Open pedagogy is fundamentally relational—it centres the humanity of both students and instructors by emphasising agency, consent, care, and compassion in the learning process while actively working to create inclusive environments where all students can thrive. This approach recognises that effective learning happens when students feel empowered, respected, and valued as whole people with diverse experiences and ways of knowing.

This section explores how the foundational values of open pedagogy—agency, consent, care, and compassion—intersect with justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) principles to create learning environments that are both personally empowering and systemically responsive to the needs of all learners. These values and principles work together as an interconnected approach—you don’t need to implement everything at once, but can thoughtfully integrate practices that align with your teaching context and values.

Why this matters for you

When you centre student agency and inclusive practice, you create classroom environments where students are more engaged, motivated, and willing to take intellectual risks. This leads to richer discussions, more creative assignments, and the professional satisfaction that comes from knowing your teaching practices reflect your values about human dignity and educational justice.

Why this matters for your students

Students who experience agency and inclusion in their learning develop stronger academic confidence, deeper engagement with course content, and an enhanced sense of belonging in educational spaces. These experiences are particularly transformative for students from marginalised backgrounds who may not have previously seen themselves as knowledge creators or valued contributors to academic communities.

Open Pedagogy Relational Values:
Agency, Consent, Care, and Compassion

These four values form the relational foundation of open pedagogy, shifting the classroom from a transactional space to one where learning is co-created and grounded in mutual respect and human dignity.

Agency

Agency means giving students meaningful choices and a sense of ownership over their learning. This goes beyond superficial options to include substantive decision-making opportunities that respect students as capable, knowledgeable individuals.

Agency in practice includes:

• Allowing students to choose formats for assignments (podcast, infographic, essay, presentation) based on their strengths and interests
• Letting students select topics that connect to their personal, professional, or community interests
• Involving students in co-creating course content, discussion questions, or evaluation criteria
• Encouraging students to set personal learning goals and regularly reflect on their progress
• Providing flexibility in deadlines and participation methods to accommodate diverse life circumstances

When students have genuine agency, they develop stronger motivation, take greater responsibility for their learning, and see themselves as active participants rather than passive recipients in the educational process (Deci & Ryan, 2000). Providing students with opportunities for choice and agency leads to increased engagement, motivation, and self-regulated learning (Deci & Ryan, 2000; Patall et al., 2008).

Consent

Consent in open pedagogy means respecting students’ autonomy and ensuring that participation in collaborative or public-facing work is always voluntary and informed. This is particularly important when student work may be shared beyond the classroom.

Consent practices include:

• Clearly explaining what it means to publish work openly, including which platforms will be used and who might see the work
• Providing students with meaningful alternatives to public sharing that don’t penalise their participation or grades
• Allowing students to use pseudonyms, restrict access to their work, or participate anonymously when appropriate
• Revisiting consent throughout the course rather than treating it as a one-time agreement
• Being transparent about how student contributions will be used and ensuring students maintain control over their intellectual contributions

Ethical consent practices ensure that openness enhances rather than compromises student safety, privacy, and autonomy.

Care

Care involves the intentional design of learning environments that support students’ well-being, dignity, and success. It recognises that students are whole people with complex lives and diverse needs.

Care-centred practices include:

• Designing flexible policies that accommodate diverse life circumstances, responsibilities, and learning needs
• Checking in with students regularly and responding to their needs with empathy and practical support
• Creating classroom cultures where students feel seen, heard, and valued for who they are
• Using inclusive language and materials that reflect diverse identities, experiences, and ways of knowing
• Providing clear expectations and transparent processes that reduce anxiety and support student success

Care is not about lowering academic standards—it’s about recognising that rigorous learning happens best in environments where students feel safe, supported, and respected. Academic rigour can promote equity by setting high expectations for all students while providing them with the support and resources they need to meet those expectations (Bowman & Culver, 2018). Disadvantaged students perform on par with their peers when barriers have been addressed rather than when academic standards are lowered (Supiano, 2021).

Compassion

Compassion is the practice of responding to students with empathy, patience, and understanding, particularly when they face challenges or make mistakes. It involves modelling vulnerability and creating space for human imperfection in the learning process.

Compassionate practices include:

• Offering flexibility for missed deadlines or participation when students face personal challenges
• Acknowledging the emotional aspects of learning, especially in courses dealing with sensitive or personal topics
• Modelling vulnerability and intellectual humility as an instructor
• Encouraging a culture of kindness and mutual support among students
• Viewing mistakes and confusion as natural parts of the learning process rather than failures

Compassion builds trust and psychological safety, creating conditions where students feel comfortable taking intellectual risks and growing from challenges. Psychological safety allows students to take learning risks, ask questions, and engage more deeply without fear of judgment, leading to increased engagement, creativity, and collaboration. Additionally, it is important to instil qualities of compassion and empathy in our students and “ major educational constructs of communication, mindfulness, self-care, self-regulation, reflective practice, early clinical exposure, technology-enhanced learning, comics and arts and culture should be targeted for teaching empathy and compassion” (Menezes et al., 2021, p.13).

