THEME: What does DEI look like in teaching practices at SDU?

What do you think is important about incorporating diversity, equality and/or inclusion into your university teaching? 

For me, it's important to integrate diversity, equality and inclusion into teaching to ensure that all students have equal opportunities to participate in the learning I offer. I find that the new generation of students has different needs and challenges compared to previous generations, and therefore, I believe that a more inclusive approach to teaching is essential—perhaps more so than what has traditionally been the case at universities.  

 

Please share a few examples of how you incorporate DEI into your teaching.  

It is still quite new for me to work with diversity, equality, and inclusion in my teaching. Last year, I taught a bachelor's course, which was very successful. However, when I taught the same course again this year, I found that the teaching did not work as I had expected based on the previous year. I therefore reconsidered my approach and adapted my teaching to accommodate the current students' different needs and prerequisites. I offered multiple ways to engage with the material, such as working individually, in pairs, or participating in a shared activity with me as a guide. This flexibility helped create a more inclusive learning environment. 

I have also experimented with more active teaching methods, incorporating various group exercises. I have formed groups from the beginning and continuously created new groups giving the students the opportunity to try different collaboration methods while gaining insight into their own learning styles. 

Additionally, I am currently exploring how physical learning environments affect the students. Our school offers open learning spaces, small traditional classrooms, and flexible rooms with different types of furniture. I also hope the students will share their perspectives on what makes a good learning environment. 

Have you had any feedback from students on your DEI approaches? Or what do you hope they experience? 

I have not received much direct feedback from the students regarding my approaches to diversity, equality, and inclusion yet, but I have noticed that the students appreciate being involved and asked for their opinions.  

Students became more engaged and motivated when I introduced multiple ways for them to access and work with the material. This also created a better dynamic in the classroom, where those who already had a solid understanding of the subject could work independently, while those who needed more support could take smaller steps and ask more questions. 

Do you have any other comments on incorporating DEI into university teaching? 

I work with the pedagogical approach Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which focuses on creating learning environments that can be adapted to different students' needs. I am curious about how this approach can not only promote diversity, inclusion, and equality in teaching but also contribute to my own well-being as a teacher. I believe that by creating flexible and engaging learning environments based on UDL principles, I can be more present and manage teaching situations with greater adaptability. At the same time, this could prevent the sense of powerlessness I have previously felt when teaching did not work optimally. 

At Kolding School of Design, we have a relatively large proportion of students receiving SPS support. In my experience, we have not previously focused as much on students with different needs than those we are used to. Therefore, I believe it is important for us to learn more so that we can create better conditions for all our students.   

Below you can see three images from Sarafina's experiments with different learning environments, where she asked the students to reflect on the various teaching spaces at Kolding School of Design.