How can you help students from diverse backgrounds feel comfortable in academic advising?

As a teacher, it's essential to genuinely respect the diverse backgrounds, races, religions, genders, colors, and identities of all students, treating them impartially. Teaching extends beyond the classroom; it begins at home, emphasizing equality and respect for all. In a world filled with hatred, promoting love and equal treatment is paramount. I recall an incident while teaching forensic science to Masters students, discussing a law stating 'facts do not lie but men can do.' A male student questioned the gender bias in the term 'men,' leading me to modify it to 'humans,' emphasizing inclusivity.

I have observed that students coming from rural backgrounds are more serious in their studies and relatively more committed towards welfare of rural poor, farmers and downtrodden

I always feel that the teaching profession should be free from all biases and prejudices as we are here to bring out things in an individual that help them to grow in life and make them unique from others. So the precondition for any academician to become a teacher is to respect their student's identity.

Students in a diverse international community have diverse needs. In the first few months of an academic relationship, students who have come from a different setting may need some time to adapt to a new culture, new weather, etc, and this may affect their performance. As a teacher, having an open honest discussion and asking the student may be more helpful than making unfair conclusions about the student's work ethic. In this initial period, neither the teacher nor the student know each other very well. Poor communication and conflict management may cause long-term harm to the relationship.

One of the most important things to do when advising students is to show them respect by actively listening to them. If students feel like they are just one of many, they won't feel seen or heard. When providing them with course options to meet their requirements, make sure to present options that celebrate their diverse backgrounds. For example, if a course in gender studies will meet a prerequisite, share that option along with the standard suggestions. It's important to celebrate their successes and support them through their challenges. Try to connect with things in their lives, such as understanding their work schedule, so you can help them build a schedule that supports their health and provides balance to their day.

A way to show respect to people from different cultures is to show genuine interest in their culture. The worse thing to do is to impose our own culture upon others and expect them to follow. Do to others what you want other to do to you.

Let's move away from "[students] don't know what they don't know" therefore we must fill their empty cups, to what is it that they DO know and build from there. What are their strengths? What are the times and places where they have received advising before? Was it positive and affirming? Or were they shut down? What policies are they already familiar with?

Understanding the cultural and contextual backgrounds of advisees is crucial for effective advising. Advisors should research, attend workshops, and ask respectful questions to learn about advisees' values and challenges. Sharing one's own culture can foster mutual understanding, but it should be done without imposition. This approach creates a supportive and inclusive advising environment where each advisee feels valued and respected.

The mistake that is made is believing academic advisors & tutors need to treat students differently based on their race and ethnicity. This is different than a language difference with advising and tutoring. If the campus believe in inclusiveness then there should be one Center to accommodate all students with academic advising and tutoring with all academic support staff fully trained to provide the academic service regardless of student year of enrollment or major. The problem is believing academic advising or tutoring must change based on a students skin color. Very wrong headed.

Understand your student’s journey and the funds of knowledge and community cultural wealth that students bring with them. Their journeys didn’t start in college. Advisors should also have an asset-based mindset (as opposed to a deficit-based mindset) when working with students from diverse backgrounds. What are their strengths? What experiences and knowledge can they pull from to continue to excel? What are the opportunities that are available for them to learn and grow?

I love this topic! In any service space, you want to find out HOW people want to be served. After working with different racial and cultural backgrounds of students, I discovered that upbringing around education has patterns and impacts how certain communities view education. First step is learning where they come from academically - are they used to support or a lack of? What do they need from you as an advisor? Once you start with the foundation (relationship building) you begin to build a safe space for that student to express their needs and concerns.

Eu penso que um feedback bem feito come?a com uma escuta bem feita. Em nossos atendimentos precisamos estar atentos e dando a chance que os estudantes possam compartilhar suas histórias, medos, frustra??es e esperan?as. Eu sempre tento falar sobre coisas que aconteceram comigo ou com pessoas que conhe?o. Isso ajuda a aproximar o que queremos falar de nossos estudantes. é importante estar sempre atualizado daquilo que está acontecendo ao nosso redor. Estudantes adoram convites para eventos fora da escola (como feiras de profiss?es, de universidades, etc).

