During a recent values workshop, led by Derek, we were put into five tables and given an envelope with various stationary supplies. Although at the time I didn’t think much into the point of this, we were actually going through a valuable process that would teach us the importance of equality and unconscious/conscious bias.
We were told that with the contents of our envelope, we had to come up with an idea that would be helpful for new students coming to the University. The envelope that our table was given did not contain a lot. We looked around the room to see how everyone else was reacting to the limited number of items provided for the task, however we instead saw tables with mountains of supplies, including ‘luxuries’ such as coloured paper and sellotape. Immediately, our table discussed how unfair it was that some tables had been given so much as we were given so little. Regardless of this, we carried on with the task and came up with ideas of how we could best use what we had.
After sharing our initial ideas with the whole group, we then had to make it with our materials. As we were all working on our products, our group noticed that the front two tables were getting a lot of attention and praise from Derek yet we were getting none. I didn’t take much more notice, instead thought that it was probably only because they were the groups closest the him. I felt that with the little supplies we had, our group had done rather well in executing our idea and that Derek would see that when we presented it.
The front two table presented their products first. Derek gave them a lot of praise and raved about what they had come up with and why it was exactly what he was looking to come from this task. The third table were also praised although he was less enthusiastic than he had been previously. However, when it got to the last two tables, he couldn’t seem less interested. As we presented our product, he wasn’t engaged or even listening, and at one point he was even on his phone! By now, it had become very clear that the groups had not been treated equally during this task.
Derek then revealed that this had been the purpose of the workshop, to highlight the issues involving inequality in a classroom and to demonstrate how this can make people feel when they are experiencing it. This is such an important lesson as it is something that as future teachers, we will all potentially face. When we discussed it, it became clear that the two groups who were given the least resources had noticed the considerable difference in resources and attention. However, the groups that had been provided with the most hadn’t even noticed that anyone had any less than they did or were being treated differently.
The task highlighted how important it is to treat everyone equally because if someone feels that they are being treated differently to others, it can result in them feeling really defeated and demotivated. Especially in schools, this may cause children to become less enthusiastic about learning and even grow to dislike school, which would no doubt affect their attitude towards education and its importance.
This input was such an important lesson, especially for people who will be working with children who come from various backgrounds. It is essential that all children feel valued and included within a classroom, which is intended to be a safe environment where pupils feel comfortable and respected.
