Author(s):
Minoritized and historically marginalized STEM students are more likely to encounter gender and racially stigmatizing experiences which can undermine their achievement and impact student persistence. Previous research has shown that classrooms where inclusivity and belonging are prioritized improve student performance and retention. The research on the benefits of creating inclusive classrooms is evident, however faculty in more technical disciplines, such as engineering, have found difficulty operationalizing them due in part to a lack of tangible guidance. This study aimed to address this gap by developing and providing evidence-based inclusive classroom strategies to engineering faculty seeking to create a more inclusive classroom environments for all students as well as providing support to faculty through inclusive learning communities. This study is informed by the Theory of Change model developed by Henderson, Beach, and Finkelstein which denotes four categories of change strategies for higher education: disseminating curriculum and pedagogy, developing reflective teachers, enacting policy, and developing a shared vision among teachers and stakeholders. This study is broadly aiming to share the most effective strategies to promote an inclusive classroom in engineering and examining how to best support engineering faculty implementing them. The research tasks for this study are: 1) developing a menu of inclusive classroom strategies and a decision matrix to help support strategy prioritization, 2) evaluating the effectiveness of these strategies through student and faculty assessments, and 3) disseminating the inclusive engineering practices menu across institutions and DEI networks. To help support these efforts, inclusive learning communities (ILCs) were developed at each partner institution to provide support for faculty participants.In the duration of this project, the Inclusive Classroom Engineering Practices Menu was developed through the assessment of peer-reviewed literature and university teaching and learning center websites. The strategies were organized by timing of the semester and by the Aspire Alliance inclusive framework domains (Identity, Intercultural, and Relational). The faculty and student surveys were also developed and administered each semester of the study to receive feedback on strategy implementation, the ILCs, and student classroom experiences. This poster will share the full student and faculty datasets from the project which includes five semesters of data. The key findings from this study overall include that a majority of students in participating classrooms reflected positive in-classroom experiences with their instructors, the participating faculty implemented a wide variety of strategies from the menu, and faculty reported positive experiences in their ILCs. This study is the impetus of developing tools for STEM, and particularly engineering, faculty looking to improve inclusivity within their classrooms and adopt inclusive strategies into their teaching.
Coauthors
Jessica M. Vaden, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA; Amy Brooks, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA; April Dukes, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA; Amy Hermundstad Nave, Ph.D., Araphoe Community College, Littleton, CO; Amy Landis, Ph.D., Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO; Melissa M. Bilec, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
