Dialoguing About Race and Racism

Overview

Anti-racist pedagogy requires us to take an active role as instructors regarding how we broach topics of equity, justice, inclusion, and power in our classrooms. Our classrooms do not operate in vacuums and students bring in lived experiences that are not left at the door when they enter the classroom space. Additionally, having critical conversations about race should not be relegated to courses that only fall under the race and ethnicity requirement. However, incorporating discussions on racial issues in your classroom requires a great deal of self-reflection, preparation, learning, patience, and commitment. We may be reluctant to engage in dialogue about race in the classroom and that is understandable. This work can be uncomfortable, but it is more important to have these conversations than to preserve our comfort. While there may be discomfort, how we set up our classroom and discussion guidelines can help us prepare for moments of tension and potential conflict.

This resource guide aims to provide instructors with both an overview of race, including its construction and historical context as well as ways to mobilize this information to have deeper interactions with others, particularly students in the classroom, around race. This resource guide will be a starting place for some and a supplement for others. Additional resources are provided for further reading and development, as we are always looking to grow our knowledge. Furthermore, this guide moves beyond topics of diversity and multiculturalism, as “these courses are often simplistic or celebratory in their discussion of diversity and they fail to provide an analysis of the political, institutional, and ideological structures that underpin discrimination and social disparities” (Kishimoto and St. Clair, 2010, p. 22). Thus, conversations about race must interrogate and analyze systems of power, oppression, and privilege that exist inside and outside of the classroom. Being mindful of the different identities in a given classroom is an important consideration, as we must create space to discuss classroom dynamics around dominant narratives and ideologies.

This resource guide is not intended to act as a gatekeeper regarding who should teach about race, how one should teach about race, or what one should teach about race. Additionally, the information provided in this guide does not supplant a person’s lived experience regarding racism. Traditional classrooms do not support incorporating meaningful dialogue about race into your classroom. Creating a space in which students can make connections between their lives and class content rather than promoting the “Eurocentric model of teaching where teaching is seen as objective” (Kishimoto and St. Clair, 2010, p. 20) is an important component of anti-racist pedagogy. Maintaining traditional classroom structures and hierarchies can be counterproductive, as Ochoa and Pineda (2008) state: “Personal experiences may be trivialized as anecdotes or as irrelevant to the course material, while academic theories and “facts” are perceived as more rigorous and important” (p. 46).

Lastly, and most importantly, before engaging in this work with students, we must first recognize and reflect on our positionality. We must also begin to develop and grow our knowledge before entering into a dialogue about race with students. Engaging in anti-racist pedagogy is about growth and process over time. We do not arrive at a final destination but are constantly engaging in analysis, action, and reflection.

Citations:

Ochoa, G.L., & Pineda, D. (2008). Deconstructing Power, Privilege, and Silence in the Classroom. Radical History Review, Issue 102 (Fall 2008): 45-62. DOI 10.1215/01636545-2008-012.

St Clair, D., & Kishimoto, K. (2010). Decolonizing Teaching: A cross-curricular and collaborative model for teaching about race in the university. Multicultural Education, 18(1), 18-24. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ916842

Resource Goals:

To provide a brief overview of the historical context of how race developed and is defined in the U.S.
To provide instructors with an overview of dialoguing about race and racism in the classroom.
To provide concepts and strategies for dialoguing about race and racism in the classroom.
To encourage an ongoing process of reflexivity while engaging in anti-racism practices.

Anti-Racist Pedagogy Principles:

The following anti-racist pedagogy principles are incorporated into this resource guide. For a review of the six principles of anti-racist pedagogy, visit our Practicing Anti-Racist Pedagogy homepage.

Principle 1: Anti-racist pedagogy acknowledges racism in disciplinary, institutional, departmental contexts
- Holding dialogue regarding how racism shows up in different departments and disciplines is necessary. Acknowledging how racism shows up in these spaces is critical as we seek to make them more inclusive and equitable.
Principle 2: Anti-racist pedagogy centers both structural and personal manifestations of racism
- Dialoguing about race and racism requires us to examine and discuss racism on multiple levels, including how it operates in and outside the classroom. Dialogue requires us to be self-reflexive as we critically examine our relationship to racism in these different contexts.
Principle 3: Anti-racist pedagogy disrupts racism whenever/wherever it occurs
- A key component of intergroup dialogue is calling others in as opposed to calling them out. When we hear something harmful to the group or an individual, we implement different strategies to maintain the dignity of the commenter while acknowledging the harm that was caused.
Principle 4: Anti-racist pedagogy seeks change within and beyond the classroom
- Holding a dialogue on issues such as race and racism brings us to our learning edge. It is in our learning edge that we can open ourselves up to hearing perspectives that differ from our own and consider alternatives to deeply held beliefs. Another important component of dialogue is that students act on what they have learned or heard from others.
Principle 5: Anti-racist pedagogy bridges theory and practice
- Intergroup dialogue and dialogic techniques develop through research, theory, and practice. The strategies and tools outlined in this resource guide borrow from intergroup dialogue and years of pedagogical practice and experience from practitioners.
Principle 6: Anti-racist pedagogy focuses on the importance of process over time
- Although it is recognized that sustaining a dialogue over time is challenging, we must strive to make dialoguing with each other a more common feature and practice in the classroom. It is also necessary that instructors develop their facilitation skills over time as well. Mistakes will be made along the way, and we are always seeking ways to develop our dialogic techniques and practice.