CANCELLED: Teacher CPD week - Awareness of unconscious bias 

This event forms part of the University of Essex Teachers and Advisers CPD Week.

How being better aware of our unconscious bias can raise expectations and improve outcomes.

This session delves into the evolutionary psychology of bias, why we all have it and what it means.

It includes fun exercises to show how we all fall into the bias trap and explores The Pygmalion effect case study to help delegates understand how unconscious expectations can impact outcomes. Demonstrating how to avoid negative influence and gives practical tips and techniques for increasing expectation and unlocking potential.

Programme for the day:

9:00am - Registration 

9:20am - Welcome to the University of Essex 

9:40am - Session 1 

To gain insights into neuroscience and the evolution of thinking and judgement in order to understand conscious and unconscious bias and impact on decision making

11:00am - Tea/coffee break and networking 

11:15am - Session 2 

Understand how we learn to think, act, behave and communicate and how language and behaviours can be used to challenge bias.

12:30pm - Lunch and campus tours 

1:30pm - Session 3

Further understand the different types of bias and how to positively challenge it and have a greater knowledge into human behaviour and how to disrupt positively.

2:45pm - Tea/coffee break 

3:00pm - Session 4 

Consider thinking traps; what causes them and how to avoid them. Also next steps for personal and organisational development for increasing awareness of unconscious bias.

4:00pm - Close 

About Laura Drury, consultant and facilitator, recommended by Independent Thinking Ltd

Laura is a trainer, facilitator and coach. She has worked in the public and private sector, from Amex and EE to the CIPD and the NHS, across all organisation levels. She also creates and delivers training programmes focusing on areas such as communication, impact and influence, coaching, leadership and authenticity. She has a vast experience in schools as well with young people and teachers and regularly gets asked to speak at large events.

She began her professional career as a performer having trained at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. Whilst not a bad singer, dancing took a bit more effort and her passion lay in theatre; particularly Shakespeare and, unsurprisingly, comedy and farce.

Laura started delivering communication skills as a ‘side-line’ but rapidly became interested in the psychology behind it. She trained as a coach with Barefoot and became passionate about helping others believe in themselves and achieve their goals. She is inspired by the increasingly vocal positive psychology movement and is determined to help as many people as possible experience what this can do for them.

She has also worked in ‘Theatre in Education’ with the English Pocket Opera Company. They visited schools in and around Greater London devising opera workshops with children from 3 to 11 to perform in a professional setting. At the other end of the spectrum she has delivered physical education sessions based on mathematics for Key Stage 1 and facilitated programmes to raise financial awareness for teenagers.

Registration for this event is now open on Eventbrite.