Every student deserves a welcoming and comfortable learning environment. At this polarized time, different communities are in different places in their level of encouraging welcoming spaces. In our session we’ll brainstorm the types of things that are within the control of a classroom practitioner to create welcoming spaces for all different types of identities. We’ll also share brainstorming of ways of overcoming community challenges. We will honor the wisdom and experience of the diverse perspectives of the room, by modeling strategies for helping people solve each other’s problems. Finally, we’ll look at places where in a Science classroom in particular, old types of thinking/ exclusion may cause problems for learners.
Attendees will be able to leave with: -A reflection on the identities present in their context -A list of possible strategies to try to make their space more welcoming to those identities -Troubleshooting solutions to other people’s challenges in creating welcoming spaces
