Re: Diversity Issues & Resistant Students
Ellice A Forman (ellice+ who-is-at pitt.edu)
Mon, 6 Oct 1997 12:51:05 -0400 (EDT)
I've been reading with great interest the variety of postings on this
topic and appreciating the many valuable references listed and activities
suggested. I've been teaching a course that deals with diversity for over
10 years at two different institutions (Northwestern University and the
University of Pittsburgh) to both graduate students and undergraduates. I
have been fortunate to have the chance to teach it to small classes (under
30, sometimes under 10) students at a time so I can teach it as a seminar
of sorts. I've experienced many of the reactions experienced by others on
this list (Melanie, Jaime, Esteban, etc.). As a white female, I've been
accused of reverse discrimination, among other things. But the
perspective of almost 15 years of teaching this course has taught me a
number of valuable lessons. The first of which is that it is as important
for me to listen as it is for me to speak, organize reading lists, make
assignments, show films, grade papers, orchestrate discussions. In
listening, I have learned to pay attention to the emotions, interests,
needs of more of my students--and I try to incorporate those insights into
the next set of readings and assignments. The second is to try to create
an atmosphere of trust in the classroom discussions so that students can
feel free to communicate their true experiences, thoughts, and (often
strong) feelings with each other. I also of course try to get the
students to listen to each other. When this works (which sometimes
happens--but depends also on the willingness and skills of my students),
the discussions of ourselves parallel and discussions in the readings and
the experience is truly powerful. Another emphasis of my course is on
writing about these very emotional topics in a style that can be
convincing even to people who disagree. This is a very difficult thing to
teach (and stirs up yet even more emotions) but connects in important ways
to lessons available in readings by Delpit and others (Jay too has written
about this) on the discourse of power. I assign Delpit late in the course
and occasionally students figure out by then that my insistence on
improving their writing is what Delpit and others are talking about.
Teaching this way isn't easy and each time I do it I wonder if I'll pull
it off. But it does keep me interested and usually pays me back for the
risk I'm taking.
One more comment. The geographical context of this kind of teaching seems
to be crucial (see comments by Vera on teaching in New Mexico vs.
California). In Chicago, cultural diversity and linguistic diversity was
very apparent. If not on the Northwestern campus, at least in the schools
a few blocks or miles away. In Pittsburgh, there is a large African
American population and a large European American working class population
but no Latino population to speak of (sorry Jaime) and fewer recent
immigrants from nonEnglish speaking countries than in most big cities. So
issues of linguistic diversity are underestimated here I believe.
Ellice Forman
Dept of Psychology in Education
Univeristy of Pittsburgh