Talking
about race for many members of the dominant culture is not easy. Even for
those who believe strongly in the principles of equity and justice, it can be
difficult, uncomfortable and awkward. In fact, for some of us, it’s a
topic we just choose to avoid all together-- which is a type of privilege that
not everyone is afforded. As one of my friends stated last week, race is
the single most important issue of our country: both its past and present.
And moving ahead as a community will mean that we get used to these
uncomfortable and necessary conversations.
With
the beginning of each Culturally Proficient session we have had this year,
leaders have posted the guidelines created by Glenn Singleton for having
“courageous conversations.” They typically include: Stay engaged, Speak
your truth, Experience Discomfort, Expect a lack of closure, Listen to
understand. For this month’s newsletter, I’d like to more carefully
examine these guidelines with the hopes that becoming more familiar with them,
will help take away some of our apprehensions about conversations centered
around race or culture within our classrooms.
Staying Engaged: Conversations about race and culture are hard. There
will be times when your students will want to emotionally remove themselves
from the discussion because hearing some of these thoughts and feelings from
others is difficult. But the challenge is to stay present and stand in
the discomfort of that moment.
Speak Your Truth: Sometimes students are hesitant to say what they
really think because they think it might offend someone. They fear being
labelled “intolerant,” “close-minded,” or even “racist,” and hope that by
simply remaining silent this will end quickly. But the purpose of a
courageous conversation is to speak honestly, even when things might get
heated. Discuss communication styles
with the class. Discuss how speaking loudly does not always mean that
someone is angry. And sometimes when someone gets emotional, that emotion or
anger or hurt is not really directed at you. And in those cases when it is
directed at you, it doesn’t mean that the person no longer has relationship
with you. Encourage students to speak their truths. Help them to
avoid stereotyping and stay away from absolute statements. Coach them to
use qualifiers like “many,” “often,” “sometimes,” and “some.” Finally,
show them how to stay focused on “I” statements which will keep them closer to
speaking their truth versus generalizing to the broader community.
Experience Discomfort: People generally work really hard to avoid discomfort, which
makes sense. I mean, looking for pain is usually considered unhealthy.
However, that discomfort is -- at times-- a necessary part of addressing
(and even confronting) injustice. When it comes to courageous
conversations, if it is completely comfortable, then chances are you might not
be fully engaged. Being open and vulnerable is part of the process.
Don’t Expect Closure: Racism and injustice can not be solved with a single
conversation. There will be unresolved questions. Know that it is not
your job to end classroom discussion with a “make-me-feel good” moment every
time. Instead, you hope that students
will leave with some food for thought and a desire to more closely examine some
of their unquestioned assumptions.
Listen for Understanding: This takes some coaching as well. It requires that we help
students to remain engaged and listen even in those moments when it is
uncomfortable to do so. Beyond that, it means that they learn to listen without
judgement. Instead of listening with the intent to respond or argue or
disprove, listening to understand is a concerted effort to consider another’s
point of view.
Having
discussions about things that matter is incredibly important. When we
don’t acknowledge the big questions of our day within our classes, they become
sterile environments where students will constantly question the relevance of
what we ask them to study. However, carelessly introducing topics and
issues can be equally ineffective-- and sometimes simply irresponsible.
Take the time to practice meaningful conversation and to build trust with
your students so that they know they can speak without being judged.
Serve as a guide who offers assistance not answers, and help them to
start their journey today.
