Reducing Stereotype Threat
in Classrooms
and Schools
Francesca López & Martin Scanlan
Marquette University
Goal:
Examine how research on
growth mindset & stereotype
threat can be woven into
planning & implementing
TWI in your school.
Objective:
Identify specific ways to reduce stereotype
threat amongst students, families, and
colleagues within your school as well as within
TWIN-CS.
Guiding questions (action planning)
1. What are some initial ways that we can work to
reduce stereotype threat in our school
community?
2. What are our ideas about further learning that we
want to pursue in these two areas of growth
mindset and stereotype threat?
The Minority-White Gap
Prison:
Blacks and Latinos vastly overrepresented
College:
Only 35% of Latinos are enrolled
High School:
15% drop out rate; 2 X more than AA
K-12
Lower standardized test scores and grades
Birth-Preschool
Nearly equal ability test scores
Common Misunderstandings
for Group Differences
1. Genetic arguments of lower innate intelligence
--The Bell Curve
--Biological differences in math ability
2. Poverty (lower skills and preparation)
• All of the traditional explanations fall short of
explaining the gap, even when combined;
something else must be involved…
• This “underperformance” is part of a
performance gap not due to gaps in skills
and knowledge between groups, but
something that has eluded explanation.
Part One:
What is stereotype threat?
Intelligence is Fragile
“Human intelligence is among the most
fragile things in nature. It doesn’t take
much to distract it, suppress it, or even
annihilate it.”
--Neil Postman
The Fragility of Intelligence
• Stereotype Threat/
Identity threat
(Steele & Aronson, 1995)
Stereotype/Identity Threat
Apprehension among members of a group of
reinforcing arising from the awareness of a
negative stereotype or personal reputation in
a situation where the stereotype or identity is
relevant, and thus confirmable
In schools, primarily about intellectual
ability
Stereotype Threat :
No Explicit Bigotry Required
Stereotype Threat
Anecdotal Evidence
“When I talk in class, I feel as though I’m
totally on stage, like everyone’s thinking,
‘oh what’s the Black girl going to say?’
But I don’t speak up in class much anymore,
so I guess it’s not a big deal.”
—Stanford Undergraduate
Stereotype Threat
Anecdotal Evidence
“Group work was a nightmare. I could tell that no
one thought my ideas were any good because I’m
Latina.”
—NYU Undergraduate
“Everyone expects me to be good at math because
I’m Asian, so I feel extra stupid because I’m not so
good at math.”
—NYU Undergrad
“Conditional Stupidity”
(video)
Activity
• List qualities shared by men and women
Math performance amongst women rose;
Math performance amongst men
unchanged
A) Laboratory Experiment on
Stereotype Threat
• Method: Reducing Evaluative Scrutiny
• Measure: Blacks’ and Whites’ Verbal GRE
Performance
Steele & Aronson (1995). Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Verbal Test Performance
10
9
whites
# of items solved
8
blacks
whites
7
6
5
blacks
4
3
2
1
STEREOTYPE THREAT
NO STEREOTYPE THREAT
Verbal Test Performance
10
9
whites
# of items solved
8
blacks
whites
7
6
5
blacks
4
3
2
1
STEREOTYPE THREAT
NO STEREOTYPE THREAT
ST: “The test is a test of intelligence.”
NST: “This is just a general skills test—not a test of intelligence.”
B) Laboratory Experiment on
Stereotype Threat
Method: Inducing the Relevance of Race
Measure: Blacks’ and Whites’ Verbal GRE
Performance
Steele & Aronson (1995)
Verbal Test Performance
10
9
whites
# of items solved
8
blacks
whites
7
6
5
4
blacks
3
2
1
Asked to Indicate Race
Not Asked to Indicate Race
Verbal Test Performance
10
9
whites
# of items solved
8
blacks
whites
7
6
5
4
blacks
3
2
1
Asked to Indicate Race
Not Asked to Indicate Race
AIR: Participants bubbled in their corresponding race
NAIR: No question about race was asked
C) Math Test Performance of
College Men and Women
men
# of items solved
21
16
11
women
6
1
Control
"No Gender Differences"
(Spencer, Steele & Quinn, 1999)
Math Test Performance
Of College Men and Women
(Spencer, Steele & Quinn, 1999)
men
21
men
# of items solved
women
16
11
women
6
1
Control
"No Gender Differences"
Women and men matched on math ability per SAT. Control group took math
test; NGD group was told, “We have not seen gender differences on this
particular test.”
