University Studies
                       

  Diversity

 Social Responsibility

 Quantitative Reasoning

 Critical Reading

 Writing

 Science

 Oral Communication

 Visual Communication

 Student Basics
 Orientation

 Technology Competencies

                       

 Portland State University

© Copyright 2001 Jack C. Straton

This material may be reproduced for educational purposes provided that (1) you notify me (Jack C. Straton, University Studies, Portland State University, Portland, OR, 97210-0751, straton@pdx.edu) that you are doing so, (2) you include this copyright policy and contact information, and (3) the students are charged only for the cost of reproduction. Any commercial use requires explicit permission.

Back to overall description.

It is important to set the stage for a diversity sequence early in the year by helping students to become comfortable talking about their lives to each other in a setting that promotes safety, respect, and confidentiality for what is said. We have found that "wasting" five to fifteen minutes per class period on this has an enormous payoff later on. This may be as nonthreatening as sharing "news," but often moves to the place where students talk openly about the real struggles in their lives. In the Values course I would often ask students to "check-in" with the emotional junk they are bringing to class so that the rest of us will know the context of statements they make that seem jarring. At other times, I will ask a question like, "If you were to be reincarnated and a non-human animal, what would it be and why?" In the Einstein course, we often share snippets from freewrites we do at the beginning of class.