Creating a Diverse and Inclusive STEM-eLearning Environment through an Online Graduate Teaching Assistant Training Module

This presentation will demonstrate an online graduate teaching assistant training module that aims to embrace diversity and promote inclusion in online programs offered by an engineering school. Located at the heart of a metropolitan area, our institution is diverse in our student body as well as in faculty and teaching assistant composition. When we expanded our programs into online learning environments, we realize that the importance of promoting inclusion becomes even greater. One of our online programs is a bridge program that encourages people with non-STEM majors to step into the STEM fields. The transition to a different discipline adds a layer of complexity for students and amplifies a need for us to recognize their different academic and cultural backgrounds. Graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) have a substantial opportunity to impact student perceptions of disciplinary knowledge due to their higher level of interaction with students. In some research-oriented universities, GTAs cover more than 90% of laboratory sections. Therefore, enhancing their teaching practice will directly influence students' learning experience. In an online learning environment, some students perceive a lower degree of social presence of others in the course, which might result in a feeling of isolation. Compared to a face-to-face classroom, there are more barriers when forming an online learning community that promotes an inclusive learning experience. These findings from previous studies prompt us to create a training module for our GTAs to recognize student backgrounds in their online classrooms. The presentation will highlight different elements of our GTA training module, Gateway to Online Teaching, with a focus on one of the main topics, Cultural Awareness for an Inclusive Classroom. This topic starts with a scenario in which a student is having issues with her online statistics instructor. The GTAs are invited to jot down their thoughts after reading this student's experience. In the following section, the GTAs are asked to reflect upon this activity and examine if they are making assumptions towards certain cultures or socioeconomic groups. To wrap up, the final section covers practices that are suggested by literature to promote an inclusive online learning environment. References are provided for the GTAs to engage in further readings. To enhance GTA's learning experience with this online module, we also designed a game for them to play as well as to reinforce the concepts they gain from the training module. A QR code is provided for conference patrons to access the training module and the bonus game.