In this section we will introduce some definitions in order to bring everyone to the same level of understanding on the concepts of Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. We will also introduce the idea of creating a set of community guidelines to use in your class to guide discussions. Finally, we we also discuss leaving room for discomfort and reflection on these topics in the classroom setting.
In order to bring everyone to the same level of understanding, we are providing a series of definitions core to understanding anti-racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion (ARDEI) broadly and in the context of education.
BIPOC: Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, meant to unite all POC in the work for liberation while acknowledging that not all POC face the same levels of injustice
White privilege: the implicit or systemic advantages that people who are perceived as white have relative to people who are not deemed white
Racism: Discrimination based on race, racial prejudice, and oppression of racial groups
Individual racism: the beliefs, attitudes, and actions of individuals that support or perpetuate racism in conscious and unconscious ways
Systemic racism: the ways in which policies and practices of organizations or parts of systems create different outcomes for different racial groups
Ableism: discrimination of and social prejudice against people with disabilities and chronic conditions, which includes the full spectrum of disability from physical to cognitive disabilities and mental illnesses, based on the belief that typical abilities are superior
Bias: a particular tendency, trend, inclination, feeling, or opinion, especially one that is preconceived or unreasoned
Unconscious bias: having and/or acting on biases without realizing they exist or acknowledging how they might be affecting others
Allyship: the practice of emphasizing social justice, inclusion, anti-racism, and human rights to advance the interests of an oppressed or marginalized out-group
Positionality: the social and political context that creates your identity in terms of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability status. Positionality also describes how your identity influences, and potentially biases, your understanding of and outlook on the world.
Anti-racism: an active and conscious effort to work against multidimensional aspects of racism
Diversity: having a people of different backgrounds, ethnicities/races, genders, sexualities, perspectives, and mental and physical ability present; note that the presence of a diverse group does not necessarily mean each member is being treated equitably or being supported as needed
Equity: providing support to people on an individual basis to ensure that each member of a group or community can participate equally
Inclusion: the active, intentional, and ongoing engagement with diversity (in the classroom or broader communities) in ways that increase awareness, knowledge, and understanding of the complex ways individuals interact within systems and institutions.
**This is a more traditional definition of inclusion, but we want to incorporate the idea that we are trying to create an environment and culture where members who have historically been excluded or marginalized are welcomed and accommodated within an organization or group.
Inclusive teaching: teaching in such a way that all students are able to succeed and learn; this is often accomplished by including active learning, diverse ways of communicating and assessing information, and connecting course content to student interests and world experiences
When discussing ARDEI in a classroom setting, we need to prepare students, TAs, and instructors to engage in that conversation in a safe and productive way. Setting up ground rules or communal guidelines around discussion and collaboration helps ensure that in both full group discussions and small group/partnered work without the instructor present that there are ways for students to communicate respectfully with one another. Additionally, these communal guidelines help to prevent the reinforcing inequities and hierarchies that can exist among students. These ground rules can be developed by the instructor, or preferably as a discussion between the instructor and the students together, and can become part of the syllabus, thus setting the tone of empathy, understanding, and listening. We provide an example of community guidelines below; this list specifically was used during the Contextualizing Your Research Workshop hosted in Summer 2020.
Avoid Assumptions: Avoid assumptions about any member of the class or generalizations about social groups. Do not ask individuals to speak for their (perceived) social group.
Use “I” Language: Understand that others will come to these discussions with different experiences from yours. Be careful about assumptions and generalizations you make based only on your own experience. When speaking about your own experiences, use “I” statements to clarify for whom you are speaking for–yourself.
Treat Others How They Ask to Be Treated: Speak with care. If you learn that something you’ve said was experienced as disrespectful or marginalizing, listen carefully and try to understand that perspective. Learn how you can do better in the future.
Be Curious and Ask Respectfully: Don’t interrupt, turn to technology, or engage in private conversations while others are speaking. Use attentive, courteous body language. Comments that you make (whether asking for clarification, sharing critiques, or expanding on a point) should reflect that you have paid attention to the previous speakers’ comments.
Listen Actively: Listen actively and with an ear to understanding others’ views. (Don’t just think about what you are going to say while someone else is talking.)
Ideas, Not Individuals: Speak to an individual’s ideas, not their entire person.
Encourage Learning: Be open to changing your perspectives based on what you learn from others. Try to explore new ideas and possibilities. Think critically about the factors that have shaped your perspectives. Seriously consider points-of-view that differ from your current thinking.
Acknowledge and Apologize for Mistakes: Understand that we are bound to make mistakes in this space, as anyone does when approaching complex tasks or learning new skills. Strive to see your mistakes and others’ as valuable elements of the learning process. If you make a mistake, just acknowledge it, apologize for it, and learn from it.
Make Space for Everyone to Speak: Share responsibility for including all voices in the conversation. If you tend to have a lot to say, make sure you leave sufficient space to hear from others. In this case, consider the “you-then-two” rule: let at least two other people speak after you before you speak again. This prevents any one person from dominating the conversation and gives everybody a chance to be heard and to listen. If you tend to stay quiet in group discussions, challenge yourself to contribute so others can learn from you.
It is important to acknowledge that some students and instructors will not be comfortable interrogating inequitable practices, particularly if they think they do not need to, or worse, if they think that doing so will displace their own power and positionality. We need to help those students and instructors to sit in their discomfort, and frame this reflective process as a crucial aspect of their humanity (i.e. what does it mean to be human if you allow others to be dehumanized).
Developing the community guidelines is the first place to start in this process. During a class discussion, don’t stop the discussion to move to the next topic simply because the discussion becomes uncomfortable (which we note is different than harmful, as harm needs to be directly addressed). Let the discussion push through the discomfort and come to a conclusion. Additionally, it is important to encourage student reflection. Consider giving students a minute or two to think, and maybe even have them jot down some of their thoughts, before answering a question or participating in a discussion. Another way to encourage reflection is to explicitly ask self-reflection questions on homework assignments. However, instructors may want to consider grading these only for completion rather than content, and potentially even abstain from reading them should there be potential for students to not be as open if instructors are reading their responses to deeply personal questions.
How might you approach the idea of creating community guidelines for safe, productive discussion in your class?
Continue to Reading: Incorporating ARDEI into Class Homework and Examples