Inclusive Teaching Practice

Diversity can enrich the teaching and learning experiences of all students and staff, by bringing to them a variety of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Diversity can also present challenges. It can be difficult to accommodate diverse staff and student perspectives, experiences, expectations and needs.

The higher education sector has done considerable work to support you, and to develop resources to help you better understand and incorporate diverse perspectives, including international perspectives, into your teaching.

Professional development

Take a look at the Learning and Teaching Unit Professional Development Programs. In particular, the Foundations of University Learning and Teaching Program.

Support for staff of non-English speaking backgrounds

Non-English speaking staff make up a significant proportion of the academic staff at UNSW. This diverse body of scholars makes an immense contribution to our learning and teaching.

The Cultural Diversity and Inclusive Practice Toolkit allows you to:

  • monitor your own practice for strengths and areas in need of development, as well as
  • providing strategies and suggestions to enhance inclusive practices.

Resources for UNSW staff

Resources on this site

Other resources

The Connections Seminar series and the annual Learning and Teaching Forum provide platforms for UNSW staff to explore different aspects of learning and teaching, share ideas and get feedback on practice and research.

Recordings and presentations can be found on the respective Moodle course sites (self-enrolment key provided)

External resources

  • Flinders University Cultural Diversity and Inclusive Practice (CDIP) Toolkit
  • Arkoudis, S. Teaching International Students: Strategies to Enhance Learning from the University of Melbourne, this document offers practical suggestions for teaching strategies to enhance the learning of international students. It also has useful material about the internationalisation of the curriculum.
  • University of Western Australia, Cultural Diversity and Inclusive Practice Toolkit This site gives practical guidance for staff to ensure their interactions with other staff and students are culturally inclusive.
  • Deakin University, Teaching Effectively for Cultural Diversity This site provides practical tips, and video scenarios exploring key areas such as group dynamics and giving feedback.
  • Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development (OCSLD), Guides to Support Inclusive Teaching and Learning This list of guides includes useful information and ideas on learning, teaching, course design and assessment.
  • Ryan, J. M. and Carroll, J. (eds) (2005), Teaching International Students: Improving Learning for All, Routledge, London. With a key focus on teaching, this book looks at the full experience of teaching international students, who often find it difficult to perform to their full abilities in a foreign environment. Full of practical suggestions and case study material.
  • Shaw, G. (ed.) (2005), Tertiary Teaching and Learning: Dealing with Diversity, Charles Darwin University Press, Darwin. This book examines issues of diversity in tertiary education and the changes that are taking place. It presents a range of case studies and approaches for dealing with diversity in tertiary education. Suggests that good teaching is needed to bring about better and more efficient learning for students in increasingly diverse learning communities.