Supporting and Empowering Marginalized Students
For students who already face feelings of marginalization, online instruction can amplify existing biases and marginalization. While some may consider online spaces to be “color-blind” environments, as an equalizer for students with visible identity markers, it does not negate implicit bias in the classroom. In the absence of face-to-face interaction, it is particularly challenging to create classroom environments that are equitable and inclusive and to be cognizant of the ways marginalization may impact students. This is true of students with both visible and non-visible social identities as well, including LGBTQ+ students and students with accessibility needs.
As you think about supporting students who may have feelings of marginalization, always remember: Inclusive teaching has universal benefits for all students!
In the News: Supporting and Empowering Marginalized Students
- Advice Guide – How to make your teaching more inclusive, Chronicle of Higher Education (July 2019)
- How to Respond to Microaggressions, New York Times (March 2020)
- What Two Student Want You to Know About Inclusive Teaching, Faculty Focus - Higher Education Teaching Strategies from Magna Publications (2019)
- Covid-19 Sent LGBTQ Students Back to Unsupportive Homes. That Raises the Risk They Won’t Return, Chronicle of Higher Education (April 2020)
- Campus Climate Issues Don’t Disappear When Campuses Close, Scholars Say, Diverse Issues in Higher Education (April 2020)
- Keep Teaching: Fostering LGBTQ+ inclusion and well-being in the virtual classroom, Ohio News (March 2020)
Scholarly Articles
Ohito, E. O. (2016). Making the Emperor’s New Clothes Visible in Anti-Racist Teacher Education: Enacting a Pedagogy of Discomfort with White Preservice Teachers. Equity & Excellence in Education, 49(4), 454–467.
Schmid, M. E., Gillian-Daniel, D. L., Kraemer, S., & Kueppers, M. (2016). Promoting Student Academic Achievement through Faculty Development about Inclusive Teaching. Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 48(5), 16–25.
Sue, D. W., Alsaidi, S., Awad, M. N., Glaeser, E., Calle, C. Z., & Mendez, N. (2019). Disarming racial microaggressions: Microintervention strategies for targets, White allies, and bystanders. American Psychologist, 74(1), 128-142.
Social Justice and Equity Web Sites
National Center for Institutional Diversity - University of Michigan
Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity - Ohio State University
Additional Resources
Inclusion, Equity, and Access While Teaching Remotely
Creating Safe Spaces for Communication
Managing Hot Moments in the Classroom
Unmasking Racism: Students of Color and Expressions of Racism in Online Spaces
Responding to Microaggressions and Bias
A Guide to Responding to Microaggressions
Tool: Recognizing Microaggressions and the Messages They Send