# data[].attributes.headline
Economic Status and it's Dire Effects on Adolescents

# data[].attributes.subject
Economic Status and it's Dire Effects on Adolescents

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In this issue of Health Services Research, Newacheck and colleagues update the evidence on the association between socioeconomic status-specifically, income-and the health care and health status of adolescents in the United States. Using the 1999 and 2000 editions of the National Health Interview Survey, they find that poor and low-income adolescents are more likely than their more affluent counterparts to be in fair or poor (versus good or excellent) health, have limitations in their activities, and have had behavioral or emotional problems. Poor and low-income adolescents also are more likely than their peers to be uninsured, have no usual source of care, face financial and nonfinancial barriers to access, and have gone without medical or dental care during the preceding year. These findings are consistent with those of earlier studies (e.g., Montgomery, Kiely, and Pappas 1996; Ford, Bearman, and Moody, 1999), and reinforce concerns about the impact of low socioeconomic status on adolescent health.

Recent studies indicate that the association between low income and poor health has its origins in early childhood. Case and colleagues (2002) documented an inverse relationship between family income and health status among toddlers, and found that the income gradient in health became steeper with age. They also found that chronic conditions play a crucial role in the income gradient, and that high family income buffers children from the adverse health impact of chronic conditions. Parents' ability to manage successfully their childrens' chronic conditions is positively related to family income (e.g., Thompson, Auslander, and White 2001; Snodgrass et al. 2001). Interestingly, although children and adolescents with health insurance are healthier than their uninsured counterparts, insurance may not play an important role in creating the income gradient in health ( Case, Lubotsky, and Paxson 2002).

The association between low income, on one hand, and reduced access to health care and worse health, on the other, represents just one manifestation of the effect of socioeconomic status on the life chances of adolescents. The main settings that influence the way children and adolescents grow up include families, neighborhoods, and schools. The quality of these settings, and whether they are supportive and nurturing or dangerous and destructive, has a profound influence on adolescents' chances for leading successful adult lives. Family income is perhaps the single most important factor in determining the quality of these settings ( National Research Council 1995).

Recent changes in the structure of families, and the consequences for the family incomes of children and adolescents, have eroded the support that many adolescents receive as they grow up. As single-parent families spread during the past four decades, the proportion of children in such families rose from 10 percent in 1965 to 27 percent in 2001 ( Ellwood and Jencks 2002). Single-parent families, especially those in which the parent is the mother, are much more likely than two-parent families to have low incomes. In fact, the growth in single-parent families was a major reason for the increase in the proportion of children living in poverty, from about 15 percent in 1970 to 23 percent in 1993 ( Proctor and Dalaker 2002). The childhood poverty rate fell to 16 percent in 2001 in the wake of the economic expansion, but now is rising again. The poverty rate is even higher among children who belong to racial or ethnic minorities.

Changes in the family have affected two-parent families as well. Higher rates of participation in the labor force by mothers in two-parent families have helped to maintain family incomes, but they have also created stress for families and difficulties in caring for and supervising children and adolescents.

Although the strong correlation between single-parent families and low income makes it difficult to disentangle their effects, both factors seem to influence adolescent outcomes ( National Research Council 1995). Economic stress may diminish the emotional well-being of parents, which has direct and indirect negative effects on children. Adolescents growing up in families under economic stress or with a single parent may be poorly supervised and often gain autonomy too early ( Dornbusch et al. 1985). Unsupervised adolescents are more likely to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, use drugs, report depressed mood, and engage in risky behaviors ( Richardson et al., 1993). Low family income has been associated with early sexual activity, cigarette smoking, adolescent pregnancy, and delinquency ( National Research Council 1995; Blum et al. 2000).

Family income also affects the quality of the neighborhoods in which children and adolescents grow up. Compared with low-poverty neighborhoods, high-poverty neighborhoods have lower availability of high-quality public and private services such as parks, child care centers and preschools, community centers, and health care providers, as well as fewer social supports and less effective social networks ( McLoyd 1998). Conversely, high-poverty neighborhoods are more likely to be physically deteriorated and to have more crime and street violence, greater availability of illegal drugs, and more negative peer influences and adult role models ( McLoyd 1998; National Research Council 1995). These characteristics of high-poverty neighborhoods may have deleterious consequences for the cognitive functioning, socialization, physical health, emotional functioning, and academic achievement of children and adolescents (e.g., Ellen and Turner 1997).

Family income also has a profound influence on the educational opportunities available to adolescents and on their chances of educational success. Due to residential stratification and segregation, low-income students usually attend schools with lower funding levels, which result in reduced availability of textbooks and other instructional materials, laboratory equipment, library books, and other educational resources; low-level curricula; and less-qualified teachers and administrators (e.g., Kozol 1991; Oakes 1990; Ingersoll 1999). The effects of concentrated poverty in schools may include disciplinary problems and chaotic learning environments.

These school characteristics, combined with limited parental involvement in adolescents' education, have serious consequences. Not surprisingly, low-income adolescents have reduced achievement motivation and much higher risk of educational failure ( Schultz 1993). In particular, compared with their more affluent counterparts, low-income adolescents receive lower grades, earn lower scores on standardized tests, and are much more likely to drop out of high school (e.g., Kao, Tienda, and Schneider 1996; Hauser, Simmons, and Pager 2000).

The cumulative effect of socioeconomic status on families, neighborhoods, schools, and health care guarantees that poor and low-income adolescents arrive at young adulthood in worse health, engaging in riskier and more dangerous behaviors, and with lower educational attainment and more limited career prospects than their more affluent counterparts. The repercussions of low socioeconomic status in childhood and adolescence are often felt throughout the life cycle. Studies of intergenerational income mobility have found a substantial correlation between the incomes of fathers and the incomes of their sons at corresponding points in their careers; the correlation between family income and children's incomes after they reach adulthood is even higher ( Solon 1992; Zimmerman 1992). McMurrer and colleagues (1997) conclude that there remains a substantial component of income immobility across generations in the United States. Ironically, the intergenerational transmission of socioeconomic status is weakest for young adults who graduate from college, but low family income in childhood and adolescence markedly reduces the chances of obtaining a college degree.

Improving the settings in which many low-income children and adolescents grow up-that is, supporting their families, strengthening their neighborhoods, improving their schools, and making quality health care and other services more accessible to them-should be a policy priority for government at all levels and a research priority for social scientists from all disciplines. Ultimately, this is likely to be the only way to prevent the intergenerational transmission of poverty and exclusion from meaningful and rewarding participation in our society. The fates of poor and low-income children and adolescents are inextricably linked to our future as a nation.

