Conflict in the House: Interethnic Conflict as Change Agent, Change as Conflict Instigator

Abstract

Conflict is viewed by many as something to be feared and avoided-even, and perhaps especially, in educational settings. However, if dealt with openly, honestly, and forthrightly, school conflict can provide students, parents, teachers, administrators, and communities with opportunities for communication, growth, and positive change. This article examines interethnic conflict in a number of schools and probes the subsequent changes in and impact on school policy and culture brought about by such conflict. It also discusses the scope of the struggle faced by schools that attempt to respond to diversity in proactive and meaningful ways. School conflict, if managed properly, can have beneficial results. It can even serve as a tool for building relationships and providing opportunities for growth. Conversely, if not managed properly, it can destroy relationships and lead to a divisive school climate. Given the potentially destructive nature of school conflict, even the discussion of issues that might lead to it can cause tension in some schools. As Anderson (1998) notes, school administrators are particularly sensitive to the damage conflict can cause because of the potential for disruption of the orderly administration of the school: Too often our work [that of school administrators] betrays a prescriptive bias concerned with management of conflict, culture, diversity and anything else which could potentially lead to authentic change but which might upset the current balance of power in the institution. (p. 593) Ethnic1 conflict or tension in schools is even more worrisome because of the potential for wholesale violence between groups. As a result, many school administrators and teachers tend to smooth over conflicts of an ethnic nature, if at all possible. For example, one small high school participating in the Leading for Diversity Project study enlisted a consultant firm to help its staff develop an appropriate response to an incident of ethnic prejudice that occurred at the school. However, as one teacher noted, the school's administration addressed the conflict only superficially: Culturally, some of us don't like confrontation. . . . I believe the effectiveness of the group was somewhat voided because the administrators [did] what they were comfortable with. Getting to the real nitty gritty of the issue never happened. This teacher's comment reflects the conflict avoidance that takes place in many schools when ethnic tensions arise. Yet, such conflict, if addressed in a forthright manner, can present numerous opportunities for learning and fundamental change. This article draws on data from interviews with students, teachers, administrators, and parents and observations conducted as part of the Leading for Diversity Project research study. This study used a qualitative, multiple case study design to document proactive leadership approaches to addressing interethnic conflict and building positive interactive relations in 21 schools. It discusses how interethnic conflict in schools can provide an opportunity for school leadership to bring about change and develop positive interethnic relationships. It also explains how changes related to multicultural, antiracist education can spark conflict in schools and exacerbate underlying ethnic tensions. Last, it offers practical applications of lessons learned from Leading for Diversity Project research that may prove useful for future school leaders. ETHNIC CONFLICT IN SCHOOLS: AN OVERVIEW As Bennett (1993) contends, the seed for much of the interethnic social conflict that has occurred in the United States was planted with the arrival of the first African slaves on American shores in 1619. Contrary to what many hope and believe, the effects of slavery still haunt the nation's ethnic landscape. The restrictive and disenfranchising Black Codes that were instituted following the Reconstruction Era and the Jim Crow laws that legalized discrimination, along with the federal government's support of the Dred Scott and Plessy v. …