in this drawing.

Hidden Biases in All of Us

Mahzarin Banaji points out “that human beings filter what they see through the lenses of their own expectations. People believe they are acting rationally, but numerous psychological tests prove that subtle cues influence people all the time without their knowledge” (Vendantam, 2005).

“No one knows exactly why people develop implicit biases. Living in a diverse neighborhood does not in itself seem to reduce bias, but having close friendships with people from other ethnic groups does appear to lower bias, the IAT researchers have found” (Vendantam, 2005).

What To Do?

Get to know students and let them get to know you.

Create a safe environment in your classroom.

Create classroom rules for behavior and class discussions.

Acknowledge possible controversial topics and discuss them openly.

Create classroom lectures and assessments that contain cultural references that all students will recognize.

Getting Acquainted

“Positive relationships lead to lower levels of alienation and higher retention and graduation rates” (Loevinger, 1995).

Require office visits at beginning of the semester and later if possible.

Give journal or discussion board topics that allow students to reveal themselves.

Offer opportunities for collaborative group work.

Identify learning styles and background experiences.

Creating a Safe Environment

Syllabus statements establishing expectations of classroom interactions

Class rules co-created with students.

Not allowing biased or hostile comments.

Dealing with them if they are made.

Acknowledging and Confronting Controversy

Be aware of current events that may affect your students and the classroom environment. (ex: VT shootings, 9/11, etc.)

Anticipate possible sensitive topics. (Should Huck Finn be sanitized of the N-word?)

Discuss them prior to beginning the formal instruction.

Revisit topics at the end of lessons, if applicable.

Inclusive Lectures & Assessments

Assess your lecture notes and tests for any cultural references that may be confusing, offending, or out of date. (Irish mist—sounds like a tasty drink here, but in Germany, the word mist means manure; red hearts—a sign of love here, a sign of death in South Korea.)

Be willing to explain references if students need explanations.

Be aware of body language (pointing with your index finger and prolonged eye contact can be offensive to some cultures).

Reevaluate lecture notes and assessments on a regular basis.

Things to Avoid

Avoid making assumptions about your students.

Avoid creating assignments that force students to reveal personal issues (instead, these kinds of assignments may be offered as one choice among others).

Avoid asking any student to be a “spokesperson” for his or her cultural group.

Avoid focusing on any single student or group of students.

Constant Monitoring & Updating

Be flexible in your teaching methods.

Vary students’ opportunities to participate.

Consider videotaping your classroom presentations and allowing a colleague to evaluate your performance.

Get feedback from students throughout the semester.

Discussion

Are there any questions or comments about the ideas or information covered in

the presentation?

References

Loevinger, Nancy. (1994). Teaching a diverse student body: Practical strategies for enhancing our students’ learning. Retrieved from the University of Virginia, Teaching Resource Center: http://trc.virginia.edu

UNC Center for Teaching and Learning. (1997). Teaching for inclusion: Diversity in the college classroom. Retrieved from http://ctl.unc.edu

Vedantam, Shankar. (2005, January 23). See no bias. Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com

Links to More Information

Testing yourself for hidden bias: http://www.tolerance.org/hiddenbias

Project Implicit: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/selectatest.html

Peggy McIntosh’s “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack”: nymbp.org/reference/WhitePrivilege.pdf

How to identify hidden bias in tests: http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifehack/study-tip-how-to-find-the-hidden-bias-in-a-test.html 

Washington Post article about Hidden Bias and Implicit Awareness Tests:http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A27067-2005Jan21

Optical Illusion related to hidden bias:http://visualfunhouse.com/perspective-illusions/psychological-optical-illusion.html