Hmmm… I would also add: as a supervisor or senior, please try not to come across condescending by assuming that those from developing countries can’t learn new things or have no idea how things work because you don’t know it yourself. The number of times I’ve been told not to try X or Y because I might not succeed is insane. Most of these times, I was able to get the job done. But those comments stay in our memories.

Adapting advising methods to fit each student's needs is like customizing a recipe to suit individual tastes. Just as some prefer spicy while others enjoy mild flavors, students have unique preferences for communication and feedback. By adjusting advising approaches, advisors can ensure that students receive the support and information that best suits their learning style and goals, leading to a more satisfying and effective advising experience.

Active Listening: Focusing on understanding the learners's unique needs and concerns. Empathetic Responses: Validating the student's experiences and providing a compassionate ear. Plain Language: Using clear, jargon-free explanations to ensure comprehension. Inclusive Decor: Displaying artwork, posters, and materials that reflect the diversity of the student body. Comfortable Spaces: Ensuring the advising office is a calm, private, and inviting space for open discussions.

I have tried mixing diverse students up and putting them together to collaborate as teams solving problems, like in hackathons. Eventually, no one seems to think much of diversity anymore.

Meet students where they are through curated campus outreach, programming and cross-divisional partnerships that meet the needs of students from historically underrepresented populations. Lastly, be mindful of place and space. Do students see themselves in your advising spaces? Are they represented? Is it a safe space/place for students from diverse backgrounds? Do they feel like they belong and/or are included in your advising spaces? Listen and collaborate with students to learn about what you can do to make them feel more comfortable in your advising spaces.

Speaking from experience, the first thing you must do is to be seen by advisees as a welcoming advisor. That alone will calm down a fearful advisee. It has worked for me all the time. Second, be a good listener. From listening you will be able detect the situation of the advisee/s. Third, understand the cultural background of each advisee. This will enable you to structure ways to help and handle the advisee/s. Fourth, treat each advisee individually because th eir issues are distinct and different. Lastly, be in touch with your advisees. This will show them that you are a caring advisor.

Will make them comfortable with my teaching and understand their level of understanding and ask them to question as much as they can and will solve their queries at my best. As a mentor make them to acquaint with practical and real world concept and knowledge. As a teacher will make them skillful,tactful and groom their personality. Subjective knowledge will only work when students apply it through trainings and taking real life experiences. Their understanding and behaviour should be nurtured in a way so that it could help the society and their surroundings. Contionous mentoring and guidance given to stakeholders and the students as well. As a teacher this is my responsibility to guide my students in all way.

Giving students autonomy to lead themselves teaches them skills for life. We need to understand the generational evolution and realize that communication has also evolved. Fair, firm and freedom to self-lead learning are the future skill-setting. When students see interlink between varying subjects or the application to real world, they become curious to learn further - let them lead themselves and realize that education is a co-collaborative process.

Celebrating small wins is very important. Academic advisors should encourage students to create a habit of small victories. For someone, even showing up can be a victory. It's important to be kind, nurturing, and appreciative of small wins.

It is best to take in action the teaching methodology to befriend everyone at same thread to share and comfort within. Moreover,the students are to be encouraged to interact with each other and behold the theory of unity in diversity. The integrity among them has to be praised so as to get a better outcome in every aspects.

It is very important to understand their background ,which will enable us to guide them. Most of the kids are brought up by single parent and they really miss the affection of parents. Moreover parents don't spend time with their kids and they grow by imitating social media. Hence they are in imaginary world. When the school life is over it will hit them and that will be too late also. I strongly feel we should guide them mentor them and also understand them..

