Osborne, Jason W. "Testing Stereotype Threat: Does Anxiety Explain Race
and Sex Differences in Achievement?" Contemporary Educational Psychology 26, 291– 310 (2001).
This study investigated the arguments of Claude Steele that persons who belong to a group that has been traditionally stereotyped as academically inferior are less successful in part because of the stereotype itself. These individuals experience more anxiety for fear of personal failure AND for fear of reaffirming the negative stereotype of the group. These groups include both minorities and women. The study took a sample of high school seniors that represent the national population and tested the theory. The result was conclusive evidence that academic achievement is impacted by this anxiety and that math performance was also affected to some degree. Some 41% of performance disparity was explained the anxiety experienced by groups threatened by stereotypes.
This study made clear, logical sense to me. I truly believe that all students have a great potential and it always seemed like their was something missing in the educational achievement gap explanation. School systems that strive for equal opportunities often still see large racial disparities and elevated anxiety levels would explain the issue. If a person sits down to take a test with a clouded, anxious mind that somewhat expects to fail, they are clearly at a disadvantage compared to a peer who sits down thinking that they are expected to succeed. It seems that this greatly different perspective of the risk involved in academics could easily translate to anxiety and thus ability to perform. Students in my class who sit for a test and immediately exclaim "I don't know what to do." often extremely poorly because their anxiety over the test prevents them from even making an honest attempt at it. I think that the racially-motivated anxiety is a special case of that that merits more research.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Unconscious Bias
Moule, Jean. "Understanding Unconscious Bias and Unintentional Racism: Acknowledging our possible biases and working together openly is essential for developing community in our schools."
Phi Delta Kappan. Jan 2009.
Ms. Moule discusses the complex reality of unconscious bias in society and the classroom. Her thesis focuses on the idea that society dictates that racism is an inherently evil practice perpetrated by bad people, but that most of us are walking around with racist biases that we may not even recognize ourselves. From that foundation, the conclusion is that it would be better to seek out and acknowledge our subconscious racist tendencies in order to correct them than to simply shove them under the rug. The most interesting findings in the study were that even anti-racism activists harbored these unconscious sentiments.
I found this article to be very worthwhile and frank discussion about the realities of racism today. Sure there are extremist views on race that are flatly bigoted and cruel, but the reality is that most people are not criminally racist despite having underlying racist tendencies. I think that one of the best things that American society could do to improve race relations is to stop making racial distinctions taboo. As a white woman, I have often felt that the expectation is for me to completely colorblind and that any acknowledgment of other races has the potential to be held against me. I am sure that I have unconscious biases like those described in the article but so long as my actions are consistently fair and well-intentioned, I don't think that I should be fearful of being judged a bigot.
I truly believe that the more time one spends interacting with a variety of human beings (race, religion, lack of religion, sex, sexual orientation, affluence and many other categories make up my definition of "variety") the less unconscious bias they will harbor. Comfort with individual is typically generated overtime, so it seems to follow that the more time one spends with individuals from a particular group, the more likely they are to become comfortable with that group. Personally, after spending the last 4 months with my nearly exclusively Filipino students, I am a lot more comfortable with Filipinos. Prior to my students, I knew a few Filipinos that I liked (many who were in the Navy with my father) but the extended contact has simply increased how much I understand and embrace them. This brings me back to my original point, that if I would have unconsciously offered a negative response to a Filipino accent before, it wasn't a matter of immoral racism, simply a question of the comfort level that I felt as an individual with limited experience.
Phi Delta Kappan. Jan 2009.
Ms. Moule discusses the complex reality of unconscious bias in society and the classroom. Her thesis focuses on the idea that society dictates that racism is an inherently evil practice perpetrated by bad people, but that most of us are walking around with racist biases that we may not even recognize ourselves. From that foundation, the conclusion is that it would be better to seek out and acknowledge our subconscious racist tendencies in order to correct them than to simply shove them under the rug. The most interesting findings in the study were that even anti-racism activists harbored these unconscious sentiments.
I found this article to be very worthwhile and frank discussion about the realities of racism today. Sure there are extremist views on race that are flatly bigoted and cruel, but the reality is that most people are not criminally racist despite having underlying racist tendencies. I think that one of the best things that American society could do to improve race relations is to stop making racial distinctions taboo. As a white woman, I have often felt that the expectation is for me to completely colorblind and that any acknowledgment of other races has the potential to be held against me. I am sure that I have unconscious biases like those described in the article but so long as my actions are consistently fair and well-intentioned, I don't think that I should be fearful of being judged a bigot.
I truly believe that the more time one spends interacting with a variety of human beings (race, religion, lack of religion, sex, sexual orientation, affluence and many other categories make up my definition of "variety") the less unconscious bias they will harbor. Comfort with individual is typically generated overtime, so it seems to follow that the more time one spends with individuals from a particular group, the more likely they are to become comfortable with that group. Personally, after spending the last 4 months with my nearly exclusively Filipino students, I am a lot more comfortable with Filipinos. Prior to my students, I knew a few Filipinos that I liked (many who were in the Navy with my father) but the extended contact has simply increased how much I understand and embrace them. This brings me back to my original point, that if I would have unconsciously offered a negative response to a Filipino accent before, it wasn't a matter of immoral racism, simply a question of the comfort level that I felt as an individual with limited experience.
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