Transcript Slide 1

• Refers primarily to the differences
among groups of people, that,
together make up the whole of
humanity
• Commitment to recognizing and
appreciating the variety of
characteristics that make
individuals unique in an
atmosphere that promotes and
celebrates individual and collective
achievement
• The relationship between humanity
and human diversity is similar to the
relationship between sunlight and
the spectrum of colors. Just as the
sunlight passing through a prism is
dispersed into all groups of colors
that make up the visual spectrum,
the human species that’s spread
across the planet is dispersed into
all groups of people that make up
the human spectrum (humanity).
SPECTRUM of DIVERSITY
HUMANITY
Gender (male-female)
Age (stage of life)
Race (e.g. White, Black, Asian)
Ethnicity (cultural background)
Socioeconomic status (educational level/income level)
National citizenship (citizen of U.S. or another country)
Native (first-learned) language
National origin (nation of birth)
National region (e.g. raised in north/south)
Generation (historical period when people are born or live)
Political ideology (e.g. liberal/conservative)
Religious and Spiritual beliefs (e.g. Christian/Buddhist/Muslim)
Family status (e.g. single parent/two-parent family)
Marital status (single/married)
Parental status (with/without children)
Sexual orientation(heterosexual/gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender)
Physical ability/disability (e.g. able to hear/hearing impaired)
Mental ability/disability (e.g. mentally able/challenged)
Learning ability/disability (e.g. absence/presence of dyslexia)
Learning styles (e.g. visual, auditory, kinesthetic)
Mental health/illness (e.g. absence/presence of depression)
This list represents some of the major dimensions of human diversity, it does not represent a complete list of all
possible forms of human diversity. Also, disagreement exists about certain dimensions of diversity (e.g. whether
certain groups should be considered races or ethnic groups.)
• Netherlands:
– 16,783,092 (July 2010 estimate)
• United States:
– 310,232,863 (July 2010 estimate)
• Amsterdam
– 756,347 (January 2009 estimate)
• Immigrant Population in
Amsterdam (figures from 2007)
– 64,588 Moroccans
– 37,421 Turks
– 10,244 British
– 6,670 Germans
– 5,609 Surinamese
• United States
– 36.8 years
• Netherlands
– 40.8 years
(2008 estimate)
– Dutch
80.7%
– EU
5%
– Indonesian 2.4%
– Turkish
2.2%
– Surinamese 2%
– Moroccan
2%
– Caribbean 0.8%
– Other
4.8%
Non-Hispanic (2009 estimate)
– White
– Black
– American Indian/
Alaskan Native
– Asian
– Native Hawaiian/
Pacific Islander
– Two or More Races
65%
12.3%
.08%
4.4%
.1%
1.5%
Hispanic (2009 estimate)
– White
– Black
– American Indian/
Alaskan Native
– Asian
– Native Hawaiian/
Pacific Islander
– Two or More Races
14%
.06%
.03%
.01%
.04%
.02%
United States (2007 estimate) Netherlands (2006)
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Protestant
51.3%
Roman Catholic
23.9%
Mormon
1.7%
Other Christian
1.6%
Jewish
1.7%
Buddhist
0.7%
Muslim
0.6%
Other /Unspecified 2.5%
Unaffiliated
12.1%
None
4%
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Roman Catholic 30%
Dutch Reformed 11%
Calvinist
6%
Other Protestant 3%
Muslim
5.8%
Other
2.2%
None
42%
• Individuals are also part of a
larger social unit – their
community.
• This social circle includes friends
and neighbors at home, school,
and work.
• Individuals are also members
of a larger society that
includes people from different
regions of the country, cultural
backgrounds, and social
classes.
• Individuals are not only
members of a society, they are
citizens of a nation.
• Immigrants who become a part
of any country retain pieces of
their own cultural backgrounds
that preserve their distinctive
heritage (e.g., food).
• Individuals are also members of an
international world that includes
multiple nations.
• Communication and interaction
among citizens of different
countries is greater than at any
other time in world history, due in
large part to rapid advances in
electronic technology.
• A process that embraces the
richness of difference within our
society
• Valuing diversity recognizes that
all groups have contributed to
the human experience, and that
all contributions have given
humanity its strength and edge.
ASAP of New York State
• “DIVERSITY refers to variation in
populations, such as race, ethnicity,
culture, sexual orientation,
disability, age, language, and
gender; while COMPTENCY refers to
the ability to understand and
respond effectively to student
needs based on these variations.
Thus, diversity is a feature of the
population, and competency is a
measure of effectiveness.”
Cultural Competence
Cultural Action
Cultural Acceptance
Cultural Acknowledgement
Cultural Awareness
CULTURAL SENSITIVITY
Bias
Stereotyping
Prejudice
Discrimination
Genocide
Aaron Thompson, PhD
Copyright © 2007
• If we as individuals have biases,
the way that we act on those
biases determines whether we
move to the top or the bottom of
the stair step.
• Most individuals tend to be on
the bias step of the staircase. The
goal is to be on the middle step
(cultural sensitivity).
