DESCRIPTION

Instructors can redesign their courses to increase the diversity of perspectives and sense of belonging among students of all backgrounds and faith traditions.

Many reasons may lead instructors to re-think course design and content. Increasing calls for social justice and representation, the number of international students, students from communities of color, and students of faith traditions other than Christianity and Judaism are all reasons to update courses.

This can be an individual exercise or a collaborative one, if there are other instructors who teach the same course.

Objectives, Audience, Class Size, & Mode of Instruction

GLOBALLY FOCUSED OBJECTIVES

A redesign can be framed around the IU Indianapolis Dimensions of Global LearningLinks to an external site., the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the Profiles of Learning for Undergraduate Success, or other globally-focused frameworks.

AUDIENCE

This can be done in all courses, undergraduate and graduate.

CLASS SIZE

Classes of all sizes.

MODE OF INSTRUCTION

Online, asynchronous, in-person or hybrid

Preparation, Implementation, Assessment, & Additional Considerations

PREPARATION

First, consider how the course supports degree-level outcomes in your program. Also consider how the course complements other required or elective courses. If the course is required, consider when students take it in terms of course sequencing and how other required courses engage global learning objectives. Don’t rely only on electives to bring in global learning. If other instructors teach the same course, collaborate with them to align your redesign efforts.

Review your course content and syllabus to determine if the readings, images, case studies, frameworks, authors, and speakers featured provide a plurality of voices and concepts.

Become familiar with cultural and national perspectives in the literature of your field. If you teach an interdisciplinary course, consider more than one discipline for representation of perspectives.

Consider a matrix or another visual way to capture the balance of representation. This is a useful double check of course components before moving on to implementation.

IMPLEMENTATION

Determine high-level goals for the course redesign, then scaffold the assignments and assessment.
Carefully consider and update course readings – recognize that many longtime favorite readings may not move forward in the resign.
Identify new images and examples for any course presentations.
Re-record any lectures to reflect updated concepts, language, and examples.
Revise assessment tools, including discussion questions and written assignments such as exams and exam questions, to align with new course content.

ASSESMENT

Align assessment with course learning objectives and global learning objectives.
Use reflective prompts to gauge learning at specific points during the course and in conjunction with recorded lectures.
Integrate internationally and interculturally comparative content into assessments

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

Consider if you will inform students of your efforts and provide them with an opportunity to offer feedback on the revised course. Sharing your rationale for the redesign and inviting student feedback throughout the semester are effective strategies to assess the success of your redesign.

Examples, Resources, & References

EXAMPLES

Following is a high-level summary of the content changes:
Badertscher How to Redesign a Course to Increase the Diversity of Perspectives.docx

AAC&U Value Rubrics: https://www.aacu.org/initiatives/value-initiative/value-rubrics.

A. Chávez & S. Longerbeam. Teaching across cultural strengths (NYC: Routledge, 2016).

S. Davidson, “Trauma-Informed Practices for Postsecondary Education: A Guide,” (Education Northwest, 2017).

M. Guzzardo, et al., “The Ones that Care Make all the Difference,” Innovative Higher Education 46 (2021): 41-58.

M. Imad, “Transcending Adversity: Trauma-Informed Educational Development,” Academy 39 no. 3 (2021).

H. Landorf, et al., Making Global Learning Universal, Sterling, VA: Stylus (2018).

M. Moore, "Fostering a sense of belonging." Journal of College Student Retention 24, no. 3 (2022): 703-720.

M. Tapia, et al., Connections are Everything. Washington DC: Johns Hopkins University Press (2023).

REFERENCES

No additional references at this time.

Strategy provided by Kathi Badertscher, PhD, Assistant Dean for Academic Programs, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy