Dealing with Differences: Taking Action on Class, Race, Gender and Disability.

Ellis, A. and Llewellyn, M. (1997). Dealing with Differences: Taking Action on Class, Race, Gender and Disability. Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin Press, Inc. (158 pp., $24.95 paper, ISBN-0-8039-6430-7).

Aiming to "awaken teachers to the rich diversity in their own classrooms and help students gain insights about one another" (back cover), Dealing with Differences is a supplemental curriculum aimed at high school students. The authors include 48 lesson plans addressing: class and classism; race, racism, and xenophobia; gender, sexism, and heterosexism; and disability and ableism. This hands-on book provides clear guidelines to help teachers create opportunities for students to listen to one another, examine their own opinions, and talk respectfully about differences. Written by two experienced educators, this guide not only includes multiple strategies for teachers to engage students in reflection and critical analysis, but also encourages incorporation of student leadership throughout the program.

The descriptions of each exercise are clear and thorough, including length of time required, supplies, practical set-up tips, and discussion questions. Each chapter includes analytical readings, personal narratives, exercises in which students discuss media representations, and a time for students to clarify their own concerns and develop action plans. Much of the book is thoughtful and creative, although sometimes the questions and suggestions for action seem redundant or overly general. The resource list of organizations, writings, and videos in the back of the book is valuable, albeit limited.

The authors make some effort to draw explicit connections between gender, race, class, and disability, for example in discussing how race is linked with economic disparities in the U.S., but the ways multiple categories intersect in peoples' everyday lives is not thoroughly explored. The curriculum does, however, examine some of the complexities of identity that are often overlooked, such as the experiences of multiracial people.

Overall, Ellis and Llewellyn do an admirable job of breaking down complicated, sometimes emotionally charged topics into manageable segments, without oversimplifying. This book should help educators attend to students' intellectual, interpersonal, and emotional engagement with issues of difference. Perhaps some educators would appreciate more information about how students tend to respond to the sessions, which Ellis and Llewellyn have had considerable experience implementing, but only describe briefly. This book is intended to serve as a text for both teachers and students, so inclusion of such material might be inappropriate, yet some teachers may benefit from discussion of challenges they might encounter while implementing particular exercises.

The authors zero in on key aspects of their broad topics of race, gender, class, and disability to provide fairly thorough treatment of relevant issues. The final chapter, "Continuing the Commitment," presents exercises designed to provide closure and help students sum up what they've learned. This provides a positive ending to the curriculum and reduces the likelihood that students will become discouraged.

This book provides a particularly important resource in its chapter on disability, which is sometimes ignored in diversity curricula as a significant axis of difference. By contrast, it is disappointing to see the topic of homophobia relegated primarily to a subsection of the chapter "Gender, Sexism, and Heterosexism." Sexual identity deserves its own chapter.

Dealing with Differences is powerful in its examination of race, gender, class, and ability as social constructions imbued with the power to shape and constrain everyone's life. Llewellyn and Ellis include an analysis of tracking that will prove interesting to those involved in gifted education. This book provides a valuable resource for all kinds of high school classrooms and youth organizations.

Reviewed by Michelle VanNatta, a Ph.D student in Sociology at Northwestern University, Illinois.