I’m Not Biased! What Evaluators Need to Know About Implicit Biases.
- Resource Type
- Article
- Authors
- Banks, Andrea; Gardner, Ronald L.; Stephens, Tammy L.
- Source
- Dialog: Journal of the Texas Educational Diagnosticians Association; Spring2021, Vol. 50 Issue 1, p4-7, 4p
- Subject
- Evaluators
Special education
Assessment of education
Decision making
Implicit learning
Order picking systems
- Language
- ISSN
- 26417758
We all have implicit biases that impact the way we interpret the world around us. Subconsciously, these biases influence our thoughts and behavior. In the field of evaluation, bias can inadvertently prompt diagnosticians and other school-based evaluators to make decisions that may not be supported by data. Research has shown that implicit biases influence educational decisions regarding student’s behaviors and academic performance. We believe it is highly probable to influence student referrals for special education and the entire evaluation process. This article defines implicit biases and reviews information that every evaluator should consider throughout the entire evaluation process in order to diminish the impact an evaluator’s implicit biases might have on assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]