diversity: what? so what? now what? · * accommodating differences: dealing with them in a fair,...
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Diversity: What? So What? Now What?
Aaron Thompson & Joe Cuseo
36th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience
Atlanta, GA February 14, 2017
9:15 - 10:15
Diversity:TheeKeyQues0ons
1.What?(Whatisdiversity?)2.SoWhat?(Whyisdiversityimportant?)3.NowWhat?(Howcanwepromotediversityapprecia<on?)
1.WhatisDiversity?
• Refersprimarilytodifferencesamonggroupsofpeople,that,together,makeupthewholeofhumanity.
• Involvescommitmenttorecognizingandapprecia<ngthevarietyofcharacteris<csthatmakegroupsofpeopleuniqueinacontextthatalsocelebratesindividualandcollec<veachievement.
“Every human is, at the same time, like all other humans, like some humans, and like no other human.”
— Clyde Kluckholn, American anthropologist
DiversitySpectrum
HUMANITY
SPECTRUM of DIVERSITY
Gender(male-female)Age(stageoflife)Race(e.g.White,Black,Asian)Ethnicity(culturalbackground)Socioeconomicstatus(educa0onallevel/incomelevel)Na7onalci7zenship(ci0zenofU.S.oranothercountry)Na7ve(first-learned)languageNa7onalorigin(na0onofbirth)Na7onalregion(e.g.raisedinnorth/south)Genera7on(historicalperiodwhenpeoplearebornorlive)Poli7calideology(e.g.liberal/conserva0ve)ReligiousandSpiritualbeliefs(e.g.Chris0an/Buddhist/Muslim)Familystatus(e.g.singleparent/two-parentfamily)Maritalstatus(single/married)Parentalstatus(with/withoutchildren)Sexualorienta7on(heterosexual/gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender)Physicalability/disability(e.g.abletohear/hearingimpaired)Mentalability/disability(e.g.mentallyable/challenged)Learningability/disability(e.g.absence/presenceofdyslexia)Learningstyles(e.g.visual,auditory,kinesthe7c)Mentalhealth/illness(e.g.absence/presenceofdepression)
Thislistrepresentssomeofthemajordimensionsofhumandiversity,itdoesnotrepresentacompletelistofallpossibleformsofhumandiversity.Also,disagreementexistsaboutcertaindimensionsofdiversity(e.g.whethercertaingroupsshouldbeconsideredracesorethnicgroups.)
Apprecia0ngDiversity* Acknowledging differences: being aware of them. * Accommodating differences: dealing with them in a
fair, non-prejudicial and non-discriminative manner. * Valuing differences: recognizing that all groups have
contributed to the American experience and strengthened the nation.
* Cultivating differences – capitalizing on diversity to
enrich learning and enhance personal development.
2.SoWhat?
WhyisDiversityimportant?
Numerous research studies point to an empirical link between student experiences with diversity and a variety of positive learning outcomes (Cuseo, Thompson, & Campagna, 2016).
à
DiversityDeepensLearningResearchconsistentlyshowsthatwelearnmorefrompeoplewhoaredifferentfromusthanwedofrompeoplesimilartous(Pascarella,2001;Pascarella&Terenzeni,2005).
DiversityDevelopsHigher-OrderThinkingSkills
Researchdemonstratesthatfirst-yearstudentswhoexperiencethehighestlevelofexposuretodifferentdimensionsofdiversity(e.g.par<cipa<nginmul<culturalcoursesandeventsoncampus;interac<ngandformingfriendshipswithpeersofdifferentraces)reportthegreatestgainsin:
*ComplexThinking–abilitytothinkaboutallpartsorsidesofanissue(Gurin,1999),*Reflec8vethinking–abilitytothinkdeeply(Kitcheneretal.,2000),*Cri8calthinking–abilitytothinklogically(Pascarellaetal.,2001),and*Crea8vethinking–abilitytothink“outofthebox”(Leungetal.,2008).
DiversityMagnifiesthePowerofLiberal(General)Educa0on
• Developingglobalawarenessandaglobalperspec8verequireunderstandingofdiversity.
