TEACHING DIVERSE LEARNERS
Jian He, College of Applied Engineer, Sustainability and Technology, Kent State University
Oindrila Roy, Department of Political Science, Kent State University
August 2014
Outline
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Why care about diversity?
What does diversity really mean?
Diversity in learning styles & best practices
“Facing the Uncomfortable Silence”
Campus resources
Q&A
Contact details
Why Care about Diversity?
• Enhances student experience & highlights
the worth of multiple perspectives
• Promotes social and professional
development
• Encourages self-awareness
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
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
(Felder 1993)
Question
Learning Type
What type of information does the student
preferentially receive?
Sensory vs. Intuitive
Through which mode is sensory information
most effectively perceived?
Visual vs. Verbal
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
Teaching Techniques to Address
All Learners
(Felder and 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:
–PTSD
–Minority
–Coming-out
–Disability
–Language-barrier
–Religion
•Web link for the resource document:
http://www2.kent.edu/graduatestudies/gso
new/upload/gso-fall-2013-conversationsresource-doc.pd
Campus Resources
Academic Success Center: Tutoring
www.kent.edu/asc/index.cfm
330-672-3190
Career Services Center
www.kent.edu/career/networking/socialmedi
a.cfm
330-672-2360
Center for Adult and Veteran Services
www.kent.edu/cavs/index.cfm
330-672-7933
Counseling & Human Dev. Center
www.kent.edu/ehhs/chds/counseling-andhuman-development-center.cfm
330-672-2208
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
www.kent.edu/diversity/index.cfm
330-672-8540
Financial Aid
www.kent.edu/financialaid
330-672-2972
International Student & Scholar Services
(ISSS)
www.kent.edu/isss/index.cfm
330-672-7980
LGBTQ Center
www.kent.edu/diversity/lgbtq
330-672-8008
Math Emporium
www.kent.edu/mathemporium/index.cfm
Office of Student Ombus
www.kent.edu/emsa/ombuds.cfm
330-672-9494
Portage County Veterans Services
www.co.portage.oh.us/veterans.htm
330-297-3545
Psychological Services
www.kent.edu/uhs/psych/index.cfm
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/index.cfm
330-672-2322
Women’s Center
www.kent.edu/womenscenter/index.cfm
330-672-9230
Writing Commons
www.kent.edu/writingcommons
330-672-1787
Contact Details
Jian He
jhe2@kent.edu
&
Oindrila Roy
oroy@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-doesdiversity-matter-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