A Youth Leader's Guide to Building Cultural Competence 

2.  How is your room arranged? Where do group members generally sit? Does the arrangement of the 

room result in the better behaved or brighter teens being closer to you? Which young people, if any, 

are always in the back of the room? Why do you think this is so?  

3.  Do some young people, or groups of young people, take up more of your time than others? Which 

ones and why? How do you feel about spending more time with one group than another?  

4.  Do you tend to expect less from certain members of your group? Are these young people more likely 

to be poor or of one racial or ethnic group? 

5.  Do you tend to praise certain young people more than others? Do these students tend to be of one 

gender or sexual orientation or from any particular economic, ethnic or racial group?  

6.  Do certain teens show signs of withdrawal, self deprecation or aggression towards you or others? Is 

this behavior more common to members of one group?  

Answering all the questions in this section, discussing them honestly with others or writing down your 

responses, are good ways to focus on your own cultural background and biases. The process, of course, 

should be ongoing. Refer back to these questions on a regular basis and see what new insights you have. 

The paths to self awareness are many; this resource is just one tool.