Learning activity

Deepening critical understanding through discussion

Guide students in group discussions on racial justice to share perspectives and strengthen critical thinking.

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Created by:

Sam Passeport

No Borders Learning

Pedagogy

Critical pedagogy

Learning outcome

Prep time

Low (<10 min)

Activity type

Learning Activity

Why this learning activity?

Learning activities targeting high-order skills like this one can help you activate students more effectively. This learning activity will help you with:

Articulate key concepts related to race and social justice

Students will define and explain concepts such as privilege, marginalization, intersectionality, tokenism, and white fragility, and recognize how they connect to everyday experiences.

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Engage in reflective dialogue

Students will participate in discussions on race and racial (in)justice, demonstrating awareness of their own positionality and the ones of others.

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Analyze social dynamics in conversation

Students will critically examine how power, privilege, and social constructs influence discussions about race

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Activity setup

Activity steps Activity goals Tools used In this activity

Deepening critical understanding through discussion

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Activity steps

Read instructions: In this step, students are expected to read the instructions of the activity
Discussion posts: Students read the discussion topics and create at least 1 post in response
Peer discussion: Students reply to at least 2 of their peers discussion posts‍

Learning Activities Used

Discussion on Topic

Meaningful learning interactions to nurture critical and reflective thinking

In this activity

The discussion centers on racial injustice; adapt the topic to align with your course needs.
As a class you can review class agreements on safe vs. brave spaces before starting the activity.
The teacher should actively monitor and engage in the discussion—paraphrasing, asking follow-up questions, and guiding dialogue, also preparing to intervene if discussions become unsafe or harmful.
Anonymity is enabled to encourage open and honest expression, but this setting can be adjusted if desired.
Students engage in open discussion by choosing which posts to reply to; switch to an "assigned discussion" format if you prefer to guide interactions.
Grading is disabled as the activity may involve students sharing personal or lived experiences, which should not be evaluated or judged.

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