Incorporate an equitable and inclusive teaching strategy

This article aims to support you in preparing to implement one new strategy for equitable and inclusive teaching because small steps over time can make a big difference. It gives a range of strategies to choose from: Some take minutes to implement; some take hours.

Strategies are organized by the various aspects of learning-centered course design: context, content, learning outcomes, assessment, and teaching strategies. If you implement one strategy, you can then choose to consider its connection to other strategies you might wish to implement later, based on the course design model.

In this article:

Instructions

1. Review the strategies listed below.

2. Think about your course and its context and select one strategy to implement.

3. Reflect on and respond to some of the following questions:

   1. Why does this strategy interest me?

   2. Can I foresee any challenges in implementing this strategy?

   3. If so, how could I address those challenges?

   4. What is my immediate next step to implement this strategy? (e.g., identify a person to contact or a resource to consult, set aside planning time, free-write about how to implement the strategy)

4. Implement the strategy.

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Strategies

Context

• Review how you communicate your office hours. ^[1][2]
  Why: Not all students know what office hours are for. Explain what office hours are and the different purposes for which students can attend office hours to support their learning.

• Learn and pronounce students’ names correctly. ^[3][4][5]
  Why: Learning and correctly pronouncing students’ names communicates collegiality and respect. This contributes to an inclusive classroom environment.

• Invite (but do not require) students to share their pronouns. ^[6][7] Then, use students’ pronouns correctly.
  Why: Learning and using students’ pronouns communicates collegiality and respect. This contributes to an inclusive classroom environment.

• Include an EDI statement in your course outline and/or on myCourses. ^[8][9]
  Why: An equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) statement helps welcome all students and set the tone for the course. The statement is a chance to share your EDI values and pedagogical actions.

• Profess a belief in students’ ability to succeed. ^[10][11]
  Why: Although it is common to be challenged by learning new material, not every student knows this. Letting students know that challenges are to be expected and they can succeed nonetheless helps promote motivation and a growth mindset, supporting students’ learning.

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Content

• Ensure accessibility of learning materials. ^[12][13]
  Why: When you check course documents for accessibility before you share them, students—including students who are blind or who have low vision—will be better able to read and understand the documents.

• Build in opportunities for students to draw upon/share their relevant prior knowledge.^[14][15][16]
  Why: Students are empowered by agency in their learning. Chances to draw on prior knowledge and experience can lead to positive outcomes for student learning and a greater likelihood of success.

• Learn about the diversity of current practitioners in your field, then share.^[17][18]
  Why: Learning about the extent of disciplinary diversity can better prepare you to support minoritized students’ success. If you understand challenges faced by minoritized practitioners and how they overcome such challenges, you can share this with students as appropriate.

• Review required readings to better understand which perspectives and assumptions are prioritized. Infuse content with diverse and relevant examples. ^[19][20][21]
  Why: Some course readings can unintentionally prioritize dominant voices and uphold inequities. Diversifying course content can support student retention and sense of belonging.

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Learning outcomes

• Make learning outcomes explicit and share them with students. ^[22][23][24]
  Why: Sharing learning outcomes—that is, the knowledge, skills, and values that students will develop in the course—allows students to focus their efforts on what matters most in a course. Learning outcomes help students focus on learning, rather than on trying to guess a course’s aims.

• Connect learning outcomes to assessments and teaching strategies.^[25][24][26]
  Why: Making clear links between your course learning outcomes, your assessments, and your teaching strategies supports the coherence of your course. When you identify course learning outcomes (knowledge, skills, and values students will develop), measure students’ attainment of them through carefully chosen assessments, and ensure students have a chance to practice and get feedback on these via teaching strategies. This is referred to as “alignment” in course design.

• Identify existing skills/content areas that you expect students to build upon, then provide opportunities for review. ^[27][28]
  Why: Many courses expect students to draw on prior skills or knowledge. These may be stated via a list of course prerequisites. Or, they may only become clear when students encounter difficulty completing assignments because of skill or knowledge gaps. Providing opportunities to review these—and to practice them, if students need support—supports students’ course success.

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Assessment

• Evaluate and describe the relevance of assessments.^[29][30][31]
  Why: Students are more willing to engage with assessments when they recognize the assessments’ value. For instance, how will an assignment support students’ success on other assignments? How will it help students develop skills they will use beyond their courses?