Additional Studies Finding Performance Effects
• Latinos taking verbal tests
• Elderly taking short-term memory tests
• Low SES Students taking verbal tests
• Blacks and Miniature Golf
• Women taking tests of Political Knowledge, Driving, Chess
• White males taking tests of social sensitivity
• White Males Taking Math Tests
E) Educational Testing Service
Field Study:
Asking About Gender before or
After Before Taking AP
ETS Field Study:
Asking Gender Before Taking AP Calculus
17
AP Formula Score
16
15
Female
Male
14
13
12
11
Inquiry Before
Inquiry After
(Stricker, 2002). Journal of Applied Social Psychology.
Educational Testing Service Study:
AP Calculus Test
AP Formula Score
17
16
15
Female
Male
14
13
12
11
Inquiry Before
Inquiry After
IB: Students bubbled in gender PRIOR to exam
IA: Students bubbled in gender AFTER exam
Danaher and Crandall (2008)
Reanalysis of ETS Study
“Women benefited substantially on the
calculus test when demographics were
asked after testing rather than before. This
simple, small, and inexpensive change
could increase U.S. women receiving AP
Calculus AB credit by more than 4,300
every year.”
General Conclusions from 300 Studies
• One need not believe the stereotype is true to feel the
pressure to disprove it (heart rate study), but believing
appears to increase ST
• ST can affect even those students with lots of ability and lots
of confidence in their abilities, from any group, in any setting
• Stereotype threat can arise as a function of grouping alone,
integrated groups trigger it
• Underperformance mediated by stress and anxiety, reduced
working memory capacity, and reduced self-regulation
capacity
• Stereotype threat influences GPA as well as immediate
performance
Stereotype Vulnerability:
Risk Factors for Underperformance
– Acceptance of the stereotype as maybe true
– Expectations of prejudice
– Belief that tests are biased against minorities;
mistrust
– High levels of academic engagement--Caring
From Vulnerability to Inability
"No circle is more vicious than the one having to
do with intelligence. Children who may be only a
little behind their peers to begin with tend to avoid
those things that could have made them a little
smarter. As a result they fall further and further
behind. Meanwhile the kids who started out a little
ahead are doing push-ups with their brains.”
Judith Rich Harris
Chronic Stereotype Vulnerability
Can lead to Lower Ability
•Avoidance of Challenge/practice
•Academic Self-concept/Ambiguity
•Disidentification/Disengagement
•Lower Ability
Part Two:
Reducing Stereotype Threat
Key Strategies
1. Foster expansive notions of intelligence
and growth mindset
2. Normalize experiences of difficulty
3. Promote awareness of stereotype threat
4. Provide “wise criticism” in formative
feedback
1) Foster expansive notions of intelligence
and growth mindset
“The mind is much more like a muscle than
we’ve ever realized… it needs to get
cognitive exercise. It’s not some piece of clay
on which you put an indelible mark.”
James Flynn, intelligence expert, 2007
Questions
Are you an entity theorist? Or an
incremental theorist?
Do you believe ability is fixed; you either
have it or you don’t?
OR
Do you believe ability is malleable; you can
change it with effort?
Experiment
What if you were led to believe ability
is malleable? Would it reduce effects
of stereotype threat?
Method: Framing test as a measure
of a fixed or a malleable ability
Measure: Blacks’ and Whites’ Test
Performance
Results
• 7th grade students taught about
incremental theory of intelligence showed
significant positive effect on math scores
when compared to control group
Implications
How can you foster expansive notions
of intelligence and growth mindsets
Amongst:
- Students
- Colleagues
- Parents
- Others
Within:
- Implementation Team
- School
- TWIN-CS
2) Normalize experiences of difficulty
Middle School: A field Intervention:
Question: Can psychological intervention raise test scores of minority
students?
• Method: mentoring study; attitude change
• Conditions:
– Malleability of intelligence
– Role Models: senior students who stress the normality of early difficulty
– Control (drug abuse message)
• Measure: Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS)
7th Grade Girls’ Math TAAS
Math TAAS SCORE
100
GIRLS
BOYS
90
80
70
Malleability
Intervention
Role Model
Good, Aronson & Inzlicht (2003) Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.
