GSI Guidebook

Creating Inclusive College Classrooms

 

Shari Saunders and Diana Kardia
Center for Research on Learning and Teaching

Inclusive classrooms are classrooms in which instructors and students work together to create and sustain an environment in which everyone feels safe, supported, and encouraged to express her or his views and concerns. In these classrooms, the content is explicitly viewed from the multiple perspectives and varied experiences of a range of groups. Content is presented in a manner that reduces all students' experiences of marginalization and, wherever possible, helps students understand that individuals' experiences, values, and perspectives influence how they construct knowledge in any field or discipline. Instructors in inclusive classrooms use a variety of teaching methods in order to facilitate the academic achievement of all students. Inclusive classrooms are places in which thoughtfulness, mutual respect, and academic excellence are valued and promoted. When graduate student instructors (GSIs) are successful in creating inclusive classrooms, this makes great strides towards realizing the University of Michigan's commitment to teaching and to diversity and excellence in practice.

In an inclusive classroom, instructors attempt to be responsive to students on both an individual and a cultural level. Broadly speaking, the inclusiveness of a classroom will depend upon the kinds of interactions that occur between and among you and the students in the classroom. These interactions are influenced by: Read more »

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Sample Lesson Plans

50-minute Comparative Literature class on Rachilde’s novel The Juggler.
Stiliana Milkova
Center for Research on Learning and Teaching

80-minute Biology discussion on “prokaryote gene regulation”
Yaxuan Yang, Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology as a sample lesson from Bio 172 (under the direction of Dr. Kenneth Cadigan)

50-minute Comparative Literature class on Rachilde’s novel The Juggler.

Objectives for student learning:

Students will be able to …

  1. Place the novel and its protagonist within the context of Rachilde’s life and literary career.
  2. Identify and analyze the “decadent” connections between Baudelaire and Rachilde.

On board:

Rachilde: Marguerite Emery Vallette (1860-1953)
“Mademoiselle Baudelaire”
Over 60 published works:
Monsieur Vénus (1884);  La Jongleuse/The Juggler (1900, 1982 reprint, 1990 translation)

1. Announcements and reminders (5 minutes)

2. Introduce the novel (10 minutes)

2.1. Prompts (5 minutes):
Poll: “How many read the introduction to the novel?” “Has anyone heard of Rachilde before?”
If many students have read it:

Read more »
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Obtaining Information on Academic Policies

The various schools and colleges of the University have different academic policies and procedures, so it is important to be aware of what differences exist. What an instructor also needs to keep in mind is that policies that apply to a given student are determined by that student's unit, not by the school or college in which the course is offered.

Policies for the College of LS&A

There are several sources to which teaching assistants can turn for information on academic policies and procedures. These sources are indicated in the sections that follow.

Handbook for Faculty and Instructional Staff

The Office of Student Academic Affairs (764-7297), located at 1255 Angell Hall, distributes a Handbook for Faculty and Instructional Staff, which outlines instructional policies and procedures within the College. The information contained in the Handbook comes from the Faculty Code, the governing document created by the LS&A faculty. The Handbook covers policies regarding examinations, grading, incompletes, etc. and explains the various forms used by instructors. The Handbook concludes with a list of offices to which an instructor might need to refer.

Reference Manual for Department/Program Advising Staff Read more »

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Laboratory Safety

Portions adapted from Black, Gach, and Kotzian (1996) and edited by Jon Lillemoen, Laboratory Safety Coordinator (2012)

As an instructor, you have the responsibility to ensure a safe learning environment for you and your students. Laboratories present many more potential hazards than the conventional classroom, and it makes sense from everyone's standpoint to prepare for situations you will hopefully never have to handle.  The classroom situation is often unpredictable and you are expected to provide basic written safety precautions to your students.

Within the University of Michigan, the Department of Occupational Safety and Environmental Health, Laboratory Safety Section (734-647-1143) offers safety resources for University employees, including GSIs.  Laboratory safety guidelines are available that detail University policy on laboratory rules and maintenance, hazardous waste management, electrical safety, chemical spill procedures, and emergency and first-aid procedures (www.oseh.umich.edu).  OSEH also provides training in laboratory safety and right-to-know issues. OSEH's online training courses Chemical Laborotory Safety Training (BLS025w) and Bloodborn Pathogens Training (BLS101w) are a great start (http://www.oseh.umich.edu/training/mylinc.shtml). Read more »

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Strategies for Effective Teaching in the Laboratory Class

Adapted from Allen, O’Connell, Percha, Erickson,

Nord, Harper, Bialek & Nam (2009)

As a GSI you are transitioning from a student to an instructor, from someone whose responsibility was to learn in the lab class to someone who now helps others learn in the lab class. You will need to develop your own teaching style, your own way of interacting with students, and your own set of actions that determine the learning atmosphere of the classroom.  Use these do’s and don’ts to help you think about what you can do to be a successful new instructor:

Read more »
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