Course Innovations- Diversity

Marketing Education Review
Volume 18, Number 1
(Spring 2008)

Lynn Barnsback

Course Innovations:” Diverse Consumers: Race, Ethnicity, Religion, Social Class, and Gender”
By Barbara Stern

I chose this article to report on based on our most recent class where we discussed the topic of Diversity. As highlighted in our class discussion it is an important topic in our society and on campus. George Mason University has made the local news this week with an example of its diversity and its embrace of it; the Homecoming Queen is a Drag Queen, a young male student who ran as his stage persona-a woman.

The Journal Article points out in the first paragraph; “by 2030 minorities will be the majority of the U.S. population, as they are now in major cities”. While the article was about diversity in marketing, it is relevant to other teaching as the course innovation can be used in other disciplines (Nursing; Public Administration).

The diversity learning was accomplished by Diversity Walks, with small groups of students walking through ethnic neighborhoods, observing and interacting with the residents. The course and its main project, the walk, were designed to meet the schools (Rutgers-Newark campus) goal of “preparing students for multicultural society by encouraging the development of courses that provide information about diversity’s ramifications”.

The author designed the project to utilize “experiential learning…whereby learning is created through the transformation of experience” (Kolb, David 1984). The critical argument is that students learn more when they are “active participants in creating knowledge”. This type of learning provides improved educational relevance because students enjoy the learning experience more. Barbara Sterns premise is that “second hand exposure to diversity only goes so far” in gaining understanding. As a result, the interactive walks were developed.

Four Walks were the major part of the class. Experiential learning needs to build on prior learning, in this case discussions and guest speakers about diversity. The work outside the classroom needed to be connected to the classroom by the students through the activity. By making the learning process more real the instructor hoped the students would understand the topic as more than just a “set of facts about different cultures” but rather as a source of “practical information”.

To prepare there were class speakers and reading on the subject of diversity and specifically, the groups they were to encounter. In addition a lesson on “observational research” was conducted. Students were assigned in small groups to go to specific communities, maps and a guide on what to observe were provided. Students then reported back at the next class about their findings. This was to keep the observations fresh. A written report followed.

Stern feels the course innovation was successful based on the evaluations, and the reports that showed the students ability to connect the real-world experiences to the classroom discussions. Another indicator she felt was that many students went beyond the guides while on the “Walk”, choosing to explore the neighborhoods further. This indicated to the teacher that they truly enjoyed the assignment and based on the “experiential learning” model reinforced the learning further. The project is adaptable to other disciplines and non-urban locations. She suggests looking at upper vs. lower class neighborhoods or using an “etic approach-defamiliarizing the commonplace” by looking at such mundane groups as senior citizens or men vs. women.

Although relatively simple, this appears to be an interesting exercise, one that can be adapted in various ways yet provides good results. I felt it was a good example of Experiential Learning. It appeals to me as worthwhile premise to consider when designing a project or assignment.