1. Blum RW, Beuhring T, Shew ML, Bearinger LH, Sieving RE, Resnick MD. "The Effects of Race/Ethnicity, Income, and Family Structure on Adolescent Risk Behaviors.". American Journal of Public Health. 2000;90(12):1879-84. doi: 10.2105/ajph.90.12.1879. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

2. Case A, Lubotsky D, Paxson C. "Economic Status and Health in Childhood: The Origins of the Gradient.". American Economic Review. 2002;92(5):1308-34. doi: 10.1257/000282802762024520. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

3. Dornbusch SM, Carlsmith JM, Bushwall SJ, Ritter PL, Leiderman H, Hastorf AH, Gross RT. "Single Parents, Extended Households, and the Control of Adolescents.". Child Development. 1985;56:326-41. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

4. Ellen IG, Turner MA. "Does Neighborhood Matter?". Housing Policy Debate. 1997;8(4):833-66. [Google Scholar]

5. Ellwood DT, Jencks C. The Spread of Single-Parent Families in the United States Since 1960. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University; 2002. Working paper, John F. Kennedy School of Government. [Google Scholar]

6. Ford CA, Bearman PS, Moody J. "Forgone Health Care among Adolescents.". Journal of the American Medical Association. 1999;282(23):2227-34. doi: 10.1001/jama.282.23.2227. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

7. Hauser RN, Simmons SJ, Pager DI. Center for Demography and Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Center for Demography and Ecology; 2000. "High School Dropout, Race/Ethnicity, and Social Background from the 1970s to the 1990s.". Working paper no. 2000-12. [Google Scholar]

8. Ingersoll R. "The Problem of Underqualified Teachers in American Secondary Schools.". Educational Researcher. 1999;28(2):26-37. [Google Scholar]

9. Kao G, Tienda N, Schneider B. "Racial and Ethnic Variation in Academic Performance.". Research in Sociology of Education and Socialization. 1996;11:263-97. [Google Scholar]

10. Kozol J. Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools. New York: Crown; 1991. [Google Scholar]

11. McLoyd VC. "Socioeconomic Disadvantage and Child Development.". American Psychologist. 1998;53(2):185-204. doi: 10.1037//0003-066x.53.2.185. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

12. McMurrer BP, Condon M, Sawhill IV. Washington, DC: Urban Institute; 1997. "Intergenerational Mobility in the United States.". Working paper, no. 4 in series "Opportunity in America,". [Google Scholar]

13. Montgomery LE, Kiely JL, Pappas G. "The Effects of Poverty, Race, and Family Structure on U.S. Children's Health: Data from the NHIS, 1978 through 1980 and 1989 through 1991.". American Journal of Public Health. 1996;86(10):1401-5. doi: 10.2105/ajph.86.10.1401. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

14. National Research Council, Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education . Losing Generations: Adolescents in High-Risk Settings. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 1995. [Google Scholar]

15. Oakes J. Multiplying Inequalities: The Effects of Race, Social Class, and Tracking on Opportunities to Learn Math and Science. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation; 1990. [Google Scholar]

16. Proctor BD, Dalaker J. Poverty in the United States: 2001. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office; 2002. U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Reports, P60-219. [Google Scholar]

17. Ricardson JL, Radziszewska B, Dent CW, Flay BR. "Relationship between After-school Care of Adolescents and Substance Use, Risk Taking, Depressed Mood, and Academic Achievement.". Pediatrics. 1993;92(1):32-38. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

18. Schultz GF. "Socioeconomic Advantage and Achievement Motivation: Important Mediators of Academic Performance in Minority Children in Urban Schools.". Journal of Urban Review. 1993;25(3):221-32. [Google Scholar]

19. Snodgrass SR, Vedanarayanan CC, Parker VV, Parks BR. "Pediatric Patients with Undetectable Anticonvulsant Blood Levels: Comparison with Compliant Patients.". Journal of Child Neurology. 2001;16(3):16-8. doi: 10.1177/088307380101600302. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

20. Solon G. "Intergenerational Income Mobility in the United States.". American Economic Review. 1992;82(2):393-408. [Google Scholar]

21. Thompson SJ, Auslander WF, White NH. "Comparison of Single-Mother and Two-Parent Families on Metabolic Control of Children with Diabetes.". Diabetes Care. 2001;24(2):234-8. doi: 10.2337/diacare.24.2.234. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

22. Zimmerman DJ. "Regression toward Mediocrity in Economic Stature.". American Economic Review. 1992;82(2):409-29. [Google Scholar]

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Socioeconomic Status and the Fates of Adolescents

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In this issue of Health Services Research, Newacheck and colleagues update the evidence on the association between socioeconomic status-specifically, income-and the health care and health status of adolescents in the United States.

# data[].attributes.headline
Culture Makes Education and Development Thrive!

# data[].attributes.subject
Culture Makes Education and Development Thrive!

# data[].attributes.headline
Studies Show Potential Positive Effects of Religion on Adolescent Development

# data[].attributes.subject
Studies Show Potential Positive Effects of Religion on Adolescent Development

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Growing up in today's world can be complicated. Parents are often worried about how their children will navigate the social, behavioral, and developmental challenges of life, especially during adolescence, which can be a particularly difficult time. Our research, which was recently published out of Harvard's Chan School of Public Health and co-authored by Ying Chen at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard, suggests that a religious upbringing can profoundly help adolescents navigate the challenges of these years. We also found that a religious upbringing contributes to a wide range of health and well-being outcomes later in life.

Our study used a large sample of over 5,000 adolescents, followed them up for more than eight years, and controlled for many other variables to try to isolate the effect of religious upbringing. We found that children who were raised in a religious or spiritual environment were subsequently better protected from the "big three" dangers of adolescence.

For example, those who attended religious services regularly were subsequently:

12% less likely to have high depressive symptoms

33% less likely to use illicit drugs

Those who prayed or meditated frequently were:

30% less likely to start having sex at a young age

40% less likely to subsequently have a sexually transmitted infection

Moreover, a religious upbringing also contributed towards to a number of positive outcomes as well, such greater happiness, more volunteering in the community, a greater sense of mission and purpose, and higher levels of forgiveness. For example, those who attended religious services were subsequently:

18% more likely to report high levels of happiness

87% more likely to have high levels of forgiveness

Those who prayed or meditated frequently were subsequently:

38% more likely to volunteer in their community

47% more likely to have a high sense of mission and purpose

These are relatively large effects across a variety of health and well-being outcomes. Religious practice and prayer or meditation can be important resources for adolescents navigating the challenges of life.

