Navigating Difficult Moments in Teaching Diversity and Social Justice

by Mary E. Kite (Editor), Kim A. Case (Editor), Wendy R. Williams PhD (Editor)

Overview

This essential resource helps educators tackle the most common and challenging dilemmas that arise in today’s classroom—such as diversity, privilege, and intersectionality. 

This book examines common challenges that arise for educators teaching social justice and diversity-related courses and offers best practices for addressing them. Contributors cover issues such as the many roles instructors play, inside and outside of college and university classrooms, for example, in handling personal threats, responsibly incorporating current events related to social justice into classroom discussion, navigating one's own stigmatized or privileged identities, dealing with bias in teaching evaluations, and engaging in self-care.

The authors' backgrounds offer unique perspectives from which to approach such complex subject matter; several contributors are feminist or intersectional scholars with the experience and expertise to address the pedagogical dilemmas that often arise in teaching social justice. Many of the issues discussed arise from the authors' own experiences as teachers in the current social climate; however, they also are verified by research on quality teaching in general and teaching about diversity specifically. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433832932
Publisher:	American Psychological Association
Publication date:	11/10/2020
Pages:	274
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Mary E. Kite, PhD, received her BA, MS, and PhD from Purdue University and is now Professor of Social Psychology at Ball State University. Strongly committed to psychology education at all levels, she has held a number of leadership roles for the Teaching of Psychology (STP, APA Division 2), including past president. Her leadership in the Midwestern Psychological Association also includes serving as past president. She holds Fellow status in APA Divisions 2, 8, 9, 35, & 44, the Association for Psychological Science, and the Midwestern Psychological Association. She maintains an active research program in the area of stereotyping and prejudice, including co‑authoring The Psychology of Prejudice and Discrimination (3e) with Bernard Whitley, Jr. Whitley and Kite also co‑authored Principles of Research in Behavioral Science (4e). Recognitions include the Charles L. Brewer Award for Distinguished Teaching in Psychology from the American Psychological Foundation (2014) and a Presidential Citation from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology (2011).
 
Kim A. Case, PhD, is the Director of Faculty Success at Virginia Commonwealth University. As Director, she develops and implements faculty mentoring programs, supports faculty career development and scholarship productivity, and oversees the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence. Her mixed‑methods research examines ally behavior, interventions to increase understanding of intersectionality and privilege, prejudice reduction, and creation of inclusive workplace and education settings. She is author of Deconstructing Privilege: Allies in the Classroom (2013) and Intersectional Pedagogy: Complicating Identity and Social Justice (2017), both published by Routledge. Her scholarship, blog, and teaching resources are available at www.drkimcase.com. The Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues previously honored Dr. Case with the Outstanding Teaching and Mentoring Award and the Innovative Teaching Award. The Society for the Teaching of Psychology named her as the 2018 Robert S. Daniel Excellence in Teaching Awardee for her nationally recognized pedagogical advancements.
 
Wendy R. Williams, PhD, is a Professor of Psychology and Women’s Studies at Berea College. She received her PhD in Social Psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 2005. She was previously an Associate Professor and Director of Women’s Studies at Marshall University. Her teaching and research interests focus on stigma and prejudice, specifically around issues of social class, including documenting the lived experiences of low‑income and working‑class Americans, as well as examining the personal and political consequences of how low‑income people are perceived. She regularly teaches courses both in the core of the psychology major (e.g., Introduction to Psychology, Statistics, Research Methods, Social Psychology) and in her areas of research interest (e.g., psychology of women & gender, psychology of poverty & social class), and she incorporates service‑learning and other experiential learning pedagogies into her teaching. She has published fourteen papers, including a book chapter on how experiential learning can raise awareness of social class privilege. In addition, she has won awards for her research, teaching, service, mentoring, and leadership.,

 

Table of Contents

About the Editors vii

Contributors ix

Preface Faye J. Crosby xvii

Acknowledgments xxi

1 Pedagogical Humility and Peer Mentoring for Social Justice Education Kim A. Case Mary E. Kite Wendy R. Williams 3

2 Ground Rules for Discussing Diversity: Complex Considerations Susan B. Goldstein 17

3 Social Justice Burnout: Engaging in Self-Care While Doing Diversity Work Asia Eaton Leah R. Warner 31

4 Mistakes Were Made by Me: Recovering When an Instructor's Error Affects Classroom Dynamics Mary E. Kite Samuel M. Colbert Scott M. Barrera 45

5 When the Professor Experiences Stereotype Threat in the Classroom Desdamona Rios Kim A. Case Salena M. Brody David P. Rivera 59

6 Becoming a Target: Anonymous Threats While Teaching Diversity Courses or Working on Social Justice Issues Lisa S. Wagner J. J. Garrett-Walker 75

7 Inclusion-Exclusion: Balancing Viewpoint Diversity and Harmful Speech in the Multicultural Classroom Salena M. Brody Darren R. Bernal 91

8 The Efficacy Paradox: Teaching About Structural Inequality While Keeping Students' Hope Alive Lisa M. Brown 105

9 Emotionally Charged News in the Classroom Ryan M. Pickering 119

10 Raising the Consciousness of Students Holding Ingroup Stereotypes Lisa M. Brown Wendy R. Williams 133

11 White Privilege in the Classroom Leah R. Warner Lisa S. Wagner Patrick R. Grzanka 151

12 Navigating Difficult Moments Outside the Classroom Wendy R. Williams F. Tyler Sergent 165

13 Contemporary Issues in Terminology: Using Gender-Inclusive Language to Create Affirming Spaces Amanda J. Wyrick 179

14 Aging as an Element of Diversity: Best Practices for Challenging Classroom Conversations and Avoiding Ageism Lisa S. Wagner Tana M. Luger Matthew Calamia 195

15 Outsiders Teaching Insiders: How Instructors from Privileged Groups Can Effectively Teach About Diversity Susan B. Goldstein 211

16 When Students Frame Prejudicial Speech as "Freedom of Speech": Classroom and Institutional Implications Leah R. Warner 223

17 Student Evaluations of Teaching: Can Teaching Social Justice Negatively Affect One's Career? Guy A. Boysen 235

18 Flotsam and Jetsam: Staying the Course While Navigating Difficult Moments in Teaching Diversity and Social Justice Wendy R. Williams Mary E. Kite Kim A. Case 247

Index 255

What People are Saying About This

Stephanie A. Shields

A brave and honest discussion of dilemmas that confront anyone who teaches about diversity and social justice. Practical advice, based on contributors’ experience and empirical research, makes this book an invaluable resource for instructors. Every academic administrator who wants to understand the challenges of diversity work in the classroom needs to read it.

Dana S. Dunn

Any college-level instructor—from newly minted PhD to senior full professor—should read and learn from this book, which is designed to constructively help educators and students navigate the ever-changing social shoals of the contemporary classroom. The guidance here is authoritative, insightful, and candid, and it will help you understand your students and create a welcoming classroom where critical discussions can be freely held.

Editorial Reviews

Any college-level instructor—from newly minted PhD to senior full professor—should read and learn from this book, which is designed to constructively help educators and students navigate the ever-changing social shoals of the contemporary classroom. The guidance here is authoritative, insightful, and candid, and it will help you understand your students and create a welcoming classroom where critical discussions can be freely held.

Dana S. Dunn

A brave and honest discussion of dilemmas that confront anyone who teaches about diversity and social justice. Practical advice, based on contributors’ experience and empirical research, makes this book an invaluable resource for instructors. Every academic administrator who wants to understand the challenges of diversity work in the classroom needs to read it.

Stephanie A. Shields