Inclusive Practice:
Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Building on these foundational values, open pedagogy actively works to address systemic barriers and create more just and inclusive educational experiences. JEDI principles guide us to design learning experiences that recognise and respond to the diverse identities, experiences, and needs of our students.

Justice

Justice in education means recognising and actively addressing systemic barriers that affect student access, participation, and success. It involves examining how educational structures and practices may privilege some students while disadvantaging others.

Justice-oriented practices include:

• Revising assessment practices to reduce bias and provide multiple ways for students to demonstrate learning beyond traditional exams
• Using open resources and flexible materials to reduce financial barriers to course participation
• Designing assignments that connect to real-world issues and allow students to explore topics relevant to their communities
• Advocating for accessible technologies and inclusive policies within your department and institution
• Examining your own practices and course design for potential barriers or biases

Equity

Equity ensures that all students have what they need to succeed, recognising that different learners may require different supports and approaches. It moves beyond treating everyone the same to providing individualised support.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides a research-based framework for creating equitable learning environments. UDL can improve student learning, with particular benefits for diverse learners (Almeqdad et al., 2023), and UDL benefits all learners by proactively removing barriers rather than requiring individual accommodations (Burgstahler, 2015).

Equitable practices include:

• Offering flexible deadlines and alternative formats for assignments to accommodate diverse learning styles and life circumstances
• Providing scaffolding and support for students who may be new to collaborative or open learning environments
• Using anonymous feedback tools to understand and respond to student needs throughout the term
• Being transparent about expectations and providing clear rubrics, examples, and guidance
• Recognising and validating different forms of knowledge and ways of learning

Diversity

Diversity involves actively including and celebrating a range of perspectives, identities, experiences, and ways of knowing in your course content and classroom culture.

Diversity-supporting practices include:

• Including readings and resources from authors of different backgrounds, particularly those historically underrepresented in your field
• Inviting students to bring their own experiences, cultural knowledge, and perspectives into discussions and assignments
• Using inclusive language that doesn’t assume particular identities, abilities, or background knowledge
• Highlighting global, cross-cultural, or Indigenous perspectives in course materials and examples
• Creating space for different communication styles and ways of participating in class

Inclusion

Inclusion creates learning environments where all students feel they belong and are encouraged to participate fully and authentically. It moves beyond representation to ensure that diverse voices are heard, valued, and integrated into the learning process.

Students with traditionally marginalised identities are more engaged and likely to remain in programs when they feel they belong in their learning environments (Rodriguez & Blaney, 2021; Sax et al., 2018). Belonging interventions have demonstrated significant academic and health benefits, particularly for students from marginalised backgrounds (Walton & Cohen, 2011). A sense of belonging serves as a fundamental human need that motivates behaviour (Baumeister & Leary, 1995).

Inclusive practices include:

• Co-creating classroom norms and participation guidelines with students at the beginning of the term
• Using tools like collaborative annotation, discussion boards, or small group work to ensure multiple voices are heard
• Regularly seeking student feedback about their learning experience and making responsive adjustments
• Designing group work intentionally with clear roles and expectations that support equitable participation
• Acknowledging and addressing when certain voices dominate while others are marginalised

Integration: How These Values Work TOgether

The foundational values and JEDI principles don’t operate in isolation—they work together to create learning environments that are both personally empowering and systemically responsive. Here are just a few of the ways that these values work together (you may think of more!):

Agency and Justice

When students have meaningful choice in their learning, they can pursue topics and approaches that connect to their experiences and communities, making education more relevant and empowering.

Consent and Equity

Ethical consent practices ensure that all students can participate authentically without compromising their safety, privacy, or values, creating more equitable conditions for engagement.

Care and Diversity

Care-centred approaches recognise and respond to the diverse needs, circumstances, and identities students bring to the classroom, supporting their full participation.

Compassion and Inclusion

Compassionate practices create psychological safety that allows all students to contribute their perspectives, make mistakes, and grow without fear of judgment or exclusion.

