Have you been in a classroom where a selected few are chosen to give responses? We have techniques such as "reading sticks" that lessen this phenomena, but the problem is much deeper.  We all have bias, but how might a teacher’s unconscious bias affect a student's opportunity to learn?  How does a teacher know their bias, if it is unconscious?  Self-reflection is the tool most credential programs use, but the mirror is only as good as the visual acuity of the person using it.  We all have blind spots!

 

One of the newest tools for uncovering unconscious bias can be found at https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ This ongoing study uses an implicit association test to determine whether an unconscious bias exists. 

 

In today's classrooms one of the biggest factors that determine the relative success of a student is whether he/she is given an equal education.  This is an issue that extends far beyond the availability of books and supplies and the world of high stakes testing.  The determining factor in many classrooms is whether unconscious bias is operating in a way that decreases the opportunity a student has for a successful education.

 

A child is just learning how school operates; he/she may have vague feelings of being out of place, or possibly create an attention getting activity that would seem to fulfill the unspoken prophecy of less worth than the other students.  Often they internalize the issue by feeling that there is something wrong with them and flee the school system as soon as possible. 

 

Ironically, bias in the workplace is often easier to spot than it is in the classroom.  As adults we recognize when committees are padded with groups from outside, or when meetings take place at times when some members cannot attend, or when notices of meetings arrive late (if at all) to decrease the attendance of some.  It happens at all levels of private and professional life.  In the classroom it is far more difficult to see.  Children are less likely to complain, because school is where they learn about how they fit in the social order. 

 

The website includes a wide variety of categories that encompass skin color, gender associations, gay/straight associations, religious/cultural, age, size, etc.  At the end of the test results are given to indicate relative bias.

 

So, you took the test and it says you have a bias. How do you become proactive to change this situation? Often bias is the result of lack of exposure to a particular group.  Enlarge your circle of friends to reflect diversity, read about cultural differences and look at your own culture to become secure in who you are. Become the bridge between one group and another by working together.  In teaching children, be careful to include examples from all cultures and socially identifiable groups, so that all will feel welcome and accepted.  In doing so, you will enrich your life and the lives of your students.