Feedback Bias in Experiential Learning

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Session Type: Concurrent Sessions

Session Capacity: N/A

Location: N/A

Room: Yosemite A

Floor: Ballroom Level

In the current political climate, experiential education teachers are more regularly incorporating classes on how to recognize and confront implicit bias, encouraging our students to identify and address bias both within the legal profession and within themselves. In doing so, we, as experiential educators, often miss the fact that we too are subject to implicit bias, especially when providing feedback and guidance to students and when attempting to grade our students on their performance in class or in fieldwork.
This session will explore how bias manifests in feedback, why it matters, how it plays out in our clinics and externships and in the workplace, and how to overcome engaging in bias feedback. In particular, the session will discuss: the science and evidence behind bias creeping in to the process of giving feedback; the common types of feedback-related bias (e.g., confirmation bias, in-group bias and availability heuristic); our natural discomfort with engaging in difficult conversations across gender and racial lines; and how to avoid giving vague or problematic feedback. In addition, in light of the ABA’s new spotlight on assessment (both at the classroom level, but also at the program of legal education as a whole), the session will discuss how to identify neutral metrics and grading rubrics to assess students’ performance and their ultimate success. Though the final session content and format is a work-in-progress, we are including a draft presentation. We intend to incorporate interactive components working through hypotheticals either through small-group or full-group discussion and engaging in a dialogue with our colleagues on techniques they have employed in their school as well as rubrics aimed at eliminating bias in the feedback and grading process.