• Provide students with clear and actionable feedback.^[32][33][34] Pick an assignment and review how you currently give feedback to students. Consider what feedback strategies have worked well, and identify one way you can make your feedback still more clear or actionable going forward.
  Why: Students benefit from clear and actionable feedback they can use to improve their work.

• Consider using a variety of regular assessments, including formative assessments.^[35][36][37]
  Why: Providing different kinds of assessments recognizes that students learn in varied ways and gives students multiple opportunities to demonstrate their learning. Formative assessments (i.e., assessments that provide students with ongoing feedback to guide their learning) can help you and students to gauge their in-progress learning. You can adjust your teaching strategies if needed.

• Consider tools to help manage assessment expectations.^[38][39][40]
  Why: Beyond providing the criteria for numerical grades and supporting consistent assessment of students’ work, tools such as rubrics can give students a chance to better understand your expectations for what successful completion of an assignment looks like.

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Teaching strategies

• Ensure you give sufficient time for students to think after you pose a question.^[41][42]
  Why: Students process information at different speeds. Silence after a question doesn’t necessarily mean students are unaware of the answer…they may just be thinking! Taking an intentional pause after posing a question gives students time to formulate a response. You can also support learners who may hesitate to ask questions, by framing question-asking as an expected practice. For instance, you could rephrase “Do you have any questions?” to “What questions do you have?”

• Consider various modes of engagement to encourage student participation.^[43][44]
  Why: Traditional modes of participation can benefit students who feel comfortable raising their hand and speaking aloud. Review the ways you encourage participation, then work towards including a variety of opportunities for students to participate.

• Develop and use classroom norms.^[45][46][47]
  Why: Classroom norms (also referred to as community guidelines or ground rules) can help foster an atmosphere of mutual respect and clarify expectations for how people will work together. You can co-develop classroom norms early in the term to promote students’ buy-in.

• Reflect on your social identities and assumptions to determine how they inform your teaching.^[48][49][50]
  Why: Being aware of your identities can help you to be intentional in how you relate to your discipline and your students.

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References

^[1] Case, K. (2017). Syllabus challenge: Infusing diversity & inclusion. 

^[2] Ort, A., & Vavala, R. (2022, November 17-20). Creating pragmatic, empathetic and equitable syllabus policies. [Conference session]. Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Network Annual Conference, Seattle, WA, United States.  

^[3] Dechief, D. (2020). Designing for a diverse classroom. In K. Dali & N. Caidi (Eds.), Humanizing LIS education and practice (pp. 92–104). Routledge.

^[4] Igwe, N. (2016, October 17). Getting names right: It’s personal. Faculty Focus.

^[5] Weimer, M. (2017, August 2). The importance of learning students’ names. Faculty Focus.

^[6] Harbin, B. (2016). Teaching beyond the gender binary in the university classroom. Updated by L. M. Roberts et al. (2020). Vanderbilt Center for Teaching.

^[7] Centre for Teaching Excellence. (2023). University of Waterloo.

^[8] Tanner, K. D. (2013). Structure matters: Twenty-one teaching strategies to promote student engagement and cultivate classroom equity. CBE Life Science Education, 12(3), 322–331.

^[9] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) statement. Teaching and Learning Knowledge Base.

^[10] Ambrose, S., Bridges, M., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M., & Norman, M. (2010). How learning works: Seven research-based principles for smart teaching. Jossey-Bass.

^[11] Ryan, K., Boucher, K., Logel, C., & Murphy, M. (2022). Overview: Effective growth mindset culture messages. College Transition Collaborative. 

^[12] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Check for accessibility of learning materials. Teaching and Learning Knowledge Base.

^[13] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Apply guidelines for accessible online learning materials. Teaching and Learning Knowledge Base.

^[14] Samuel, C. (2023, May 11). Seven+ inclusive teaching strategies to support student learning. Teaching for Learning @ McGill University.

^[15] Wideman, M., & Kumar, K. (2014). Accessible by Design: Applying UDL Principles in a First Year Undergraduate Course. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 44, 125–147.

^[16] Yosso, T. J. (2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural wealth. Race Ethnicity and Education, 8(1), 69–91. 

^[17] Essanhaji, Z., & van Reekum, R. (2022). Following diversity through the university: On knowing and embodying a problem. The Sociological Review, 70(5), 882–900.

^[18] Yeager, D. S., & Walton, G. M. (2011). Social-psychological interventions in education: they’re not magic. Review of Educational Research, 81(2), 267–301.

