Diversity in the Classroom: Creating an
Inclusive Atmosphere
Caren Goldberg, Ph.D., Kogod School of Business
Tiffany Sanchez, Director of New Student Programs
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
How Inclusive is the
Environment at AU?
• The CIRP (Cooperative Institutional Research
Program) Freshman Survey is administered by the
HERI at UCLA in the beginning of the fall. They have
collected data from students at over 1,900 institutions
in the US.
• Your First College Year, has been developed by HERI
and the Policy Center on the First Year of College at
Brevard College. It measures many of the same items
as CIRP, at the end of the spring.
• Combining these two provides a comparison of how
expectations match reality.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Expectations vs. Reality: %
Reporting Often/Very Often
80
70
60
50
40
Fall 2007
Spring 2008
30
20
10
0
Socialize
Dined/Shared a
Meal
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Had Intellectual
Discussions
Outside Class
Studied/Prepared
for Class
Attended Events
Sponsored by
Other Groups
General Discrimination: %
Somewhat or Strongly Agree
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Race/Ethnicity
SES
Gender
Religion
I have felt discriminated against based on my:
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Sexual Orient
Stereotypes in the Classroom
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Race/Ethnicity
Women
In class, I have heard faculty express stereotypes about:
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Men
More on Stereotypes…
People naturally gravitate towards similar others, but
doing so, may increase reliance on stereotypes,
because stereotypes are used more heavily when:
• Individuals from certain groups (e.g., race, gender,
age) are in a clear minority
• Individuals have had little experience with others from
a particular group
• Faculty may permit it through action or inaction
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Increasing Inclusiveness in the
Classroom (1)
• Consider assigning students to groups, to avoid the
tendency for similar students to gravitate toward one
another.
• Make a point to learn more about cultures, learning
styles, disabilities, etc., with which you are unfamiliar.
• Openly discuss average group differences where it is
relevant to the class, but articulate the dangers in
making assumptions based on these differences.
 Women are less assertive than men, on average, but does that
imply that I am unassertive?
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Increasing Inclusiveness in the
Classroom (2)
• Be sensitive to the unintended messages students may
perceive from you or other students in day-to-day
conversations.
 e.g., “businessmen”
• Be careful about going overboard in your attempt to be
sensitive to individual students. You might end up
creating unintended inequities.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Exercise
Being Black today in America is like…
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Moving Beyond Demographics
Disabilities
-How to accommodate what we can’t see
Cultural Differences
-Expectations about participation, cheating, etc.
Learning Styles
-Visual vs. auditory
-We tend to teach using styles that are most conducive to our own
learning
Exam Styles
-Essay vs. m/c
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Example Scenario 1
A student claims to have a disability, but given his
obvious fitness, you suspect he is trying to pull one
over on you. The student senses your doubt and
requests a meeting with you to discuss the nature of
his disability.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Example Scenario 2
A student clearly “lifted” an entire page of her essay from
a published source. When you confront her, the
student claims that because you never explicitly said
that plagiarism is a form of cheating, she thought it was
okay.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Example Scenario 3
Although the syllabus clearly states that participation is
weighted heavily, you notice a clear division between
the extent to which domestic vs. international students
participate. Some of your international students have
commented that the heavy participation requirement is
insensitive to their cultural background.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Example Scenario 4
After receiving his/her final grade for the semester, a
student comes to your office on the verge of tears. He
says that he bombed the final because his learning
disability makes taking m/c exams in a classroom with
other students very difficult. The student goes on to
say that getting the grade you gave means that he will
no longer be eligible for his scholarship, which,
because of his financial situation, means that he can
no longer attend AU.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Web Resources on Diversity &
Inclusiveness in the Classroom
• CIRP - “40 Years of Changes in the Student Body”
• http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/04/09/cirp
• Princeton – Links to Many Classroom D & I Resources
• http://www.princeton.edu/~djbutler/ditclink.htm
• Bond University’s Website
• http://www.bond.edu.au/tls/resources/beyondawareness/conte
xt.html#
• Kolb's Learning Style Inventory
• http://www.haygroup.com/tl/Questionnaires_Workbooks/Kolb_
Learning_Style_Inventory.aspx
• Visual vs. Auditory Learning – Auditory Tic-Tac-Toe
• http://www.thiagi.com/pfp/IE4H/march2004.html#CognitiveSim
ulation
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY KOGOD SCHOOL OF BUSINESS