Research Report
Perceptions of Diversity in the CEGEP Experience: Student Voices
Sophia Grabowiecka
“I’m just passing through. Being accepted: it’s enough.”
Fall 2018
Vanier College Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 2
This pilot research project represents a qualitative analysis of formal and informal networks of student integration at Vanier College. The project sought to recognize why students join and / or develop their academic and social networks and comprehend how this relates their sense of belonging within a diverse academic context. Results show that inclusion and exclusion operate simultaneously through student representation and differentiation in the various groups, clubs, networks, and associations on campus. Students seek out networks that meet their needs: self-described immigrant students gravitate towards formal groups to make contacts, whereas students from visible minorities seek out clubs for representation. LGBTQ students tend to find support in informal networks in order to maintain a certain level of invisibility. Indeed, the social functions of identity-based and interest-based student networks reveal themselves to represent cultural comfort zones that foster a sense of belonging that, most often, encourage civic interest and provide potential socio-professional connections for the future.
Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 3
Acknowledgements
Thank you to Kim Matthews, Sociologist and Humanities teacher at Vanier College, for great discussions, comments and review
Thank you to Alan Wong, English teacher at Vanier College, for input and ideas
Thank you to Katri Suhonen, French teacher at Vanier College, for suggestions and reading
Thank you to colleagues who took the time to refer students to the research project
A heartfelt thank you to the brave and engaging students who generously and eloquently shared their experiences and insights
Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 4
Table of Contents
Introduction 5
Statement of Purpose 5
Literature Review 5
Theoretical Framework 5
Research Questions 6
Hypothesis 6
Methods 6
Results 7
I. Participation and Composition 7
II. Belonging 8
III. Differentiation and Representation 9
IV. Challenges 10
V. In the classroom 12
Conclusion and Discussion 14
Resources 16
References 18
Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 5
Introduction
This pilot research project represents a qualitative analysis of formal and informal networks of student integration within one of Montreal’s most multicultural CEGEPs. The project sought to ultimately understand how students join and / or develop their academic and social networks in a diverse academic context. The goal is to comprehend how students’ associative choices relate to the development of their identity, their sense of belonging to the college community, as well as civic interest.
Statement of Purpose
The pilot research project aimed to explore how students perceive and engage with diversity in their CEGEP experience. The approach was designed to be student- centered, composed of semi-directed interviews intending to identify key variables in integration / marginalization of students. More specifically, the pilot project aimed to demystify what constitutes a network of integration for students studying at Vanier College. The scope of the project was centered on student networks, both formal and informal, as defined by students, to better understand their social, civic and academic function. These could include interest-based associations and clubs as well as identity-based ethno religious student groups.
Literature Review
In reviewing the literature, research conducted in American College’s supports the holistic approach in attempting to gain a better understanding of how students experience diversity both in and outside of the classroom (Colbert, 2010). Indeed, effective and active diversity management on campus is correlated with student success and student retention (Barnett, 2011; Packard, 2013). Some research suggests that associative life on campus not only encourages a sense of belonging to the greater College community (Love, 2009) but also promotes civic interest and community involvement (Gudeman, 2001; Kawashima- Ginsberg & Levine, 2014; Reva Joshee, Peck, Thompson, Chareka & Sears, 2010). Furthermore, some studies indicate that ineffective management of diversity, or avoidance of issues in the classroom can encourage students to seek out groups or networks on campus that provide social capital and self-identification (Boysen, 2012; Strachan, & Owens, 2011). Student involvement in the social/academic experience is correlated with success and active citizenship: students’ sense of accomplishment comes from being good citizens (Quaglia &Corso, 2014) and extends beyond academics.
Theoretical Framework
Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 6
The theoretical framework for this project is based in the intersectional approach (Brah &Phoenix, 2004) in order to allow for greater understanding of the complexity of individual identities. The intersectional approach permits the researcher to get a deeper understanding of self-reported modes of inclusion and points of resistance for specific individuals interviewed.
