Micro-messagingto Reach and Teach Every Student

Materials provided in part by:

NAPE

(National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity)

• Dianne Norton –

Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor

• Jamie Zamjahn –

Assistant Director, Student Services

• Teena Rhoads –

Department Chair, General Education

• Gene Warren -

Program Coordinator, Business Technology Program

Presenters

Objectives• Define micro-messages, micro-

inequities, and micro-affirmations

• Recognize implicit bias that underlies the micro-messages

• Become aware of negative bias that affect our communications

Activity

Micro-messages

Micro-inequities

Negative micro-messages that cause

people to feel devalued, slighted, discouraged, or

excluded

Micro-affirmationsPositive micro-messages that cause people to feel

valued, included, or encouraged

Micro-messagingSmall, subtle, semi-conscious messages we

send and receive when we interact with others

Messages?

Messages?

Why Think AboutMicro-messaging?

Intent Micro-messages

Performance

Impact is more importantthan Intent!

Micro-messagesAccumulate

Activity

Effects ofUnconscious Bias

Influence how we reach decisions from our gathering,

sorting, and filtering of information

Influence our evaluations of people and their value

Physicist: The usual suspectsWhich one is the physicist?

Adapted from Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Initiative presentation by E. Haines and A. Maguire

Physicist: The usual suspects98% of the public couldn’t tellwhich one was the physicist.

Adapted from Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Initiative presentation by E. Haines and A. Maguire

Unconscious Gender Bias:Implicit Association Test

https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/

Micro-inequitiesNegative micro-

messages that cause people to feel devalued, slighted, discouraged,

or excluded

People Use Micro-inequities to Exclude All Kinds of Differences

Bias = Micro-inequities

POWERFUL

Unconscious

Unintentional

Pervasive

Subtle

Micro-affirmations

Positive micro-messages that cause people to feel valued,

included, or encouraged

Impact of Micro-affirmations on Students

Positive Micro-affirmations

Willingness to take risks

Engaged in learning

Interested in non-traditional

fields

Improved caring about learning

Open-ended thinking

Enhanced creativity and

innovation

Cue MessageUse diverse examples in the classroom such as: gender, race, ethnicity,

etc.

Smile and make eye-contact as students provide answers to

questions or engage in discussions.

Thinking in theAffirmative

Objectives• Define micro-messages, micro-

inequities, and micro-affirmations

• Recognize implicit bias that underlies the micro-messages

• Become aware of negative bias that affect our communications

Homework

Apply knowledge of implicit bias and micro-messaging to create strategies that

improve access and equity for every student.

“All great achievements require

time.” - Maya Angelou