How Whiteness Manifests in Diversity Training (Poster 9)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Sunday 11:40 a.m.
  In Poster Session: Division K Section 5 Poster Session: Teacher and Teacher Educator Learning

Abstract

This study aimed to examine how, if at all, whiteness manifests itself when school staff engage in diversity training to reduce their implicit bias. Findings showed that whiteness was manifested through separation, both mentally and physically, and the prioritization of the feelings and needs of the white participants–both by the participants themselves and by the facilitator. Whiteness hurt the Black participant, was a barrier for the white participants to engage in anti-bias work, and shaped the work of the white facilitator. The findings highlight the need to create strategies to confront the pernicious manifestations of whiteness before and during diversity training.

Authors

• Sara Skluzacek, New York City Department of Education

• Jane Bolgatz, Fordham University