This week’s article summary is Growth Mindset in Cultural Competency.
As a grizzled veteran of life, I have been disappointed by the current ‘cancel culture’ climate. For those of you who aren’t familiar, ‘cancel culture’ results from looking at famous person’s life and if he/she ever did or said something inappropriate, objectionable, or offensive, then basically destroying or ‘canceling’ his/her career henceforth.
It makes me thankful I’m not a celebrity as I make mistakes and faux pas every day. Looking back on my missteps, I most likely would have been ‘canceled’ before my 23rd birthday!
The ‘cancel culture’ phenomenon connects to this week’s article summary that takes Carol Dweck’s Growth Mindset and applies it to DEI work.
As you all know, the premise of a Growth Mindset is we all are on a continuous journey towards improvement. We get better through hard work, perseverance, practice, reflection, and strong mentorship and guidance.
And the article points out a Growth Mindset should extend to DEI work.
I know our country has become overly polarized, binary, sanctimonious, and intolerant of difference or dissent, yet my personal mantra is to try to keep an open mind, to recognize that no one side of a story is the absolute truth, and to avoid being judgmental.
No one is perfect and we all have made and will continue to make mistakes. Yet, unlike the ‘cancel culture’ climate, I don’t believe most mistakes (clearly the truly heinous, extreme ones are inexcusable and warrant extreme consequences) justify destroying a person’s career. How about some grace and forgiveness and an opportunity to atone and learn?
Using a Growth Mindset to counter the article’s myths on complex DEI topics and discussions can help us dialogue across difference, become more culturally competent, and work together for a more just and equitable society and world.
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Everyone knows that conversations about identity, inclusivity, and cultural competency can be touchy. That’s why facilitators typically establish norms: “Lean into discomfort,” “Assume positive intent,” and “Listen to understand.”
And yet in a recent discussion on teachers’ implicit bias and the resulting underperformance and over-disciplining of students of color, one teacher erupted with “I am not racist! I treat everyone the same — I don’t care if my students are black, white, purple, or green; they all have a fair shot in my classroom!”
And yet after a teacher unveils an upcoming third-grade unit on family that will discuss different kinds of families, including adoptive parents, different race parents, foster parents, grandparents as primary parent figures, same-sex parents, and more, one parent raises serious concerns. “Children are so innocent, and they don’t notice these differences. Why do we have to expose them to ideas they’re not ready for?”
As an educator, facilitator, and trainer, I have found that the scenarios above are more common than not because many cultural myths proliferate. If we are willing to move beyond these myths and integrate a growth mindset into cultural competency work, we can progress toward the truly inclusive communities we all aspire to be part of.
I have incorporated a Growth Mindset into my diversity trainings and workshops, and witnessed significant shifts in minds and hearts. Several times, veteran faculty who, in the past, have responded to professional development with guilt, defensiveness, or outright dismissal have expressed a sudden understanding, a curiosity to learn more, and an eagerness to implement changes in the classroom.
When we unpack the fixed mindset nature of three common myths surrounding cultural competency, we see how having a growth mindset can help us move beyond the silence and paralysis, and surface political correctness that can hinder our forward progress.
Myth 1: All or None: The “All or None” myth teaches us that there those who are “with it” and those who are not. Under this myth, those of us who understand or experience one of the societal isms (racism, sexism, classism, ableism, ageism, heterosexism, ethnocentrism, etc.) automatically assume that we understand the issues of other isms. “As a woman, I understand oppression — I know what it must be like to be poor in this world.” This myth also makes us unwilling to acknowledge privilege surrounding one of our identities because we experience oppression in another. “As a gay man, I wouldn’t know what white privilege feels like.” Finally, this myth implies that if we make mistakes or have an area of weakness or ignorance, it must be because we are not culturally competent after all. “You don't know what cisgender means? Wow…” This myth keeps us from asking questions when we don’t know; we spend more energy protecting our competency status rather than listening, learning, and growing. With a Growth Mindset, we understand that there is always room to grow. No one can fully master all aspects of cultural competency for all cultural identifiers, and mistakes are inevitable. With humble curiosity, we seek to better understand ourselves, understand others, develop cross-cultural skills, and work toward equity and inclusion.
Myth 2: Mistakes and Moral Worth: The “Mistakes and Moral Worth” myth teaches us that those who offend or hurt must be doing so because they are bigoted and morally deficient, and good-hearted people do not speak or act in ways that marginalize. Under this myth, those of us who make an offensive comment, even if unintentional, are attacked as though we had professed to be a member of a hate group. “You are such a sexist pig for saying that!” We feel morally justified in treating others inhumanely for their ignorant behavior. “People who act like you should be fired.” We deny hurt feelings of others when they point to our words or actions as their cause. “I am a good person – what I said was not homophobic.” Consider the social media response to any public figure caught saying anything remotely offensive, as well as the public figure’s defensive responses. This myth leaves us afraid to speak our mind for fear of public shaming. It keeps us focusing on our intentions rather than on our impacts. We try to prove our moral worth by debasing others who have displayed shortcomings. With a Growth Mindset, we understand that good people can make mistakes. Mistakes do not define us. And when others make mistakes, we are likely to respond with patience and desire to teach, understanding that it’s possible to dislike an action without disliking the person.
Myth 3: Tonsils of Bias: For the final myth, I borrow heavily from Jay Smooth’s TEDx talk, “How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Discussing Race.” The “Tonsils of Bias” myth teaches us that bias and prejudice are like tonsils. We either have them or we don’t — and we can get them removed. Under this myth, those of us who’ve had some training to understand another’s identity and difference assume that we have learned everything we need to be competent. “I took a workshop on ageism last year. What else is there to learn?” We also believe that relationships can “fix” our misconceptions about a whole group of people. “I have lots of friends who are immigrants. I’m not xenophobic.” This myth leaves us slipping into complacency and clinging to a false sense of mastery, reluctant to look for authentic understanding and growth. It makes us think, “If we just find the right all-school read, the right professional development workshop, we can fix all the problems at the school.” With a Growth Mindset, we understand that bias and prejudice are more like plaque. There is so much misinformation in the world reinforced by history, systems, and media. If we are to keep the myths at bay, we must get into a regular practice, much like brushing and flossing every day. And just as good oral hygiene does not guarantee we will never have bad breath or have food stuck in our teeth, a regular questioning, learning, and engaging across difference can only decrease how much our bias and prejudice show up in our daily thoughts, words, and actions.
Our schools can have great intentions, powerful mission statements, ample professional development and training, and people from diverse backgrounds. Without regular practice, however, these elements become mere artifacts to protect our competence status. I hope schools will embrace a Growth Mindset as a critical component of their cultural competency work. Only then can diversity, inclusion, equity, and cultural competency transform from professed values to lived values.
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