The Subjectivity of Diversity

I will never forget the day that I sat in a huge room at the end of a school year with my white counterparts in what was considered a training on diversity in literacy. I guess the district finally realized that minorities actually make up a part of the district and must be included in curriculum. As I looked at the agenda, I did hold on to a glimmer of hope that we could actually have "the conversation" about the inequitable education that our minority students are exposed to. As the material was presented, the training began to feel like an afterthought. As I sat through the training, I obviously felt black in a room full of white people, and I realized that we are closing out a school year with information that teachers will forget about when they leave the parking lot.

The book referenced during the training, Dr. Sharroky Hollie's (2013) book "Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching and Learning", a must-read by the way, was the anchor that was used by the white trainer to create an empathetic dialogue to clue the white teachers in on how to choose black books to complete their journey of the inclusion of diversity in their classrooms. From a political perspective of checks and balances, the process and methods made sense. Although shabbily presented, I appreciated their use and recognition of Dr. Hollie's work. His studies are very instrumental in shaping how we approach culturally relevant and linguistically responsive instruction. After all, wouldn't it make sense for the voice of a person of color to represent black voices? As the training was delivered and key points were communicated, I watched the sea of white teachers' reactions to the conversation as they took notes and made off the cuff comments that pigeonholed the minority population into a position of "not knowing" so we "have to teach them" because "many of them haven't", and "their parents". I couldn't help but feel the subjectivity of the meaning of the word "diversity" floating around in the room. I watched Dr. Hollie's work slowly being diminished by the subjectivity of each person's meaning of diversity that put us all back in the same place of going back to our schools and doing business as usual. We left that day with the box being checked to show that the issues of minority students were addressed during a diversity training. The bonus of the training was that the studies and resources of a prominent minority scholar and educator was used. Check!

So what does diversity have to do with it? The goal of diversity in education, from what I understand, is to understand that it exists and that it is normal for diversity to exist. Period. The unacceptability of diversity has been so ingrained in us that we have to treat it as if it is a new concept and research it like a newfound phenomenon. On the surface, diversity is what it is, but it seems to take on a new shape when it falls into the value bank of human tradition, upbringing, and varying ideologies about culture and race. When diversity is presented in a huge room, the meaning is being fought by what is dormant in a person's heart about how they actually view the world. I do believe that all people possess a certain diversity capacity where it's growth is determined by environmental and traditional factors. The brevity or broadness of diversity in a person's world, I feel, is informed by a person's experience. Let's move this thought forward into the classroom. My lens for diversity goes as far as what I have experienced. Therefore, I value and treat my students accordingly.

So what does all of this mean? I don't know. This is the part where maybe you have to go and clear up the muddy waters on how diversity has been shaped and cultivated, if it has, in your personal life. After you are clear about what diversity is to you teacher, are you going to look at my brown race and include me or are you going to look at my brown race because of diversity and feel sorry for me? Teacher, it is your duty to teach me the "right" way and not the "white" way.

Just thinking....

-Kisha Woodfork