The holistic interconnected approach is also part of the framework in that it allows us to look beyond the transitional CEGEP years. The perspective of this research project is to understand how students’ experience with diversity prepares students for active and critical multicultural citizenship beyond their College years.
Research Questions
How do students who associate with ethno cultural or religious groups perceive the diversity in Vanier College’s student body and faculty? How might CEGEP student associative life compensate for the lack of recognition of student diversity in the classroom and overall campus experience? What formal and informal networks on campus are identified as playing a role and how might they aid in integrating different student identities and promoting involvement? Do ethno-religious groups compensate for the perceived lack of recognition of diversity in the classroom? How do identity-based groups and networks these create comfort zones for students? Can ethno- religious student groups represent areas of resistance of tension to integration into the greater Vanier College experience or, inversely, can they facilitate inclusion?
Hypothesis
Based on the research cited above, students who associate or participate in ethno cultural and / or religious student groups actively employ these formal and informal networks as means of social integration and differentiation within the existing diversity of the College. It is believed that these associative choices will encourage their sense of belonging within the Vanier College community but also, in turn, encourage active engagement in the classroom and promote civic interest.
Methods
In the fall of 2018, 11 semi-directed interviews of 30-45 minutes in length were conducted with voluntary participants from Vanier College student body. Interviews were recorded for audio, complimented by investigator’s notes. Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 7
The convenience sample was composed of individuals who associate or participate in one of the existing 40+ interest-based, ethno cultural and religious student committees (Gaudet, 2013) at Vanier College or who self-identify as members or participants of informal identity-based groups on campus. Former instructors referred nearly all of the respondents to the project, which included first semester students as well as graduating students.
Results I. Participation and Composition
Participants in this study were involved with a wide array of groups, clubs and associations (arts, music, theater, social and political, religious, civic/activist) and were currently enrolled in various programs at Vanier College.
Nearly half of the students interviewed expressed an interest in joining or participating in certain formal interest-based groups but were discouraged by elements ranging from the “clique-y” composition of certain student clubs to the perceived heterosexism and/or homophobia of the religious student groups. One respondent of South East Asian background described WUSC in the following way: “It attracts a lot of brown people because of refugees.” The VCSA was described as “mainly just white people, there’s sometimes that one exception” in what is otherwise described by a handful of respondents as a tight group of friends. One respondent had intended to found a “Black Club or African Club” upon finding out one did not exist at Vanier College.
It would appear differentiation on campus most often operates along visible racial or religious lines and students’ sense of belonging most often followed these broad categories; as one respondent put it “grouping by color”. However, student identities are self-described as complex and unique: students detailed their ethno- cultural background, religious beliefs, gender identities, sexual orientation, history of immigration and abilities. Although the project relied on convenience sampling, the participants were altogether very diverse. A few students were initially vague about their cultural identity: “Depends on the audience” or “ I don’t associate with labels”, whereas members of more visible groups immediately described themselves in line with the social markers identifying them: a respondent who is Asian, South East Asian, transgender, Black or wearing a hijab would predictably describe themselves in line with what people initially see.
In choosing a CEGEP, Vanier College’s reputation as a diverse multicultural institution was a deciding factor for students. Half of respondents in this research project chose to come to Vanier College over other colleges as a result.
“Diversity: that’s what Vanier stands for. In the same hallway, you encounter a Black person, an Asian person… That’s why I’m here.” Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 8
Most of the students interviewed felt that racialized student groups on campus represent an identity-based comfort zone and these, in turn, promote belonging to the larger College community. Every student interviewed felt they had found groups and networks reflecting them and including them. These groups provided an all- important sense of belonging to the college community. As one student noted: “Yes. It’s the first time in my life that I feel at home. Apart from at home.”
