By Jordan Galczynski on October 1, 2024
Recent studies indicate that further steps need to be taken by instructors to make their classrooms more representative of their student body. The Student Voice Survey found that a significant percentage of students felt that their professors chose homogenous course materials. This further broke down demographically – People of Color were less likely to feel course content was diverse in comparison to white students, for example (Flaherty, 2023). While this is an improvement from prior years, improvements still need to be prioritized.
This is especially meaningful for universities like UCLA which have an especially rich diverse student population. A majority of students come from BIPOC backgrounds, with transfer students representing even more diverse populations. Therefore, our course content should better reflect our students’ background and interests.
| Ethnicity | Undergraduate | Graduate |
| African American | 6% | 6% |
| American Indian & Alaska Native | <1% | <1% |
| Asian & Pacific Islander | 35% | 21% |
| Hispanic | 21% | 13% |
| White | 26% | 27% |
| Other Domestic or Unknown | 4% | 5% |
(after https://www.ucla.edu/about/facts-and-figures)
Additionally, there are a number of other advantages to incorporate culturally responsive teaching beyond student inclusivity:
- Develops student empathy and cultural awareness
- Creates global citizens
- Provide students with opportunities for professionalization
- Increases creativity and critical thinking skills
So what are some strategies or techniques that can be easily incorporated into the classroom? We’ve created a Best Practices Guide to help you get started. (Download the complete guide)
- Assign non-traditional multimodal media– like academic blogs, podcast, long form journalism, TED talks, videos
- Course content is more than just course readings. Consider inviting speakers in-person or over Zoom that discuss diverse topics or themselves are from a underrepresented background in your field
- Include a diversity & inclusion statement in your syllabus
- Consider accessibility and cost of assigned content
- Take advantage of the post-pandemic plethora of online resources
- Create a Diversity Reading List for your discipline– like this one for Philosophy
- Consider performing a GBAT (Gender Balance Assessment Tool) on your syllabi
Interested in sharing our guide? Download our flier!
Recommended Readings:
- Burrell, S. L. et al. (2020) Teaching through challenges for equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) / Stephanie L. Burrell Storms, Sarah K. Donovan, and Theodora P. Williams. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.
- Matthew J. Mayhew & Heidi E. Grunwald (2006) Factors Contributing to Faculty Incorporation of Diversity-Related Course Content, The Journal of Higher Education, 77:1, 148-168, DOI: 10.1080/00221546.2006.11778922
- Meyer, E. N. & Hoft-March, E. (eds.) (2022) Teaching diversity and inclusion : examples from a French-speaking classroom / edited by E. Nicole Meyer and Eilene Hoft-March. New York, NY: Routledge.
- Molbaek, M. (2017). Inclusive teaching strategies – dimensions and agendas. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 22(10), 1048–1061. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2017.1414578
Additional Resources:
- Diversifying Course Materials: A How-To Guide
- Diversifying Course Materials
- Guide to Diversifying Course Content
Main image is used under the Creative Commons 3 License – CC BY-SA 3.0