2023 California Induction Conference

"Our brains are biased. It’s not a judgmental statement, it’s a factual one. Implicit bias, assumptions, and stereotypes stem from necessary and normal functions of the human brain. Researchers estimate that humans are exposed to 11 million pieces of information per second! If our conscious brains tried to filter and process all of that information, we would overload! Instead, our brains create shortcuts to sort through the vast input and function at their best by making connections between things, pairing concepts, and grouping things together. This associative design mode of our brain is critical to how we perceive, learn, categorize, and interact with the world around us.

The unconscious mental shortcuts that we make about people, though, create problems because we tend to see certain things that generally support our current point of view and miss others. These quick shortcuts in the form of assumptions, stereotypes, and implicit bias about social groups can lead to misjudgments about people and situations that cause hurt, pain, discrimination, injustice and inequities in our classrooms, workplaces, and the community at large.

In this highly informative and interactive workshop, participants will learn the neuroscience and social science about assumptions, stereotypes, identity, and implicit bias. Through the process, participants will become more aware of their own biases and learn research-based strategies designed to disrupt those biases, in order to cultivate a climate of belonging, acceptance, psychological safety, and equity in the classroom, workplace, and world around them."