Students who self identified as immigrant were more likely to employ formal groups and clubs to meet like-minded people and make connections. The responses revealed that first generation immigrant students seem to gravitate towards formal groups and associations such as the Model UN Club, the Chess Club, CORE, Badminton or Volleyball mainly as a means to build a network. Indeed, the value placed on belonging to a formal and academic student group was high because of the group’s recognition within the College and the potential contacts that may be made. Acknowledging the ease in meeting peers from the same background as a “luxury”, a number of self-described immigrant students actively avoided networks and groups composed of individuals with similar backgrounds- “plan B”, as one student put it- in favor of meeting individuals from other cultures. As one participant explained: “Not resort to a Vietnamese group of friends”. Students who explained having this type of active and aware integration strategy were self-described newly arrived immigrants.
Conversely, students looking to meet friends tended to get involved with interest- based groups such as the Music Club, the Coffee Club, the Newspaper and the former Gamers Club, as opposed to identity-based groups. As one student put it:
“It’s the experience of figuring out what fits with you. The social aspect. They’re good connections to have and, you know, being sociable, being involved in society.”
Students who expressed a civic interest gravitated towards formal groups as well for different reasons: groups like WUSC, CORE, SLT and the student Newspaper, or program-related positions and committees represent a conduit for exchange and on campus or civic involvement. However, students who had transposed social networks from high school into CEGEP were less likely to participate or join in formal clubs and associations: their focus was on networks within their program.
Students who relied on informal networks were at risk of greater marginalization and expressed avoidance of formal groups such as UMBRELLA or the student Christian Club for fear of labeling or outing. More than one student expressed support for the college’s LGBTQ student network UMBRELLA but specified they’re “not with it” or rather choose to belong to the group online because of fear of labelling and consequences: “ I don’t want to be part of UMBRELLA. I don’t need it”. Becoming a member would “out yourself to your family”. Informal networks comprised of Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 9 individuals, often from the same program, provided these students with invisibility and support.
II. Belonging
Students place great value in feeling included on campus: “ To feel like you’re accepted. Different groups of people make you feel like you belong.” Nevertheless, the responsibility lies with the students themselves: “To accept someone despite the difference. But you can’t force inclusivity: it depends on the students.”
All students interviewed felt they belonged at Vanier College, and this sense of belonging was derived from the visibility of their identity on campus. Students used visible social and physical markers to identify religious or racial groups.
“There’s easier access (to Asians) because of the common language, similar parents, same habits, customs. A feeling of resemblance that allows you to relate to someone.”
They saw themselves represented on campus, especially among the student population, and they recognized many other groups as being represented as well well based on the group’s visibility. Muslim respondents recognized their Muslim Muslim peers by wearing the hijab or the long beard; Jewish respondents noticed noticed their peers wearing the kippah hanging out at “the Jew Caf”. Most of the the respondents referred to physical spaces as delimitations between identities: identities: “Giving every culture a chance to be represented. A Club, a room. ” Likewise, the gender neutral bathrooms on campus, albeit few, were described as described as physical examples of the college’s inclusion of diverse gender identities. Indeed, Vanier College’s diversity seems to operate as a form of social control among students: “There’s a large LGBT presence at Vanier. You can’t be outwardly homophobic”
Black and Asian respondents expressed feeling alone in their classrooms in high school, at times “the only Black kid” in their grade, or one of “seven black kids in the whole school”. This is contrasted with their experience at Vanier in which they may find “3 or 4 other Asians” or Black students in their class.
“It makes so that people who look like me have a support system. Like address issues of Black experiences, raise awareness. We can relate to each other although we’re not in the real world, well- not in the real real world.”
In all cases, students employed visible social and physical markers as indicators or diversity, whether is be perceived race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or ability.
III. Differentiation and Representation Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 10
For some students, the potential to represent oneself on campus was the most important element, given that some CEGEPs implicitly or explicitly discourage formal religious student groups. Nearly half the respondents described hypocritical policies with regards to religious representation in high school. At times, the required openness of the group was contrary to religious belief and discouraged students; other times it was the outright ban of religious symbols. “No religious wear was allowed but people were walking around with crosses”. Indeed, the majority of students interviewed spoke with pride of the Christian and Muslim student groups, although most weren’t members. In their view, Vanier College does not impose limits to students’ means of self-expression: rather, students are given the freedom to impose limits among themselves.
