Tonight I watched the ASMCUE 2022 Microbrew: Instructor Perceptions of Race, Racism, and Racial Equity Discussion in Introductory Biology. This session was a twenty-four-minute live session, and I watched the recording. The presenter was Dr. Candice Idlebird from Harris-State University, an Assistant Professor. The abstract cited guidance for making biology classrooms more inclusive including the Drewsbury & Brame 2019 LSE CBE article. Specifically, they focused on engaging students in discussions about race, racism, and racial equity “DARE.” Idlebird is part of the iEMBER group along with Sayali Kuday, Erin Larson, Heather Bergan-Roller, and Vance McCraken. The group in 2020, obtained some funding, and developed an IRB-approved survey. The group acknowledged that there are guidelines and wanted to know if there are barriers. The group revised their questions for current and future discussions. The group has done extensive literature reviews and wants to address questions about the factors affecting the ability of instructors to engage and teach about these topics. With feedback from iEMBER and colleagues, they improved their survey. The group will also collect and analyze qualitative data. Next, they will continue to refine the survey and recruit participants. I am interested in the survey and will ask Sayali about it!
