1. In Students’ Own Words: Facilitators and Barriers to Interactions across Race/Ethnicity Preparing College Students for a Diverse Democracy University of Michigan Funded by OERI, Department of Education Sylvia Hurtado, Bryan Cook, Shirley Greene, and Lisa Landreman

2. Session Overview Introduction to the Project Learning through Diverse Interactions Small Group Activity Facilitators for Diverse Interactions Summary & Final Remarks

3. Project Goals To learn how colleges are creating diverse learning environments To discover how students are learning from diverse peers To understand and share how different campuses achieve goals for cognitive, social, and democratic outcomes

4. Participating Institutions Arizona State University Norfolk State University University of California- Los Angeles University of Maryland University of Massachusetts-Amherst University of Michigan University of Minnesota University of New Mexico University of Vermont University of Washington

5. Research Activities Inventory of campus practices Campus site visits National survey of institutions Longitudinal survey of students Focused classroom-based studies

6. Student Focus Groups Student focus groups on each campus - Racial/ethnic majority student group(s) - Largest minority group(s) - Students engaged in diversity and civic initiatives - Specific ethnic groups unique to each campus & geographic region Student experiences with diverse peers - In what contexts do diverse interactions occur? - What/how have they learned from diverse peers?

7. Theory of Diversity and Learning Most of our thinking is mindless, we use scripts rather than engage in active thinking Disequilibrium that results when one tries to reconcile one’s own embedded views with that of other (Piaget, 1975) Cognitive and social development occurs in interaction with others Social diversity presents an important opportunity for learning to occur under conditions of support and facilitation

8. Learning Through Diverse Interactions Socio-historical/cultural knowledge Perspective-taking/open-mindedness Self-awareness/self-reflection Collaboration and Communication Skills

9. Socio-historical/Cultural Knowledge “…I learned a lot about a lot of different people in that class…” (Engaged student) “I learned so much, I was so angry that I didn’t learn anything in high school. (African- American student)

10. Perspective-taking/Open- mindedness “…you become more aware of other people, how they feel, how they live,…what they believe…” (Latino student) “And I feel like such a different person now that I’ve started meeting those people and listening to their ideas and how they think and going to their homes…” (White student)

11. Self-awareness/Self-reflection “…I learned incredible amounts about class privilege and about what it means to grow up middle-class as opposed to poor or working class…” (Engaged student) “The common theme from any course where we’re discussing racial or ethnic issues is the idea of White privilege…” (White student)

12. Collaboration and Communication Skills “I think that being [a] diverse group and of different races and ethnicities gives you a chance to…work in a team…” (Latino student) “…we always talked about our differences, because that’s what really pulled us together, because were all so different from one another…” (White student)

13. Small Group Activity: Barriers to Interactions across Race/Ethnicity What issues/themes can you identify? What are the underlying assumptions implicit in these quotes? What components of the institutional context influence how you would approach your strategies for addressing these issues? What are some creative strategies for addressing these barriers?

14. In Students’ Own Words: Facilitators to Interactions across Race/Ethnicity Curricular Contexts Classes focusing on diversity Small classes Intergroup dialogue class Co-curricular Contexts Cultural centers Living/learning communities Informal social contexts Community service activities

15. Classes Focusing on Diversity “…it was a diversity class and everybody was with different backgrounds, different hair, different styles…” (White student) “…there’s an Asian American studies program here, it’s one of the way’s I’ve had a lot of opportunities to interact with students…” (African-American student)

16. Small Classes “The smaller the class size, the more like chance you have to interact with the other person…” (Asian student) “…I’ve had some really like great experiences in smaller classrooms where I’ve just been able to connect with the people in that room.” (Engaged student)

17. Intergroup Dialogue Class “…it was good to have a dialogue…to talk about issues where we come from and talk about…our backgrounds…” (Latino student) “…there’s no stigma attached to if you want to be hanging out with folks that are not from your racial group…” (African-American student)

18. Implications for Practice Cultivate a positive climate for diversity Provide structured learning activities – Specific, sustained, follow-up Support interaction with diverse peers – Administrators, faculty, and staff Be attentive to students’ voices

19. For More Information http://www.umich.edu/~divdemo divdemo@umich.edu