Some might wonder if these associations truly imply that religious and spiritual practices really cause the health and well-being outcomes. Could it be that those who are already happier or who refrain from drug use, are those who are naturally drawn to religion? Might this explain the associations, rather than a causal effect of religious and spiritual practices on subsequent health and well-being?

We attempted to deal with this issue in several ways. First, the religious upbringing variables were measured 8-14 years before the health and psychological well-being outcomes were evaluated. This more rigorous longitudinal design helps establish the temporal ordering of the relationships, and in this way is superior to most prior studies on this topic, which used cross-sectional data (where everything is measured at the same time). Second, wherever possible, we controlled also for the health and psychological characteristics of the adolescents at the time that the service attendance and prayer/meditation was assessed to try to rule out that it was just positive health or psychological states that was leading to greater religious practice. Third, we controlled for numerous other social, demographic and health characteristics at the time of adolescence to try to rule out that these might explain the relationship. Finally, for each and every outcome examined, we reported a new measure, called the E-value, that assesses how robust or sensitive results are to potential unmeasured variables, and thereby helps evaluate the evidence for causality (see endnote below for examples). ¹ Although it is difficult to prove "causality," with the sort of observational data we used, the evidence for the effects of a religious upbringing on some of the health and well-being outcomes is, in fact, here quite strong.

But what are the implications of this research? Here, some additional nuance is probably needed. People generally do not make decisions about religious involvement based on health, but rather on beliefs, values, truth claims, relationships, experiences, and so forth. However, for parents and children who already hold religious beliefs, such religious and spiritual practices could be encouraged both for their own sake, as well as to promote health and well-being.

Modern life is very busy, and it can take a strong commitment to participate in a community, or to set time aside for prayer or meditation, and to encourage children in these practices. Our study suggests that for those who already hold these beliefs, setting such time aside in parenting, and for adolescents to engage in these practices, is worthwhile.

Although it is difficult to prove "causality," with the sort of observational data we used, the evidence for the effects of a religious upbringing on some of the health and well-being outcomes is, in fact, quite strong in our study.

There has also been some concern expressed in various settings about whether being raised religiously might be harmful. The sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church have led some parents to question whether their children should be present in such settings at all. Certainly, these instances of sexual abuse need to be addressed, and some progress has already been made in that regard, though more work still needs to be done. Those who covered up the abuse cases need to be held accountable; and for the victims of abuse, their harmful and horrifying experiences need to be acknowledged and addressed.

Our own research is based on averages: the statistics average over all of the positive experiences and also all of the negative experiences, too. The research indicates that, on average, the effects of a religious community are profoundly positive. This does not in any way excuse the incidents of harm by religious leaders or institutions, but it does make clear the substantial benefits of religious practice overall. Ceasing those practices will, on average, likely lead to worse health and well-being outcomes.

Some have gone even further in expressing concern that a religious upbringing may be harmful. Recently, the Oxford biologist Richard Dawkins likened a religious upbringing to child abuse, going so far as to claim in a lecture that, "Horrible as sexual abuse no doubt was, the damage was arguably less than the long-term psychological damage inflicted by bringing the child up Catholic in the first place." The point was reiterated in his book The God Delusion (p. 356), and he has even gone on to write another book on Atheism for Children, which he plans to publish this fall.

Our study shows that on a number of important health and well-being outcomes, Dawkin's claim just isn't true. It is disrespectful of those who have experienced sexual abuse, and it is just plain wrong with regard to the average effects on health and well-being that religious practice brings. Religious upbringing is of positive benefit for many health behaviors and psychological well-being outcomes. Before making his claims, it would have been good if Dawkins, the scientist, had actually looked at the science. At the very least, parents who bring up their children religiously can be reassured that, on average at least, they are creating important psychological and behavioral health benefits that their children will carry with them into adulthood.

Questions are sometimes raised as to why these positive effects are present and why they are so substantial. This is a more difficult question and goes beyond what we have in the data. My own speculation would be that, for religious service attendance, we observe these effects, in part, because of the benefits of a shared set of beliefs, and practices, and values; and also, because the adolescents have other adult members of their community, beyond their parents, who can serve as mentors and role models. As for the positive effects of prayer and meditation, as I recently shared with IFS, my speculation would be that an integrated spirituality gives rise to an experience of God or of transcendence so that an adolescent need not turn to drugs or risky sexual behaviors in their search for something more. Moreover, that experience of God may fundamentally make a person more other-oriented, leading to greater volunteering, forgiveness, and a sense of mission, and these things ultimately make one happier and protect against depression. Adolescence is a particularly critical time of development and self-understanding, and the establishing of these practices may shape health and well-being throughout life.

Too often in public health, we do not think very much about religious community or parenting practices. However, the results of our new study suggest fairly substantial positive effects on a number of different health and well-being outcomes. Religious practices, such as attending religious services and engaging in prayer, do shape the health of populations and need to be discussed and considered more frequently. Religion and spirituality are important resources for parents and adolescents alike.
Tyler J. VanderWeele, Ph.D., is Professor of Epidemiology in the Departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Harvard School of Public Health, a faculty affiliate of the Institute for Quantitative Social Science, and Director of the Program on Integrative Knowledge and Human Flourishing at Harvard University.
1. For example, we reported in our study that for an unmeasured variable to explain away the association between religious service attendance and subsequent volunteering, that unmeasured variable would have to be associated with 1.9-fold higher service attendance, and 1.9-fold higher volunteering, above and beyond everything we already controlled for (which was already a lot). It would thus take quite a lot of confounding to explain away that result. Similarly, to explain away the association between prayer/meditation and the much lower likelihood of subsequently have a sexually transmitted infection, an unmeasured variable would have to be associated both with a 2.7-fold higher likelihood of prayer and a 2.7-fold lower likelihood of a sexually transmitted infection to explain away the results.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Growing up in today's world can be complicated. Parents are often worried about how their children will navigate the social, behavioral, and developmental challenges of life, especially during adolescence, which can be a particularly difficult time.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Harmful Effects of Divorce on Children. 