^[19] Ferris, J., & Lewis-Sutherland, C. (2022, October 25). Strategies to foster equitable and inclusive learning environments. Teaching for Learning @ McGill University.

^[20] McGill Library. (2023). Equity, diversity, and inclusion. McGill University.

^[21] Purdie-Vaughns, V., Steele, C. M., Davies, P. G., Ditlmann, R., & Crosby, J. R. (2008). Social identity contingencies: How diversity cues signal threat or safety for African Americans in mainstream institutions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 94(4), 615–30.

^[22] Fitzpatrick, J. J., Byrne, E. P., & Kennedy, D. (2009). Making programme learning outcomes explicit for students of process and chemical engineering. Education for Chemical Engineers, 4(2), 21–28.

^[23] Teaching and Learning Commons. (2023). Writing effective learning outcomes. West Virginia University.

^{[24] 1 2} Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Learning-centered course design. Teaching and Learning Knowledge Base.

^[25] Teaching and Learning Services (2023). Just-in-Time Course Design. McGill University.

^[26] Winkelmes, M. A. (2023). Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) higher ed examples and resources.

^[27] Eberly Center. (2023). Students performed poorly on an exam. Carnegie Mellon University.

^[28] Terry, N. B., de la Harpe, K., & Kontur, F. J. (2016). The development of a learning gap between students with strong prerequisite skills and students with weak prerequisite skills. Journal of College Science Teaching, 45(3), 34–40.

^[29] Balloo, K., Winstone, N., Evans, C., Zhu, X., & Hughes, A. (2018). Transparency isn't spoon-feeding: How a transformative approach to the use of explicit assessment criteria can support student self-regulation. Frontiers in Education, 3.

^[30] Singer-Freeman, K., Hobbs, H., & Robinson, C. (2019). Theoretical matrix of culturally relevant assessment. Assessment Update, 31(4), 1–16.

^[31] Montenegro, E., & Jankowski, N. A. (2020, January). A new decade for assessment: Embedding equity into assessment praxis (Occasional Paper No. 42). University of Illinois and Indiana University, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA).

^[32] Center for Educational Innovation. (n.d.). Equitable assessments. University of Minnesota.

^[33] Higbee, J.L. & Goff, E. (2008). Pedagogy and student services for institutional transformation: Implementing universal design in higher education.

^[34] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Feedback strategies: Engaging students in dialogue. McGill University

^[35] CAST. (n.d.). UDL and assessment.

^[36] Sanger, C. (2020). Inclusive pedagogy and universal design approaches for diverse learning environments. In C. Sanger, & N. Gleason (Eds.), Diversity and inclusion in global higher education (pp. 31–71). Palgrave Macmillan.

^[37] Denton, J. M., Kortegast, C. A., & Miller, C. (2018). Overview of the use of visual methods in research. In B.  T. Kelly, & C. A. Kortegast (Eds.), Engaging images for research, pedagogy, and practice: Utilising visual methods to understand and promote college student development (pp. 13–28). Stylus Publishing, LLC.

^[38] Debby Ellis Writing Center. (n.d.). Designing rubrics. Southwestern University.

^[39] Montenegro, E., Jankowski, N. A. (2017). Equity and assessment: Moving towards culturally responsive assessment (Occasional paper No. 29). National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment.

^[40] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Rubrics: the basics. Teaching and Learning Knowledge Base.

^[41] Allen, D., & Tanner, K. (2002). Approaches to cell biology teaching: Questions about questions. Cell Biology Education, 1(3), 63–67.

^[42] University of Cambridge. (2018, September 27). Women much less likely to ask questions in academic seminars than men. ScienceDaily.

^[43] CAST. (2018). Universal Design for Learning guidelines: Engagement.

^[44] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Class participation. Teaching and Learning Knowledge Base.

^[45] Center for Research on Learning and Teaching (CRLT). (2021). Guidelines for classroom interactions. University of Michigan.

^[46] Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). (n.d.). Setting community guidelines. Claremont Colleges.

^[47] Teaching and Learning Services. (2023). Inclusive workshop toolkit. McGill University.

^[48] College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA). (2023). Doing one’s own personal work on privilege and oppression. University of Michigan.

^[49] Salazar, M. d. C., Stone Norton, A., & Tuitt, F. A. (2010). Weaving promising practices for inclusive excellence into the higher education classroom. To Improve the Academy, 28(1), 208–226.

^[50] Stone, S. (2022). Teaching for belonging: Inclusive and identity-responsive instruction. Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning.

 

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