Rashné R.

Jehangir challenges her students and herself to engage with tough

issues like class, race, gender, disability, and homophobia. How does she help
them learn from, and even embrace, the conflict that inevitably arises?
Read on to find out.
By Rashné R. Jehangir

Conflict as a Catalyst for

Learning

I
describes as the ability to “hold tension in life giving
ways” (p. 3). How do we accomplish this? What are
t is that inevitable time in the some ways to scaffold, nurture, and capitalize on the
semester when I walk into the classroom and inevitable conflicts that come out of asking difficult
become aware that today the honeymoon period will questions in the classroom? This is the story I want to
come to an end and a time of disagreement and chal- share here.
lenge will ensue. In my classroom, this shift usually My primary context for this work has been in
occurs around the third or fourth week of the semes- teaching within a Multicultural Learning Community
ter, just as we begin discussing racism. As the semes- (MLC) with two other faculty members between fall
ter progresses, this negotiated disequilibrium has peaks 2001 and spring 2007. These communities included
and valleys that deeply shape the nature of our learning three classes that required concurrent registration
together. I refer to this as “negotiated disequilibrium” by a cohort of first-generation college students and
because I have come to value conflict as a catalyst for allowed faculty to design a curriculum that was inte-
heightened engagement and deeper learning when the grated around the themes of identity, community, and
teacher and students work together to create a safe agency.
place for meaningful engagement with ideas. While learning communities are defined in many
I have engaged with this theme of conflict as a ways, they can, by way of design and structure, invite
teacher and a researcher mostly in the context of mul- students to see how different disciplines and lived
ticultural learning communities, but I find that I am experiences offer alternate and complementary views
applying what I have learned in those settings to all of the world. One useful definition of essential com-
of my classroom contexts. Oscar Lenning and Larry ponents of learning communities offered by Faith
Ebbers note that every classroom is a “learning com- Gablenick, Jean MacGregor, Roberta Matthews, and
munity,” particularly when we can create space for Barbara Leigh Smith suggests that they are:
“reflection, responsibility, relationship and respect” (p.
29), which are essential to engaged conflict. But how a variety of curricular structures that link together
do we do this? It is messy work, but there are ways to several existing courses—or actually restructure
intentionally foster what Parker Palmer so eloquently the material entirely—so that students have

Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com).

© 2012 by American College Personnel Association and Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
DOI: 10.1002/abc.21073

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While learning communities are defined in many ways,
they can, by way of design and structure, invite students
to see how different disciplines and lived experiences offer
alternate and complementary views of the world.
opportunities for deeper understanding and inte- connect multicultural perspectives and their narra-
gration of the material they are learning, and tives, along with collaborative instruction.
have more interaction with one another and In addition to these intentional linkages, my
their teachers as fellow participants in the learn- research focused on capturing and examining the pro-
ing enterprise. (p. 19) cesses by which this Multicultural Learning Community
might impact students’ learning experience during their
In our learning community, we focused on the first year of college. Students were asked to complete
social, cultural, and cognitive bridges that enabled weekly writing assignments that asked for reflection
students to see the intersections of their lived experi- on their experiences in the learning community. This
ences and higher education. These intersections were reflective writing has been a central source of data for
designed to allow our students to support and chal- my research. A central theme that emerged from this
lenge each other in their learning, to apply diverse research is conflict as catalyst.
theories of multiculturalism to their lived experiences,
to examine relationships among various mediums of
C onflict as C atalyst
expression and ways of knowing, and to find their
own voices as agents of social change. Each instructor The term learning community might
took a different approach to teaching. In my Multi- suggest that the experiences involve consensus, agree-
cultural Relations course, students worked within a ment, and perhaps even some level of group-think.
seminar format and in small groups to examine issues We’ve all seen the glossy brochures with photographs
of class, race, gender, disability, and homophobia in of students in the grass talking and laughing together as
America. In Professor Pat Bruch’s Writing Lab, stu- the instructor looks on with a gratified grin. As it turns
dents helped each other strengthen their abilities to out, though, community is somewhat elusive; it does
participate in and reflect upon the processes of aca- not just happen, and even when it does, developing
demic writing and to understand how their writing into an engaged community involves conflict, compro-
locates them in relation with others. In Professor Pat mise, and the capacity to really listen to one another.
James’s Creativity Art Lab, students collaborated in In my analysis of students’ experiences in the MLC,
the creation of a final project, either a performance this struggle took on many shapes and was the concept
or a mural that expressed the themes of identity, that most consistently appeared across dimensions of
community, and agency. This intentional linkage of identity, community, and agency.
courses from different disciplines allowed students to Grappling with disequilibrium, both cognitive
and affective, has been addressed in depth in the
work of Marcia Baxter Magolda, Jane Pizzolato, and
Rashné R. Jehangir is a faculty member in the department Vasti Torres and Ebelia Hernandez, whose research
of postsecondary teaching and learning at the University of has demonstrated that “provocative situations” that
Minnesota’s College of Education and Human Development. create discomfort are essential catalysts to shifting
Her teaching and scholarship is focused on learning commu-
nities, critical pedagogy, access to college, and self-author- one’s understanding of self and others. In my 2010
ship of first-generation low-income students, and includes book and an article coauthored with Rhiannon Wil-
her new book: Higher Education and First-Generation Students: liams and Judith Jeske, I argue that the nature of
Cultivating Community, Voice and Place for the New Majority. the struggle often involves a push-and-pull process
as students struggle with new concepts or challeng-
We love feedback. Send letters to executive editor Jean M. ing social issues at a cognitive level, while they also
Henscheid (aboutcampus@pdx.edu), and please copy her experience them affectively, either internally or
on notes to authors. externally.

