Leveraging Faculty Development to Promote Inclusive Teaching at a Community College

Date of Award

2023

Degree Name

Ed.D. in Leadership for Organizations

Department

Department of Educational Administration

Advisor/Chair

Elizabeth Essex

Abstract

A potential strategy for mitigating opportunity gaps in higher education is to increase the implementation of inclusive teaching practices (ITPs) by faculty. Inclusive teaching includes a combination instructional strategies, curricular choices, and mindsets that promote equitable learning outcomes for students. of This action research study examines the student and faculty perceptions of ITPs at Midwest Community College (MCC), focusing on instructional strategies and curricular choices. Students were surveyed to understand their perceptions of ITPs. Faculty were surveyed to understand both their perceptions of ITPs and potential barriers for implementation. Qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with faculty highlighted barriers faced in implementing ITPs and identified strategies for increasing the use of ITPs in the classroom. Results suggest that students do respond positively to ITPs and that faculty desire to implement ITPs but face a number of barriers including time and examples of inclusive teaching in practice. Furthermore, faculty are on a spectrum of readiness to implement ITPs. The proposed action plan includes development of an Equity-Oriented Teaching Team that aims to support faculty in enhancing their use of ITPs. Analyzing the landscape of ITPs through an activity system framework helped identify contradictions that must be addressed in order to move towards more equitable learning outcomes in the college classroom.

Keywords

inclusive teaching, equitable learning, faculty development, activity theory, community colleges

Rights Statement

Copyright © 2023, Author

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