Colorblind and multicultural ideologies are associated with faculty adoption of inclusive teaching practices

Abstract

Professional workshops aimed at increasing student diversity typically urge college-level science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) educators to implement inclusive teaching practices. A model of the process by which educators adopt such practices, and the relationship between adoption and 2 ideologies of diversity is tested here. One ideology, colorblindness, downplays differences based on gender or color. The other, multiculturalism, embraces differences. Pathway modeling revealed reliable, discrete steps in the process of adoption. Independently, greater endorsement of colorblindness predicted adoption of fewer inclusive teaching practices, and multiculturalism predicted adoption of more practices. These findings inform national-level intervention efforts about the process by which educators adopt inclusive teaching practices, and suggest that interventions might consider educators' personal beliefs and approaches to diversity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).