Eliminating Prejudice By Clara Brill-Carlat

Goals for an Ideal Middle School Safe environment for school community Eliminate prejudice Eliminate prejudice-related stress

Prejudice Conservatives tend to have larger amygdala (fear sensor) Prejudice = using amygdala (being afraid) when coming into contact with people of certain race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. Liberals usually have more activity in Anterior Cingulate Cortex (dealing with conflicts) Anterior Cingulate Cortex

The Teen Brain Amygdala used more often (fear sensor) Prefrontal cortex not fully matured Connections between amygdala and PFC not completely developed Teens think/react with amygdala (maybe easier for teenagers to be prejudiced) Teenagers get big dopamine boosts from taking risks (pleasure)

Long-Term Stress When stressed, signals go from hypothalamus to pituitary gland Pituitary gland makes adrenal cortex produce cortisol (hormone) Cortisol keeps levels of blood pressure and blood sugar up

Too Much Cortisol Harms memory (kills/damages brain cells in hippocampus) Makes neurons let more calcium diffuse into membrane Too much calcium makes neurons fire too often and die May lower number of new cells created in adult brains (new neurons are made in some parts of adults’ brains) Can affect blood pressure and fats in blood Increases probability of heart attack, stroke Harms immune system

An Ideal Middle School Would... Eliminate prejudice and prejudice-related stress Help teenagers break prejudiced amygdala connections Allow teens to make new connections in prefrontal cortex (would make teenagers reason that they should not be automatically afraid of certain types of people)

Ideal Middle School More diversity in students, faculty, visitors Exchange students (learn about other cultures) Students experience different environments, cultures by taking field trips Clubs, discussion groups, class activities dealing with diversity/culture Special class for researching and sharing information about other cultures students are interested in Do same in lower school (continue to build on knowledge in middle school)

Ideal Middle School Have students build trust/spend time with other students from different schools, backgrounds, cultures Use safe, pleasurable risk-taking activities to get dopamine boosts Teenagers get lots of pleasure from risks (brain makes more dopamine or dopamine receptors) Dopamine receptors

Possible Activities Do activities with students from different schools, backgrounds, countries Scavenger hunt in the dark at school or outside with other students (teamwork, establish trust) Navigate obstacle course with other students (have reward at end to stimulate reward pathway, motivate teenagers to work together) Students would come up with activity involving safe risks, figure out how to do it with other students (i.e. learn how to make bonfire without matches, pole vault, etc.)

Conclusion: An Ideal Middle School Safe risk-taking activities with students from different backgrounds, countries, schools A class about different cultures Incorporate discussions and information about diversity into classes

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