Addressing Cultural Awareness and Implicit Bias to Create a Culturally Inclusive School Environment
Format
Individual Presentation
First Presenter's Institution
Stephen F. Austin State University
Second Presenter's Institution
Humble Independent School District
Third Presenter's Institution
NA
Fourth Presenter's Institution
NA
Fifth Presenter's Institution
NA
Location
Session 4 Breakouts
Strand #1
Heart: Social & Emotional Skills
Strand #2
Health: Mental & Physical Health
Relevance
This session addresses educators social and emotional skills by offering reflective practice into cultural awareness and implicit bias and offering strategies to effectively create a culturally inclusive school environment. This inclusive environment would enhance the mental health of educators and students.
Brief Program Description
Many educational professionals work with highly diverse student populations, and while many appreciate and value diversity, educators are often unprepared! This session will examine implicit bias and its impact on decision making in schools and classroom settings. Participants will participate in cultural awareness activities, understand implicit bias and microaggressions that affect teaching and learning, and explore the facilitation of culturally inclusive school environments.
Summary
See Brief Program Description.
Evidence
Inclusion is a core element for successfully achieving diversity. Inclusion is achieved by nurturing the climate and culture of the institution through professional development, education, policy, and practice. The objective is creating a climate that fosters belonging, respect, and value for all and encourages engagement and connection throughout the institution and community. To achieve this type of inclusive climate, it is equally, if not more, important that we focus on educator mindset. According to Greenwald and Benaji (1995), much of our social behavior is driven by learned stereotypes that operate automatically—and therefore unconsciously—when we interact with other people. Zajonc (1980) noted that we are either unaware of, or mistaken about, the source of these thoughts or feelings. One harmful outcome of these implicit biases are microaggressions directed at those we perceive as different from us. Sue (2010) asserts these microaggressions are similar to carbon monoxide - invisible, but potentially lethal and contends that continuous exposure to these types of interactions can be a sort of death by a thousand cuts to the victim. We must look at our own thinking, how we approach our teaching and find ways to interrupt biases–both personal and structural– to foster inclusive environments in which all members of the education community can thrive.
Learning Objectives
This session will examine implicit bias and its impact on decision making in schools and classroom settings. Participants will participate in cultural awareness activities, understand implicit bias and microaggressions that affect teaching and learning, and explore the facilitation of culturally inclusive school environments.
Biographical Sketch
Summer Pannell, PhD – Stephen F. Austin State University
Dr. Summer Pannell has spent over two decades working in education as a teacher, administrator, researcher, and professor of educational leadership. She has published and presented numerous works on leadership preparation, leadership evaluation, and restorative discipline and secured over half a million dollars in research grant funds to explore effective practices in education. Dr. Pannell currently teaches principal and superintendent preparation courses and doctoral courses and serves as the director of the National Leadership Development Consortium. She is also a certified Restorative Discipline Practices trainer and the founder and director of the National Institute for Restorative Discipline.
Sabrina Holley, EdS – Humble Independent School District
Sabrina Holley serves as a district literacy specialist in Humble Independent School District where she supports numerous schools in the district in their improvement efforts. Prior to joining the district staff, Sabrina worked as an instructional coach in, both, Texas and Georgia, where she supported teacher development in both literacy and math. Sabrina has also designed and facilitated professional learning for teachers for two decades.
Keyword Descriptors
Cultural Awareness, Inclusion, Best Practice, Climate, School Improvement, Social and Emotional Learning
Presentation Year
2021
Start Date
3-10-2021 10:05 AM
End Date
3-10-2021 11:05 AM
Recommended Citation
Pannell, Summer and Holley, Sabrina, "Addressing Cultural Awareness and Implicit Bias to Create a Culturally Inclusive School Environment" (2021). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 53.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2021/2021/53
Addressing Cultural Awareness and Implicit Bias to Create a Culturally Inclusive School Environment
Session 4 Breakouts
Many educational professionals work with highly diverse student populations, and while many appreciate and value diversity, educators are often unprepared! This session will examine implicit bias and its impact on decision making in schools and classroom settings. Participants will participate in cultural awareness activities, understand implicit bias and microaggressions that affect teaching and learning, and explore the facilitation of culturally inclusive school environments.
