Ensure that your curriculum is inclusive

Canadian universities inherited a teaching and learning environment that typically does not consider diverse learning needs or educational backgrounds, particularly those of non-western countries. Access the survey tool “Inclusion by Design” to assess the inclusivity of your syllabus. This tool was designed for instructors to get a broader perspective on inclusion in your teaching practices.

Some common practices:

1. It is important to diversify course content. Owing to historical and ongoing marginalization BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) voices in academic literature, consider including books, biographical narratives/memoirs, theatre, video, spoken-word, social media, music, web video clips, or visual art in your course content. These forms of media might better represent BIPOC experiences of race and racism.
2. Instructors can interrogate their own experiences of social location, power and privilege and share these reflections, if comfortable, with students as an example of the kind of thorough self-reflection expected in the course. Open-access peer-reviewed social location mapping tool.
3. Inclusive content: Enhance international students’ learning by creating inclusive and equitable learning environments to engage all students. An overview of Inclusive Design.
4. Offering clear expectations or directions for each component of your course such as discussion, participation, and major assignments and projects.
5. Ensuring resources and readings are made for a diverse audience. Building an Inclusive Syllabus.
6. Including an equity or inclusivity statement.
7. Including subject matter relating to global and intercultural perspectives (e.g., inclusion of international and national case studies, examples, and illustrations). Interculturalizing the Curriculum.
8. Examining your syllabus for diverse authorship. Many syllabi are dominated by white, western male scholars. White Dominance in Academia.
9. Ensuring imagery used in course materials is diverse and inclusive, e.g., images used in PowerPoints show culturally diverse people.
10. Avoiding examples that perpetuate racial stereotypes. Visit this 20-minute video about the Jim Crow Museum, can be screened in-class as a good jumping off point for discussion about racial stereotypes.
11. Inviting Guest speakers who come from other countries and who can speak to diverse subject matters.
12. Collaborating with colleagues and joining networks of instructors who teach the same or similar courses in and outside Canada.
13. Inclusive assessment: Instructors might benefit from using different assessments (papers, tests, quizzes, projects), media (written, audio/video, digital), throughout the course. It is still important to be as clear as possible about what the options might be and examples of these so that students are clear about the expectations.
14. Additional tips for inclusive course design:
    • Create links between assessment criteria and international standards in the discipline area or profession for students, so that they are aware of why the assessment items are important.
    • Include assessment items that draw on cultural contexts as well as disciplinary knowledge (e.g., comparative exercises that involve comparing/contrasting local and international standards, practices, issues, etc.).
    • Design assessment tasks that require students to present information to and receive feedback from diverse audiences. Now that the virtual environment is more the norm, it is easier to connect to different countries.
    • Consider using a variety of different rubrics to clarify criteria. Students need to understand how assignments will be assessed, and expectations for different levels of performance. Rubrics should be easy to read and follow and examples can be provided for additional clarity. Grading strategies.