We found 22 results that contain "diversity"

Microaggressions often have macro impacts - How do we address microaggressions in the classroom? What is our role as an educator when these happen in our classroom? What do we do when we are the aggressor?

Research shows that diversity makes us smarter. Designing an inclusive classroom that allows students to share differing opinions in a brave space where people are treated with dignity can result in good learning outcomes for all. Conflict is a natural part of learning, and differences of opinion expressed in appropriate ways allow everyone to grow. An inclusive classroom allows the instructor to manage conflict in a way that harnesses differences so that they serve as learning opportunities for all.

Click the attachment below for some key elements to consider when designing an inclusive classroom.

SOURCE: MSU Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives

Have you heard about MSU’s Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion?

"The knowledge and skills necessary to navigate an increasingly diverse campus and interconnected world are substantial. The Office for Institutional Diversity and Inclusion and its partners equip faculty, staff members and students with a variety of tools and resources necessary to be welcoming and inclusive of our diverse campus community through workshops, seminars, and trainings."

Submit education requests for IDI services, including educator consultations, on this Google form (https://forms.gle/acniZ9ThopU4cUhdA) or email (inclusion@msu.edu). If you have questions about education programs offered by the Office for Institutional Diversity and Inclusion or need to request a time-sensitive response please contact Dr. Patti Stewart at ps@msu.edu.

An interesting piece this morning on Faculty Focus on creating an inclusive classroom. Here's the link:

https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/equality-inclusion-and-diversity/creating-an-inclusive-classroom-for-a-diverse-student-group/?st=FFdaily%3Bsc%3DFF220504%3Butm_term%3DFF220504

Hello again everyone! Here are some talking points to think about in the run up our 10am meeting tomorrow (Friday, November 05, 2021).

Recurring Zoom Link: 951 4830 7886
Passcode 432210


Student Engagement in Higher Education, ch. 2-3

Chapter 2: “Engaging Students of Color”Samuel D. Museus, Kimberly A. Griffin, Stephen John Quaye [MGQ - “Magic”]

1) How would you describe the campus racial climate and/or culture of the schools where you got your degrees and/or have previously taught? Do any institutions in your background for having been successful in instilling a positive racial culture? Do any notable failures or struggles stand out in your memory? It may be helpful to recall: climate is shaped by five internal dimensions: (1) an institution’s history and legacy of inclusion or exclusion, (2) compositional diversity, (3) psychological climate, (4) behavioral climate, and (5) organizational/structural diversity (Milem, Chang, & Antonio, 2005). [p. 19]

2) Museus, Griffin, and Quaye note that “two concepts provide a useful backdrop for the current discussion: campus racial climate and campus racial culture” (18). What knowledge or familiarity do you have of/with the racial climate or culture at MSU? How would you describe the local manifestation of the framing concepts Museus, Griffin, and Quaye provide?

3) What concrete steps could you take to alleviate cultural incongruence (21) and cultural dissonance (ibid) while boosting cultural engagement (22) for Students of Color in your courses?

4) The “proactive philosophies” indicator of the CECE model describes “Educators who use proactive philosophies [to] go above and beyond to actively reach out, encourage, and sometimes pressure students to take advantage of available information, opportunities, and support” (23). What does being such a faculty member/administrator look like? How does one responsibly and equitably pressure students to pursue opportunities?

5) Practical question: In several places, MGQ advocate for community-based opportunities, but also caution against the tendency towards siloing. Practically, what does/should it look like to provide opportunities for this type of contact among students that is supportive and culturally responsive, without siloing them, or making students of color serve as “ambassadors of their community”?


Chapter 3: “Engaging Multiracial Students”
C. Casey Ozaki, Marc P. Johnston-Guerrero, Kristen A. Renn [OJGR - “Jogger”]

1) It seems like today’s college students often have to enter the classroom already knowing who they are and who they will be. We can likely point to any number of institutional practices/requirements that reinforce that pressure. How can we create spaces for hybridity, ambiguity, uncertainty in our students’ perceptions of self?

2) OJGR note that “median age of the mixed race individuals is 19, compared to single-race individuals with a median age of 38” (39), which means that our students represent the age cohort closest to the “center,” so to speak, of multiracial identity discourse. What pressures might this present to college-aged students? What opportunities?

3) Studies show that “biracial students at HBCUs and non-HBCUs had poorer quality of interactions with faculty, staff, and students than Black and White students at both institutions” (40). What incentive/impetus/motivation does/should a finding like this make for us as educators? How could we productively address situations in which multi-racial students might approach us with complaints about feeling isolated and alienated from classmates in our courses?