• ThegrowingdiversityintheU.S.andincreasingglobalinterdependencemake“interculturalcompetence”–theabilitytovalueculturaldifferencesandtointeracteffec<velywithpeoplefromdifferentculturalbackgrounds–anessen<al21st-centuryliberallearningskill/outcome(Cuseo&Thompson,2015).
DiversityEnhancesCareerPrepara0on&Performance
• Whatevercareerpathstudentschoosetopursuetoday,theywilllikelyfindthemselvesworkingwithemployers,employees,co-workers,customers,andclientsfromdiverseculturalbackgrounds(Thompson&Cuseo,2014).
• Successfulcareerperformanceintoday's’diverseworkforcerequiressensi<vitytohumandifferencesandtheabilitytorelatetopeoplefromdifferentculturalbackgroundswithintheU.S.[domes<cdiversity]andacrossdifferentna<ons[interna<onaldiversity)](Na<onalAssocia<onofColleges&Employers,2014;Smith,etal.,1997).
3.NowWhat?
HowCanWePromoteDiversityApprecia0on?1.PersonalValida0on:acknowledging/affirmingeach
student’siden<tyandexperiences*Learningourstudents’names*Learningaboutourstudents(e.g.,“studentinforma<onsheet”)2.SocialIntegra0on:buildingrapportwithourstudents
andconnec<ngstudentstooneanother*Out-of-classcontactwithstudents*“Icebreakers”(Community-Building)Experiencesà
• Nevertoleratedisrespectforoneanothernomalerwhatissueisbeingdiscussedorhowheatedadebatemayget.
3. Inclusive Pedagogy: educational practices that promote equal and simultaneous student engagement (i.e., all students participate at the same time)
4. Intentional Group Formation: deliberately designed
learning groups comprised of diverse students 5. Transforming Group Work into Teamwork: teammates assume interdependent roles and
collaborate to pursue a unified goal (common work product)
Culture: Key Perspectives * Linguistic * Nonverbal * Aesthetic * Science/Technology * Gender Roles * Philosophy * Spirituality/Religion
References
Cuseo,J.B.,&Thompson,A.(2015).Humanity,Diversity,&TheLiberalArts:TheFounda<onofaCollegeEduca<on.Dubuque,IA:
Gurin,P.(1999).Newresearchonthebenefitsofdiversityincollegeandbeyond:Anempiricalanalysis.DiversityDigest(spring).Retrievedfromhlp://www.diversityweb.org/Digest/Sp99/benefits.html
Kitchener,K.,Wood,P.,&Jensen,L.(2000,August).Curricular,co-curricular,andins8tu8onalinfluenceonreal-worldproblem-solving.Paperpresentedattheannualmee<ngoftheAmericanPsychologicalAssocia8on,Boston.
Leung,A.K.,Maddux,W.W.,Galinsky,A.D.,&Chie-yue,C.(2008).Mul<culturalexperienceenhancescrea<vity:Thewhenandhow.AmericanPsychologist,63(3),169-181.
Na<onalAssocia<onofColleges&Employers(2013).Joboutlook:Thecandidateskills/quali8esemployerswant.Retrievedfromhlp://www.naceweb.org/s10022013/job-outlook-skills-quality.aspx
Pascarella,E.,Palmer,B.,Moye,M.,&Pierson,C.(2001).Dodiversityexperiencesinfluencethedevelopmentofcri<calthinking?JournalofCollegeStudentDevelopment,42,257-291.
Pascarella,E.T.,&Terenzini,P.T.(2005).HowCollegeAffectsStudents:AThirdDecadeofResearch(Volume2).SanFrancisco:Jossey-Bass.
Smith,D.G.,Guy,L.,Gerbrick,G.L.,Figueroa,M.A.,Watkins,G.H.,Levitan,T.,Moore,L.C.,Merchant,P.A.,Beliak,H.D.,&Figueroa,B.(1997).Diversityworks:Theemergingpictureofhowstudentsbenefit.WashingtonDC:Associa<onofAmericanCollegesandUniversi<es.
Thompson,A.&Cuseo,J.B.(2014).Diversity&theCollegeExperience(2nded.)Dubuque,IA:KendallHunt.
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