Consider running student surveys

You can use surveys at the beginning of the semester to ask students questions that will help you create an academic environment in which they thrive. A Tool to Advance Inclusive Teaching Efforts: The “Who’s in Class?” [PDF].

Anonymous exit surveys or “Start-Stop-Continue” questionnaires during the semester can help you refine your pedagogy; used effectively, surveys can guide your teaching in ways that are personalized and meaningful to your students.

Respecting their privacy by making some questions optional, you may want to learn about their prior educational experiences, interest in the class, preferred names and pronouns, what would help them succeed, and anything else that instructors deem important.