Instructor Approaches to Teaching and Learning in Relation to Diversity

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 2
  In Poster Session: Considerations in Faculty Development

Abstract

Institutions have made the commitment to diversifying and democratizing higher education. Instructors are especially integral to creating an inclusive learning environment and culture, as they have direct interactions with students. While many research studies have examined instructor approaches to teaching and learning, few have explored these approaches in relation to diversity. This study takes a phenomenographic approach to identify what variations of student diversity instructors attend to and how these variations are connected to their approaches to teaching and learning. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 32 instructors at minority-serving institutions. We identified three different categories of diversity that instructors attend to: demographic characteristics, viewpoints, and lived experiences; each category is connected to distinct approaches to teaching and learning.

Authors

• Nicole Ashley Suarez, University of California - San Diego

• Song Wang, University of California San Diego

• Stacey Brydges, University of California San Diego

• Stanley M. Lo, University of California - San Diego