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 With regard to identity, students most often with the others. There was tension there because
expressed a sense of personal conflict or dissonance as they sometimes one person won’t agree with another. I
worked to define their sense of self. Part of this conflict could also feel fear. There were people who were
was expressed in the ways that students faced the question afraid in the room. Those who were afraid of one
“Who am I?” The feelings of conflict were different for another.
each student, depending upon their level of encultura-
tion or acculturation in this college community. Shani, an For another student, Janet (an African American),
African immigrant, described what she felt as she tried to this push to engage with peers and to recognize differ-
engage in the process of becoming herself: ences served to reinforce her sense of self-identity. She
began to understand that disagreement and conflict are
Throughout this semester I learned that I don’t part of the learning process.
exactly completely know myself—and this is okay.
I’m constantly changing my views, I’m learn- I really liked how X wasn’t afraid to disagree with
ing new things, and I’m trying to make sense of someone if she felt differently about a certain sub-
everything that’s going on around me. I surprised ject. I also found that you [the instructor] did the
myself a lot this semester. I always felt that I had same thing and it gave me the push I needed to
a perfect image of what kind of person I was, and be myself. It enabled me to see that we are all part
now I realize that I can do this only to an extent, of this class and it’s ok if we disagree on things.
but I’ve also got to open up a little and explore my That’s what makes it a discussion and that’s what
horizons. I can’t always have set rules in my head makes us a community . . . our differences.
and expect everything to follow through accord-
ing to certain personal beliefs I have. With regard to community, conflict was expressed
first in the ways that students struggled to create a con-
Anna Ortiz argues that enculturation occurs when sensus about what it meant to be a learning community
a student’s academic experience provides an opportu- and how to engage in meaningful dialogue with each
nity to become more engaged with the history of his or other. Given their different perspectives and levels of
her own cultural group. Simultaneously, acculturation academic maturity, topics like racism and homophobia
is the process of attitudinal or behavioral change that resulted in group conflict. After a particularly heated
occurs when people of multiple cultural groups are put discussion on the nature of racism, an African Ameri-
in close contact with one another. Depending on their can male student named Davu wrote:
own identity development, students in the MLC were
going through both enculturation and acculturation at People were being hardheaded and it made me
varying times. This intersection between identity and mad that people were not willing to show what
adjustment resulted in intersections and points of sepa- we had learned. They would not get off the idea
ration that were both empowering and challenging. of race or skin color for many class days and we
Jennifer, an Asian American, expressed her per- could not move anywhere. We would try to keep
ception of this struggle in light of communication with moving, but find ourselves back to that same place
peers. She wrote: the next day. I think that people’s true self started
to come out in that time and that it destroyed the
You could feel lots of tension in the room when whole idea of what it means to be in a small learn-
people started sharing their opinions and views ing community, working together.

