I think it is sad that society can condition children generation after generation with so many prejudices. I have always tried to explain things completely and without bias to my kids. I don't want to form their opinions for them or impress my beliefs on them. I want to present ALL the facts to them and allow them to form their own feelings. In this way I feel I am empowering them to feel more comfortable with their own individuality.

I agree with you. It is amazing that people have not gotten over these barriers. Maybe if we could focus on a larger problem such as global warming, cancer, or AIDS, we could forget about our prejudices.

Things are getting better all the time! Right? Even though we are a small group of educators, we can begin to make a difference. Perhaps it will not be a huge difference in our generation but know that it will have positive ripples throughout future generations. Look how far we have come in certain race relations since our grandparents were children. Actually, I believe there will be constant racial / ethnic tensions between varying groups over time, that is until humanity itself matures as a human race.

Things are getting better all the time! Right? Even though we are a small group of educators, we can begin to make a difference. Perhaps it will not be a huge difference in our generation but know that it will have positive ripples throughout future generations. Look how far we have come in certain race relations since our grandparents were children. Actually, I believe there will be constant racial / ethnic tensions between varying groups over time, that is until humanity itself matures as a human race.

I agree with Annette on this topic. We must give the students both sides of an issue and let any of of own personal feelings get in the way. Except where the student is already very prejudice, then we must step in. I was just talking to a high school student the other day and he is very prejudiced against black people. He was not raised that way so he must have picked it up somewhere else. I just tried to show him that what he has been told is skewed.

I agree that it is sad how personal bias are passed on to children and reinforced day in and day out. I know from my own experience I was taught differently than I teach my own children. I learned to make individual evaluations of all people regardless of race, class, or gender. I hope that I teach that to my own children as well.

We all hold biases of some kind and passing many of them onto our children is unavoidable. They are unbelievable sensitive to what they have heard and seen us do, and they pick up on biases we didn't even realize we had. Some biases are good to have and hopefully we pass along those as well.

I find it especially difficult to breach the generation gap when it come to social and racial biases that my parents project on my children. Sometimes I get really ill at the vernacular coming out of my fathers mouth towards gay and black people. Lord help you if you are gay and black. I want my children to respect and look up to their grandparents but they grew up in another generation and had little contact with these groups.

I think the best thing for us as educators or parents is to lead by example and to have a zero tolerence policy when it comes to descrimination, for what ever reason. If the kids see us treating them and the others around us with respect and without prjudice then at least a seed has been planted.

I agree with Annette. I have always tried to teach my daughter that first she is not above anyone else and to be friendly or at least polite to everyone. Second, I want her to get to know a person and then decide based on things they have in common if it is someone they would enjoy being around. Hopefully, she has learned not to disregard someone because of skin color or first impressions.