However, with the possibility to differentiate comes inevitable exclusion. One student described identity-based groups as cultural ghettos: “Clubs are only inclusive to those who are included. They’re not inclusive to those who don’t have that identity.” Some respondents referred to the perceived “implicitly heterosexist passage from the Koran” posted outside the prayer rooms of the Muslim Student Association. A few respondents also suggested that the division of the prayer rooms along binary gender lines subliminally excluded non-cisgender students.
Even among group members, inclusion and exclusion operate implicitly in tandem. As an example, Shia Muslim members of the Muslim Association are welcome but are not allowed to leave their prayer stone in the prayer room: “Les pierres sont une innovation de la religion donc les Shia ne peuvent pas les laisser là”. Similarly, female students of any confession are welcome but headscarves are kept on site for them to wear.
Likewise, a surprisingly large portion of the sample talked about the tension habitually felt between Jewish and Muslim students on campus. Often presented as a statement of fact, Jewish and Muslims are not expected to fraternize on campus, nor in social networks outside of CEGEP. Indeed, the CEGEP experience might represent a first forced contact between self-identified members of these groups, both in and out of the classroom.
“External to Vanier, there is anti-Arab anti-Muslim sentiment but Vanier is accepting of my identity. I mean, I take precautions because I don’t want to be victimized. It’s humiliating to become a victim of discrimination.”
Just as Vanier College’s diversity provides both refuge and representation for students who felt marginalized during their high school experience, students coming from exclusively Anglophone Jewish, Armenian schools, or predominantly Italian high schools welcomed the exposure to different groups and cultures. One student who attended a culturally homogeneous high school expressed wanting to find Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 11
“Support, understanding and different perspectives due to background” by getting involved in student groups and clubs.
These students often expressed having been exposed to racist and phobic beliefs during their high school experience, which they felt was enabled by the deliberate homogeneity of the institution:
“It was a one dimensional school, a Jewish school… one mentality. In the classroom, you grow up hearing about stereotypes: if he’s Muslim, he must be building a bomb. He’s Black, he must be a Basketball player.”
Another student described their high school as “White, Italian, homogenous high school with toxic masculinity”. At Vanier College, they found themselves represented both in formal groups and informal networks – often described as “pockets of safety” or “comfort zones”- while having the exciting opportunity to engage with diversity.
IV. Challenges
All of the students interviewed evoked social divisions among students along racial and/or religious lines. Examples given were at times both visible and physical:
“The school is so constructed: everybody has their section. “We all go to the same classroom but then they go back to their territory at the Caf.”
A prevalent example of racism exists in the names given to racialized campus spaces at Vanier College: from the “Asian Caf” -or “Yellow Caf” to the “Italian Caf” and the “Jew Caf”… the weight of the words seemed lost on their speakers. At times, membership and exclusion are expressed as parallel: “The UN club is all Asians, South East Asian even!”. Some spaces are formal- such as prayer rooms or clubrooms allocated by the College- and some public spaces are squatted by specific groups to become a recognized territory:
“There’s definitely racial groups. Take the gym complex: all the Italians are together and they’re loud as fuck. Even in the cafeteria: it’s a circus.”
Blackness inside and outside of the classroom represents a common criterion used by students when assessing Vanier College’s diversity. Every student interviewed referred to the number of Black students on campus an example of the college’s multicultural identity. To substantiate the notion of diversity, students focused on the number of Black students in the classroom, perhaps inflating reality: “There’s not just one Black person in class, there’s like ten.” The stigma of blackness increases the visibility of Black students in and out of the classroom: more attention is given to the space they occupy, their numbers, their identities and social inequalities. This Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 12 unconscious focus on blackness can cause resistance from more privileged peers. One respondent witnessed this in a class on African American struggles in which a “white student” remarked, “Why are we always talking about Black people.”
