ERIC Number: ED300491
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1988-Oct
Pages: 33
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Ethical and Pedagogical Issues in the Use of Simulation Activities in the Classroom: Evaluating the "Blue Eyes-Brown Eyes" Prejudice Simulation.
Byrnes, Deborah A.; Kiger, Gary
The effectiveness of a well-known prejudice-reduction simulation activity, "Blue Eyes-Brown Eyes," was assessed as a tool for changing the attitudes of nonblack teacher education students toward blacks. The subjects were 164 students enrolled in eight sections of an introductory elementary education course at a state university. Three sections were selected to be administered the simulation; five sections served as a control group. All students were administered two racial attitude measures as pre- and post-tests. After participating in the simulation, students described their feelings about the experience both in writing and in an hour-long debriefing session. Outcomes include the following: (1) all subjects reported that the experience was meaningful; (2) statistical analysis of pre- and post-test results showed moderate prejudice reduction; and (3) all participants reported stress from the simulation. An attempt to measure long-term behavior change, using a mail solicitation one year later, was inconclusive. Ethical considerations are explored connected with subjecting simulation participants to short-run emotional discomfort in order to achieve greater compassion for others. Three tables of statistical data and a seven-page list of references are included. (FMW)
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Utah State Univ., Logan. Dept. of Elementary Education.; Utah State Univ., Logan. Dept. of Sociology.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A