Reflection Assignment: A Race Conversation
The purpose of this assignment is to give you practice in applying course concepts by talking about race with someone in your life. You may choose to talk with anyone exceptsomeone who has been in HDFS 335 with me as instructor or someone currently in class.
Before the interview:
1. Ask someone you know if you could have a conversation about race with them for a class assignment. Tell them you will be:
• Taking notes on the conversation to help you write the paper.
• Practicing talking about some of what you're learning.
• Writing about your conversation in a paper, but that you will not be sharing their real name. (At the time of the interview you might ask them if they'd like to make up a name for you to use.)
2. Prepare to talk about one of the concepts below you've learned in class. Choose from the following list:
• Privilege
• Oppression
• Paradoxes of privilege
• Implicit bias
• Differences between prejudice, discrimination and racism
• Colorblindness - the difference between intent to be helpful and the negative outcome
• Race -- the biological view versus the social view
• Racism
• New racism
• Cultural racism
• School-to-prison pipeline
• OR - check with me if you'd like to use a different course concept
3. Write down 3 points you plan to makeabout that 1 concept. Each point should include content from class (For example: asking them what they think is not a point, although it may be a good idea).
4. Plan to use your mindfulness skills to pay attention duringthe interview process, especially to yourself.Notice your sensations, images feelings or thoughts (SIFT) during the interview. You can also be attuned to what's going on for the other person. For example, are there certain moments where they're uncomfortable? What lets you know that?
Interview and Race Conversation:
1. Ask the person the following questions, writing down enough of their response to help you remember in detail what they said.
1. How would you describe your racial identity at this time in your life? In other words, how does being of your race affect your life?
2. When did you first realize that you are part of your race? Describe the situation. What did you learn from that experience?
3. How did later experiences solidify or shift your views about race and your sense of yourself as a member of a racial group?
4. What are your views about racism in the United States? Do you believe it is still pervasive? Do you think it has been largely overcome? Please elaborate on your view.
2. Tell your interviewee about one of the concepts you've learned in class. Choose from the above list.
3. Dialogue. During any part of the process it is okay to have dialogue. Feel free to ask follow-up questions. Be interested and curious and see if they will elaborate further on their responses. If they ask you questions, it's okay to respond to them. When you share what you've been learning, ask to see if they understand what you've shared. Do they have questions? Do they see things the same way you do or differently? Use this opportunity to have a conversation you might not usually have.
Your paper:
1. The interview:
a. Briefly Summarize what the person shared in response to your questions.
b. Compare and contrast: how are this person's views similar to and different from your own.
2. Useany 3 course concepts to analyze what they said, EXCEPT DO NOT use the concept that you prepared to talk about.
a. Name and define each course concept.Define terms in your own words and include your references- from course materials only.
b. Apply each concept to something they said. For example: When the person said "I don't even notice what race someone is," that is an example of being colorblind.
3. Summarize what you talked about based on your learning from class and assess your skillfulness.
(You do not have to have been skillful to get these points. And the person does not have to agree with you or be happy about what you said in order for you to be skillful).
a. Include the concept you prepared to talk about and your list of the 3 points you planned to make.
b. Name the concept you shared and honestly describe how you talked about it. Was your description accurate based on course materials? Did you get stuck or lost and not know how to respond to their questions? Did you talk about a different concept than the one you prepared to talk about?
c. Assess your skillfulness. This is about practice, not perfection. Often there's a mixture of skillfulness and unskillfulness.
i. What went well? Be specific. If something you did or said was skillful, what exactly was it? What helped things go well?
ii. What obstacles or difficulties did you run into? Be specific.
iii. What did you learn that will help you the next time you have this sort of conversation?
iv. Share some of what you noticed from your mindful awareness of your own inner process (SIFT) during the conversation. Be explicit and name when you were being mindful, or what in particular you were mindful of. Be explicitly clear that you're answering this question. (2 points)
How to reference in this assignment:
Reference only course materials.
1. Put references in the text of your paper in the ways illustrated by these examples:
• You have a sentence that includes an idea you got from the PPD textbook (author, year, p. #).
• You have a sentence that includes an idea you got from a PowerPoint (Powerpoint on implicit bias, slide 2).
• You have a sentence that includes an idea you got from class lecture (Class notes, October 21).
• You have a sentence that includes an idea you got from a reading (author, p. #).
• You have a sentence that includes an idea you got from a website (website address).
2. Include Reference list at the end of the paper. Here are examples of APA format.Handout 1.1.1: Intent vs impact (2015).
Johnson, A. G. (2006). Privilege, Power, and Difference (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Karis, T. (2015). Implicit Bias Part 1 (PowerPoint slides).