The University of Chicago student community is diverse – racially, ethnically, religiously, socioeconomically – and the University’s efforts continue to increase its diversity. Yet there is always the risk that some students may lack access to the knowledge and strategies other students use to succeed. In this new blog series, we invite you to consider the importance of equity: equipping all students with the tools for success, while making extra effort to support underrepresented or historically marginalized groups, so that no individual or group is left behind. We will discuss both the affordances that digital technologies provide for promoting equity and the risks they may pose if not employed in a careful and thoughtful manner. This initial post in the series will lay the groundwork by explaining the demographic makeup of the University community and the particular challenges that some groups of students may face in navigating college life, challenges that can involve both access to resources and the knowledge and confidence needed to use those resources fully.
The assumption sometimes made about the UChicago student body – that it uniformly reflects wealth and privilege – masks a much more diverse reality. According to the University’s Financial Aid Office, roughly half of the student body receives some amount of need-based financial aid. Nearly one-fifth of students, furthermore, are eligible for the Odyssey Scholarship Program, which provides a loan-free financial aid package to support students for whom a UChicago education would otherwise be financially out of reach. A significant portion of students, both within and outside the Odyssey Scholars, are First-Generation, Lower-Income, or Immigrants (FLI), and the UChicago FLI Network exists specifically to support them as they navigate the college experience.
Yet even with the support networks the University provides, students from underrepresented demographics face unique challenges. A student who is the first in their family to attend college may not know where to turn for academic support resources or may feel too intimidated by faculty and instructors to avail themselves of office hours. A student from a low-income family may struggle to afford the advanced technological tools to which their wealthier peers have access. More generally, these students may simply not be aware of the web of implicit assumptions and expectations that define an educational institution – what researchers have dubbed the hidden curriculum.
Such hurdles can be overcome, and you as a faculty member or instructor can build a supportive climate inside and outside the classroom, but to do so requires deliberate effort. The University’s Inclusive Pedagogy website offers helpful suggestions for those seeking inclusivity and equity, such as:
- Communicate your expectations clearly. Your students should understand how you will assess their learning and what the overall goals of your course are.
- Connect students with resources. At the same time that you express your course expectations, you can also supply your students with information about resources to which they can turn for help, as well as guidance on using those resources. Examples might include:
- Offering students a list of topics they can discuss during office hours, as suggested by Kelly A. Hogan and Viji Sathy in their book Inclusive Teaching.
- Pointing students who need to acquire fundamental software skills to courses on LinkedIn Learning, which is free to the University community.
- Informing students about equipment that can be checked out at the TechBar on the first floor of the Regenstein Library.
- Apply the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). UDL, which you can implement at every level of your course, from syllabus design to assessment design to classroom teaching, is a set of principles that takes into account the needs of all students, not just an “ideal” or “typical” student.
- Use active learning strategies. Active learning strategies, such as concept mapping, case-based learning, and peer instruction, may help engage students from varying backgrounds in a more effective way than the traditional “sage on the stage” lecture model.
In each of the above cases, digital technologies can help you move from general principle to specific implementation – but only if you choose, and use, digital tools judiciously. Stay tuned for future installments, in which we will help you put the principles of inclusivity and equity into action. And as always, feel free to contact Academic Technology Solutions with any questions or comments you may have.
(Cover Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay)
