Institute for Teaching and Learning Innovation ITaLI
Site search

Inclusive practice

  1. Home
  2. Resources

The University of Queensland is a socially diverse environment with staff and students from many backgrounds. Each member of this environment brings to the University unique experiences and knowledge that enrich our community.

The UQ Guide to Using Inclusive Language (PDF, 1.8MB) provides best-practice advice on using inclusive language in work and education at UQ. All staff should implement the principles of inclusive language in all aspects of the work and study environment at UQ.

Find out more

Below you'll find a collection of videos providing insights from UQ practitioners on the topic of inclusive practices.

Enhancing student engagement

The challenge for any teacher is for their teaching to be accessible to the student. This access could be impeded by ineffective delivery practices, the difficulty of the content being taught, or ineffective management of the class group.

Listen to some of the strategies adopted by our inclusive practitioners for engaging their students:

Class management

A diverse group of students offers unique challenges for getting your message across.

Delivery practices

It is easy to overlook the possibility that your students may not have the same basis for comprehension as you.

Design practices

Accessibility and relevance of content can be a factor in how well students learn.

Supporting students

Students new to an Australian culture will experience challenges that domestic staff and students may find difficult to anticipate.

Technology

Young people who are now entering universities have never known life without the internet. It's essential to their learning, work and leisure. Often, this experience is very different from that of university administrators and faculty.

Diversity of language and background

A student’s learning may be disadvantaged as a consequence of English being their second language. Challenges may also arise for students who are situationally disadvantaged by being distanced from the mainstream through location or generation.

Special projects at UQ

At UQ there are many inclusive practitioners who initiate action on inequities, and work to solve problems which non-Australian students struggle with.

School of Education

In this project, Dr Kerryn McCluskey supports final year Education students bridge cultural divides in their placement schools.

School of Pharmacy

Associate Professor Kathryn Steadman's project supports students from a non-Australian cultural background to meet the requirements of working in an Australian pharmacy.

Working with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) students and staff

UQ is fortunate to have a community of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students and staff. This environment offers unique teaching and learning opportunities which enable students to become game-changing graduates who make outstanding contributions and address complex issues with a global perspective.

The Cultural Competence Program course within Blackboard provides details of how to ensure classroom teaching addresses the needs of all students by considering CALD and English as an Additional Language (EAL).

To understand what bias is, where it comes from and how to develop strategies to overcome it, please review the Blackboard course Managing Unconscious Bias.

 

Inclusive assessment

Assessment is the critical element in a student's successful completion of a course at UQ. Some students struggle with this, due to language difficulties, or learning or other physical disabilities.

Awareness and a readiness to help can make all the difference to the success or failure of these students.

Inclusive philosophies

Diversity within a university should be seen as a microcosm of the global world of practice.

Professionalising learning

Entering professional life is a challenge for anyone, but for students who are unfamiliar with English or Australian culture, there can be additional barriers.

Further resources