{"id":77311,"date":"2024-02-15T12:42:17","date_gmt":"2024-02-15T17:42:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/?post_type=bu-article&#038;p=77311"},"modified":"2026-06-23T08:31:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T12:31:40","slug":"4-ways-educators-can-be-more-inclusive","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/news\/articles\/2024\/4-ways-educators-can-be-more-inclusive\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Ways Educators Can Be More Inclusive"},"content":{"rendered":"\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-leadin news-block-editorial-leadin is-style-text-over-image has-media has-box has-media-focus-center-middle has-text-position-x-center\">\n\t\t<div class=\"container-lockup\">\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-leadin-media\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1080\" height=\"700\" src=\"\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41.png\" class=\"has-background-opacity has-background-opacity-90\" alt=\"Student in a classroom\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41.png 1080w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41-900x583.png 900w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41-768x498.png 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41-500x324.png 500w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41-992x643.png 992w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-41-1000x648.png 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-outer\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-inner has-opacity-60\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"wp-prepress-tag\">Equity, Diversity &amp; Inclusion<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"head\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t4 Ways Educators Can Be More Inclusive\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"deck\">The Center for Educating Critically helps teachers and professors examine themselves and their teaching practices<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar js-block-editorial-metabar news-prepress-layout-metabar\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-date\">February 15, 2024<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-comments\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#comments\" class=\"wp-prepress-component-comment-counter label has-no-comments\"><span class=\"wp-prepress-component-comment-counter-zero\"><span>0<\/span><\/span><\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-credits\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul data-credit-type=\"By\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/news\/authors\/finn-gardiner\/\">Finn Gardiner<\/a><\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-share js-bu-prepress-share-tools\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-twitter\"><span>Twitter<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-facebook\"><span>Facebook<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-action\"><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\n\n\n<p>There have long been tensions between well-intentioned teaching and the unintentional replication of oppressive practices in education, like privileging communication styles typical of the white upper-middle class or inadvertently retraumatizing students of color when discussing racist violence. But while many anti-oppression researchers and advocates have focused on specific forms of oppression like racism or ableism, few have focused on studying how to help educators dismantle systemic bias in general.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>BU Wheelock\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/centerforeducatingcritically\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/centerforeducatingcritically\/\">Center for Educating Critically<\/a>, which works with K\u201312 and higher education educators to develop the tools they need to make classrooms more inclusive by conducting research and building partnerships with community organizations. Director <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/profile\/laura-m-jimenez\/\">Laura Jim\u00e9nez<\/a> and Associate Director <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/profile\/kristin-mcilhagga\/\">Kristin McIlhagga<\/a> shared four ways that educators of all levels can turn their classrooms into sites of joyful inquiry and self-exploration.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAs an educator, I want a space where I don\u2019t just learn about a subject, but where I also learn more about who I am, what my identities are, and how I move in the world,\u201d says McIlhagga.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4>1. Remember that oppression in the classroom is systemic, not just a series of individual actions by teachers.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Recognizing that their actions occur within an inequitable system allows teachers to examine themselves and their practices.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe educate professors about the system they\u2019re functioning in,\u201d says McIlhagga. \u201cBecause if you have a PhD or are teaching at the university level, you have benefited from the system.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, this realization can challenge educators who have managed to succeed within these same inequitable systems. Jim\u00e9nez and McIlhagga emphasize the roles teachers and professors play within an unjust system, rather than cast blame on individuals.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI avoid making it about the person,\u201d says Jim\u00e9nez, who is also BU Wheelock\u2019s associate dean of equity, diversity, and inclusion. \u201cWe have teachers look at their syllabus or the theoretical lens they\u2019re using to teach a particular topic or course.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4>2. Understand that educators\u2019 positions are complex, since privilege and oppression can coexist.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Though teachers from marginalized communities may have an acute understanding of their own experience, this may not transfer to areas in which they have advantages. For example, a Black male teacher\u2019s experience of racism may inform his work, but he may not see other kinds of oppression that he benefits from such as the patriarchy. Individuals can be both privileged and oppressed at the same time in these \u201climinal spaces,\u201d says Jim\u00e9nez.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe have to look at a wider range of oppression, rather than seeing only racism or misogyny. You may notice it in your lane, but not when you\u2019re profiting from it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4>3. Be conscious of marginalized students when planning your curriculum.