Breaking the binary: Teaching inclusive conceptions of sex and gender in undergraduate science

Mercer-Mapstone, L; Bajan, S; Banas, K; Morphett, A; McGrath, K

Breaking the binary: Teaching inclusive conceptions of sex and gender in undergraduate science

Mercer-Mapstone, L Bajan, S

Banas, K Morphett, A McGrath, K

Permalink

Publisher:: International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Teaching and Learning Inquiry, 2021, 9, (2)
Issue Date:: 2021-01-01

Open Access

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Open Access

This item is open access.

Adobe PDF

Download Published VersionAdobe PDF (602.73 kB)

View on publisher's site

View statistics

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Mercer-Mapstone, L
dc.contributor.author	Bajan, S https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6934-5240
dc.contributor.author	Banas, K
dc.contributor.author	Morphett, A
dc.contributor.author	McGrath, K https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6244-3929
dc.date.accessioned	2022-01-12T00:02:11Z
dc.date.available	2022-01-12T00:02:11Z
dc.date.issued	2021-01-01
dc.identifier.citation	Teaching and Learning Inquiry, 2021, 9, (2)
dc.identifier.issn	2167-4779
dc.identifier.issn	2167-4787
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/152945
dc.description.abstract	The need to make higher education curricula gender-inclusive is increasingly pressing as student cohorts diversify. We adopted a student-staff partnership approach to design, integrate, and evaluate a module that taught first-year science students the difference between biological sex, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation in the context of genetics concepts at an Australian university. This module aimed to break the binary in misconceptions of both sex and gender, emphasising that both exist on separate spectra. Data triangulation was used to evaluate students' attitudes towards the module and their learning of module concepts. Students' attitudes were positive overall, and evaluation of students' learning indicated that the majority of students understood and retained key concepts, while also identifying common misconceptions. Perhaps the most important finding was that students who identified as belonging to a minority group had significantly more positive attitudes towards the module than non-minority students. This finding supports previous research that has found inclusive curricula have greater benefit for students from minority backgrounds, indicating the importance of making such curriculum enhancements. Our results speak to both the co-creation process and students' learning outcomes, providing valuable insights for practitioners both within science and beyond.
dc.language	en
dc.publisher	International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
dc.relation.ispartof	Teaching and Learning Inquiry
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.20343/TEACHLEARNINQU.9.2.6
dc.rights	CC-BY-NC License 4.0 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons – Attribution License 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly attributed
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	1301 Education Systems, 1303 Specialist Studies in Education
dc.title	Breaking the binary: Teaching inclusive conceptions of sex and gender in undergraduate science
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	9
utslib.for	1301 Education Systems
utslib.for	1303 Specialist Studies in Education
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CHT - Health Technologies
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science/School of Life Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Centre for Health Technologies (CHT)
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.date.updated	2022-01-12T00:02:08Z
pubs.issue	2
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	9
utslib.citation.issue	2

Abstract:

The need to make higher education curricula gender-inclusive is increasingly pressing as student cohorts diversify. We adopted a student-staff partnership approach to design, integrate, and evaluate a module that taught first-year science students the difference between biological sex, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation in the context of genetics concepts at an Australian university. This module aimed to break the binary in misconceptions of both sex and gender, emphasising that both exist on separate spectra. Data triangulation was used to evaluate students' attitudes towards the module and their learning of module concepts. Students' attitudes were positive overall, and evaluation of students' learning indicated that the majority of students understood and retained key concepts, while also identifying common misconceptions. Perhaps the most important finding was that students who identified as belonging to a minority group had significantly more positive attitudes towards the module than non-minority students. This finding supports previous research that has found inclusive curricula have greater benefit for students from minority backgrounds, indicating the importance of making such curriculum enhancements. Our results speak to both the co-creation process and students' learning outcomes, providing valuable insights for practitioners both within science and beyond.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/152945