Incorporating equity, diversity, and inclusion in science: Lessons learned from an undergraduate seminar

Abstract

Questions of equity, diversity, and inclusion in the sciences have taken center stage in light of the COVID‐19 pandemic and Black Lives Matter movement of 2020. This paper focuses on the experiences of academics engaging in such work, particularly in their roles as educators, by sharing two of the authors' experiences introducing equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives in a first‐year science course at a Canadian university. Using critical research methodologies like narrative inquiry and memory work, we look at three separate instances where complex personal, institutional and course attributes fostered, allowed, or hindered efforts to bring these initiatives into the classroom. We consider how problematic incidents and obstacles relating to the organization of content on equity, diversity, and inclusion in science cropped up during the process, how they were perceived and handled in the moment, as well as the authors' reflections, takeaways, and lessons learned from the experience. These stories suggest that efforts to center discussions about equity, diversity, and inclusion in undergraduate science classrooms can be unpredictable and complex, particularly at the day‐to‐day level; this is especially the case when handling subtler microaggressions rather than clear instances of discrimination or harassment. Our study points to the importance of creating a more permanent institutional memory for initiatives that outlive those who initiated and organized them, so that they become embedded within the culture of a course or department.

Students’ perspectives and experiences with equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in online and in-person undergraduate science laboratory courses

“…For stereotypical barriers, some students reported cases of bias towards women and high achievers. This broadly aligns with literature on microaggressions in STEM fields (McGee, 2020;Ramachandran et al, 2023). Moreover, students expressed concerns about how some students had extensive previous lab experience from their high school education which gave them an advantage to complete lab work faster.…”

“…Stereotypical barriers often manifest in ways that may not always be overt or intentional, yet their impact can be profoundly detrimental to those who experience them. Microaggressions are an example of subtle, yet harmful forms of discriminatory behaviour related to characteristics experienced by members of oppressed groups (Ramachandran et al, 2023). Researchers have detailed incidents of racial microaggressions, racial stereotyping, and other forms of racialized bias in STEM fields (McGee, 2020).…”

Freighted Friendships to Phony Flowers: Feminist Memory Work and Self-Study in a Study Abroad Program

“…Similar to Stephen's (2010) scholarship on oral history and feminist memory, we fear that the feminist design and lessons learned through the project might be lost from collective academic memory. We also agree with Ramachandran et al (2023), who suggest fostering more permanent institutional memories for initiatives no longer linked to those who initiated and organized them, so that insights can become embedded within (academic) culture. We thus critically remember this experience to consider and assert its larger implications for understanding how feminists can approach new experiential education contexts, as “resistant, belligerent, unsettling thinkers, [and] also generous, reliable supportive teachers” (McGregor, 2017, p. 18).…”