In the News
Anti-prejudice message is hitting home
Christina Killion-Valdez
April 24, 2009
The messages stressed in the Diversity Council's Spark prejudice-reduction workshops seem to be hitting home with students.
Almost 87 percent of 374 randomly selected students surveyed after the workshops answered all of the knowledge and critical thinking questions correctly, said Kay Hocker, executive director of the Diversity Council. That's the highest since the workshops began in 1989.
This year also marked the second-highest number of students who have gone through the hour-long Spark classes -- about 17,335 students in grades one through 12.
"I feel good," Hocker said about the direction of the program, which was featured on The Today Show in January.
Students who were surveyed were also asked to write essays on topics such as:
- What does bullying look like and what can you do to stop it?
- Why are some students excluded and how can you include them?
- What does respect look like and what can you do to promote that?
- How will that make a difference in your school and the community?
About 76 percent of the students scored a 2 or higher on the 3-point scale used in a double-blind scoring of the essays that illustrate the students' empathy levels, Hocker said.
Hocker credits the success to teachers who reinforce the lessons from the workshops in their classrooms, as well as the commitment of the facilitators and education director James Robertson.
Based on feedback from teachers and students, a pilot program focused on actions and knowledge application also began this year at the high school level.
Razan Gaafarelkhailifa, a first-year student at Rochester Community and Technical College who joined the staff of Spark facilitators this year, said she went through the previous style of workshop as a 10th-grader at Mayo High School.
"I don't feel I got much out of it," she said. Students weren't cooperating or participating, she said. The new workshops, however, change that by being more activity based.
"I felt like part of the group versus a leader or teacher," she said. Students are expected to lead the conversation. "I am not in any position to lecture them. They were the ones giving out all the information."
© 2009 Post Bulletin. Used by permission.
