Teaching Tolerance

IAT Tests

I believe that a great teacher treats every student in their classroom equally. In order for a teacher to do this they must be aware of any biases that they possess. This assignments tasks us with finding our own biases, so that we can become great teachers. This is done by taking two or more of the IAT tests. These tests were created by psychologists at Harvard, the University of Virginia and the University of Washington. They were designed to measure hidden biases.

I chose to take three of the IAT tests: religious preference, Gay / Straight preference, and weight preference. When it comes to religion I have no biases. When it comes to weight I have no biases. The test did show that I have a slight preference for gay people over straight people.

I was not surprised by the results of the religion IAT test. During my time as a foster kid, I had the opportunity to interact with a few different religions. Since that time I have developed a curiosity and respect for the religions of the world. I had a similar reaction to the results of the weight IAT test.

I was a little surprised by the results of the Gay / Straight IAT test. While I have been an out lesbian for over half of my life now, I was not aware that I had a bias towards gay people. This is something that I will have to be aware of as a teacher. My goal is to teach middle school math. This is a time period of life that is about making self discoveries, and for some students this will mean coming out as being gay. I will have to make sure that I am not treating gay and lesbian students differently. Now that I am aware of this bias, I will be able to monitor my behavior towards gay and straight students.

I plan to take more of the IAT tests as time allows. This will help me become aware of other biases I may have. In the long run, being aware of my biases will make me a better teacher.

Article Responses

The first article I read was "Culture in the Classroom." This article discusses what culture is, and why it is important in the classroom. Other topics covered include overcoming stereotypes, a culturally relevant curriculum, and honoring home languages. The article also includes videos of classroom teachers discussing how each topic applies to their classrooms.

The first couple of paragraphs of this article discusses the way that teachers are coping with the various cultures that they find in their classrooms. The article states "Many of us try to bridge this difference with an embrace of color-blindness or the Golden Rule, treating others the way we would want to be treated." In my experience, this is the approach that teachers are taking. This is also how I was raised to view others. The color of our skin is only skin deep. I have learned that culture is much more important, which is what the article goes on to say. "Culture isn't just a list of holidays or shared recipes, religious traditions, or language; it is a lived experience unique to each individual." Every one of us has our own unique culture and background. It is this uniqueness that sets us apart. It is this uniqueness that sets our students apart. As teachers it is important that we see these differences. The article discusses how to do this in the classroom with three important steps. The first is overcoming stereotypes. We all have misconceptions when it comes to different cultures, many of these misconceptions have become stereotypes over time. It is important that we can recognize stereotypes. That is the only way we can correct our own stereotyping and the stereotypes that our students come into the classroom with. The second step is using a culturally relevant curriculum. We hear this often in our classes, but what is it? The teacher in the video discusses using a culturally relevant curriculum with regards to reading material. There are millions and millions of books available in the world. We should not only be using works written by old white men. We should include works written by men and women of many different races and cultures. If possible we should use works written by representatives of cultures found in our classrooms. The final step is honoring home languages. This can be harder to do in a classroom, but it is possible. I believe that students who can speak other languages are a gift to the classroom. There is nothing more beautiful than the languages of the world, and they should be included.

While I did not have any aha moments while reading this article and watching the videos, I did find that the teachers perspectives really drove home the material that we have read in the past. This material is important, if it were not then it would not be presented to perspective teachers repeatedly. As future teachers we need to be prepared to welcome culture into our classrooms.

The second article I read was "Critical Practices for Anti-bias Education: Teacher Leadership." This article is meant to be a professional development activity for teachers who are already in a classroom. This article strives to help teachers increase self awareness and cultural competency, identify skills to speak up against and respond to prejudice, bias and stereotypes, explore building allies, and define leading beyond the classroom.

What I found most beneficial about this article is the way it leads readers through discovering how to be a cultural teacher leader. Similar to what would be expected of a college course, this article provides step by step instructions to develop an understanding of being in a teacher leadership role. There were a few quotes from the article that really hit home for me. When talking about the importance of self-awareness the article states "Life experiences leave everyone with biases and prejudices, but it is our responsibility as teachers to recognize them and adjust our actions based on our own self-awareness." I believe this is extremely important for teachers. We all have biases. After taking the IAT tests (above), I have learned that I am slightly biased toward members of the LGBT community. Knowing this will help me to adjust my actions so that I am fair to all students in my classroom. The article goes on to talk about standing up to prejudice and bias when we see it. I feel that the importance of this cannot be stated enough. As teachers it is our job to stand up for our students, and teach them to stand up for themselves. To do this in the classroom the article recommends using posters and visual aids. While posters and visual aids are great, I think that there is more that teachers can do. I believe the biggest thing that teachers can do is model behavior for students. This is true in all areas, but when it comes to protecting our students and ourselves it is especially important. When students see the adults in their lives, such as teachers, parents, and community members, stand up for others, they learn to do the same.

Most of the aha moments I had while reading this article pertained to the suggestions it provided on taking on a leadership role. The article provides a list of questions to ask yourself when looking at being a leader. This got me thinking about things that I am already doing, such as tutoring other students, and things that I could be doing.

Overall, both of the articles I read were full of beneficial information. I feel that the Teaching Tolerance website is a great resource for students working on becoming teachers, as well as established teachers.

Works Cited

"Critical Practices for Anti-bias Education: Teacher Leadership." n.d. Teaching Tolerance. web. 17 Sept. 2017.

Hawley, Willis, Jacqueline Jordan Irvine and Melissa Landa. "Culture in the Classroom." n.d. Teaching Tolerance. web. 17 Sept. 2017.

Photo from: Guyana Chronicle