Clinicians are well versed in ways implicit bias affects students in their clinical work, classroom participation, and
professional identity formation. Many law students receive an introduction to implicit bias in clinical orientation or the beginning of their 1L year, but one complaint voiced by some students is that implicit bias instruction rarely
goes beyond the 101 level. To enable the next generation of attorneys to remain cognizant of these issues in their day-to-day practice, further education and modelling must occur. Implicit bias awareness requires ongoing self-assessment, the formation of helpful habits, and practice. Clinicians, through the nature of their work, are in a unique position to demonstrate this and incorporate implicit bias awareness into their courses. This session seeks to assist
practitioners as they bring their students beyond Implicit Bias 101 by developing recursive processes to identify and reduce implicit bias in the day-to-day work of the clinic.
In this session clinicians will be empowered with specific ideas for incorporating implicit bias awareness into the clinic setting throughout the semester and throughout the classroom instruction. The session will focus on identifying moments to check in with clinical students both to address issues facing the student as an individual, as well as issues raised by clinical work. Clinicians will also learn strategies to weave implicit bias awareness into the classroom instruction. Presenters will engage with attendees to identify spaces throughout the clinical experience where implicit bias awareness may become an integral part of clinical practice. Attendees will leave the session with ideas of how to make implicit bias awareness a routine element to supervision and lectures.
The session will be structured to include a short talk and then interactive group work and time for brainstorming. Attendees will be given resources that they can take to do further research if they desire.