• An understanding that our internal
biases have affected those around us,
both those we know personally and
those we do not
• An awareness of your own
cultural biases and affects they
may have on yourself and others
• The act of acknowledging the
differences that exist between
individuals, races, and entire
cultures, and viewing those
differences as positive rather
than negative
• Valuing cultural differences and
similarities, and viewing the
differences as positive
• The process of recognizing
differences and responding to
them in a positive manner; it
represents an advanced step in
the process of becoming
culturally competent
• How you apply your values as a
professional
• How you apply your values as an
individual
• The ability to appreciate cultural
differences and to interact
effectively with people from
different cultural backgrounds
Action
Awareness
A
4th
Acceptance
Acknowledgement
Aaron Thompson, PhD
Copyright © 2008
• Become aware of your own
belief system.
• How do you know what they
truly are?
• Are you willing to acknowledge
them?
• Ability to gain knowledge from
internal and external resources
• Ability to admit to internal
biases
• Listens to and respects the
opinions of others
• Can you acknowledge the
affects your beliefs have on
others?
• Are they positive or negative?
• How do you know?
• Social intelligence
• Impact of individual thought
and actions on people that you
serve (e.g., students)
• Has the ability to understand
how beliefs affect your job,
family, community
• Understands how belief system
may be transmitted to others
• Recognizes the short and longterm effects of beliefs
• Empathy – a crucial element of
emotional intelligence
• Able to see and understand the
connection between cause and
effect of behavior that has
been internalized
• Where do you go now?
• Development of action plan
• Use knowledge gained from
Awareness, Acknowledgment,
and Acceptance to move
forward
• The application of intellectual, social,
and emotional knowledge
• Seeks to eliminate biases held
• Builds relationships with a diverse group
of individuals
• A strategic process for cultural
competence
• A summative assessment of the holistic
A 4th
• Research studies have
demonstrated a link between
interactions of students with a
diverse group of peers and
increases in a number of student
learning outcomes: intellectual
and self-confidence, openness to
diversity and challenge, critical
thinking, leadership and cultural
knowledge, moral reasoning, and
the development of pluralistic
orientation.
• A particular form of interpersonal
interaction that has been found
to be strongly associated with
improving students’ performance
in college and their motivation to
complete college is student to
student (peer) interaction.
• Research indicates that humans
learn more deeply when their
learning takes place in a social
context that involves
interpersonal interaction and
collaboration (Cuseo, 1996).
• Research consistently shows that
we learn more from people who
are different from us than we do
from people who are similar to
us (Pascarella, 2001; Pascarella &
Terenzini, 2005).
• Research on college students shows that students
who experience the highest level of exposure to
different dimensions of diversity (e.g., interactions
and friendships with peers of different races, or
participating in multicultural courses and events on
campus) report the greatest gains in:
– thinking complexity – the ability to think about all
parts and all sides of an issue (Gurin, 1999)
– reflective thinking – the ability to think deeply
(Kitchener et al., 2000), and
– critical thinking – the ability to think logically
(Pascarella et al., 2001).
• Experiencing diversity can enhance your
ability to think creatively.
• Diversity experiences supply us with
different thinking styles that can help us to
be aware of our own cultural framework.
• These experiences also help us to be aware
of our perceptual “blind spots” and avoid
the dangers of group think – the tendency
for like-minded groups of people to think so
much alike that they overlook the flaws in
their own thinking – which can lead to poor
choices and faulty decisions (Janis, 1982).
• Whatever career students choose to enter,
they will likely find themselves working
with employers, employees, co-workers,
customers, and clients from diverse
cultural backgrounds.
• Successful career performance in today’s
diverse workforce requires sensitivity to
human differences and the ability to relate
to people from different cultural
backgrounds who work in the U.S. and
across different nations (National
Association of Colleges & Employers, 2003;
Smith, 1997).
• Utilize class time to allow students to
work with and learn from one another.
• At the beginning of the term, provide
diversity exercises for students to
introduce themselves to one another
and to you as the instructor.
• Bring other individuals into the
classroom that students can connect
with.
• Ask students to do a cultural
interview as a class assignment to
introduce them to new and
different cultures.
• Require or give extra credit for
students to engage in cocurricular experiences relating to
diversity awareness.
• Ask students to list the five
most important events or five
most important people in
history.
• Allow students to share their
own personal histories and life
journeys
– Writing assignments that focus on
turning points in their lives, past
experiences (positive and
negative), or role models or
sources of inspiration
• Have students create
opportunities for interaction and
conversation with individuals
from diverse groups.
– Sit near them in class
– Join them in group projects and
discussions if given the option
• Have students use the internet
to communicate with students
from diverse groups at the
university or with students in
different countries.
– Provides an opportunity to
understand your own culture and
country as well as increase
awareness of its customs and
values
• Have students join of form
discussion groups with students
from diverse backgrounds.
• Have students form
collaborative learning teams
(e.g., note-taking, reading)
• Cuseo, J. B. (1996). Cooperative learning: A
pedagogy for addressing contemporary challenges
and critical issues in higher education. Stillwater,
OK: New Forums Press.
• Cuseo, J.B., Thompson, A., & Fecas, V. (2010).
Thriving in College: Research-Based Strategies
for Academic Success and Personal
Development (2nd ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall
Hunt.