1.2 What Do We Mean By “Inclusive Teaching”?

Inclusive teaching is not a unified theory. Instead, it is a phrase that captures many different approaches that center equity, diversity and inclusion in teaching and learning.

Inclusive Teaching:

• • involves deliberately cultivating a learning environment where all students feel that they belong because they are treated equitably, have equitable access to learning, and feel valued and supported in their pursuit of knowledge.
  • seeks to change the ways systemic inequities operate in teaching-learning spaces, affect individuals’ experiences of education, and influence course and curriculum design.
  • recognizes that inclusion is a major asset in fostering innovation, performance and success in multiple environments where people interact with one another (Rick & Grant, 2016). 

_{(Source: Definition adapted from the University of Michigan’s Centre for Research on Teaching and Learning Links to an external site..)} 

The notion of inclusive teaching owes a great deal to earlier work on cultural responsiveness, a pedagogy that recognizes the importance of being responsive to the presence and contributions of culturally diverse students in all aspects of learning (Gay, 2002; Ladson-Billings, 1995; Montgomery, 2001). Inclusive teaching expands this approach by considering all forms of differences in teaching and learning environments, including culture, race and ethnicity, as well as age, ability, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic background, and other individual and social differences that impact people’s learning experiences.

In summary, inclusive teaching shares these commitments:

• Being responsive to the presence and contributions of diverse students
• Recognizing that different students might access and interact with knowledge differently because they come to the classroom with different lived experiences and unequal access to resources and power
• Ensuring that your course materials and content are relevant to all students
• Being aware of how your identity, beliefs, assumptions and value systems impact your teaching

Why does inclusive teaching matter?

Research has shown that inclusivity is more than a feel-good slogan; diverse teams actually make better decisions and are more capable of collaborating successfully (Rock & Grant, 2016).

This 7-minute video illustrates how an increased sense of belonging can help student achievement, particularly among students who come from groups who have been historically and persistently marginalized.