4) The most provocative element of OJGR’s chapter comes in their final suggestion, which is to “Create a Campus Culture of Boundary Crossing.” What does this mean for you, and what would it look like at Michigan State?

This article was shared in an academic group I'm a part of on a social networking site... it's framing is within the Canadian Higher Education setting, but the message about student mental health is relevant for all.

Here are a couple of thoughts from the article worth sharing if you can't take the time to read the entire piece:
"To fully understand the present crisis, one has to appreciate a fundamental and often overlooked fact: higher education is not what it used to be. Not only do we have a more diverse student body with equally diverse psychiatric needs, we also have an academic culture that has changed profoundly in the past six decades, making the university experience more stressful than it once was. The classic liberal conception of postsecondary institutions as places where young people take a kind of sabbatical from life—read the great books, engage in endless debates, and learn to see themselves as citizens—has given way to a new model, more narrowly vocational in focus."

"By prioritizing high achievers, Henderson argues, universities are selecting not only for diligent candidates but also for those who view scholastic success as central to their identities. For such students, a bad grade can be destabilizing. When that grade appears on an exam worth 80 percent of a final course mark, or when it comes from a harried teaching assistant who doesn’t offer in-depth feedback, students can feel like they are losing a game whose rules were never explained. Imagine being told all your life that you are ahead of the pack and that you must stay there, both to secure a stable future and to get a return on the investments that family members or granting agencies have made on your behalf. Then, imagine falling behind, for reasons you don’t understand, at the precise moment when staying on top feels more critical than ever before. Furthermore, imagine that you are contending with profound loneliness, past trauma, and financial insecurity, all while working a part-time job with the usual mix of erratic hours."

"Such stressors can lead to sleep disruption, irregular eating, and substance abuse—all of which correlate with mental illness—or they can trigger preexisting psychiatric conditions. They can deplete reserves of neurochemicals, like dopamine and serotonin, needed to sustain a sense of well-being, or they can flood the brain and body with cortisol, the stress hormone, which, in excess, can push people into near-constant states of anxiety, making it difficult to conceptualize daily challenges in a proportionate or healthy way. They can also lead to identity confusion and an acute sense of shame."

Inside the Mental Health Crisis Facing College and University Students by Simon Lewsen : https://thewalrus.ca/inside-the-mental-health-crisis-facing-college-and-university-students/?fbclid=IwAR12PokSFpCrBo1NmtpNYoGEohKf3csYHQc9X8LwFAdNPTtBF_zIRbEqwhs

Hello again everyone! Marohang and I look forward to you joining us for the kick-off meeting of out learning community for AY2023-2024 tomorrow morning, 10 to 11am (East Lansing Time) Friday, September 22, 2023. We'll revisit the primary aims behind our community and see where the conversation takes us although we are very interested in a more conscious effort to bring Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) pedagogy into the conversation this year, examine how a digital-collaborative approach to teaching and learning can democratize the creation and sharing of knowledge, and explore how the advent of generative artificial intelligence (AI) might have a positive role to play in our work with 21st century students. We hope you can join us!

Marohang and Stokes

Recurring Zoom Link: https://msu.zoom.us/j/94545089588

Meeting ID: 945 4508 9588

Passcode: 851121

Cook-Sather, A. (2020), Respecting voices: how the co-creation of teaching and learning can support academic staff, underrepresented students, and equitable practices. Higher Education: The International Journal of Higher Education Research. 79(5):885-901

Abstract: Analyses of how staff and student voices are, or are not, respected in higher education typically unfold in separate conversations. In this discussion, I use narrative analysis of several sources—primary research data, informal participant feedback, and participants’ published essays—to present a case study of how the co-creation of teaching and learning through one pedagogical partnership program brings the voices of staff and students into dialogue. The case study reveals how participating staff and students can develop voices that both speak respectfully and are self-respecting and that can, in turn, contribute to the development of more equitable classroom practices. I provide context for this case study by bringing together key points from literature on staff voice and on student voice, defining co-creation, describing the partnership program, and explaining my research method. The case study itself is constituted by the voices of staff and students who have participated in the partnership program. Drawing on staff words, I show how co-creation supports those staff members in developing voice through dialogue with a diversity of students voices; generating ways of discussing and addressing inequity; and constructing more equitable classroom approaches. Drawing on students’ words, I show how co-creation supports those students in developing voice by positioning them as pedagogical partners to staff and inviting them into dialogue with their staff partners; affirming that they can carry those voices into courses in which they are enrolled; and emboldening them to participate in ongoing conversations about the experiences of underrepresented and underserved students.