Teacher preparation key in fighting bias
Recent news about a Yale University research study shows eye-opening results about implicit bias. The study found by tracking teachers' eye movements that preschool teachers (both African-American and Caucasian) tend to expect young African-American boys to misbehave.
As education professors at National Louis University who prepare budding early childhood educators, we believe it is important to keep in mind that early educators need support in understanding the family and community context of young children's lives, as this may relate to child behaviors, especially when the teacher and child are of a different race.
This is why we thread culturally relevant pedagogy through all of our coursework, supporting our teacher candidates through deep reflection focusing on both the academic and socio-emotional learning of young children.
In teacher preparation programs, it's important to develop new teachers' cultural competence as an important way to acknowledge the home and community culture of both our teacher candidates and the children they will soon be teaching.
We do this by integrating cultural experiences, values and understandings into the teaching and learning environment. Guiding our teacher candidates to examine their philosophies and belief systems about teaching and learning helps the candidates become self-aware, non-judgmental, and inclusive of the cultural diversity of their future students.
It is possible for preschool teachers to become aware of their biases in an attempt to conquer them if they understand the importance of knowing their children and families, create child-centered environments that respect diversity, and communicate high expectations for all young learners.
We also need ongoing professional development for all early educators that addresses cultural competence and anti-bias approaches to teaching to assure that the youngest among us grow in all areas of development.
High-quality teachers make a difference in the early years; the first five years last a lifetime.
Ayn Keneman, Early Childhood Program Coordinator
Teri Talan, Michael W. Louis Endowed Chair of the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership
National Louis University
Chicago