Dealing with Incivility and Microaggressions

One of the more challenging aspects of teaching is needing to manage incivility, insensitive comments, and microaggressions if they occur. While these moments are often unpredictable and can take even the best instructors by surprise, there are ways to structure the class that make these types of interactions less likely to occur. In the case that such moments do happen, this page discusses a range of different strategies that can be used in response.

While instructors may be most concerned about situations involving intentional incivility, challenging moments in the classroom often involve less obvious microaggressions that target individuals of specific backgrounds or identities. The term microaggression refers to everyday comments, interactions, or behaviors, intentional or unintentional, that communicate a negative attitude toward a marginalized group (Pierce, Carew, Pierce-Gonzalez, & Willis, 1978). They can take a wide variety of different forms, as can be seen in this collection of microaggression examples. While an individual instance of a microaggression might seem minor, they can have a large cumulative impact on members of marginalized groups who encounter them frequently (Spanierman, Clark, & Kim, 2021). Therefore, it is important to address them when they occur in the classroom.

Steps for Addressing Incivility and Microaggressions

When incivility or microaggression occurs in the classroom, you can use the following steps to address the remarks and steer the discussion in a positive direction. This framework is a hybrid of multiple frameworks such as A.C.T.I.O.N. (Cheung et al., 2016), N.A.M.E. (McInroy et al., 2019), and O.T.F.D. (2016). While the steps are generally designed to be followed in order, you may need to adjust based on the specific circumstance you encounter.

1. Stay calm. Take a deep breath and slow down or stop the conversation as needed. Give yourself the time you need to process. Remember that a pause can feel much longer to you than it actually is. View the situation like you are viewing the dance floor from the balcony. Observe what is going on and the dynamics at play.
 
2. Inquire. Ask the student for more information about their perspective. Give the student the benefit of the doubt and encourage them to explain more. In some cases, the student further explaining themselves is enough to help them better understand the implications of what they are saying. In other cases, it helps you get enough information to be able to effectively steer the discussion. Here are some examples of language that you can use in these situations: 
   "Could you explain more about why you think that?"
   "I’m not quite sure I understood you correctly. Could you elaborate more?"
   "What concerns you the most about X?"
   "You seem to have strong feelings about X. Could you talk a little bit about why?"
   "What I hear you saying is X. Is that an accurate representation of what you were saying?"
    
3. Encourage students to consider another perspective. People see things from their own perspectives and can have trouble seeing how other people might view the same situation differently. Strategic questions can help gently guide students to engage in effective perspective taking. Some examples of questions that you could use are: 
   "What is another way to look at this?"
   "What might be another perspective on this?"
   "How might someone who belongs to X group perceive this?"
   "What message do you think that might be sending to others? Do you think that you would think or say something differently if..."
    
4. Identify why the comment was problematic and allow students to process the comment or behavior. Calmly and respectfully explain why you found the comment problematic using "I" statements. Do not label the person who made the comment or engaged in the behavior. For example, avoid telling someone they are racist or sexist. Validate the impact that the comment or behavior had separate from the intention. Acknowledge and discuss the emotions in the room. If emotions are running high, ask students if they need a break. That could be for a few minutes or until the next class period. Validate and support people who belong to the targeted group. Look for the sub-text of what students are saying. What is the underlying meaning, tension, or fear? Some examples of language you can use discuss the comment or behavior are: 
   "I felt X when you said Y because Z"
   "In our culture, we sometimes hear X. Some people find it problematic because of Y"
 
5. Allow for students to productively re-engage. Allowing students to re-engage can take various forms depending on the class and what occurred. You could ask students to write individually about what happened and how they feel. You could refer to the guidelines for discussion and discuss how those were met or violated and how the class can better implement the guidelines in the future. The whole class could reflect on how to re-engage in a productive, inclusive way.
6. Follow-up. Check in with students who were targeted by the comment and see if there are ways you can help support them. Follow-up with the class as needed if any additional processing of the comments or behaviors are needed.

Additional Tips

• Address incivility and microaggressions when they occur.  When incivility or a microaggression occurs, not saying anything causes further harm to the person who was the target of the microaggression (Johnson, Nadal, Sissoko, & King, 2021). It can sometimes be difficult to produce a response to these comments in the moment, so it is helpful to have strategies prepared in advance. Also, if you fail to address something at the time, try to follow up at the next class meeting since addressing it later is better than not addressing it at all. The following steps can be useful in effectively addressing the remarks and steering the discussion in a positive manner that fosters effective learning.
• Explore your own biases. Reflect on your own biases and analyze your own language for microaggressions. If you make a mistake or use a microaggression talk to the student or the class as soon as possible. Apologize and take responsibility for your actions. These situations can be great opportunities to model for your students how to effectively apologize and repair harm after making a mistake.
• Teach about microaggressions. Teaching students about microaggressions can help reduce their frequency. Here are some examples of classroom activities that teach students about microaggressions.
 
• Protect the space rather than confront the person. Uncivil people can easily derail a conversation designed to create space for alternative voices if we focus too much on changing or convincing a single individual (Kernahan, 2019). Focus on what will be good for the larger conversation and do not let one person derail the conversation by drawing the focus with incivility. Depending on the situation and level of disruption, some language you might use could include:
  • "I can tell this is something you are very passionate about, but it is a little off topic for our discussion today. Feel free to bring this back up when we discuss the topic next week."
  • "I appreciate your comments on this topic, but I wonder if anyone else has a perspective they’d like to share?"
  • "I want to make space for you to express yourself, but it is important to stay within the discussion guidelines for this class to ensure that everyone feels welcome and included."
  • "You seem really angry about this topic, but we need to bring this discussion to a close. Feel free to come talk to me during office hours if you would like to talk more about this."
  • "Your behavior is violating our classroom behavior guidelines, and it is time for you to leave. I will be in contact with you via email to discuss future class sessions."

Resources

• UNL Libraries Diversity Committee Resources: Websites, videos, and books about microaggressions compiled by the UNL Libraries Diversity Committee.
• Best practices for managing disruptive behavior: This website from the University of Washington gives a variety of strategies for addressing disruptive behavior in the classroom.

References