From the Head of Learning and Teaching – What is your unconscious bias?

On Wednesday 8 March we recognised International Women’s Day with a breakfast and panel discussion. As I listened to the discussion about how we can further gender equity in schools, the workplace and in the broader community, I was interested to note the number of times self-awareness was raised in the discussion. Self-awareness is one of the key learning dispositions that we advocate as a school. It is that innate knowledge of recognising how we think and respond in any given situation and in this context is particularly relevant to considering how our unconscious biases influence the way we operate and the decisions we make. The concept of being aware of our unconscious bias is essential when discussing the barriers to women entering industries that are traditionally male dominated.

Being aware of our unconscious biases and how this impacts our responses is something that begins at school and goes far beyond gender. MLC School is a community that is diverse in many ways. Our staff and students come from different cultures, faiths, and backgrounds. We think differently on a number of issues and the ability to discuss these differences in a respectful manner is something we seek to develop in our girls. A key component of this discussion must be what are the assumptions I am making without realising this is my unconscious bias. The ability to examine our own possible biases is an important step in understanding the roots of stereotypes and inequity in our society.

There are a number of different types of unconscious bias including gender, perception, affinity and beauty. But in an era where information and news often come through carefully curated feeds educating our girls about confirmation bias is particularly important. Confirmation bias is our inclination to seek, favour and use information that confirms our pre-existing ideas or beliefs. When our social media and news feeds follow specific individuals or groups, we are increasingly fed content aligned to their views and ideas. The quality of the underlying journalism or lack thereof, can vary greatly. This can lead to a narrowing of perspective and the formation of viewpoints that are not informed by all the facts.

As part of their learning we challenge the girls to examine why they hold a viewpoint or opinion on a topic. This may come from a teacher or a peer in the classroom or as part of a student lead interest group. Respectful debate of ideas is healthy and essential to develop the critical thinking skills necessary for life beyond school. As parents you can support your daughter to develop a well-informed world view by reading and viewing articles from a variety of news media outlets and encouraging discussion of the issues as a family. You will not always agree, but you can be assured that her ideas will be well informed.

– Linda Emms
Head of Learning and Teaching