With regard to identity, students most often expressed a

sense of personal conflict or dissonance as they worked
to define their sense of self. Part of this conflict was
expressed in the ways that students faced the question
“Who am I?”
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While the process of reexamining self was a challenge,
most students commented on how the disequilibrium they
experienced allowed them to question themselves and
create a more clearly defined and deeper sense of self.

Another topic of dissension was homophobia. Beverly Tatum’s research on identity develop-
After a rather animated debate on gay rights, Jenny, a ment in multicultural courses demonstrates that multi-
biracial student, wrote: cultural curriculum and process-oriented teaching does
not necessarily push students through all the stages of
I was really disappointed that my classmates identity development, but it does bring them closer to
believe there is a difference between violence understanding who they are.
against Black people and violence against gays. Working through the conflict within a learning
Overall I was glad that we discussed about it but community pushed students to grapple with what it
at the same time I was disappointed by some means to learn in collaboration with others and how
people and their close mindedness. They were so to use the strengths rather than the weaknesses of the
quick to comment about racism and discrimina- community in the process. From an affective per-
tion but when it came to this topic they were spective, conflict encouraged students to learn to use
being hypocrites. their voices to express their needs and frustrations, but
also to find ways to work collaboratively with oth-
Even though the conflict was neither pleasant nor ers despite disagreement. The early establishment of
easy, as is clear from the comments above, it did appear ground rules, several community-building exercises,
to have a central role in moving students closer to and required group assessments and check-ins are
understanding self, others, and issues of social change. important conduits to arriving at new learning through
With regard to identity, while the process of reexam- conflict. From a cognitive perspective, students learned
ining self was a challenge, most students commented to become more comfortable with dissent, disagree-
on how the disequilibrium they experienced allowed ment, and inclusion of multiple perspectives in their
them to question themselves and create a more clearly learning.
defined and deeper sense of self. John, a white student, reflects this engagement in
Diane, a Hmong American, wrote about finding a the process of conflict:
more confident sense of academic identity:
This week’s discussions were huge! I felt VERY
As I understand more and more I’ve built a engaged in with what was happening, especially
comfort level. I could see this comfort level was when we were talking about Jefferson. It was
slowly making me feel it was okay to contrib- heated, on the edge of your seat action. Half of the
ute to class discussions more and more. That class was getting mad, some bored, and some were
has always been a problem and fear of mine. I really into the discussion on why he did not even
was slowly overcoming it. My fear of saying the free his own slaves. I thought it was really interest-
wrong things has led me nowhere. My curiosity ing because none of us ever knew him in person,
just grows when I don’t know about something. and we can’t really know how he thinks, we can
I was too dependent on others to learn. I would only infer. So it was crazy to see everybody defend
always wait because I knew if I waited someone what they “think” Jefferson was doing when in
would ask a question similar to what I wanted to reality, none of us know, and never really will, all
ask or discuss about. Slowly I was trying to pull we have is little clues.
myself out of that mode and speak for myself.
I still think I need to work on it but now I’m Referring to the phenomenon of “constructive
aware of why I do it. I was another step ahead controversy,” David Johnson, Roger Johnson, and
of myself. Karl Smith argue that helping students use conflict as

