This is a very interesting article. It is all the more interesting because it is in a business magazine that seems to reflect in many ways the thesis of the article. Yes, implicit racism is particularly insidious in structural and systemic bias. That bias comes from leadership, from their lack of exploration of their values and biases about those who are different from them and it trickles down through hiring those who resemble the leadership of the corporation.
I do not believe that the type of workshops and other mechanisms currently used to deal with implicit bias are very good. If all they do is make employees uncomfortable and unwilling to expose what they are thinking for a variety of reasons. They fail to do what we would want from them. A trusting and relationship-driven environment would help these types of workshops work.
The way I see it, first, management needs to sit down and discuss their beliefs and practices that promote implicit bias in their organizations. Some of these are mentioned in the article. The focus of our measurements of high ability and intelligence needs to be rethought as to what to include. This should include discussion of the opportunity and access issues. Our testing environment and the focus of some large corporations like McKinsey (whose research is a link in the article) on hiring mostly those who have attended Ivy League school and, therefore, who are similar to the employees already there contributes to this lack of diversity. What would happen if they opened their hiring (from what I know about them) to more diversity, rethinking what makes an employee an asset to their organization?
If we are running a school, is it wrong to look for those teachers whose philosophical orientation matches the mission and values of our program? Does that hinder diversity or does that allow for a focus on improving the program in which we believe? What we need is an atmosphere that permits differences of opinion on where we are headed and how we are going there. We do not want "groupthink". We need a school environment that respects differences of opinion, where teachers and administrators collaborate and listen to alternate perspectives, thinking through decisionmaking while still agreeing on the basic philosophical orientation/principles of the school and its mission and basic values.
------------------------------
Nora Krieger, PhD
Associate Professor Emerita/Past Chair NJEEPRE
Bloomfield College/NJ Educators Exploring the Practices of Reggio Emilia
Highland Park, NJ
------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 01-01-2020 04:33 PM
From: Jorge Saenz De Viteri
Subject: Forbes: Your Unconscious Bias Trainings Keep Failing Because You're Not Addressing Systemic Bias
Excerpt: While it is equally as important for individuals to be aware of their own blind spots and stereotypes and how these impact behaviors and decision-making, unconscious bias training and diversity and inclusion workshops should also address these systemic and structural issues (SSI) that are insidious and allow bias to manifest at a greater level.
https://www-forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2020/12/29/your-unconscious-bias-trainings-keep-failing-because-youre-not-addressing-systemic-bias/amp/
------------------------------
Jorge Saenz De Viteri
http://jorgesaenzdeviteri.com
Pomona NY
------------------------------