By age three, kids start to understand what prejudice is. Of course, even younger people can tell the difference between hair color, height, and weight. But by the time a child is in preschool, they already know how skin color or gender influences how people look at them and their peers.

As kids age, this can make schools places of intolerance and discrimination. For example, a California Student Survey found that almost one-fourth of students in all grades have been harassed or bullied at school because of their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. Seventy-five percent of girls in the UK between 11 and 21 think sexism affects their confidence and goals. Additionally, the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network say that 90 percent of LGBT youth have been verbally harassed at school, 44 percent have been harassed physically, and 22 percent have been attacked physically.

Schools and other groups have struggled to find an excellent way to deal with diversity issues. Even though research has shown that discussing race, gender, and sexuality decreases prejudice and that avoiding these conversations increases stereotyping, many people still don't believe diversity education can work.

My first experience with diversity education was when I taught math and science to fifth graders. These subjects included critical thinking, feeling like you belong, prejudice, and discrimination. The things I saw and did there showed me that diversity education could work if it's done right.

The goal was to give my very different students the tools they needed to make schools and communities where everyone is respected and understood.

I think both young people and adults don't realize how many messages of bias are in our everyday lives. I wanted my students to know what happens when prejudices go unchecked, when we act based on our stereotypes, and when we make systems that discriminate against whole groups of people. It was hard because I was the first Black professional they had ever met, not only for the kids but for the other teachers who had been taught to keep things the same. Which proved problematic. I was the only Black person in the county.

In the past, education about diversity was seen as a way to avoid lawsuits. But it can be hard to honestly discuss these issues, even when organizers and participants care about them. People often feel too uncomfortable or scared to say what they think.

Having an honest conversation about these issues builds empathy and respect. But there has to be a safe space where everyone's point of view is respected.

Research also shows that people are less likely to be prejudiced with the more meaningful face-to-face contact they have with people of other races.

People who were once my students and are now adults have told me, "Before, I never would have talked to so-and-so or thought they would share any experience with me.”

Even so, diversity workshops or general discussions can turn hostile when the focus shifts from sharing experiences to telling people what they should think and how they should act. Parenthetically, I believe most haranguing about prejudice reflects our lack of self-efficacy.

In the past, we've talked about diversity by saying what not to say and how not to be prejudiced. But the goal shouldn't be to learn what to say and what not to say. Instead, the goal is to put people in a place where they can learn, not where they feel scared, and to make everyone feel like this is an exploratory and energizing conversation.

To make these open-ended discussions, I used participants' life experiences as case studies to discuss different issues throughout the school year. As a result, everyone has the chance to tell their story, hear the stories of others, and then come to their conclusions.

One of the bad things that can happen when diversity education isn't done well is that it can become very militant or seem like, "this is right, and this is wrong." I think it's better to meet people where they are, give them a safe place to explore something, and then help them find their truth than to punish, exclude, or judge them for their personal beliefs or ideas.

People can also resist these kinds of talks if they feel they are being picked on or left out. But the point was that everyone is affected by "diversity." As part of the program, a world bank, a monetary system, and workshops on race, ethnicity, nationality, sex, sexuality, gender, age, ability, and class were created. In one ableism activity, students are given a "disability" for a day, like being blindfolded or unable to use their hands. This helps them understand what some people with physical disabilities may go through every day. In a gender workshop, leaders read statements about gender expectations and ask people to stand up if they agree.

People need to be able to see themselves in these conversations, so they need to learn the little things that make each of us unique. Then, when we have a bigger picture of diversity, we have more "access points," and people feel they have a personal stake in conversations about diversity. Then they can put all the pieces together and ask, "What does this all mean for me?"

But changing the mind of just one person isn't enough. Research has shown that over two-thirds of media coverage of discrimination focuses on individual, isolated incidents instead of historical and systemic discrimination. So I took a different approach and tried to show how bias fits into a bigger picture. For example, participants look into the policies that make it hard for LGBT people to get specific jobs, the different levels of access to financial and educational resources in other communities, and the effects of wealth passed down from generation to generation on education, health, and property. The program also has sessions on genocide and mass atrocities, talks on media stereotypes, and activities that help students recognize different kinds of privilege. This helps people understand how their actions affect other people and how other people's environments affect them.

Discrimination can't be stopped with just one week of good conversations, so we can encourage students to keep talking about these issues. We don't think it will take that long. Some people want to learn about these problems in an hour or think they are easy to solve and manage instead of admitting that they are complicated and require teamwork, research, soul-searching, and being open. If this is about making changes that will last, that takes time to grow.

Image courtesy CDC.

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About Jim Woods

Jim has a passion for accelerating talent across organizations. While this passion has fueled his work in leadership assessment and development, it has crystallized in the area of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. 

Jim's experience spans many industries, including public, finance, consumer, retail, pharma, industrials, and technology. 'Organizational & people agility,' 'design thinking,' and 'digital transformation' are some critical themes Jim works with clients on across the globe.