Graduate Teaching Assistants’ Conceptualization and Reported Use of Inclusive Teaching Practices in Undergraduate Chemistry Laboratories

STEM courses, particularly undergraduate chemistry laboratories, may pose concealed barriers to learning for students with disabilities, a demographic that constitutes a significant percentage of postsecondary science and engineering student populations. While extensive research has explored issues of access and inclusivity in K-12 education and to a limited extent in higher education, there exists a notable gap in understanding how to proactively design undergraduate chemistry courses to be accessible and inclusive for a diverse range of students. In chemistry laboratories, students encounter hands-on safety challenges, complex equipment, and time-sensitive experiments, which can limit participation for students with physical/mobility, sensory, or learning disabilities. Additionally, scant attention has been given to supporting instructors in adopting accessible and inclusive practices in higher education chemistry instruction. Consequently, the professional development (PD) of Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) assumes a pivotal role in shaping the quality of chemistry laboratory instruction in postsecondary STEM education. A nationwide survey was conducted, utilizing a modified version of the Inclusive Teaching Strategy Inventory (ITSI), with the objective of examining GTAs current awareness, conceptualization, value, and reported use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL)-aligned instructional strategies in chemistry laboratories. Findings reveal prevalent trends in the attitudes and actions held by GTAs, such as differences between their beliefs and reported practices. While GTAs strongly believe in the importance of inclusive teaching practices, they report implementing these practices to a lesser degree. Results establish that the practices GTAs value most are also the ones they report to most frequently implement. Results also suggest some influence from personal experience with disability in GTAs reported beliefs, particularly in the area of assessments. The insights gained from this study highlight the need to further explore GTA communication with teaching faculty to address the reduced autonomy that GTAs report. Additionally, the findings point to the importance of redesigning training experiences to foster personal connection through sharing of lived experiences. This work serves as a foundation for developing targeted PD for GTAs, with the goal of creating more inclusive and accessible chemistry laboratory environments, addressing the unique challenges of hands-on experimentation, safety, and skill-based assessment in chemistry education.