# data[].attributes.subject
The Harmful Effects of Divorce on Children. 

# data[].attributes.headline
City vs Country Living Could Impact a Childs Physical Activity Levels!

# data[].attributes.subject
City vs Country Living Could Impact a Childs Physical Activity Levels!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Urban versus rural lifestyle in adolescents: associations between environment, physical activity levels and sedentary behavior

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
To analyze the levels of physical activity and sedentary behavior in adolescents living in urban and rural areas. An epidemiological, cross-section study with quantitative design, carried out at the regional level. The sample comprised 6,234…

# data[].attributes.body
All of the factors I have on my wall are seen in everyday classrooms around the world. There impact is huge as well imagine you as a teacher have a student who just found out their parents are getting divorced and starts acting out in class. Knowing the effect that event can have on a child allows you to tailor your behavior management strategy as needed to truly help the student and not just blindly reprimand. Each and every factor no matter how big or small will find its way to a classroom and it's up to us as educators to identify them when they arise!

# data[].attributes.headline
The Many Ways Implicit Bias Shows Up in the Classroom.

# data[].attributes.subject
The Many Ways Implicit Bias Shows Up in the Classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Implicit biases can negatively affect education when teachers, administrators, and other school staff make decisions and interact with students and families in ways that are influenced by their implicit biases. As a result, implicit bias in the context of education creates unfairness on the individual level (e.g., biased speech) and injustice at the institutional or systemic level (e.g., discrimination).

Educators's implicit biases can influence how teachers grade students as well as to whom they give their attention and who they ignore. It can affect which students they praise and reprimand, their body language, and tone of voice. Biases can influence the curriculum choices and which perspectives are highlighted in classrooms. It can affect choices related to guest speakers, books, stories, and more. Implicit biases can also influence how teachers and administrators react to student behaviors and result in inconsistencies across how students are disciplined that fall along racial and ethnic lines.

Implicit biases in education may help to explain pervasive inequities in educational institutions such as gaps in achievement scores based on racial and gender groups, differences in participation in advanced level courses, and differences in detention and suspension rates. It can also influence hiring and promotion practices.
Examples
Biases in Evaluation. A teacher may hold implicit biases about the mathematical abilities of certain groups of students. These beliefs in turn could influence the type of feedback provided, how frequently the teacher calls on students, the types of support and assistance provided, and decisions related to grouping students based on "learning needs."

In a randomized controlled study of 390 teachers, Copur-Gencturk et al. (2019) used randomly assigned gender- and race-specific names on 18 mathematical solutions. The teachers did not show biases in assessing the correctness of the answers; however, when the teachers were asked to evaluate the students' abilities using the same solutions, teacher biases against Black, Hispanic and female students' mathematical abilities emerged. The biases were the largest for Black and Hispanic girls.

Using a large dataset of ~40,000 teachers across the nation, Chin et al.(2020) found that counties in which teachers had higher pro-White compared to Black implicit bias (i.e., IAT scores averaged among teachers in each county) also had larger test score disparities between White and Black students.

Biases in Discipline. For the same behavior, implicit biases may lead a teacher to react to one student's behavior differently than another's. It may lead to inconsistent consequences, such as being sent to "time-out," calls to parents, suspension or expulsion. Nationally, African Americans are four times more likely, and Latinos twice as likely, to be suspended or expelled in elementary school for minor infractions than their peers (Skiba et al., 2011). In Hawaiʻi, higher rates of suspensions appear to be correlated with enrollment of low-income, multi-racial and Native Hawaiian students (Terrell, 2015). Disproportionate representation in arrests and ensuing outcomes (e.g. time in juvenile detention) for youth of Native Hawaiian, Samoan, Filipino, mixed-race and other Pacific Islander backgrounds are also evident in the State's juvenile justice system (Umemeto et al, 2012).

These patterns have been referred to as the "school to prison pipeline" and disparities in discipline have been connected to implicit biases. Using a large dataset of ~1.6 million Americans, Riddle and Sinclair (2019) found that county-level estimates of implicit White/Black bias (and county-level explicit biases, as well) are associated with racial disciplinary disparities seen in those counties across ~96,000 schools in the U.S.

It is important to promote awareness of biases so that educators and institutions can manage their effects (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2016). Developing equitable institutional protocols for such things as hiring procedures and evaluating teachers, as well as on-going professional development with coaching, may help. Additionally, frameworks for Anti-Bias Education can be used to guide educators (e.g., Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards). Such actions can help to mitigate implicit biases that are unfair and disruptive to learning and encourage practices that are restorative versus punitive.
References
Chin, M. J., Quinn, D. M., Dhaliwal, T. K., & Lovison, V. S. (2020). Bias in the Air: A Nationwide Exploration of Teachers' Implicit Racial Attitudes, Aggregate Bias, and Student Outcomes. Educational Researcher.

Copur-Gencturk, Y., Cimpian, J. R., Lubienski, S. T., & Thacker, I. (2020). Teachers' bias against the mathematical ability of female, Black, and Hispanic students. Educational Researcher, 49(1), 30-43.

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2016). Goals of anti-bias education: Clearing up some misconceptions. Exchange, 14-18.

Riddle, T., & Sinclair, S. (2019). Racial disparities in school-based disciplinary actions are associated with county-level rates of racial bias. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(17), 8255-8260.

Skiba, R. J., Horner, R. H., Chung, C., Rausch, M. K., May, S. L., & Tobin, T. (2011). Race is not neutral: A national investigation of African American and Latino disproportionality in school discipline. School Psychology Review, 40(1), 85-107.

Terrell, J. (2015, June). Hawaii school suspensions: Are they fair? Can they be reduced? Honolulu Civil Beat. https://www.civilbeat.org/2015/06/hawaii-school-suspensions-are-they-fair-can-they-be-reduced/

Umemeto, K., Spencer, J., Miao, T., & Momen, S. (2012, June). Disproportionate Minority Contact in the Hawaiʻi Juvenile Justice System: 2000-2010. http://ag.hawaii.gov/cpja/files/2013/01/DMC-FINAL-REPORT-2012.pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Implicit biases can negatively affect education when teachers, administrators, and other school staff make decisions and interact with students and families in ways that are influenced by their implicit biases. As a result, implicit bias in the context of education creates unfairness on the individual level (e.g., biased speech) and injustice at the institutional or systemic level (e.g., discrimination).

# data[].attributes.headline
Tips to Help Teachers Fight Implicit Biases.

# data[].attributes.subject
Tips to Help Teachers Fight Implicit Biases.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A friend of mine recently told me about an incident involving students at Berkeley High School. On the first day of classes, African-American juniors and seniors were being asked by their honors course teacher to show him their schedule when they entered the classroom. The teacher, who was white, apparently assumed the black students were lost and in the wrong room, and his gesture made them feel unwelcome and humiliated.

