Intergroup Dialogue Course

Intergroup Dialogue is an increasingly recognized and fast-growing social justice education practice model in grades K-16, higher education and community settings. This practice model encourages diverse groups of students to learn from each other and gain the intercultural competence they will need to effectively participate as citizens, leaders and professionals in our increasingly diverse and stratified society. This course provides students with a foundation of knowledge and familiarity with relevant literature, as well as awareness, understanding and skills for planning, facilitating and evaluating intergroup dialogue activities in schools and communities. The course is an elective but also serves as a requirement for students who wish to co-facilitate intergroup dialogues in future quarters.

The course extends knowledge, awareness, and skills connected with social diversity and social justice regarding various forms of oppression and dynamics. In addition, the course addresses issues of intergroup relations and conflict within and between social groups. It strives to prepare students to be active change agents as planners and facilitators of intergroup dialogues. The topics of this course include the social psychology of intergroup relations; intercultural and dialogue communication theories; methods for reconciling and bridging differences in schools and communities; research and evaluation of intergroup dialogues and other educational methods for improving intergroup relations; and core competencies for planning, delivering and evaluating intergroup dialogues in multicultural settings.

The specific objectives of the course are for students to emerge with:

  1. Awareness of self and others’ social identities and histories.
  2. Knowledge of structures of privilege and oppression, which impact intergroup relations.
  3. Skills involved in cross-cultural communication and management of group processes that promote multicultural learning.
  4. Passion and deep personal commitment to social justice, as well as the ability to communicate such concern, compassion, and empathy with others.

Class participants will read and analyze various forms of literature to understand the theoretical, conceptual, and ideological issues of privilege, oppression, and intergroup relations. Students will participate in Intergroup Dialogues, which are facilitated discussions involving relationship building through thoughtful engagement around different social identity issues. Students will apply their awareness, knowledge, and skills learned in the course by planning, implementing and assessing a small intergroup dialogue event within their campus or surrounding community.