Creating Psychologically Welcoming Online Learning Environments

We will provide an overview of original research on practical, scalable techniques that can create psychologically welcoming online learning environments for traditionally marginalized learners. For example, one set of studies demonstrates how brief social psychological interventions effectively closed persistence gaps for students in developing countries. Another set of studies demonstrates how making marketing materials and course descriptions more inclusive can significantly increase enrollment and engagement by women in STEM courses. By the end of the session, you'll have access to example interventions and get a chance to explore how they can be implemented in almost any LMS.

Outcomes: Understand how social identity threat affects learner persistence and achievement in online learning environments * Gain a working knowledge of scalable interventions and tools that can be employed to create more inclusive and psychologically welcoming online learning environments * Apply these concepts and interventions in your own courses and/or curricula