Managing prejudice in classroom
Course Topic: Religious Education
Student composition: 7th grade (13-14-year-olds)
The situation in which the controversy occurred and how issues relating to diversity were discussed:
There are two situations, when I felt that the class was not inclusive, and the discussion was dominated by negative prejudice against certain groups—namely, anti-Semitism and homophobia. Both times sensitive topics were raised, and individual students have taken positions characterized by intolerance, insisting on their viewpoint and hardly engaging in a fair conversation with their peers or the teacher.
Anti-Semitism in class
I taught religious education class to 7th grade students. Most of them had very little knowledge about religion in general, and have only heard about Islam due to (and in the context of) the refugee crisis. During class we also discussed Judaism; every time I mentioned anything about Jews, one student reacted strongly and antagonistically, suggesting that “they killed others as well,” “Jews were not so innocent themselves” and “Adolf Hitler did not kill Jews himself”.
This student was not the “class clown” or attention-seeker. While his academic skills were not outstanding, yet he had good grades and was in general academically successful. It was disturbing for the entire class environment that this student consistently brought up the “Jewish question,” even when we moved on to other topics. Eventually, the student disclosed that he learnt this information from a family member, who had watched a documentary where this attitude was discussed.
The student progressively turned more disruptive in class, interrupting discussions to stress his point. After I asked him to state sources for his statements and tried to challenge his opinion, he was yet unwilling to engage in a fair conversation. I continued attempting to form a dialogue with the student, inquiring about the basis of his opinion, questioning his rationale to continue inserting his opinion throughout classtime.
I tried to discuss relevant issues, such as facts of life in the times of the Old Testament and the New Testament, discussed negative stereotypes and harmful narratives about Jews during the Middle Ages and 20th century, as further attempts to challenge his views. Although he didn’t have much knowledge about such complex issues, he nevertheless remained eager to express his opinion. Clearly, he struggled with listening to me and consider new ideas about the issue. In the meantime, the rest of the class lost interest in this topic and clearly was ready to move on. In the end, we have moved on from this topic without properly addressing it.
Homophobia in class
I asked my high school students to pick one problem that they consider a major problem in the contemporary world, formulate it in a question, and try to look for solutions. It was an individual task, and everyone was working on the same assignment. While writing, some students were hesitant about their ability to provide the “right” answers to the questions, but majority of the class was very eagerly dedicated to thinking and writing. Students worked on written answers, and at the end of class handed their work to me. As the topics were personal, to respect students’ privacy, there was no discussion in the class about the assignment. The task consisted of two aspects:
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Role play, giving students the possibility to act as political leaders
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Demonstrate to students that their thoughts matter, and they can make a change.
One student wrote that “gay marriage is a problem as it is not natural” as the biggest problem in the world. After the lesson, I asked her during our one-on-one discussion, why she thinks that gay marriage is the biggest problem in the world. She struggled to answer. Slowly, it came out that she doesn’t have much knowledge on this topic, which she expressed, but have seen on TV that it is a problem. Her inability to provide examples or explain her thoughts indicated that she has not given this topic much thought, and her opinion may be solely based on messages from news, media, or other sources. As gay-marriage and the right to civil partnership has been one of the most politicized topics in Europe, it is often subject of conversation in the society.
I was puzzled regarding my role as a teacher in this situation. On the one hand, academic research consistently showed that there is nothing unnatural about being gay. Statements like the students’ in fact go against human rights that members of society – regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, race or other characteristics – should be entitled to. On the other hand, I was wary of damaging the trust that I had built with the student by “pushing” my opinion on her. During the conversation, I attempted to refer to academic literature, yet she was quiet. Her unwillingness to engage in a dialogue with me on this matter was apparent, and she refused to respond even when I directly asked her to share her thoughts. I ended the conversation to avoid conflict. After the discussion, I had further doubts and thoughts, deliberating whether I should have discussed with her, for example, the discrimination that LGBT+ community members face in society.
