Ideas

Idea #4: Examining Positions of Privilege & Power

"Every day you are given opportunities to make the world better, by making yourself a little uncomfortable and asking, ‘who doesn’t have this same freedom or opportunity that I’m enjoying now?’ These daily interactions are how systems of oppression are maintained, but with awareness, they can be how we tear those systems down. So please, check your privilege. Check it often."³

Learning Intention

Students are undertaking a journey of self-discovery through higher education, exploring the relationship between social positioning, personal identities, and the effects they have on their lives and interactions with other people.¹ Educators have a duty to their students to engage in meaningful discussions surrounding these topics in addition to engaging in decolonization practices in the space these discussions are being had. By being prepared to teach students about privilege, educators can anticipate various forms of resistance and have the tools to foster a vibrant discussion about privilege and its far-reaching effects.¹

Preparing for Discussion

“First and foremost, teachers, trainers, and facilitators must understand themselves as racial/cultural beings by making the invisible, visible.”⁴ Instructors will be better prepared if they start by reflecting upon and acknowledging their own social positioning in the classroom. Then, it is the instructor’s job to help students think through their own identities and social location which will help them locate the assumptions that they bring into the classroom.

Activities for Educators⁵

1. Create an Identity Chart which requires the educator to explore various aspects of their social identity (both visible and invisible). Reflect and consider:

• Which identities are you most aware of in your day-to-day life or in higher education? Which identities are you least aware of? What contributes to your awareness/unawareness of these?

• What patterns (if any) did you notice?

2. Construct your Teaching Ideology by asking yourself:⁸

• How do you view success?

• What are your expectations for your students?

• Are students facing you at all times during instructional time/activities?

• Do students collaborate and engage in interactive learning structures?

• Do students have a voice and do they have a say in their learning?

• Are you the sole or loudest voice in the room? Do you talk over your students?

• Do you use deficit-based language or hold assimilist beliefs in regards to your students?

• For issues in the classroom—are you inquiry-stanced or solutions-oriented?

• Do you engage in power struggles with students?

• How often do you give students referrals and how quickly?

Activity for Students⁶

Assign an autobiographical essay or journal response that asks some of the following questions to students:

• When or how did you first learn about [insert social identity here] as a social identity?

• How do you think [insert social identity here] is/are perceived by others?

• How have you learned about this social identity through school?

Common Challenges in Student Discussions¹

• Belief that "I'm just normal": For students who are part of privileged or dominant identities, they seldom have to think about their privileged identities,¹ and often view them as the “default.” This is due to societal norms being constructed around these identities, making other identities feel “odd” or “different.”¹ “Those with power are frequently the least aware of—or least willing to acknowledge—its existence."⁷

• Denial that Differences Make a Difference: Students may deny that social identities make any significant impact on one’s life,¹ and may claim that they see everyone as equals (statements such as “I don’t see color”). They may hold beliefs that systemic inequalities and racism are “things of the past” and that society has moved forward beyond those issues.¹

• Guilt, Shame, and Discomfort About Privilege: Students may equate holding privileged identities with being an active oppressor—making them a “bad person.”¹ This unsettling discovery in how their privilege has benefited them throughout their lives may bring about feelings of shame and blame for participating in an unjust system.¹

• Focus on One’s Oppressed Group Identities: “People are much more often inclined to reflect on their marginalized identities than they are to think about how they are privileged.”¹ To avoid the feelings of shame and guilt, students may prefer to focus on their oppressed identities.¹

Discussion Tips

• Establish Discussion Guidelines: Generate ground rules or guidelines that can be referred to if a particular topic or line of discussion becomes tense.² (see Idea #2).

• Be an Active Facilitator:Help balance the discussion to keep it focused and purposeful.² Offer to check in with students for clarifications, provide evidence in reading materials, and review main points.²

• Be Prepared for Resistance: Questioning deep-rooted assumptions can, “feel emotionally and intellectually threatening”¹ and can cause students to struggle with examining their social positionality.

• Consider Your Social Position: When teaching about privilege, ensure that you are also considering your own social position and various privileges afforded to you.¹

References

1. Messner, M. A. (2011). The Privilege of Teaching about Privilege. Sociological Perspectives, 54(1), 3–13.
2. Center for Research on Learning and Teaching. (n.d.). Guidelines for Discussing Incidents of Hate, Bias, and Discrimination. University of Michigan.
3. Oluo, I. (2019). So you want to talk about race? NY: Seal Press.
4. Sue, D.W. (2015). Race Talk and the Conspiracy of Silence. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
5. Appendix 2: Social Identity Worksheet. (2014). University of British Columbia.
6. Thurber, A., Harbin, M.B., & Bandy, J. (2019). Teaching Race: Pedagogy and Practice. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching.
7. Delpit, L. (1988). The Silenced Dialogue: Power and Pedagogy in Educating Other People’s Children. Harvard Educational Review, 58(3), 280–299.
8. Education, P. B. S. (2021, April 15). Decolonizing Our Classrooms Starts With Us. PBS Education; PBS Education.