As part of our pre session Tasks we were asked to review a case study from the shades of noir journal. The case study I was given followed the experience of a young black female student, Thandie, who took part in a session where topics of ‘racism and racists acts’ were discussed insensitively, with problematic statements made by both tutor and student cohort. Thandie when trying to correct these statements and educate her peers, was met by backlash from students and silence from her tutor.
A key issue for me in this case study is the poor facilitation of session by the tutor, both in its preparation and during. What could the tutor have done more to manage the situation better and make Thandie feel included in the group and importantly, respected?
When dealing with sensitive topics it’s good to include ‘house rules’ at the beginning of the session, both to prepare students of any content trigger warnings and to make sure everyone is respectful to others, their thoughts, opinions and feelings.
As the only person on colour her cohort, Thandie was incredibly strong to be able to speak up and call out behaviour that she didn’t agree with, particularly when she knew no one would have had the same experiences as her. In this situation as a tutor you need to be there to support and facilitate the conversation, and It doesn’t sound like the tutor was hearing or taking on board Thandie’s perspective or point of view. The teacher was allowing others perspectives to dominate the room and diminish Thandie’s viewpoint.
This was a chance for both the tutor and cohort to be educated by another from a different perspective. Perhaps the tutor shied away from interjecting and admitting they weren’t educated in that area after her comments at the beginning of the session and making statements like ‘I’m a feminist’. It’s unrealistic to know everything, and it’s important to convey to students that education is a conversation and exchange of knowledge; and it isn’t always the tutor giving the student knowledge.
Could the teacher have challenged the other students view points? Why do they think ‘racism isn’t a thing anymore’? Can they answer that question? Challenging and encouraging them to see an experience through the lens of someone else.
References
A Case Study: It Started with the Teacher. Shades of Noir – Journals Page 158-160