Transcript Multicultural Awareness Project for Institutional

Multicultural Awareness Project
for Institutional Transformation:
Making the Case for Universal
Instructional Design
Jeanne L. Higbee, Irene M. Duranczyk,
& David Ghere
University of Minnesota
Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the
European Access Network (EAN),
Galway, Ireland, June, 2007
Contact Information
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Jeanne L. Higbee, [email protected]
Irene M. Duranczyk, [email protected]
David Ghere, [email protected]
Center for Research on Developmental
Education and Urban Literacy (CRDEUL),
http://www.education.umn.edu/crdeul
• Pedagogy and Student Services for
Institutional Transformation (PASS IT),
http://www.education.umn.edu/passit
Agenda
• History of MAP IT & Theoretical
Framework
• Summary of Relevant Findings
• The PASS IT Project
• The Intersection of Multicultural
Awareness and Universal Instructional
Design for Institutional Transformation:
Integrated Multicultural Instructional
Design (IMID)
• Questions and Discussion
10 MAP-IT Guiding Principles
• Institutional Governance /
Organization / Equity
• Decision Making /
Collaboration /
Supportive Environment
• Professional
Development Programs
• Equitable Learning
Opportunities
• Ways of Knowing
• Development of Social
Skills
• Extra Curricular / Cocurricular Activities
• Educational Support
Services
• Shared Cultural
Values
• Culturally-Sensitive
Assessment
Theoretical Framework:
Banks’ 5 Dimensions of
Multicultural Education
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Content integration
Knowledge construction
Prejudice reduction
Equity pedagogy
Empowering school culture
MAP IT Student Findings
• Conducted spring 2004
• Students enrolled in GC 1422: Writing Lab
• 406 of 629 students registered in the
course responded = 65% response rate
• 403 questionnaires were complete/usable
• Response choices: 1 = never or almost
never, 2 = occasionally, 3 = often, 4 =
almost always or always
• Demographics = how students identified
themselves
Student Demographics
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48% female, 45% male, 1% transgender
75% native speakers of English
6% students with disabilities
42% Caucasian
16% Asian American; 6% Asian
12% African American; 4% African
6% Hispanic/Latina/Latino
4% Biracial/multiracial
1% Pacific Islander
0% Native American
MAP IT Faculty-Staff Findings
• From spring 06 administration (not same
administration as discussed in the paper;
this data is provided in the monograph)
• 41 of 164 GC employees responded =
25% response rate
• No demographic data collected
• Purpose: To provide a multiculturalism
baseline for transition from General
College to Dept. of Postsecondary
Teaching and Learning
Area
Student
Means
Commitment to Diversity
Faculty/
Staff Mean
3.59
Organizational Structure
3.21
2.162.52
Professional Development
3.42
3.15
Equal Opportunities for Success 3.36
3.45
Awareness of Social Context
2.943.21
3.35
3.153.59
Area
Acquiring Effective Social Skills
Faculty/ Student
Staff
Means
Mean
3.14
2.803.08
Developmental Support Services
3.37
3.37
Ideas Valued by Many Cultures
3.31
2.97
Extracurricular and Co-curricular
2.65
2.88
Culturally Sensitive Assessment
2.753.15
2.453.12
Areas for Concern
From Student Results
• At U of M, have you been discriminated
against? M = 1.49, median & mode = 1
• Does discrimination hinder your
opportunities to participate fully in the
General College? M = 1.66, median &
mode = 1
• Are you concerned about your safety on
this campus? M =1.83, median = 2,
mode = 1
Concerns (cont.)
• Do administrators, faculty, and staff talk
openly and constructively with you about
multicultural issues? M = 2.80
• Do you have opportunities to interact with
appropriate role models? M = 2.87
• Opportunities for civic engagement? M =
2.36
• Have you participated in university
activities outside of class that promote
multicultural understanding? M = 2.26
Pedagogy and Student Services for
Institutional Transformation
(PASS IT)
• Funded by U.S. Dept. of Ed.
• Goal is to enhance learning for all students
both within and outside the classroom
through implementation of Universal
Design and Universal Instructional Design
• Exploring differences in course pass rates
for students with disabilities, and also the
extent to which separate accommodations
are no longer necessary
Definition of Universal Design
Universal Design is the design of
products and environments to be
usable by all people, to the
greatest extent possible, without
the need for adaptation or
specialized design
Source: The Center for Universal Design (1997)
Not just “one size fits all . . .”
Applied to higher education, the
primary goal of Universal Design
is to create inclusive, flexible,
customizable products, courses,
programs, activities, and
environments.
Universal Instructional Design
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Create a respectful learning environment
Determine essential course components
Establish clear expectations and feedback
Develop natural supports for learning,
including through use of technology
• Use multiple teaching strategies
• Provide multiple types of opportunities to
demonstrate knowledge
• Encourage contact between students and
faculty
Source: North Carolina State University, 1997; based on Chickering
& Gamson, 1987
Implementing UID
Consider all possible students
who might enroll in a course (or
make use of a program or service)
and design the course content,
pedagogy, and physical space (or
office or program) to ensure that
all students will have equal access
and feel welcomed
PASS IT Data
• 2005-2006: In UID classes, pass rate for
students with disabilities was 87.8% (n =
41); pass rate for students who do not
have disabilities was 89.8% (n = 617)
• F 2006: In UID classes, pass rate for
students with disabilities was 90% (n =
59); pass rate for students who do not
have disabilities was 92% (n = 1550)
• At the U
• of Minnesota, of the 31 students with
disabilities, 29 did not require any
separate accommodations
Next Logical Steps
• Extending implementation of Universal
Instructional Design to think more broadly
about access and success for students
from underrepresented populations
• Considering misunderstandings related to
the “universal” in UID
• Developing a model for Integrated
Multicultural Instructional Design (IMID)
that builds on the work of MAP IT and
PASS IT
Integrated Multicultural
Instructional Design (IMID):
Guiding Principles to Create
Action Steps to Enhance
Students’ Multicultural
Educational Experiences
IMID Guiding Principles
(see pp. 12-13 of paper)
• Value difference
• Articulate commitment to diversity
• Establish respectful and supportive
learning environment
• Promote understanding of how contexts
shape learning
• Determine essential course components
• Embed skill development
IMID Guiding Principles
(cont.)
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Communicate clear expectations
Provide constructive feedback
Integrate multicultural perspectives
Teach ideas valued by many cultures
Provide natural supports
• Use diverse teaching methods
• Create multiple ways for demonstrating
knowledge
IMID Guiding Principles
(cont.)
• Use culturally-sensitive assessments
• Promote interaction among and between
faculty and students
Diversity and the
Postsecondary Experience
and MAP IT report
available free of charge
in pdf format on the
CRDEUL Web site,
http://www.education.umn.edu/crdeul