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 Working through the conflict within a learning
community pushed students to grapple with what it means
to learn in collaboration with others and how to use the
strengths rather than the weaknesses of the community in
the process.
a tool for learning puts them in the driver’s seat and who holds that idea. Certainly establishing ground rules
increases curiosity, critical thinking, and the ability to and revisiting these ground rules periodically during
examine complex problems creatively. Students in the the term makes for a more authentic sense of commu-
MLC repeatedly mentioned how disagreements played nity. Creating ground rules collectively at the begin-
a positive role in their learning, once they became ning of the semester set the stage for how we would
accustomed to engaging in a trusting, respectful dis- engage with each other. Rather than a large group dis-
course with peers. cussion, students first worked in groups to reflect on
Nekisha’s (an African American) comments reflect both negative and positive experiences they had had
the way conflict enhanced her thinking and learning: working with others. We then spent time examin-
ing these narratives before arriving at a collective set
I remember sitting in class thinking: “Damn this of statements that could guide our community. One
is boring, who cares about this @#$%?” Now I component of this exercise is to draw students’ atten-
think about how interested I was when we actu- tion to seemingly contradictory goals and invite stu-
ally had classroom discussion and everyone par- dents to discuss this further: for example, “How do
ticipated and had something to say. What really unity and leadership survive together?” In a learning
made things interesting was when someone would community, ideally all instructors could be present for
have a difference of opinion with another person. this exercise and perhaps even interject to facilitate the
It showed the true passion that each person had discussion in ways that demonstrate to students that
behind that specific issue, and I learned to appreci- each instructor brings a different vantage point to their
ate those differences. I’ve also learned that even work together.
though someone is speaking on an issue, and being Another means of checking on group expectations
heard, doesn’t mean that you need to agree with and norms is to do a short course evaluation during
them. Disagreements are where the interesting the fourth week of the term. The evaluation I use is
debates come in anyway. a series of open-ended questions that invites students
to comment on my teaching, their participation, and
Clearly seeing conflict as a catalyst for learning has their experience with their peers. The results are sum-
both negative and positive aspects. The challenges of marized and shared with the class for a discussion that
the negative aspects, such as strained group dynamics, often reveals misperceptions or, better yet, highlights
could have outweighed the positive impacts, had they how much students value engagement with their peers.
not been managed and facilitated first by the faculty In a learning community format, this evaluation can
and then by a collective sense of ownership of students reveal the extent to which curricular and social inte-
in the learning community. gration is thriving and where there are gaps that can be
bridged to make connections across the courses more
H arnessing the P ower of C onflict as a explicit or meaningful to students.
Using conflict creatively also requires that we
C atalyst for L earning
openly acknowledge that conflict exists and that it is
Constructive management of class- valued. Students often confuse a cooperative learning
room conflict begins with creating a coopera- community environment with one that is conflict-free.
tive learning environment that allows for the building Dispelling this myth at the outset and creating oppor-
of trusting relationships and the differentiation between tunities for simulated conflict via role playing or case
disagreeing with an idea and disliking the individual studies can serve as important building blocks to stu-

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dents’ understanding of conflict as critical and useful to allowed him to normalize his own identity and name
their learning. and understand the discomfort he felt about being a
Creating opportunities for managed debate where relative outsider in his own community.
students work in groups and are required to contest
the point of view of other groups is a useful means of The story about the girl that was mixed with many
scaffolding the merit of alternate points of view. In the different cultures felt a lot like me. I may be Viet-
learning community format, it is also particularly use- namese, but I don’t speak Vietnamese that well, so
ful for instructors to consider how exercises in each of people don’t think I’m a full blooded Vietnamese
their classes impact each other and how the outcome of person sometimes.
particular disagreements in one course might provide
an impetus or restrain discussion in other classes. Finally, students are at different levels of emotional
Another means of drawing on the strength of maturity and identity development. These variations,
conflict in the classroom in relation to students’ learn- coupled with a blend of personalities, can sometimes
ing is to create multiple opportunities and formats for lead to conflict that is unproductive and negatively
reflection on this dissonance. This can be in the form impacts the class as a whole. Talk with students about
of journals, one-minute papers, or, as in the case of this reality when they are developing ground rules.
our learning community, creative projects like a photo Share concrete and specific examples of how verbal
montage, a digital story, or a performance. Thilia, a and nonverbal behavior can impact creative conflict.
Chicana student, described the value of having the
time and alternate medium to reflect on some of her
C onclusion
conflicts of identity in this way:
The role of conflict as a catalyst in
I think that there are some connections between learning raises important questions for pedagogy and
the two classes in the way that we get to learn practice in learning communities and all classrooms. In
about other people in our class and we can also an article about his work on the book and PBS docu-
learn about the way we are and the way we feel mentary entitled Declining by Degrees, John Merrow
and think in the art class. The photo-montages writes that one theme he has seen in higher education
have showed me parts of me that I had never seen is that “many instructors and students have arrived at
and in some way those photo montages lift a bur- an equivalent of a non-aggression pact—Don’t ask for
den off my back little by little. too much of my time because I have research to do
and I won’t ask much of you but will see that you still
Students need time to think about disequilibrium get a decent grade” (p. 10). While some of us may
in order to create space for new realizations in ways bristle at this, others might acknowledge that it holds
that “winner takes all” debates do not. A curriculum some truth, especially given professional pressures, such
that reflects students’ lived experiences or encourages as publication for tenure at major research universities.
them to intentionally find application between their One response is to look to our teaching for new schol-
lives and material studied in class also provides a richer arship and to find ways to engage leaders at research
context for students to build meaning from the con- universities in a renewed examination of the value of
flict they may be experiencing. In the quote that fol- the scholarship of teaching. As Min-Zhan Lu puts it,
lows, a Vietnamese-American student, Long, describes “we need to gather more oppositional and alternative
how the dilemmas of a central character in a short story accounts from a new generation of students who can

