Inclusion Benefits Everyone

Last year, I had the privilege of joining LinkedIn Learning's Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging council on Inclusive Instructional Design. Our mission was to create greater awareness of the internal resources?and documentation on using inclusive language in our courses, as well as to provide guidelines for fostering a more inclusive experience for all learners.?

I joined the council because inclusion is an extremely important topic to me as an instructor. Naturally, I want my courses to speak to and be accessible to as many people as possible, and I’m aware that if I inadvertently use non-inclusive language it can detract from or interrupt the experience for any number of learners. I also joined the council because I wanted the opportunity to learn from my colleagues' experiences as well as share and test my own perspectives. And since this month my Staff Instructor colleagues are posting content around the topic of diversity and inclusion, I thought this would be a good opportunity to share some thoughts about inclusion and how it benefits everyone.

Inclusion is a continuous journey

Too often in the corporate world, diversity and inclusion are treated as items to be checked off a list and dismissed. But our understanding of inclusion is (and should) always be evolving as we strive to meet the ever-changing needs of the people whose lives we touch. What seems inclusive and fair now, may not be considered so in the future as our understanding evolves. For example, it doesn't seem like too long ago when using the phrase "he or she" seemed modern and inclusive, but it's a strikingly out-dated phrase these days as our understanding of the importance of personal pronouns has improved.

Guidelines, not rules

Because our understanding grows over time, it's important to not cling to hard and fast rules, but rather establish guidelines for being inclusive or using inclusive language. Guidelines provide more flexibility to make situational, context-based decisions.

It's OK to be wrong

We all have assumptions that we take for granted and have probably never questioned until their shortcomings were pointed out to us. We may be unaware that certain words or phrases we use have offensive origins or meanings. Having these things pointed out to us is a learning opportunity that can increase and improve our understanding.?Similarly, when helping other improve their own understanding, it’s important to do so with kindness, and to not alienate potential allies.

Inclusivity benefits everyone

There’s no downside to being more inclusive.?Inclusivity makes content, resources, and opportunities available to as many people as possible. It removes barriers and roadblocks and gives a chance for underrepresented voices to be heard. And diverse groups are better positioned to bring a wider range of perspectives and ideas to projects and organizations.