6/2/24-6/22/24: Examining Appearance-Based Bias in the Classroom

Colorism is a form of discrimination that places a hierarchy on the way people look according to a European esthetic. A subset of racism, colorism is a form discrimination based on appearance that includes skin tone, hair, facial features and body type that can lead to inequalities in education and beyond. This class is designed to bring awareness to the issue of skin color bias in the classroom by defining and seeing examples of colorism and its subsets (texturism and featurism). Teachers will learn to recognize the Halo effect and its impact in the classroom as well as work through and discuss different scenarios. This will enable teachers to develop strategies for eliminating appearance-based bias thus helping students build better self esteem.  This course is suitable for teachers of all grades.