This is an example of implicit bias-a behavior that arises from subconscious associations, which may even contradict someone's explicit values. Implicit racial bias plays a role in many classrooms and schools with potentially devastating effects. In one recent experiment with preschool teachers, researchers found that when teachers were primed to look for behavioral problems while watching a classroom video with black and white children (none of whom were misbehaving), teachers gazed much longer at black children than white children, as if anticipating the behavioral problems would come from the black children.

In another experiment from the same study, teachers read a vignette about a behavioral problem with a preschooler randomly identified as a black boy, black girl, white boy, or white girl, and then were given details about the child's background or not. Providing the background information on the child increased the severity of suggested disciplinary actions when the race of the teacher didn't match that of the child, supporting the idea that we are more inclined to punish those who look different from us.

In fact, disciplinary actions are more likely to be perpetuated against African Americans-boys and girls alike-than any other group of students, regardless of the infraction. And while it's understandable that teachers would want to prevent disruptions in the classrooms and take actions to avoid them, some seem to have little idea of how to do that without turning to ingrained biases.

Of course, teachers are not alone in having racial biases. Their behavior reflects how social messages are hard to escape, even for people of color. But studies like these show how racial disparities can be perpetuated in classrooms, too. If left unchecked, this kind of biased treatment can haunt a student well into elementary school and beyond, making the promise of "schools as the great social equalizers" a false one.

The good news is that teachers can learn to combat their prejudice, even the implicit kind, if they become more aware of it and take steps to actively fight it in themselves. Here are some of the ways that might help educators treat all of their students with dignity and care.

1. Cultivate awareness of their biases

Teachers are human and therefore influenced by psychological biases, like the fundamental attribution error, when we assume that others who behave in a certain way do so because of their character (a fixed trait) rather than in response to environmental circumstances. In-group bias leads us to assign positive characteristics and motivations to people who are similar to us.

Biases like these are natural, used as cognitive shorthand for making quick social judgments in ambiguous situations, especially those involving people from unfamiliar ethnic or social groups. They become a problem when we're not aware of their impact on other people. And if we're part of a majority group with more social, economic, or political power than a minority one, then accumulated unconscious bias can be extremely destructive, limiting the life opportunities and hurting the well-being of the minority group.

Many researchers believe that becoming more aware of our biases can help us improve our interactions with others, decrease our sense of unease in interracial contexts, and make better decisions. Though most of this research has been done with other professional groups or the general public, the same lessons are likely to apply to teachers.

However, many teachers feel pressures not to cop to those biases, perhaps out of fear they will be accused of racism. This leaves them blind to the ways that biases work at an unconscious level. Pretending to be colorblind is not helpful and in fact adhering to a color-blind philosophy has been shown to increase implicit bias, at least in college students. Admitting that we are all subject to biases creates a safer space to examine them more carefully and to take steps to fight them.

2. Work to increase empathy and empathic communication

Empathy -the ability to understand another's perspective and emotions-is important in all human social encounters, including teaching. Yet, often teachers have little understanding of the communities where their students live and have trouble understanding their perspectives, leading them to treat these students more harshly.

One solution: learning about the lives of students and showing that you care. At least one study has found that actively trying to take the perspective of another person-as opposed to trying to be "objective"-increased one's ability to not fall prey to stereotypical views of others. Actively inducing empathy for another person has been tied to a willingness to consider environmental circumstances more closely when handing out punishments for misbehavior. And, one recent study has found that training teachers in empathy cut down student suspension rates in half.

Though perhaps more research has been done on empathy in other professionals (such as physicians and police officers), teachers may want to take note of the ways that they have learned to increase their empathy through a combination of stress reduction, learning how to manage difficult emotions, and practicing empathic communication. Treating students with kindness and consideration is a sure way to bring out kindness in them, too.

3. Practice mindfulness and loving-kindness

Mindfulness practices-such as paying attention in a nonjudgmental way to one's breath or other sensations-has been shown to decrease stress in teachers, which can indirectly have an effect on reducing bias. But according to some research, mindfulness may also have a direct effect on bias reduction as well.

In one study, young white participants who listened to a 10-minute audiotape with instructions in mindfulness showed less implicit bias towards blacks and older people than those who listened to a 10-minute discussion of nature. This suggests that nonjudgmental awareness, even when not specifically focused on reducing prejudice, can help reduce unconscious biases.

Loving-kindness meditation-a practice that involves consciously sending out compassionate thoughts toward others-may also help. In a recent study, the random assignment of a short-term loving-kindness meditation reduced implicit bias toward a targeted group, though it didn't decrease implicit bias for other groups not targeted by the meditation.

4. Develop cross-group friendships in their own lives

While it's important to take steps in the classroom, the relationships we form outside of the classroom can also have an impact on bias.

Cross-group friendships have been shown in several studies to decrease stress in intergroup situations, to decrease prejudice toward outgroup members, and to decrease one's preference for social hierarchy or domination over lower-status groups. These findings alone might encourage teachers to seek out cross-group friendships in their lives so that they can be more receptive to the diverse students they find in their classrooms.

Another reason for teachers to consider developing cross-group friendships is that they may influence their students to do the same. When people see cross-group friendships working out in positive ways, they tend to be more willing to engage in cross-group friendships themselves.

In addition, positive cross-group friendships can have contagion effects in other people within social groups, turning whole communities into warmer, more receptive spaces for cross-group interactions. All of this bodes well for teachers role-modeling the kind of behavior they want to see in their students.

Of course, this doesn't necessarily mean teachers should indiscriminately approach someone just because they are from a different racial group. Instead, teachers can reach out to colleagues at work, or get involved in activities or perhaps attend events where people with different backgrounds and perspectives come together for a common cause. Developing friendships can be one of the best ways to break down barriers of prejudice, and it's more easily done when people have some common interests.

Is this a lot to ask, given all the burdens our society heaps on teachers? Perhaps. Teachers should get more support than they do, and, ideally, school districts should make reducing implicit bias a priority backed up with money, policy, and training. Individual teachers can only do so much.

Luckily, the teaching profession tends to attract altruists who want to teach in a way that helps their students. By working at countering implicit bias in themselves, they can truly make a difference in the lives of their students, making them feel safe, cared for, and welcome in the classroom.

Greater Good wants to know: Do you think this article will influence your opinions or behavior?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Four Ways Teachers Can Reduce Implicit Bias

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We're all subject to bias. Here are tips to help teachers treat all of their students with dignity and care.

