In an article called “Strategies for Fostering Inclusion in the Classroom: Promoting inclusion, reducing stereotype threat, and fostering a growth mindset” by The Teaching Center from Washington University in St. Louis, five valuable tips on how to actively engage, include, and challenge all students in a classroom are shared.
The first is to include diverse content, materials, and ideas. This can be displayed by using language, examples, socio-cultural context, and images that reflect human diversity through lectures, questions, assignments or exams. Be open to ideas and questions students have to broaden your own understanding and help them understand that knowledge is grown through conversation and collaboration among different points of view. Next, is to create an inclusive environment by communicating with your students and if possible getting to know them, starting from the very beginning. Have rules on how students can share their ideas and correct a student if they are being rude to another student because silence is often read as endorsement. Next, is to encourage a growth mindset and to avoid using words like “natural ability” or lack of. Always identify 2-3 new strategies the student can use to improve. Next, is to help students learn about their resources. Finally, use feedback to improve your own methods by having another instructor observe you and identify adjustments you can make to encourage full inclusion.
I believe these strategies can be extremely helpful to a teacher trying to include all of their students. I believe the top two from this article are to include diverse material to make the student feel comfortable and see their culture shown. The second is to have another instructor observe and give feedback. I believe this could be so powerful because gaining others’ opinions is so valuable when trying to make a positive change.
Works Cited
"Strategies for Fostering Inclusion in the Classroom." The Teaching Center, 30 Jan. 2017, teachingcenter.wustl.edu/resources/inclusive-teaching-learning/fostering-inclusion-in-the-classroom/.