Engaging Differences at Cascadia: A May 13 Forum

Since midsummer the TLA has been exploring the question, How do we encourage interactions that transform learners? We have come back again and again to
differences that arise in a learning institution, differences between students, between staff, between teachers, between students and teachers, between students/teachers and the College. Sometimes these differences are exciting and productive (students discover that other students have a different understanding; teachers discover that students understand a text or an assignment differently than they do); sometimes these differences shut down conversations (a student discovers that another student or a teacher is dismissive of what she brings from her home culture; a staff person discovers that another Cascadian is dismissive of the work he does; a student is dismissive of a teacher’s explanation of equality in U.S. society). These differences (conflicts really) are unlikely to go away, and our purpose at this forum was not somehow to banish conflict from Cascadia. Rather, we wanted to clarify what differences circulate here at the College and discover (with Professor LeBaron’s help) a productive method for negotiating difference. To that end, we gathered a diverse panel of Cascadians; we asked them to reflect on what sorts of conflicts they manage in their work at the College. We have put to them two questions:

1. How do you see the role of a Cascadia learner and how the College supports you as you play that role?
2. What are two (2) specific points of difference/conflicts that you negotiate at the College as a learner and supporter of learning?

The result was a spirited discussion that turned up a set of themes that are attached here.