# data[].attributes.headline
Steps to Take to Become Culturally Competent.

# data[].attributes.subject
Steps to Take to Become Culturally Competent.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As a former Asian-American studies minor with an interest in diversity and a minority-group member himself, Ali M. Mattu thought that he was ready to tackle just about any cultural issue when he began doctoral studies in clinical psychology at the Catholic University of America five years ago. As it turned out, the future diversity chair for APAGS was flummoxed by one of his first clients.

"He was going on and on about confession, using a lot of Catholic lingo that I'm not familiar with," says Mattu, now chair-elect of APAGS. "Then he looked at me and asked point blank, 'Have you been to confession here?'" Instead of owning up to not being Catholic, Mattu sidestepped the question and missed an opportunity to explore a topic that meant so much to his client.

Since then, Mattu has taken an intensive course on cultural issues in clinical psychology, which included lectures, self-reflection and community service. But while APA accreditation requires programs to cover cultural competence, and many states require such training for licensure, not all psychology programs offer the thorough grounding Mattu received.

"Traditional models of training don't focus very much on learning how to adapt one's skills to different populations," says Janet E. Helms, PhD, director of the Institute for the Study and Promotion of Race and Culture at Boston College. "People still have a tendency to make cultural competence the topic they cover at the end of the semester, so they really don't cover it very well."

That won't do, says Helms, who wants cultural competence integrated into every aspect of graduate training. "We're becoming an increasingly culturally complex country," she says, adding that training in cultural competence should include race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, gender, disability status, and other demographic characteristics.

Fortunately, say Helms and other experts, there are plenty of ways to get that training and experience on your own:

Learn about yourself. Get started by exploring your own historical roots, beliefs and values, says Robert C. Weigl, PhD, a psychologist at the Franklin Center in Alexandria, Va., who described a protocol for such self-reflection in a 2009 paper in the International Journal of Intercultural Relations (Vol. 33, No. 4). The eight-step process includes such exercises as describing your ancestors and their experiences, thinking about how your family functions as a group, and characterizing your most representative style of thought as emotional or rational, "me-centered" or "we-centered," and the like.

Self-assessment makes participants realize the pervasive role culture plays in their lives, says Weigl. It also makes people aware of their own biases while sparking open-minded curiosity about other cultures. Plus, it's fun, he says, adding that students are "sometimes swept away by healthy narcissism" as they explore their own backgrounds.

Learn about different cultures. If you know you're going to be researching or providing therapy to people with unfamiliar backgrounds, seek cultural insight through journal articles and academic books, says Mattu. But don't stop there. "There's a richness to memoirs, for example, that scientific journal articles just cannot capture," he says. He also recommends novels such as "The God of Small Things" - an examination of India's caste system - and such documentaries as "Divided We Fall," about post-9-11 hate crimes against South Asians.

However, one of the best ways to immerse yourself in another culture's worldview is to learn a second language, says private practitioner Pamela A. Hays, PhD, of Soldotna, Alaska, and author of "Addressing Cultural Complexities in Practice: Assessment, Diagnosis, and Therapy" (APA, 2008). "One of the most mind-expanding experiences is to learn a word or concept that doesn't exist in your own language," she says. "Plus, learning a language means you're more able to reach out and connect with people who speak that language."

Interact with diverse groups. Arranging a research project, practicum experience or internship where you work with people from a culture that's unfamiliar to you is a great way to enhance your cultural competence. Depending on the kinds of cultural experiences you're seeking, you may want to volunteer at community centers, religious institutions or soup kitchens, says Mattu. Take a friend or two with you, he recommends, and spend some time afterward discussing how the experience may have changed your views.

It's also important to supplement work and volunteer experience with nonclinical social interactions, recommends Hays. Instead of solely interacting with members of diverse groups who are seeking help, get a fuller picture by interacting with them as peers at parties, religious services and cultural events. "Put yourself in social situations where you're the only one of your cultural group," she recommends.

Attend diversity-focused conferences. Get formal training on diversity-related research and practice issues, learn about the latest research, and meet potential collaborators at APA's Annual Convention, as well as conferences that are focused specifically on diversity issues. Check APA's online events calendar for news about upcoming meetings. One such conference, the biennial National Multicultural Conference and Summit, will take place Jan. 27-28 in Seattle. "We'll be exploring how science can be more sensitive to diversity, as well as how science can have an impact on diverse communities that have been marginalized in the past," says Francisco J. Sánchez, PhD, the summit's lead coordinator and a psychology research fellow at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Medicine.

Interested students who are short on cash can often volunteer at conferences in exchange for reduced fees, or apply for a travel grant. Check out APA's searchable database of scholarships, grants and awards.

Lobby your department. If your program isn't giving you the training you need, push the faculty to do better, says Helms. Whether you plan to send the departmental chair a formal letter with concrete suggestions and complaints or handle the matter more informally, be sure to gather allies - students from within and outside your department - to help you make your case. That way, says Helms, "the program gets the message that this is something important to students."

And remember: These steps are just the beginning, says Hays.

"Cultural competence is a lifelong project," she says, adding that competence with one group doesn't mean you're competent with another. "You have to keep finding ways to expand your learning."

Rebecca A. Clay is a writer in Washington, D.C.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As a former Asian-American studies minor with an interest in diversity and a minority-group member himself, Ali M. Mattu thought that he was ready to tackle just about any cultural issue when he began doctoral studies in clinical psychology at the Catholic University of America five years ago.

# data[].attributes.body
One implicit bias I personally struggle with in the classroom is I quickly assume that a student wanting to not do their work is just them being disrespectful. This isn't a true statement because many students may have other reasons why they are not doing their work in the moment. They could of perhaps just found out a major life changing event. Learning to notice this bias when it occurs can help me better myself as an educator and further connect and lift up my students in times where they may need me the most.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
By promoting diversity in their classrooms, teachers foster an environment in which students of all backgrounds feel included and supported. In many cases, teachers achieve this by developing classroom activities that celebrate diversity. These diversity activities encourage students to become more open-minded about different cultures and lifestyles.

"When we talk about diversity in a classroom, we're talking about the general makeup of students in the classroom," says Kasey Weaver, EdD, adjunct faculty member in early childhood administration at Purdue University Global. "Diversity encompasses many areas, such as gender, race, background, socioeconomic status, and even your abilities."

Discover why cultural diversity in the classroom matters and how you can incorporate diversity into your K-12 lesson plans and activities.