Es muy importante para el individuo ser reconocido por sus logros, como motivación para el crecimiento personal. También mirar de forma positiva las fallas para aprender de ellas y creer .

Great! Everybody appreciates recognition ! However, recognize and share little successes with them. These are indelible , everlasting and memorable. For future, they will share these ' little ' milestones with the younger ones coming up after them.

Sharing your positionality helps. For me, acknowledging who I am in the world and how the world perceives and receives me allows for students to note converging and diverging identities between us. There's also a flattening of the inherent power imbalance between the instructor and student. Through this, the student may feel comfortable reflecting on their positionality to share with you. Once the foundation for a human-to-human connection is established, the instructor may be attuned to each student's learning style/preference and adapt advising strategies accordingly.

Best academic advising would only be possible if the instructor brings oneself down to the psychological level of the learners. In other words , for a moment the instructor should put himself in learners shoes and should grasp the difficulties faced by the learners hailing from diverse backgrounds, only then it is possible that meaningful teaching or advising would take place.

Celebrate students' achievements by offering them mentorship roles or positions as student advisors for incoming students. This not only recognizes their growth but also empowers them to guide others, reinforcing their sense of accomplishment and belonging. Also the feedback loops are important,i.e., create mechanisms for continuous feedback, where students are recognized regularly for their progress. This could be through progress reports, advisor meetings, or peer feedback sessions, where achievements are acknowledged and plans for future progress are discussed.

Emphasize the uniqueness and spice that each individual's background bring as flavours to humanity. Focus on deemphasizing the disadvantages of their cultural backgrounds but encourage the colour it adds to the beauty of living. This is demonstrated by using iconic personalities from the diverse backgrounds represented as models of inspirations. Sharing personal challenges brought about by social-cultural factors and triumph stories by the educator will resonate hope, determination and inner strength in the minds of the learners. It encourages learners to open up their struggles, fears and experiences as they can easily relate with the individual who has been through the route, they are going through at the moment.

A escuta ativa no processo de ensino e aprendizagem para transformar o modo tradicional mais passivo em uma abordagem mais ativa por meio de metodologias que auxiliem a cria??o de raciocínio baseado na experiência.

When working with students from diverse backgrounds, I would also consider that they want the very same things as us all. It’s important to feel valued, respected, and appreciated, just like every other student or professional. A very basic and simple question to ask is, how would you want to be treated during advising, or how would you want your child, neighbor, or friend to feel. Do more of the things that create welcoming, engaging, and supportive environments. I believe that helping students find their purpose, complete their education, and navigate complex situations requires empathy and a human-centric approach.

First, learn where they are coming from and adapt as and when required. Various backgrounds require different treatments to begin with. You cannot paint all with one brush. Therefore, you have to learn about their cultural background to be able to better relate to them. It requires open-mindedness and patience on your part which isn't easy at all. It depends on your effort to reach out to students with a different background.

I believe all of those suggestions can be helpful. In my experience it has been most helpful to acknowledge diversity, how diversity has contributed to historically biased access to and actual care and then collaborate with learners how they personally think/feel in regards to approaching these topics in way that is most helpful to them and ultimately our shared patients.

In working with academic advisors and students, I have observed that not all students know how to self advocate whether with an instructor, medical professional, financial officer etc. From international students who are navigating a new country and its culture to disabled students who have had IEPs and resource teachers to support their learning, higher education can be a challenging place to articulate one’s needs and ask for help. Assisting students in developing self advocacy skills can support all students.

From the advisee perspective, I was the international/foreign student who was not familiar with academic advising at all. Needless to say, I was told I could not combine two majors that looked starkly different to others but was my passion. Perhaps advisors should work behind the scenes as support and not the authority. Before I realized I was advised wrongly, I was graduating with a bachelor's, and because I had taken classes for fun in my 'impossible major', I was told at the end 'Oh, you can totally add it as a minor'. I now try to show students and older learners they can combine their passion and how that would look like in terms of course load and job market.