Exclusion and ghettoization seem to be the main challenges students perceive in managing the diversity at Vanier College.
“People know where they belong so they stay in their lane. Gamers don’t go to the gym complex to make friends. They’d be rejected.”
The linguistic divide in the province of Québec may also be reflected within the larger College community with the French-speaking Québécois students struggling to feel included: “What I’ve heard is that they don’t feel totally in place”. Student suggestions all mirrored each other: create more “accepting spaces”, encourage more “mixing”. One student remarked: “It’s about getting people to interact with each other. Little groups prevent that.” referring to identity-based groups.
More than half the students interviewed had witnessed, experienced or had heard of incidents they attributed to discomfort with the diversity on campus. One student described, “omnipresent anti-Semitism” towards- paradoxically- “privileged Jews” or on campus as well as overt “anti-Arab sentiment” expressed by “Québécois”. One student specified:
“The challenges are not in the classroom. Maybe some cultures don’t like other cultures. Like the Jewish and Muslims at Vanier. Maybe, you know, indirectly.”
Students were also keenly aware of power relations and privilege and how these are reflected at Vanier College. One student gave the example of a teacher who intended to cover the Israel/Palestinian conflict in their course but “The Board denied it. They’re misinformed.” Students described feelings rather than events:
“In class, it’s like forced interactions. There’s reluctance. I overheard someone say “one of those” about a non-binary friend. It’s harder to navigate because sometimes, the source of discomfort is unknown.”
A number of respondents relayed having witnessed forms of resistance to diversity on behalf of students; one incident in which the respondent observed male students chanting “Fuck Liberals! Fuck this school!” in the parking lot in front of the Sports Complex. Another respondent described insensitive or bigoted classroom interventions on behalf of white male students; the content of the comments of arguments made largely reflecting populist views and alt-right opinions. One student described a classroom exchange on immigration in which most of the students expressed anti-immigration sentiments: “Most of the class wanted to decrease Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 13 immigration. Like no: we shouldn’t privilege inclusion.” The classroom represents a space for students to self-define and engage but it also forces privileged students to reflect on their peers’ experiences and realities. This self-analysis can be involuntary and cause discomfort or outright resistance.
V. In the classroom
Although most respondents felt that teacher management of discomfort or tension in the classroom was adequate, students tend to forgive no errors. Instructors are interpreted as being in agreement or complicit with the comments when overt bigotry or covert micro aggressions in the classroom aren’t addressed. That considered, students agreed that the classroom represents the main arena for “mixing” because students are forced to interact with each other outside of the social scripts and comfort.
“There’s always that white male troll that makes provocative comments in class. They’re not going to attack me if they don’t know. (…) I sublimate my sexual orientation, political views as well as my religion in the current social landscape.”
Most of the respondents felt the material in their courses could benefit from greater inclusion of culturally diverse material. More than one respondent lamented the small number of pages dedicated to Islamic or Asian Art in their Art History textbook. A handful of respondents talked about mainstreaming indigenous topics into Social Science course material- students were aware of the exclusion of Native issues in most course content. There seems to be a great deal of curiosity and students expressed a great willingness to engage with diverse course material. However, not all diversity is equally tolerated:
“Several students spoke to the teacher because of the homoeroticism in the (name of artist) exhibit. These students were given another assignment.”
At times, the incidents, words or events shared were among students themselves but most often, students focused on faculty. In what they shared, students evoked insensitivity or ignorance on behalf of faculty as opposed to outright resistance. One teacher said to a class: “Lesbians aren’t real women.” Another participant explained issues with role-play:
“Some teachers reinforce gender roles. (…) if you are a male then you can’t play a female role. I had to out myself (…)”
Students report teacher microaggressions as resulting from insensitivity: one instructor likened religious script to “Magic. Like Harry Potter.” Another instructor touched the naked chest of a statue suggestively, causing discomfort among more Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 14 conservative students. One teacher’s whiteness and privilege was the source of discomfort because of the racial issues addressed in the course content.
