Engaging STEM Faculty in Inclusive Practices Through Self-Reflexivity

• In Event: Faculty Development Practices to Improve Diversity and Inclusion

Abstract

STEM Faculty professional development centered on teaching methods and tools, like active learning, can miss important aspects of inclusive teaching practices that peel back the layers of power and privilege that exist in classrooms. Interrogating aspects of identity and positionality through self-reflexivity in STEM faculty professional development can lead to self-awareness and therefore inclusive practices in the classroom and beyond. Interviews with fourteen participants from the Aspire Summer Institute (ASI), a faculty professional development focused on developing inclusive practices through self-reflexivity, revealed recognition of privilege and positionality and the effects of identity on learning environments, relationships, and DEI action. Engaging STEM faculty in self-reflexive practices may be key to creating more inclusive STEM environments and institutional DEI efforts.

Authors

• Selyna Perez Beverly, Eastern Michigan University

• Lucas B. Hill, University of Wisconsin - Madison