Constructive management of classroom conflict begins

with creating a cooperative learning environment that
allows for the building of trusting relationships and the
differentiation between disagreeing with an idea and
disliking the individual who holds that idea.
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Creating opportunities for managed debate where students
work in groups and are required to contest the point of
view of other groups is a useful means of scaffolding the
merit of alternate points of view.
speak about the successes and challenges of classrooms Lenning, O. T., & Ebbers, L. H. (1999). The powerful
which recognize the positive uses of conflict and strug- potential of learning communities: Improving education for
the future. Washington, DC: The George Washington
gle” (p. 910).
University, Graduate School of Education and Human
Development.
Lu, M. Z. (1992). Conflict and struggle: The enemies or pre-
conditions of basic writing. College English, 54, 887–913.
Notes
Merrow, J. (2006). My college education. Change, 38(3),
Baxter Magolda, M. (2001). Making their own way: Narratives 9–15.
for transforming higher education to promote self-development. Ortiz, A. M. (2000). Expressing cultural identity in the
Sterling, VA: Stylus. learning community: Opportunities and challenges. New
Gablenick, F., MacGregor, J., Matthews, R. S., & Smith, B. Directions for Teaching and Learning, 82, 67–79.
L. (Eds.). (1990). Learning communities: Creating connec- Palmer, P. (2011). Higher education and habits of the heart:
tions among students, faculty and disciplines. San Francisco, Restoring democracy’s infrastructure. Journal of College
CA: Jossey-Bass. and Character, 12, 3. doi:10.2202/1940-1639.1823
James, P., Bruch, P., & Jehangir, R. (2006). Ideas in practice: Pizzolato, J. E. (2003). Developing self-authorship: Exploring
Building bridges in a multicultural learning community. the experiences of high-risk college students. Journal of
Journal of Developmental Education, 29(3), 10–18. College Student Development, 44, 797–812.
Jehangir, R. (2010). Higher education and first-generation stu- Tatum, B. (1996). Talking about race, learning about rac-
dents: Cultivating community, voice and place for the new ism: The application of racial identity development
majority. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. theory in the classroom. In C. Turner, M. Garcia, A.
Jehangir, R., Williams, R., & Jeske, J. (in press). The Nora, & L. Réndon (Eds.), Racial & ethnic diversity in
influence of multicultural learning communities higher education (pp. 150–169). Needham Heights, MA:
on the intrapersonal development of first-gener- Simon and Schuster.
ation college students. Journal of College Student Torres, V., & Hernandez, E. (2007). The influence of eth-
Development. nic identity on self-authorship: A longitudinal study
Johnson, D. W., Johnson, R. T., & Smith, K. A. (2000). of Latino/a college students. Journal of College Student
Constructive controversy. Change, 32(1), 28–37. Development, 48, 558–574.

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