Common Concerns and Clarifications

Implementing the relational foundations of open pedagogy involves examining and potentially changing fundamental aspects of classroom dynamics and power structures. As faculty consider these approaches, they often encounter both common misconceptions about what student agency means in practice and legitimate concerns about managing workload, maintaining standards, and navigating the emotional complexity of inclusive teaching:

“Centring student agency sounds like I’ll lose control of my classroom and course objectives.”
Student agency doesn’t mean abandoning your expertise or course goals—it means involving students as partners in achieving those objectives. You still provide structure, guidance, and evaluation, but students have meaningful input into how they engage with the content and demonstrate their learning. Many faculty find that students are more motivated and produce higher-quality work when they have genuine choice and ownership.

“I want to be inclusive, but I’m worried about saying or doing the wrong thing and offending students.”
This concern reflects genuine care for students and can be addressed through transparent communication and ongoing learning. Share your commitment to inclusion with students, acknowledge that you’re continuing to learn, and create mechanisms for feedback when things don’t go well. Students generally appreciate authenticity and effort over perfection, and mistakes can become opportunities for modelling growth and responsiveness.

“These approaches seem time-intensive, and I’m already overwhelmed with my teaching load.”
While implementing these values thoughtfully does require intentional planning, many practices can be integrated into existing course structures without major overhauls. Start with small changes like offering assignment format choices, using more inclusive language, or creating simple feedback mechanisms. The increased student engagement and reduced need for remedial support often offset the initial time investment.

“My discipline has specific content requirements that don’t leave room for student choice or personalisation.”
Even highly structured disciplines can incorporate agency and inclusive practice through how content is delivered, practised, and assessed rather than what is covered. Students can choose how to demonstrate their understanding, connect required concepts to their interests, or collaborate on problem-solving approaches while still meeting all learning objectives.

“I’m concerned that focusing on care and compassion will lower academic standards or create entitled students.”
Care and compassion actually support rather than undermine academic rigour by creating conditions where students can engage more fully with challenging material. When students feel supported and respected, they’re more likely to persist through difficulties, seek help when needed, and take intellectual risks that lead to deeper learning.

Reflective Activity

Moving Forward

Centring student agency and inclusive practice transforms classrooms into communities of mutual respect and shared learning. These foundational values create the conditions necessary for deeper pedagogical innovations like collaborative knowledge creation and authentic assessment.

Remember that implementing these approaches is a journey, not a destination. Start with practices that feel manageable and align with your current teaching context, then build from there as you gain experience and confidence. Every small step toward more inclusive and empowering education makes a meaningful difference for your students.

When students feel empowered, respected, and included, they’re more willing to take intellectual risks, share diverse perspectives, and engage authentically in the learning process. This foundation makes it possible to implement more advanced open pedagogical approaches where students become active contributors to knowledge rather than passive consumers.

Next, we’ll explore how to position students as creators of knowledge, building on the agency and inclusive practices you’ve been developing to create opportunities for authentic contribution and public scholarship.

References

Almeqdad, Q., Alodat, A., Alquraan, M., Mohaidat, M., & Al-Makhzoomy, A. (2023). The effectiveness of universal design for learning: A systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis. Cogent Education, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2023.2218191

Baumeister, R., & Leary, M. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 117(3), 497-529. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.117.3.497

Bowman, N., & Culver, K. (2018). Promoting equity and student learning: Rigor in undergraduate academic experiences. New Directions for Higher Education, 2018(181), 47-57. https://doi.org/10.1002/he.20270

Burgstahler, S., Ed. (2015). Universal design in higher education: From principles to practice. Harvard Education Press.

Deci, E., & Ryan, R. (2000). The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227-268. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1449618

Menezes, P., Guraya, S., & Guraya, S. (2021). A systematic review of educational interventions and their impact on empathy and compassion of undergraduate medical students. Frontiers in Medicine, 8, 758377. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2021.758377

Patall, E., Cooper, H., & Robinson, J. C. (2008). The effects of choice on intrinsic motivation and related outcomes: A meta-analysis of research findings. Psychological Bulletin, 134(2), 270-300. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.134.2.270

Rodriguez, S., & Blaney, J. (2021). “We’re the unicorns in STEM”: Understanding how academic and social experiences influence sense of belonging for Latina undergraduate students. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 14(3), 441-455. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000176

Sax, L., Lehman, K., Jacobs, J., Kanny, M., Lim, G., Monje-Paulson, L., & Zimmerman, H. B. (2018). Anatomy of an enduring gender gap: The evolution of women’s participation in computer science. Journal of Higher Education, 88(2), 258-293. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26772060

Supiano, B. (2021, November 11). Teaching: A different way of thinking about rigor. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/newsletter/teaching/2021-11-18

Walton, G., & Cohen, G. (2011). A brief social-belonging intervention improves academic and health outcomes of minority students. Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science), 331(6023), 1447-1451. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1198364