Diversity Statement
The concepts of diversity and inclusion are intertwined into our everyday lives. The way in which we identify and acknowledge them are often shaped by our own stories. A beginning to understanding the concept of diversity began at an early age for me, growing up in a single-parent household. Not having a present father figure, and living in a lower socioeconomic household, my life was quite different than many of my peers in my community. With very little parental support, my family situation required me to take on a great amount of personal responsibility at a much younger age than most, but I believe this upbringing pushed me to work harder and gave me a greater sense of determination to succeed. During my photographic education and at the beginning of my photographic career, I became acutely aware that I was a women in a male dominated field. When I was first hired as an adjunct at College of DuPage, I was one of two females among a faculty of eighteen males. Despite the gender differences, I was able to forge a successful teaching career. Most recently, working at Elmhurst College, I again find myself in the minority amongst our faculty with a Master’s degree as my highest degree earned, in contrast to most faculty having Doctoral degrees. I choose to embrace and share my education background to demonstrate to my students, especially those that may not be able to obtain the highest degree due to various constraints, that a person can achieve success with a career in the psychology field with a Master’s or Bachelor’s education.
Though I may have faced some challenges in my life, I am very aware that I have a life of great privilege, and there are many who have faced and do face adverse situations that are far more challenging. I recognize these barriers confronted by those of a different race, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, creed, ancestry, veteran status, marital status, disability, or other classification, and I have a firm belief that everyone should have equal access to opportunities to succeed, not regardless of these differences, but because we embrace these differences. Every classroom is diverse, and much like our world, each student is unique and each has value. Part of my theoretical understating of cultural diversity and inclusion is based on Abraham Maslow’s theory of development (Crump, 1995). Systematic inclusion and equity is helping to make sure that our students on our campus are able to get their safety and belonging needs met, in order to help them move towards achieving self-actualization. I am committed both personally and professionally, to diversity, equity and inclusion. Together, “we are committed to cultural diversity, mutual respect among all persons, compassion for others, honest and open communication, and fairness and integrity in all that we do” (Student Diversity and Inclusion, n.d.).
Through my course policies and procedures, classroom engagement, and teaching methodology, I am committed to cultural diversity and creating an inclusive classroom environment. On the first day of every course I teach, we review my classroom policies, and I set an expectation of equity and respect for others differences, these are also carefully outlined in my syllabi. For students’ reference, within my course material I include information on underrepresented cultures, and I educate on psychological issues surrounding various minority groups. These topics are reinforced through assignments, videos and lecture material. As part of course engagement on diverse topics, I approach students of various cultures, races, ethnicities, ages, religions, sexual orientations, and disabilities, with compassion and curiosity, which can lead to insightful and meaningful course discussions. Part of being an effective leader is also role-modeling for my students listening and reflection, so that we can more fully appreciate each other’s perspectives.
With every course, I make use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), to create and build a learning environment that is equitable and inclusive to address the needs of diverse student populations by providing multiple means of engagement, representation, action, and expression (The UDL Guidelines, n.d.). One area of inclusion that is of particular importance to me, and that I dedicate a great deal of personal time to, is finding valuable ways to educate and include different levels and types of learners. With every course I teach, I post on Blackboard different learning tips, training videos or educational resources, to help students further develop various learning skills and study habits. My pedagogical perspective utilizes aspects of Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development. By making use of a wide range of learning activities and providing opportunities for observational learning through skilled peers, multiple learning preferences and those with learning disabilities benefit (Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1998). I also believe in using the scaffolding approach to teaching, by offering greater support for my introductory students, such as the use of fillable lecture outlines and a guided approach for teaching research and writing an APA style paper. For my more intermediate to advanced level courses, I increase the level of difficulty and challenge students to demonstrate that they can apply their knowledge and show evidence of critical thinking skills through research writing and case presentations. I also use a variety of assessment methods in every course to allow all students the ability to demonstrate their knowledge through different means. For students with accommodations, I approach each student with empathy and respect and consider each of their learning needs, working together with each of them to design an effective education plan. With individual cases that require greater need and attention, I seek out and coordinate services with the Access and Disabilities department to find appropriate accommodations that fit the need of the students, while simultaneously meeting the expected course objectives. For all my students, I make myself available with quick response times via email, phone, office hours, and appointments, to assist them with their coursework and learning, to help advise them on other courses, and future education and career opportunities in the field of psychology.
Our societies understanding of cultural diversity and inclusion is a process that needs to continue to evolve. I believe this is also true for my own personal and professional standards. I will continue to use professional development courses as an opportunity to further my learning on various cultural aspects and the needs of my students. I will also use opportunities to improve my diversity sensitivity through the process of reflection from student evaluations, individual student feedback, work performance observations and evaluations from my department chair, and learning outcomes. As educators, I believe diversity and inclusion is a collective journey that is our responsibility and is vital to student success.