“The teacher was White (…) using white privilege to raise issues… Teaching a course on race. It would’ve been the same if a White teacher were teaching Native issues. It’s more genuine if people tell their own stories.”
These “insensitive teachers” represent “a majority dictating to marginalized groups how they feel”. At times, teachers introduced new or sensitive cultural material they were evidently themselves unfamiliar with. Participants described situations in which a student would defend Neo-Nazis or argue “trans identities are a mental illness” in class. In these cases, students placed the responsibility on the teacher to address the micro aggression and correct the information. In other cases, teachers marginalized certain individuals in the classroom with their comments or by singling out students based on their presumed cultural identity, themselves the authors of micro aggressions: “A (…) teacher asked an Asian student a question about population size in China” because of her “Asian” appearance.
Conclusion and Discussion
Students place total responsibility on teachers in representing and managing diversity in and outside of the classroom by who they are and how they are. Students do not see faculty as representative of the College’s administration and policies: rather, teachers embody the College. It is then understandable that students notice the lack of diversity among faculty, many noting they know of “one Black teacher, maybe two” at Vanier College. As one student put it: “I’ve had a gay teacher. I’ve had a transgender teacher. There aren’t that many Black male teachers...” However, students from minority groups who had taken a course with an instructor of similar background, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion or culture felt overwhelmingly positive about the experience. “You need to see people who look like you”. Only a few more privileged respondents criticized putting too great of an importance on a teacher’s self-identification to students, expressing apprehension of the potential bias that may arise. “It was fine until he had to state it. Just teach the course.” Another student remarked: “It’s less professional”.
However much responsibility students placed on teachers in diversity management, participants interviewed seemed largely unaware of the lines they were drawing in the sand with their choice of words, often relaying stereotypes: “White Jewish people. They’re always rich.” At times, the vocabulary is dehumanizing, or identifying certain groups as “the other” : (At Vanier) “On voit des troupeaux de Blacks, des troupeaux de Latinos”. Although student demonstrated they were keenly aware of the social dynamics inside and outside of classrooms, they occasionally lacked self-awareness in their accounts.
Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 15
CEGEP often gives students the first real opportunity to represent themselves and feel represented: a space where “they’re encouraged to think for themselves” and practice self-identification and self-authorship. Vanier College’s diversity implies students from visible minorities are often pushed to become not only representatives of their culture but also (un)willing advocates in the classroom and on campus: “… there were three girls with hijabs who were educating and defending the cultural interpretation of face covering”.
The social functions of identity-based and interest-based student networks reveal themselves as cultural comfort zones that foster a sense of belonging that in some ways and, most often, encourage civic interest (Gudeman, 2001; Kawashima- Ginsberg & Levine, 2014; Reva Joshee, Peck, Thompson, Chareka & Sears, 2010). Results indicate students from self-described visible minorities derive their sense of belonging to Vanier from representation and inclusion in identity-based groups and informal networks (Love, 2009). However, it would seem as though the need for representation on campus might at times compromise the desire integrate. Identity- based comfort zones on campus create a sense of belonging for students. In parallel, falling back on racialized or religious networks is perceived as a threat to diversity. In their associative choices, students attempt to find a balance between the desire for similarity, representation and support and the opportunity to engage with difference, diversity and adversity.
The CEGEP experience being in itself short:-“2 years: it’s so temporary” - students feel like “they can connect, foster a community” while they pursue their studies at Vanier College. Going forward, most students expected to maintain their College networks through university and beyond: “I came here for my program. Networks provide names, friends that perhaps will follow to university.”
