Different, Not Less

In the late 1960s, a 3rd grade schoolteacher, Jane Elliot did an exploratory study that opened people's eyes in a way clearly apparent even to small children. The documentary summarizing the effort was called the Eye of the Storm in 1970, later aired on PBS in 1985 as A Class Divided to document the reunion of the same students. The beauty of the study was the contrasting time and space in which this was carried -- a day after the death of Martin Luther King, a bunch of White-American kids and their teacher were trying to figure out the meaning of human differences in a constructive learning environment in Iowa. This classroom-based study was not discouraged or found wrong by anyone at the time, keep in mind, which is both intriguing and impressive.

To summarize the study, students were divided into two groups based on eye color, blue or brown, and were treated differently for the rest of the day only based on this difference. As you may imagine, this wouldn't have been an easy task on the teacher's part, particularly when you had to deliberately perform the discrimination part while noticing the heart-breaking responses visible after such treatment. However, you'll notice in the documentary, this was still carried flawlessly in the interest of learning. In the end, the students were asked how they felt being part of their respective groups, which made the corrosive effects of prejudice and discrimination crystal clear to them. Prejudice is a long held negative attitude toward a group, and discrimination is generally understood as the resulting behavior.

The reason this study still matters today is because parents and teachers often grapple with introducing difficult topics to young kids. Differences of various kinds become apparent to children from an early age. It's found in the questions they ask, or when they observe someone else being treated differently for reasons they can't understand or know yet socially. We all have at least one recollection from childhood of such an incident when you wondered either about yourself or someone else in a similar situation.

The documentary reveals how a lot of our behavior is guided by the norms that go with a label, a label to which many connotations are attached, and particular behaviors are then deemed normative for such labels. We act accordingly when we don't question further or have the time to worry about these things. Consequently, we also often end up retaining our 'better label' to keep the benefits and then slowly become more vigilant and defensive in favor of retaining our label. Why is this slightly dangerous? Over time, we may actually begin to believe that we are better than the other label. Contexts, company of close others with similar beliefs, and future feedback packed with benefits solidifies such beliefs and what is experienced as discrimination by others is seen as jealousy due to deprivation by comparison or overly emotional behavior on part of people who aren't 'as good as you or your people.' Basically, when discrimination shows up in our behavior, we cannot really recognize anything wrong unless alerted by a well-wisher. What makes this worse? How we live with ourselves using more situational explanations when we are treated differently, and when other experience the same, we think of this as their long-standing personal issue -- something also found scientifically in psychology as fundamental attribution error.

The obstacle people miss in such social experiences is how we can experience a response that is socially advantageous and adaptive for us, not so much for others, unless that person is a loved one or someone you actually like due to other shared identities.

To answer my original question, I'll end by suggesting some possible ways of explaining visible human differences to children.

1. Simply explain the logical reason for the difference without putting any positive or negative labels. For example, when explaining skin color, talk about how skin pigmentation evolved based on the climate and ecology of continents and this had nothing to do with ability or superiority. Here's an example of such an explanation: The Science of Skin Colour | Glasgow Science Centre

   When the age is right, explain the social reasons later.

2. Try using metaphors for children who may be much younger. For example, "Have you wondered why we have chocolates of different kinds? Dark, milk, and white? People are also of various kinds."

3. Teachers can encourage 'Invisible Me' class peer exercises coupled with face-to-face peer exercises, for students under the age of ten. On 'Invisible Me' days the students are divided into pairs. However, you don't get to see or hear the person you're interacting with and only share notes using an online app, an actual partition, or anonymously received interaction. Fifty percent of the exercises can be such and the rest face-to-face.

4. Use of paint-based handprints or thumbprints (if you're neatness conscious) made on the first day of class to identify yourself. The hand/thumb print is extended into a small drawing that is unique to the student. Students blend and bond using colors and get to know each other's names only on the next day.