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Well-meaning teachers want to approach systemic oppression with sensitivity, but some think that they have a strong handle on oppression because they\u2019ve read a few books about racism or sexism. But intention does not equal impact, says McIlhagga.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, an educator who wants to teach students about police violence toward Black, brown, and indigenous people by showing videos of actual events may actually end up retraumatizing Black, brown, and indigenous students. One way instructors can help mitigate this by using content warnings to prepare students who may be retraumatized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe want to work with teachers to move past \u2018I have diverse books\u2019 or \u2018We watched this video,\u2019\u201d says McIlhagga.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4>4. Give students the opportunity to communicate accessibly.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Being conscious of marginalized students isn\u2019t limited to how teachers present the curriculum. Requiring students to discuss their marginalization in formal, academic English raises issues about what counts as communication. For example, students with learning disabilities may benefit from combining shorter paragraphs with images to illustrate their ideas.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cStudents should have the right to a personal standard of communication,\u201d says Jim\u00e9nez. \u201cGiving students the flexibility to express themselves beyond the standard essay opens up new opportunities for conversation, learning, and self-discovery.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories is-style-card has-three news-block-editorial-relatedstories\">\n\t\t<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-title\">Related<\/h3>\n\t\t<ul class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1080\" height=\"700\" src=\"\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34.png\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"male student raising his hand in class as class looks on\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34.png 1080w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34-900x583.png 900w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34-768x498.png 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34-500x324.png 500w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34-992x643.png 992w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2024\/02\/Photos-34-1000x648.png 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-category\"><span>Social Studies<\/span><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/news\/articles\/2024\/promoting-equity-and-diversity-in-the-classroom\/\" class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title-link\">Promoting Equity and Diversity in the Classroom<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-date\">February 5, 2024<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1080\" height=\"700\" src=\"\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/11\/Photos.png\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Three preschool ages children sitting in classroom smiling at camera\" loading=\"lazy\" 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class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title-link\">Teaching Racial Justice in Early Childhood Settings<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-date\">November 28, 2023<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" src=\"\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"a group of panelist speaking at event on a stage\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-1500x1000.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-992x661.jpg 992w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-1984x1323.jpg 1984w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-450x300.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/files\/2023\/10\/414A6717-600x400.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-category\"><span>Blog<\/span><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/news\/articles\/2023\/exploring-equity-in-selective-college-admissions\/\" class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title-link\">Exploring Equity in Selective College Admissions<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-date\">October 18, 2023<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There have long been tensions between well-intentioned teaching and the unintentional replication of oppressive practices in education, like privileging communication styles typical of the white upper-middle class or inadvertently retraumatizing students of color when discussing racist violence. But while many anti-oppression researchers and advocates have focused on specific forms of oppression like racism or ableism, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18489,"featured_media":77323,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"bu_prepress_billboard":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term":"Equity, Diversity & Inclusion","_bu_prepress_primary_term_manual":""},"tags":[6796,7042,4099],"bu-publication":[6614],"magazine-article-category":[],"magazine-topic":[],"news-article-category":[6661,6754,6760,6766,6759],"news-topic":[6936,6934],"bu_edition":[],"media_type":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/77311"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/bu-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18489"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77311"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/77311\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":89399,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/77311\/revisions\/89399"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77323"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77311"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"bu-publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-publication?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine-article-category?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine-topic?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"news-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-article-category?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"news-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topic?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"bu_edition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu_edition?post=77311"},{"taxonomy":"media_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/wheelock\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_type?post=77311"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}