First generation immigrant students placed added professional value on these contacts, describing a potential investment in their future. Students currently enrolled in honors programs and smaller programs also felt their networks would play a role in their lives beyond the CEGEP years as far as emotional support and motivation. Students who had attended a homogeneous high school were least likely to invest in their CEGEP networks in the future in large part because they already had many social groups between which to transit and a larger existing list of contacts.
Both faculty and student privilege revealed themselves to be principal variables in campus dynamics. Further inquiry into how privilege is perceived and experienced by students and instructors could increase awareness and provide direction in how to better manage social inequality in the classroom. Along the same lines, Vanier College is a principal academic destination for many first and second-generation immigrants: additional research would serve to identify variables of social and civic integration in the CEGEP experience.
“The take away, at Vanier, is a general sensitivity to other cultures.” Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 16
Resources
Student Recommendations in Managing Discomfort in the Classroom With the support of a SSHRC grant, Alan Wong, Katri Suhonen, Kim Matthews and Sophia Grabowiecka organized the (Dis)Comfort Zones Conference in 2017. The student-centred event provided valuable insight as well as considerations, approaches, and strategies in managing discomfort in the classroom. Below is an excerpt from the Summary Report:
Teacher’s Role A key recommendation from student panelists, in general, was that students must be given the space to take a stand when inter-identity conflicts occur in the classroom. However, while some students have the ability to speak up, they should not be obliged or pressured to do so, especially in cases when they have been targeted by negative comments. Expecting the targeted student to take a stand and, in effect, teach the class is problematic ethically and may make matters much more difficult for them (and others in the class). Students on the Culture and Religion panel said that it is important that students know that the teacher “has their back,” so to speak. The teacher needs to point out and call out transgressions in the classroom because not doing so could create and/or perpetuate pain, inequality, marginalisation, and the spread of misinformation.
Prevention A key suggestion that emerged from all of the discussions concerning the case studies was that many of the difficulties described in the scenarios could have been avoided from the outset. Setting standards of conduct for respectful interaction or communication on the first day of class was recommended. While conflicts may still arise, the teacher could defuse such situations by pointing to the expected standards of behaviour and rules that were set forth at the beginning of the course. Once the standards are set, it is important to enforce them consistently. Training students in how to interact and discuss issues respectfully would also help to prevent and/or address tensions that might bubble to the surface. Another suggestion to circumvent the occurrence of contentious events was to provide students with specific requirements and rubrics for assignments that might pre-emptively counter any perceptions of unfair bias or prejudice in their assessments by their teachers. For example, in the case of the Language panel, the students would have better understood why the Indigenous student featured in the case study was selected for the French competition (see Case Study 1 on Page 70). Guidelines make the expectations clear for everyone, including the teacher, and facilitate decision-making based on specific accomplishments rather than subjective assessments. In addition, deploying institutional leadership in the form of college policies focused on such areas as anti-harassment, anti-discrimination, and anti-oppression would address some potential disputes in a consistent rather than ad hoc fashion. For Sophia Grabowiecka Vanier College 17 example, in the case of the transgendered student (see Case Study 2 on Page 71), existing accommodations might have prevented the problems raised in the case study in the first place. Moreover, institutional leadership provides the members of the community with a clear understanding of the values of the College as well as the means to manage various issues from the outset. Finally, using the resources at the educational institution for assistance when needed was also proposed. For example, reaching out to the Counselling Department and U.M.B.R.E.L.L.A., Vanier’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ) student group, was recommended.
Effective Teaching Moments When a moment of discomfort arises, it was suggested that the teacher help to create a “teachable moment.” It is important not to belittle or embarrass the person who elicited the issue in the first instance. The approach needs to be as non- threatening as possible and the event in question presented as an opportunity to explore and analyse. The analysis may take many forms, including asking the question “Where do these ideas come from?” Linking students’ positions on and assumptions about various social groups to structures and consequences is another tactic. http://www.vaniercollege.qc.ca/psi/files/2017/10/Discomfort-Zones_Final.pdf
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