Caught between Silence and Safe Spaces: Examining the Possibilities of Learning and Development in the Midst of Socio-cultural Tensions in Classrooms

• In Event: Reimagining The Study of Violence & Silence in Higher Education

Abstract

We use interpretative methodology to analyze the construction of communicative relationships among faculty and students in culturally diverse university classrooms. Five focus groups (faculty, graduate and undergraduate students) were conducted. Findings suggest limited critical self-reflection and a dynamic interplay between silence and the construction of safe spaces through non-violent communication.

Authors

• Virginia Montero-Hernandez, California State University Stanislaus

• Steven Drouin, California State University Stanislaus

• Suzanne Antoinette Whitehead, California State University Stanislaus