Please pick one of the following questions for your take-home writing activity.
1. In Whistling Vivaldi the author,Claude Steele, discusses stereotype threat. Have you ever underperformed because of stereotype threat? Please describe the stereotype threat and the circumstances. If you have not experienced it, please explain why not. In your discussion, try to be as specific as possible, using material from the book to support your point of view.
2. One of the themes of Whistling Vivaldi is the idea of stereotype threat. Steele (2010, p. 5) writes: “As members of society we have a pretty good idea about a lot of things, including the major groups and identities in society. We could all take out a piece of paper, write down the major stereotypes of those identities, and show a high degree of agreement in what we wrote.This means that whenever we’re in a situation where a bad stereotype about one of our identities could be applied — such as being old, poor, rich, or female — we know it…it is also a threat…And this means that it follows members of the stereotyped group into these situations like a balloon over their heads.” Do you agree or disagree with that passage? Please usematerial from Whistling Vivaldi to support your point of view.
3. Discuss something you learned from reading Whistling Vivaldi. Be as specific as possible,using examples from the book to illustrate your points.