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  4. Positionality in Teaching

Positionality in Teaching

Positionality refers to where one is located in relation to their various social identities (i.e., gender, race, class, ethnicity, ability, sexual orientation, age, etc.); the combination of these identities and their intersections shapes how we understand and engage with the world, including our knowledges, perspectives, and teaching practices. As individuals and educators, we occupy multiple identities that are fluid and dialogical in nature, contextually situated, and continuously amended and reproduced1. Our experiences in life, school, and the broader world can be starkly different from those of our students due to differences in our positionalities. 

Positionality matters in teaching because all knowledge is socially constructed and taught from particular perspectives held by educators2. Therefore, knowledge is not neutral, objective, or free of human interests, nor is teaching. Both are situated, produced, and positioned in relation to the many social locations and relationships we, as educators, inhabit3. Accordingly, our positionality influences all aspects of our course design and delivery, including: 

  • What is taught (content)?
  • How is it taught (instructional strategies and activities)?
  • What is evaluated and how (assignments)?

These choices significantly impact how we may or may not support the success of students from diverse backgrounds that differ from our own. We might not always be able to relate to students’ challenges due to our different positionalities and experiences. This can lead to obstacles to further learning, relationship building, and knowledge creation.

To help you holistically reflect on your positionality in teaching, please take a few minutes to answer the following questions. These questions are developed by the Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) with inspiration from the Three Pillars of Internationalization4 and the Indigenous 4Rs of Relevance, Reciprocity, Respect, and Responsibility5.

Who Am I?

  1. What social identities (i.e., race, gender, sexual orientation, age, social class, ability, linguistic background, etc.) do I identify with?
  2. How may my social identities inform my teaching in terms of disciplinary canon, instructional strategies, and classroom dynamics?
  3. How may my social identities contribute to the way I develop the curriculum including learning outcomes, assessment, and content?  

Who Benefits from My Course?

Relevance

  1. Whose history, ways of knowing, practices, and cultures are represented in this course?
  2. Who is marginalized, alienated, or excluded?    

Respect

  1. Whose perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences are valued and appreciated in this course?
  2. Who is dismissed or disrespected?

Reciprocity

  1. Who benefits from this course and achieves the intended learning outcomes?
  2. Who faces barriers or struggles?

Responsibility

  1. Who has agency in this course?
  2. Who experiences exclusion, limited voice, or diminished autonomy?

What Can I Do to Make a Difference?

Relevance

  • How to incorporate different ways of being, thinking, doing, and knowing to enable learning and enhance student success?

Respect

  • What approaches should I employ to recognize, appreciate, and respond effectively to different voices, perspectives, and knowledges to address diverse backgrounds and experiences?

Reciprocity

  • How can I connect with students in meaningful ways, help build learning communities, and share leadership?

Responsibility

  • What are the opportunities to challenge the single narrative dominating the subject/discipline, and create new paradigms to bridge gaps and barriers in learning?

Please Note: these questions are inspired by the Indigenous 4Rs are developed in consultation with Dr. Lindsay Brant, Associate Director, Indigenous Curriculum Development, Queen's Health Sciences. The Indigenous knowledges are used with respect and appreciation for educational purposes. They remain the cultural property of the Indigenous Peoples from whom they originate.

To learn more about positionality in teaching, please access the online module Positionality for Faculty and Educators.

  1. Alcoff, L. (1988). Cultural Feminism Versus Post-Structuralism: The Identity Crisis in Feminist Theory. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 13 (3).
     
  2. Sensoy, Özlem, & DiAngelo, R. (2017). Is everyone really equal? An Introduction to Key Concepts in Social Justice Education. Teachers College Press, New York.
     
  3. Haraway (1996). Modest witness: feminist diffractions in science studies. In: Peter, G. and Stump, D.J. (Eds) The disunity of science: Boundaries, contexts, and power. Stanford: Stanford University Press, pp.428–442.
     
  4. Odgers, T., & I Giroux. (2006). Internationalizing faculty: A phased approach to transforming curriculum design and instruction. Toronto, CA.
     
  5. Kirkness, V. J., R. Barnhardt (2001). First Nations and higher education: The four R’s –Respect, relevance, reciprocity, responsibility. In R. Hayoe and J. Pan (Eds.), . Comparative Education Research Centre, University of Hong Kong.   

 lets others remix, tweak, and build upon our work non-commercially, as long as they credit us and indicate if changes were made. Use this citation format: Positionality in Teaching. Centre for Teaching and Learning, Queen’s University