Episode 4: Generosity, Challenge, and Inclusive Teaching

Guest: Professor Lori Kido Lopez

In this episode, Jonathan Klein, Director of the L&S Instructional Design Collaborative, sits down with Lori Lopez, Professor of Media and Cultural Studies from the Department of Communication Arts. They discuss the principles and foundations of inclusive pedagogy and personal approaches to inclusive teaching.

See the transcript for this episode.

The L&S Exchange Podcast is brought to you by L&S Teaching & Learning Administration and produced by the Instructional Design Collaborative. This podcast is recorded on ancestral Ho-Chunk land, a place their nation has called Teejop (day-JOPE) since time immemorial.

Join the Conversation

How did this episode make you think? What’s on your mind about inclusive teaching? Leave us a message on Spotify for Podcasters, respond to a poll using the Spotify app on your mobile device, reply with a comment at the bottom of this post, or send us an email. We may ask to feature your contribution in this or a future episode.

Conversation Starters

1. Professor Lopez highlighted that not making assumptions about common culture or language is one important part of how she leads a more inclusive lecture. Where are opportunities in your course to contextualize information so students feel the class is geared towards them?
2. Professor Lopez shared the value she finds in talking with colleagues about inclusive teaching. Who do you talk to about teaching? How do you share advice and practices with your colleagues?
3. Professor Lopez spoke about positionality and power in the classroom as being both personal and contextual. Do your identities meet or challenge students’ expectations? How do your identities connect with the topics you present in class?
4. Consider colleagues you may receive advice from or provide advice to about teaching. How can instructors best help one another when they don’t share the same identities?
5. When you teach, what micro-level choices do you make based on your knowledge about your students’ backgrounds and experiences? What is a “plus one” inclusive choice you could make for next semester?

Further Reading & Resources

In this episode we mentioned, were inspired by, or wondered about the following resources and topics.

• The Ethnic Studies Requirement (ESR) supports student understanding of racial and ethnic marginalization in the U.S. and prepares students to work collaboratively and respectfully in a multicultural world. The ESR and its courses are regularly reviewed to ensure content meets guidelines.
• Learn more about the L&S Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and the Campus Diversity and Climate Committee.
• Consider another perspective on the positionality of college instructors as it relates to inclusive teaching from Kerstin M. Perez, Associate Professor of Physics at Columbia University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Encouraging Inclusivity without Sacrificing Ourselves.
• Check out Lori Lopez’s TV recommendation Pachinko, based on the book by Min Jin Lee. 
• Looking for a community to talk about teaching with? The Teaching Academy offers retreats, workshops, and informal meet-ups to engage in conversations about teaching with others looking to share their ideas and improve their practice.

Shout Outs

Learn more about Lori Lopez’s DEI work on the L&S Elevate Podcast.

Production Credits