Why Is Diversity in the Classroom Important?

Data from the National Center for Education Statistics shows that public schools in the U.S. have become more racially diverse over the last decade. However, many students still attend schools where the majority of their peers look like them. According to Pew Research Center, 79% of white students in U.S. public schools attend schools where at least half of their peers are also white. These numbers are disproportionate for other ethnicities, too. Fifty-six percent of Hispanic students and 42% of Black students attend school where more than half of the students share their ethnicity.

With this in mind, it's up to teachers to help students explore cultures that differ from their own. "It's important for us all to honor our differences," says Weaver. "And as the adults in the classroom, teachers have to model what that looks like for our children."

There are several benefits of teaching diversity in the classroom:

Students can learn from each other's perspectives. "When we have discussions in the classroom about diverse experiences, it helps students see things from the point of view of their peers," says Weaver. "We have a lot that we can learn from each other, and diversity-focused lessons allow us to bring in multiple perspectives and insights."

Diverse representation promotes feelings of self-worth among students. A report published in Contemporary Issues in Education Research found that teaching students about the achievements and history of diverse cultural groups can help foster resilience and self-esteem in students who share that cultural background. Bringing in speakers from diverse communities has a similar positive effect. "Diverse activities can really help students develop a sense of self-efficacy," says Weaver.

Working with a diverse group helps students improve problem-solving skills. Weaver explains that diversity within the classroom can actually improve educational outcomes. "Students become better problem solvers when they work with a diverse group of students," she says. "A diverse classroom encourages ideas to be bounced off of each other, allowing students to find creative solutions to problems."

Diversity in education may help reduce prejudice. According to the American Psychological Association, cooperative learning activities are one way to overcome prejudice at school. "By talking about what makes us unique-as opposed to ignoring it-we let students know that it's okay for us to have differences," says Weaver.

Five Activities for Teaching Diversity in the Classroom

Since diversity in education can lead to a number of social and academic benefits, it's no wonder that many teachers are trying to elevate diversity within their lessons. Below are a few recommendations for diversity activities in the classroom.

1. Create a Cultural Passport

One of Weaver's favorite activities for promoting diversity is to create a cultural passport that accompanies virtual field trips. During a virtual field trip, students will be guided through a website that provides educational images, videos, and audio clips. These guides are often focused on a specific place, such as a museum or a national park.

"Virtual field trips are an excellent way to expose children to different cultures around the world, or even cultures that are representative in their own school," says Weaver.

She recommends providing a mock passport that students can fill out as they complete various virtual field trips. "Each page on the passport can feature a different culture. At different points throughout the year, you can visit that culture through a virtual field trip, and have students fill in information about what they learned."

Since these virtual field trips can all be completed online, this is also a great way to support distance learning students.

2. Explore Diverse Literature, Art, and Music

A report by New America found that people of color are still underrepresented in popular children's books.

When choosing books to read aloud in the classroom, Weaver recommends picking stories from a variety of cultures. "Make sure you're choosing books that are from cultures represented in your classroom, as well as from cultures that might not be represented in your classroom," she says. The same advice goes for selecting art and music to share with the classroom.

Keep in mind that diverse stories incorporate more than just racial and ethnic diversity-they also include diversity in gender, religion, age, and more. "The idea is to help expose students to perspectives that might be different from their own," says Weaver. "For example, if you teach at an all-girls school, it's good to incorporate stories that are told from a boy's perspective."

3. Visit Your Library

Your classroom library can only hold so many books. To help your students broaden their horizons, make frequent visits to your school library or local library. "Talk to the librarian to ensure that there are books representative of all cultures and backgrounds," says Weaver. "Oftentimes, librarians can help provide suggestions for titles that explore specific themes."

By visiting your school or local library, you're giving students an opportunity to discover books that explore a wide variety of topics. You could even set up a library scavenger hunt in which students are challenged to find books of different types. For example, a book written by a woman author, a book written in another language, or a book discussing a specific holiday. If you're teaching online, you could conduct a virtual library scavenger hunt using your library's online catalog.

4. Start an Open Dialogue

According to a survey conducted by EducationWeek, the majority of teachers see the importance of discussing complex issues with their students:

79% of teachers agree it's important to discuss race and ethnicity

75% agree it's important to discuss immigration

70% agree it's important to discuss national politics

Despite the fact that many teachers want to have open discussions in their classroom, it can be hard to know how to approach sensitive topics in a way that is age-appropriate and does not make any students feel uncomfortable.

Weaver says that creating an open dialogue starts with encouraging students to ask questions. If you're leading a class discussion around a particular news story or current event, you need to ensure that students are not afraid to speak up. "Not everyone will have the same perspective on a topic, and that's okay. Recognizing our differences helps everybody feel accepted as part of the community," she says.

"We don't want to ignore what makes us different. We want to celebrate it."

5. Build Connections with Other Students

Finally, Weaver recommends building connections with students from other classrooms, or even from other schools. "Having students socialize with their peers is a great way to create a welcoming and inclusive classroom environment," she says.

For example, during story time, lunch, or recess, you might invite kids from the exceptional children or special education program into your classroom. This gives your regular-ed students a chance to socialize with kids they might not have met before. "By allowing your students to make connections with kids from other classrooms, you're creating an environment where everyone feels included. Plus, your students will be exposed to kids who have different backgrounds than them," says Weaver.

Enhance Your Teaching Skills with Online Education Programs

Weaver stresses that teachers should not underestimate their role in creating diverse and inclusive environments. "It's so important for us, as the adults in the room, to model what we want to happen in our schools," she says. "Diversity activities in the classroom are only one piece of the puzzle-as teachers, we need to model empathy and respect for students of all backgrounds."

If you want to grow your teaching skills, Purdue University Global offers several online degree programs in the education field, including Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Administration, Master of Arts in Teaching, and Master of Science in Education programs.

Find out more about our programs by contacting us today.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Five Activities to Promote Diversity in the Classroom

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
By promoting diversity in their classrooms, teachers foster an environment in which students of all backgrounds feel included and supported. In many cases, teachers achieve this by developing classroom activities that celebrate diversity. These diversity activities encourage students to become more open-minded about different cultures and lifestyles.

# data[].attributes.headline
Being Open-Minded is Key to Becoming Culturally Competent.

# data[].attributes.subject
Being Open-Minded is Key to Becoming Culturally Competent.

# data[].attributes.headline
A Great Resource to Assess Yourself in Your Cultural Competence.

# data[].attributes.subject
A Great Resource to Assess Yourself in Your Cultural Competence.

# data[].attributes.headline
Creating the Framework all Starts in Your Classroom.

# data[].attributes.subject
Creating the Framework all Starts in Your Classroom.

# data[].attributes.body
After reading and understanding Cultural Competence more I now understand I have the power to create the framework for all the future generations. Based on how I myself act and the behaviors I teach to my future students they will either become more inclusive or more close minded. As long as I assess myself and maintain cultural competence they won't fall into the close minded category. Seeing how important my role is in this massive sector of human nature is eye-opening.

# data[].attributes.headline
Harvard Study Proves Implicit Bias is Found in Classrooms

# data[].attributes.subject
Harvard Study Proves Implicit Bias is Found in Classrooms

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A new study finds evidence that teachers’ implicit bias may lead to unequal student outcomes.

# data[].attributes.headline
Eye Opening Journal About Gender Implicit Biases in Schools.

# data[].attributes.subject
Eye Opening Journal About Gender Implicit Biases in Schools.

# data[].attributes.headline
How Children Can Suffer From Biases at School.

# data[].attributes.subject
How Children Can Suffer From Biases at School.

# data[].attributes.headline
Your Biases as a Teacher Determine Your Student's Success.

# data[].attributes.subject
Your Biases as a Teacher Determine Your Student's Success.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Whether or not a teacher "believes in" her students and expects them to succeed has been shown to affect how well that student does in school, particularly among disadvantaged students. But educators should be aware that those expectations can be influenced by their own implicit racial biases.

In a recent study that looked at interviews involving 16,000 U.S. teachers, Black and non-Black teachers were asked to predict their 10th-graders' future educational attainment. Would she graduate from high school? How about college? When asked about any specific Black student, White teachers were about 30 percent less likely than Black teachers to predict he or she would someday earn a college degree. For White students, the teachers' predictions, or expectations, were about the same.

"We cannot determine whether the black teachers are too optimistic, the non-black teachers are too pessimistic, or some combination of the two," wrote one of the study's authors, American University's Seth Gershenson, in an an August blog post. But, he noted, it is worrisome nonetheless, "as systematic biases in teachers' expectations for student success might contribute to persistent socio-demographic gaps in educational achievement and attainment."

The study also found that the racial mismatch of expectations was stronger for boys, and that the most optimistic group about Black male students was Black female teachers (even more so than Black male teachers.)

"These results are not meant to, nor should they, demonize or implicate teachers," wrote Gershenson. "Biases in expectations are generally unintentional and are an artifact of how humans categorize complex information." Hopefully, the authors suggest, the study's findings will lead to helpful discussions.

Although the U.S. public school system now has more non-White students than White students, White teachers still account for 84 percent of the teaching force.
What is Implicit Bias and Can it Be Fixed?
Implicit biases are defined by the Kirwin Institute as attitudes or stereotypes that are activated unconsciously and involuntarily. They are not the same as biases that a person might try to hide because they're unpopular or socially incorrect. Social scientists believe that implicit biases are learned as young as age 3, and may be fueled by stereotypes perpetrated in the media, or beliefs passed along by parents, peers, and other community members.

"Our belief here is that we all have implicit biases," said Maureen Costello, director of Teaching Tolerance, a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center working toward equity in schools. And it's not just teachers, she points out. Recent studies, prompted by police shootings in Ferguson and elsewhere, have looked at implicit biases among law enforcement officers and found that both White and Black officers often have implicit biases about Black community members.

The consequences for Black communities policed by biased officers has been tragic, but it can be equally consequential in schools, points out Becki Cohn-Vargas, the co-author of Identity Safe Classrooms: Places to Belong and Learn. "This is not about blaming or pointing fingers," she said, but it clear that the decisions made by teachers also do affect children's life trajectories. Unequal discipline, for example, may fuel the school-to-prison pipeline that has disproportionately affected students of color.

But what's important to know about implicit biases is that, once people are made aware of them, those biases can be successfully addressed. "We can mitigate them. We can interrupt them. You can train your mind to catch yourself," said Costello. "It's like breaking a habit, but the first thing you have to do is become aware of the habit."

Awareness is the first, foundational step. (To take an Implicit Assessment Test (IAT) online, visit Teaching Tolerance's Test Yourself webpage.) The second step, suggests Costello, is developing a sense of reflectiveness. Ask yourself, "Is the way I'm approaching this student affecting outcomes?" And consider the data available in your classroom: Who do you call on, and how often? (Do you need to switch to a randomized technique, like pulling popsicle sticks?) How do you seat students, or group them? Are you treating everybody the same when it comes to homework, or are you giving a break to the kid you think has a bad home life or little chance of getting to college?

Researchers also suggest it's helpful to "refute" and "counter" the negative stereotypes that fuel biases, said Cohn-Vargas. That means recognizing these stereotypes really aren't true, and opposing them with ideas that are: for example, it's not true that all Black boys are loud and disruptive; it is true that students who talk a lot often are enthusiastic.

Cohn-Vargas suggests it's also important for educators to recognize their students as people who are individuals.

Much of this kind of work is done by culturally competent NEA members, trained by NEA trainers, through NEA's National Diversity Training Program. Additional resources to help NEA members work with students who may not look like them are available online, including NEA's Diversity Toolkit and Teaching Tolerance's "Culture in the Classroom" project.

"I'm actually encouraged by some of the things happening in positive psychology," said Costello. "If you end every day by journaling or writing down three things that were great in your class, and give yourself a little time for mindfulness and meditation, you can help retrain your mind to see the positive rather than the negative."
Photo: Associated Press

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
When Implicit Bias Shapes Teacher Expectations | NEA

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
"It's like breaking a habit, but the first thing you have to do is become aware of the habit," says expert.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Many Ways Biases Make Learning Suffer.

# data[].attributes.subject
The Many Ways Biases Make Learning Suffer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teacher Bias: The Elephant in the Classroom

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The principle is the same—whether it’s gender or race, student preference or handwriting, any factor that causes a teacher to have higher…

# data[].attributes.body
I have thought of countless hypothetical examples where you could see a implicit bias cause harm in the classroom. For instance, imagine you are doing a lesson on Agricultural and one of your students lives on a farm. You may assume they will get the lesson contents easily and choose to not to check in with them as much. Doing so hurts that student because in reality they do live on a farm but their family doesn't talk about work at home so they never actually learned about agriculture. It can not be said enough just how important it is to look out for implicit biases. You never know when you could be hurting a student and hindering their success.