Though I may have faced some challenges in my life, I am very aware that I have a life of great privilege, and there are many who have faced and do face adverse situations that are far more challenging. I recognize these barriers confronted by those of a different race, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, creed, ancestry, veteran status, marital status, disability, or other classification, and I have a firm belief that everyone should have equal access to opportunities to succeed, not regardless of these differences, but because we embrace these differences. Every classroom is diverse, and much like our world, each student is unique and each has value. Part of my theoretical understating of cultural diversity and inclusion is based on Abraham Maslow’s theory of development (Crump, 1995). Systematic inclusion and equity is helping to make sure that our students on our campus are able to get their safety and belonging needs met, in order to help them move towards achieving self-actualization. I am committed both personally and professionally, to diversity, equity and inclusion. Together, “we are committed to cultural diversity, mutual respect among all persons, compassion for others, honest and open communication, and fairness and integrity in all that we do” (Student Diversity and Inclusion, n.d.).
Through my course policies and procedures, classroom engagement, and teaching methodology, I am committed to cultural diversity and creating an inclusive classroom environment. On the first day of every course I teach, we review my classroom policies, and I set an expectation of equity and respect for others differences, these are also carefully outlined in my syllabi. For students’ reference, within my course material I include information on underrepresented cultures, and I educate on psychological issues surrounding various minority groups. These topics are reinforced through assignments, videos and lecture material. As part of course engagement on diverse topics, I approach students of various cultures, races, ethnicities, ages, religions, sexual orientations, and disabilities, with compassion and curiosity, which can lead to insightful and meaningful course discussions. Part of being an effective leader is also role-modeling for my students listening and reflection, so that we can more fully appreciate each other’s perspectives.
With every course, I make use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), to create and build a learning environment that is equitable and inclusive to address the needs of diverse student populations by providing multiple means of engagement, representation, action, and expression (The UDL Guidelines, n.d.). One area of inclusion that is of particular importance to me, and that I dedicate a great deal of personal time to, is finding valuable ways to educate and include different levels and types of learners. With every course I teach, I post on Blackboard different learning tips, training videos or educational resources, to help students further develop various learning skills and study habits. My pedagogical perspective utilizes aspects of Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development. By making use of a wide range of learning activities and providing opportunities for observational learning through skilled peers, multiple learning preferences and those with learning disabilities benefit (Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1998). I also believe in using the scaffolding approach to teaching, by offering greater support for my introductory students, such as the use of fillable lecture outlines and a guided approach for teaching research and writing an APA style paper. For my more intermediate to advanced level courses, I increase the level of difficulty and challenge students to demonstrate that they can apply their knowledge and show evidence of critical thinking skills through research writing and case presentations. I also use a variety of assessment methods in every course to allow all students the ability to demonstrate their knowledge through different means. For students with accommodations, I approach each student with empathy and respect and consider each of their learning needs, working together with each of them to design an effective education plan. With individual cases that require greater need and attention, I seek out and coordinate services with the Access and Disabilities department to find appropriate accommodations that fit the need of the students, while simultaneously meeting the expected course objectives. For all my students, I make myself available with quick response times via email, phone, office hours, and appointments, to assist them with their coursework and learning, to help advise them on other courses, and future education and career opportunities in the field of psychology.
Our societies understanding of cultural diversity and inclusion is a process that needs to continue to evolve. I believe this is also true for my own personal and professional standards. I will continue to use professional development courses as an opportunity to further my learning on various cultural aspects and the needs of my students. I will also use opportunities to improve my diversity sensitivity through the process of reflection from student evaluations, individual student feedback, work performance observations and evaluations from my department chair, and learning outcomes. As educators, I believe diversity and inclusion is a collective journey that is our responsibility and is vital to student success.
References
Crump, C. (1995). Motivating Students: A Teacher’s Challenge. Opinion Paper. Retrieved from:
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED387840
Johnson, D., Johnson, R., & Smith, K. (1998). Cooperative Learning Returns to College. What Evidence is There that it Works? Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 30(4), 26-35. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00091389809602629?journalCode=vchn20.
Student Diversity and Inclusion. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.elmhurst.edu/about/diversity-inclusion/
The UDL Guidelines. (n.d.). (CAST) Retrieved May 2021, from UDL Guidelines: https://udlguidelines.cast.org/?utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=none&utm_source=cast-about-udl
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED387840
Johnson, D., Johnson, R., & Smith, K. (1998). Cooperative Learning Returns to College. What Evidence is There that it Works? Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 30(4), 26-35. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00091389809602629?journalCode=vchn20.
Student Diversity and Inclusion. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.elmhurst.edu/about/diversity-inclusion/
The UDL Guidelines. (n.d.). (CAST) Retrieved May 2021, from UDL Guidelines: https://udlguidelines.cast.org/?utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=none&utm_source=cast-about-udl