How can we act individually to promote inclusive classroom spaces? When the daily structure of classes are up to so many factors, pin-pointing a single source to propagate positive change in educational settings can seem far-fetched. This is because it is. Brazilian philosopher Paulo Freire strongly believed that cultural shifts require equal efforts from both sides of the system. In other words, if marginalized students are putting in the effort for a course then it should follow that those responsible for teaching said course are putting in an effort for the marginalized students. Educators with authority in these spaces can have profound impacts by creating space for others. When creating inclusive spaces, I’ve learned that there are three important concepts that need to first be understood.
The Space You Occupy
In a classroom, to not only grow your own set of skills but somebody else’s is an amazing opportunity that should not be wasted. To make sure this doesn’t happen, figure out a way for a classroom to serve all students. Many times, content from classrooms and instructors are tailored for one type of student and the remaining are left to fend for themselves. This is a trend in education that is unethical to say the least, but instructors hold a lot of power to create change here.Your Own Prejudices
In tailoring content for more diverse audiences you get the chance to start considering the different backgrounds your students can have. This is a time to think about your own possible prejudices towards these groups. Reflecting on how and why you’ve been unsupportive of students in the past is an uncomfortable but necessary step.
"Cultural competence requires that college and university biology educators become aware of and reflect on the role of their own culture and background in their teaching."
- Kimberly Tanner and Deborah Allen, Cultural Competence in the College Biology Classroom
Dialogue Is Key
Nobody likes being spoken at. It can be intimidating and insulting. From personal experience, sitting in an undergraduate science lecture as a woman of color while teachers went on about solving issues only in select communities, feels like I’m being spoken at and not with.
"In reality, science has been built within relatively narrow cultural bounds because of the historical lack of involvement of significant numbers of women and persons of color."
- Kimberly Tanner and Deborah Allen, Cultural Competence in the College Biology Classroom
- Kimberly Tanner and Deborah Allen, Cultural Competence in the College Biology Classroom
Inclusivity is long an arduous process that exposes what can easily be described as some of our worst traits as humans. And, put simply, that isn’t fun. But creating equal opportunities in classrooms is not a step that we can skip in the procession of education. How can you take a step in your own classroom to achieve the above concepts?
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Ashley Foster
I'm from Long Beach CA and earned a B.S. in environmental science from the University of San Francisco before coming to ASU to pursue a MS in biology. I'm currently working on a project aimed to better understand and predict the occurrence of algal blooms in water reservoirs. I've felt passionate about learning from the environment since I was really young, and hope to continue to do so after I graduate. It's important to me that education makes room for more people like me. This post was written for the BIO 530 Scientific Teaching course.
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