Teaching with Diverse and Global  Perspectives

Students who encounter diverse perspectives in their classes are likely to develop critical thinking skills , gain broader interests, and prepare for living in a global society.  Instructors can support the university's efforts to diversify by actively teaching from these perspectives.

Learn About Your Students

Recognizing diversity at UW starts with learning about individuals.

• Early in the course, ask for brief written autobiographies from your students, read them from time to time, and develop examples or illustrations of course materials that link to your students' lives.

• Require students to visit you in your office in small groups near the beginning of the semester or at midterm.

• Learn students' names within a couple of weeks.

• Help international students feel welcome.

Review Course Materials

Many instructors continually amend course materials to include diverse perspectives.  Opportunities abound to modify reading assignments, examples in lectures, and visuals in presentation slides.

• Identify the names and nationalities of the experts whose work you are discussing in class.  Include stories of their lives.

• Create links to worldwide events in your online course components.

• Invite students to recommend links or to bring in course materials.

• Consider starting your course with a non-Western perspective.

Challenge Assumptions of Homogeneity

Minority groups identified by a single characteristic, such as sexual orientation or ethnic identity, often suffer from assumptions that this characteristic standardizes all individuals in the group.  Furthermore, we often assume that the UW student body is homogeneous because of a few shared characteristics.

• Diversity can be found in socioeconomic background, travel, relationships, education, and life experiences.  UW students are not homogeneous. 

• Members of groups, especially minority groups, should not be asked to speak for the group as a whole.

Address Stereotype Vulnerability

Students underperform when they fear they will conform to a negative stereotype.  A familiar example is the well-documented stereotype threat that exists for women in math and science fields.  Instructors can take active measures that will subvert these threats.

• Incorporate a full range of capacities relevant to good academic work, including interpersonal, intrapersonal, narrative, and interactive cognitive processes.

• Acknowledge that learning involves uncertainty, insecurity, and even fear.  Help your students recognize that learning will entail social and emotional struggles as well as intellectual challenges.
   

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