Bias Education

Disrupting bias. Starting early.

Our vision

The Bias Ed Project researches age-appropriate anti-bias education as a standard part of classrooms and homes across the U.S. By reaching children early, these programs will nurture healthier, more empathetic young people who grow into compassionate adults, critical thinkers and pro-democracy citizens.

What is Bias Ed?

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) defines anti-bias education as “a way of teaching that supports children and their families as they develop a sense of identity in a diverse society.”

Can bias be undone?

Bias begins early—and while it may not be easily unlearned, it can be prevented.

Bias develops through a lifetime of experiences, messages, and media exposure. Once internalized, these attitudes are resistant to change; there is no single short-term intervention that can undo a lifetime of learning biases.

So, how do we interrupt these patterns? We start early—before they take hold.

Why is Bias Ed needed?

Research shows that children are as young as 3 months old when they start noticing differences in skin color and other identity markers, and by 3 years old, they express explicit biases. By age 4 or 5, white children, for example, are more likely to choose other white children as friends.

As IARA Director Professor Khalil Gibran Muhammad and Erica Jacqueline Licht wrote in Learning for Justice (Fall 2023):

Decades of research confirm: Talking about race makes young people more prepared to address racial biases rather than more likely to perpetuate them. 

Without that foundation, silence becomes a teacher of its own. As sociologist Margaret Hagerman writes in White Kids: Growing Up With Privilege in a Racially Divided America (2018):

Why now?

Today, honest dialogue about racism faces fierce resistance. Book bans, curricula erasure, and museum censorship are part of a larger effort” to suppress education about race altogether. These efforts obscure the existence of systemic racism and undermine the democratic imperative to address it.

Effective bias education equips children to become critical thinkers and engaged citizens—capable of navigating difference, challenging injustice, and defending truth. In an era of rising far-right movements, that is more essential than ever.

What we’re doing

• Research — We’re mapping effective efforts already underway and asking:
  • What programs best teach children about how bias works, and what can prevent it?
  • Why are they effective—and for whom?
  • Which models can be scaled to a national level?

• Design & Strategy — We are developing practical, research-based frameworks that educators and families can use to implement bias education curricula early and consistently.
  
• Engagement — We aim to inspire and equip parents, teachers, and school leaders to lead the way in disrupting racism, sexism, xenophobia, and other social harms in education. We will work alongside a growing number of organizations and individuals dedicated to disrupting biases in early childhood education, from researchers and curricula designers developing evidence-based curricula, to advocates organizing for its inclusion in policy and legislation.

Join us

We welcome partnerships with funders, researchers, educators, and advocates who want to contribute their expertise or collaborate. If you’re interested in supporting or joining this important effort, please reach out to iara-project@princeton.edu.

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