Countering Biases and Microaggressions

This course can be applied to the UBC Certificate in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and UBC Micro-certificate in Anti-Racism.

It is also accredited for 15 International Coaching Federation (ICF) Continuing Coach Education (CCE) credits and is part of the Equity, Inclusion and Intercultural Leadership for Coaches program.

Bias shapes how people interpret behaviour, make decisions, and build relationships. It may be unconscious or conscious and is influenced by socialization, lived experience, institutional practices, dominant norms, and systems of power. In workplace, community, leadership and coaching contexts, unconscious bias can contribute to microaggressions and other patterns that undermine trust, collaboration, belonging and equitable participation.  

Through reflective and applied activities, examine how identity, context, positionality, and power shape bias. Develop practical approaches to noticing and interrupting bias, responding to microaggressions, and supporting accountable relationships and environments.

This course is designed for professionals who work with individuals, teams, organizations, or communities, including equity and inclusion practitioners, coaches, consultants, facilitators, leaders, managers, human resources professionals and workplace educators. It is grounded in the understanding that recognizing and responding to bias is an ongoing practice requiring critical reflection, cultural awareness, accountability, and attention to power.

Consider this course if you are interested in:

• Strengthening awareness of how bias can affect relationships, decisions and professional practice
• Examining how culture, identity, values, context, and positionality shape interactions
• Recognizing bias and microaggressions in yourself, others, and organizational environments
• Practicing ways to address harm while maintaining clarity, care, and accountability
• Developing approaches that support equitable and inclusive relationships, teams and workplaces

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• Examine how bias can shape interactions, decisions, and relationships in workplace, community, leadership and coaching contexts
• Recognize common forms and expressions of conscious and unconscious bias
• Examine connections among  identity, context, positionality, bias and microaggressions.
• Identify how racism and other systems of oppression can be expressed through microaggressions
• Apply approaches for noticing, interrupting, and responding to bias and microaggressions
• Use reflective practices to identify areas of growth in your professional practice
• Create a personal action plan for addressing bias in your workplace, coaching or community context

Course format and hours

The format of this course is online and asynchronous. 

This course is 15 hours long. Be prepared to spend approximately seven hours per week completing learning activities, including readings, assignments, posting and responding to online group discussions, and other projects.