UNDERSTANDING AND TEACHING
DIVERSE STUDENTS
Shakhnoza Yakubova, Higher Education Administration
Samyak Moktan, Communication Studies
August 26, 2015
Outline
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What is Diversity?
Diverse students in the classroom
Possible scenarios and best practices
Diversity in learning styles and best practices
Facing the Uncomfortable Silence - Complex
Conversations
• Campus Resources
• Questions and Answers
Diversity Definitions
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
: the condition of having or being composed of differing
elements: VARIETY; especially: the inclusion of different
types of people (as people of different races or cultures) in a
group or organization
Oxford Dictionary
: the state of being diverse
Other Dictionaries
: a state of unlikeness or the condition
of being different
Diversity is..
Visible & Invisible Diversity
Visible Diversity
Examples: Age, race, sex, ethnicity, accent, and other
physical attributes
Invisible Diversity
Examples: Socio-economic status, work experience, sexual
orientation, parental status, religious affiliation and beliefs,
nationality, geographic location, and political views
Personal Diversity
Types of Diversity
First generation (or first-gen) is a college student
whose parents have not earned a four-year higher
education degree.
Minority student is a representative of an ethnic, racial,
religious, or other group having a distinctive presence
within a larger society. e.g. Hispanic, Asian American,
Native American, African American, etc.
Types of Diversity
Traditional undergraduate student is one who enrolls in
college immediately after graduation from high school,
pursues college studies on a continuous full-time basis at
least during the fall and spring semesters, and completes a
bachelor's degree program in four or five years at the age
of 22 or 23.
Characteristics of traditional students:
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age of 17-23 (or sometimes 25)
no children of their own
full-time enrollment
often financially depend on others
Types of Diversity
Nontraditional undergraduate student is often defined as
the one who takes several years of between highschool and
college enrollment.
Characteristics of traditional students:
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age of 25 and above
has dependents other than a spouse, or is a single parent
financially independent for financial aid purposes
attends college part-time
works full-time
or does not have a high school diploma.
Types of Diversity
Students with disabilities require special educational
accommodations due to their respective conditions, which
include but are not limited to: autism, communication disorders,
emotional disturbances, intellectual disability, orthopedic
impairments, specific learning disabilities, traumatic brain
injuries etcetera.
LGBTQ is an acronym that stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Transgender and Questioning, and is used to designate a
community of people whose sexual or gender identities are
diverse.
Types of Diversity
International students are individuals enrolled in an
accredited college in the U.S. on a temporary VISA (or
equivalent), and who is not an immigrant (permanent resident
with an I-51 or Green Card), or an undocumented immigrant,
or a refugee.
An International student may be:
• degree seeking student
• exchange student
• ESL student (english as a second language)
Why Diversity is Important?
• Enhances student experience and highlights the worth
of multiple perspectives
• Promotes social and professional development
• Encourages self-awareness
• Advocates to create an inclusive learning environment
Facing the Uncomfortable Silence: Scenario
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Discussion PTSD
How would you respond if two students got into
a heated argument over political differences with
Bob, and requested your opinion?
If you were unfamiliar with PTSD, what actions
would you take to ensure that you empathize
with Bob?
Scenario PTSD: Guidelines
Possible Ways to Handle the Situation as a TA:
• Remain composed & speak respectfully
• Refer to student-conduct clause on syllabus
• Carefully design lecture plans
• Document incidents/correspondence
Suggestions for the Student:
• Inform the student about campus resources
– Center for Adult and Veteran Services
– University Health Services
– Student Accessibility Services
Best Practices
• Be careful and intentional about the course-design
• Be attentive to issues of diversity while planning the
schedule
• Be aware of, and avoid problematic assumptions
• Be extra-careful about cultural references
• Be prepared to deal with controversial issues
• Familiarize yourself with the student body
Diversity: Dimensions in Learning Styles
Question
Learning Type
What type of information does the student
preferentially receive?
Sensory vs. Intuitive
Through which mode is sensory information most Visual vs. Verbal
effectively perceived?
With which organization of information is the
student most comfortable?
Deductive vs. Inductive
How does the student process information?
Actively vs. Reflectively
How does the student progress toward
understanding?
Sequentially vs. Globally
((Felder, 1993)
Teaching Techniques to
Address All Learners
(Felder & Silverman 1988)
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Talk about diverse learning styles
Balance teaching material
Do not lecture the entire time
Encourage students to share their
learning experience with you
• Diversify assessment techniques
GS0: Facing the Uncomfortable
Silence Series
Diversity-related scenarios discussed:
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Coming-out
Disability
Language-barrier
Religion
Web link for the resource document:
http://www.kent.edu/graduatestudies/gsoconversations.
Campus Resources
Academic Success Center: Tutoring
http://www.kent.edu/asc/univ-tutoring
330-672-3190
Career Services Center
www.kent.edu/career
330-672-2360
Center for Adult & Veteran Services
www.kent.edu/cavs
330-672-7933
Counseling & Human Dev. Center
http://chdc.educ.kent.edu
330-672-2208
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
www.kent.edu/diversity
330-672-8540
Financial Aid
www.kent.edu/financialaid
330-672-2972
Office of Global Education (OGE)
http://www.kent.edu/globaleducation
330-672-7980
LGBTQ Center
http://www.kent.edu/lgbtq
330-672-8008
Math Emporium
www.kent.edu/mathemporium
Office of Student Ombus
http://www.kent.edu/studentaffairs/student-ombuds
330-672-9494
Portage County Veterans Services
www.co.portage.oh.us/veterans.htm
330-297-3545
Psychological Services
http://www.kent.edu/psych
330-672-2487
Sexual Assault Response Team
www.kent.edu/srvss
330-672-8016
Student Accessibility Services
www.kent.edu/sas
330-672-3391
University Health Services
www.kent.edu/uhs
330-672-2322
Women’s Center
www.kent.edu/womenscenter
330-672-9230
Writing Commons
www.kent.edu/writingcommons
330-672-1787
Contacts
Shakhnoza Yakubova
syakubov@kent.edu
Samyak Moktan
smoktan@kent.edu
Bibliography
Felder, Richard M. 1993. “Reaching the Second Tier: Learning and Teaching Styles in
College Science Education.” Journal of College Science Teaching 23(5): 286-290.
Felder, Richard M., and Linda K. Silverman. 1988. “Learning and Teaching Styles in
Engineering Education.” Engineering Education 78(7): 674-681.
Hyman, Jeremy S., and Lynn F. Jacobs. 2009. “Why Does Diversity Matter at College
Anyway ?” U.S. News and World Report. Retrieved August 5, 2014, from
http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/professors-guide/2009/08/12/why-does-diversitymatter-at-college-anyway
Saunders, Sari , and Diana Kardia. n.d.“Creating Inclusive College Classrooms.”
Retrieved August 5, 2014, from http://www.crlt.umich.edu/gsis/p3_1