I selected the implicit bias tests that tested for bias between black and white people and transgender and cisgender people. I chose these two because I think these are two areas that I am working with on a daily basis.
The test showed that I have a weak automatic preference for cisgender people over transgender people. The test also revealed that I was moderately faster at sorting black people with bad and white people with good. I was surprised by this because I like to think I am not biased at all. In fact, my limited research background caused me to question the validity of the test and thought perhaps it was more a measure of my poor reaction skills when it comes to using computer responses. But, I listened to the Hidden Brain podcast with Mahzarin Banaji and learned all that went into developing the Implicit Association Test and realized the test did indeed reflect my hidden biases.
A few things come to mind as I reflect on these results and my work with students. In my work with children, I avoid using gendering language because I work hard to avoid stereotypes. Many of my students follow traditional gender stereotypes but some do not. Some of my students present as nonbinary although I am not sure they have the words to express that. They like to be comfortable in their clothes and their choices reflect that. In some cases, unless I look at their gender in their school record I don’t actually know their gender. Since I have over 500 students, I don’t know their background information. I recently had an aha moment when I discovered a female student I have worked with for two years, is actually a transgender girl. Nothing changes with how I work with this student because I still know her book preferences and interests. I generally try to avoid assumptions one way or the other. As I work on developing my collection I work to provide books that are of interest to all children. When I am doing reader’s advisory, I don’t jump to conclusions based on their gender.
When I think about racial bias, I reflect on how I manage student behavior in the library. I really try to be aware of how I manage student behavior through the lens of race. There are some students of color who get into trouble consistently… I often ask myself if I am being biased. I think about their perspective and why they are engaging in challenging behavior. I also work hard to be aware of events leading up to a situation where I need to speak to students about behavior and provide redirection. This has come up as a greater challenge recently. We have a new student who has accused his teacher of being racist when she speaks to him about his behavior. I feel like it is a fine and difficult line to walk when I am speaking to him about his behavior. He can be disruptive and has a hard time following routines. I work hard to talk to him privately and help him reflect on what he is doing rather than making it feel like I am making a judgment of his behavior. .
Knowing that implicit bias is a real issue helps me to be more aware of the decisions I make when working with a diverse population of students.