Control
7th Grade Girls’ Math TAAS
Math TAAS SCORE
100
GIRLS
BOYS
90
80
70
Malleability
Intervention
Role Model
Good, Aronson & Inzlicht (2003) Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.
Control
Implications
How can you normalize
experiences of difficulty?
Amongst:
- Students
- Colleagues
- Parents
- Others
Within:
- Implementation Team
- School
- TWIN-CS
3. Promote awareness of
stereotype threat
Question:
Can understanding Stereotype threat reduce
its effects?
Method: Forewarning about ST or Test Anxiety
Measure: Blacks’ Test Performance a week later
African American’s GRE
Performance
Stereotype threat
16
SCORE
No stereotype threat
8
ForewarningST
ForewarningTest Anxiety
Control
African American’s GRE
Performance
Stereotype threat
16
SCORE
No stereotype threat
8
ForewarningST
ForewarningTest Anxiety
Control
Implications
How can you promote awareness
of stereotype threat
Amongst:
- Students
- Colleagues
- Parents
- Others
Within:
- Implementation Team
- School
- TWIN-CS
4. Provide “wise criticism” in
formative feedback
Writing study:
• The question was: How does a white teacher give
critical feedback that can be trusted and motivating?
• African American and White college students,
matched on language and writing ability.
• They all had to write an essay, and assigned to one of
three conditions
Condition 1:
• Unbuffered criticism: typical
evaluation
“Your essay needs work in
several areas”
Condition 2:
• Positive buffer
“Overall, nice job”
Condition 3:
• Wise criticism: high, tangible standards
“It's obvious to me that you've taken
your task seriously and I'm going to do
likewise by giving you some straight
forward, honest feedback.”
“I wouldn't go to the trouble of giving
you this feedback if I didn't think, based
on what I've read in your letter/essay,
that you are capable of meeting the
higher standard.”
Why did it work?
According to Steele,
“It resolved their interpretative quandary. It told
them they weren’t being seen in terms of the
bad stereotype about their groups’ intellectual
abilities, since the feedback user used high
intellectual standards and believed they could
meet them. The motivation they had was
released.”
Implications
How can you provide wise criticism
in formative feedback?
Amongst:
- Students
- Colleagues
- Parents
- Others
Within:
- Implementation Team
- School
- TWIN-CS
Strategies to Reducing Effects of
Stereotype Threat:
1. Foster expansive notions of intelligence
–
–
De-emphasize “innate ability”
Emphasize effort, persistence, and stress the
malleability of intelligence
2. Normalize experiences of difficulty
–
Provide exposure to Role Models
3. Promote awareness of stereotype threat
–
Foster metacognition
4. Provide “wise criticism” in formative feedback
Conclusion
Human intelligence, motivation, and academic
self-concept is more fragile and malleable than
traditionally thought. People’s performance and
motivation can rise and fall depending on the
situations and relationships they are in, and the
mindsets they adopt.
Message of this Research
• Educators can shape the threat level of the
environment; they can stress the fact that
serious intellectual work can be difficult but that
intellectual growth occurs with engagement and
effort; that people gain competence. This is
often not apparent to students.
• Further studies show that when people perceive
an environment where people believe this, an
otherwise threatening environment becomes
less so, students report more belonging, and this
mediates higher grades and engagement.
Connect to TWIN-CS
1. TWIN-CS will grow and enhance the strong Catholic tradition of
academic excellence by establishing a network of Two-Way Immersion
Catholic schools providing high quality education to culturally and
linguistically diverse students.
2. Cultivating bilingualism and biliteracy, TWIN schools will enhance their
commitment to Catholic education’s defining characteristics of accessibility
and social justice, which uphold the dignity of all persons, promote deep
respect for all cultures, and ensure attainable Catholic education for all
families.
3. Catholic schools are shaped by communion and community and are
known for their capacity to foster trust, caring relationships, and strong
interpersonal connections. TWIN schools will be genuinely inclusive school
environments—for all students and for parents, teachers, and staff—where
lifelong learning around diversity is modeled and celebrated.
What’s next:
• Link to guiding questions / action plan (this
afternoon)
• Consider ways to incorporate Catholic
Identity and broader school mission