Lesson 1 Objectives

At the end of Lesson 1, participants will be able to identify and apply techniques to reduce prejudice and negative stereotypes in the classroom.

Mini-Lecture

Before you begin the mini-lecture, take a moment to jot down a few stereotypes that come to mind. These can be stereotypes related to education, sports, gender, age, etc.

When you are ready, watch the following videos and article on the effects of stereotypes and prejudice .

1. Stereotypes -- Stossel in the Classroom

2. What is Stereotype Threat?

3. Subconscious Racial Bias in Children

4. "Women, Math, and Stereotype Threat" by Diane M. Quinn

When you are finished, move on to the Discussion section.

Discussion

The videos you watched in this lesson revealed the effects of stereotypes and prejudice. We will be focusing on how this affects learners.

Based on the videos you watched, respond to the following questions:

1. In your own words, describe what the "stereotype effect" is? How does it play a role in learning?

2. Briefly describe the purpose of the experiment with blue-eyed and brown-eyed children. What can you take away from the results of this experiment?

3. In what ways can you reduce the negative effects of stereotypes and prejudice in your own classroom?

4. All stereotypes are not negative! Explain how some stereotypes assist people rather than hurt them.

5. *BONUS* Share with your peers any experiences or strategies you have related to stereotypes and prejudice in education.

Submit your responses by replying to the post on the course blog. Click here to access the blog.

When you complete this task, move on to the next activity

Activity

Now that you have a better understanding of stereotypes, let's try our own experiment!

Directions:

You will work in pairs for this experiment. Each participant will be "branded" with a stereotype. Some examples include smelly, weird, cute, bad at math, good at math, and forgetful. I will e-mail your partner your assigned stereotype. You will not know the stereotype assigned to you. As you speak with your partner, you should treat one another according to the other person's labeled attribute.

Set up a time that works for you and your partner to try this experiment. You will need to talk for approximately 15 minutes about your future goals. . You will hold your conversation on www.todaysmeet.com. With your partner, pick a room name to have your conversation. When you are done, please e-mail the link associated with your room to me at gwasserzug@albany.edu to be reviewed.

When you are done, head over to our bulletin board to post your reaction to this experiment, as well as your strategies for reducing the effects of stereotypes. Click here to access the bulletin board!

|Click here for a lesson plan of this experiment to use in your own classroom!

When you complete this task, move on to the next section

What's next?

Return to Module 2: Competitive vs Cooperative Learning: Diminishing Prejudice to move on to Lesson 2.