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COMS 118: Survey of Public Relations

COMS, DEI, Student-Centered Outcome

Reflection on Instructional Change:

The practice from the ACUE course that I implemented was to embrace diversity in the classroom. I ensured my syllabus and curriculum set the tone for diversity and inclusion by including diversity statement, expectations for respectful dialogues, policies, statements, and/or resource information that address the needs and concerns of my students. Additionally, I developed one module that incorporates discussions of DEI issues, privileges and implicit association. These steps were taken to help me create a diverse and inclusive classroom among students who take this public relations introduction class. Understanding DEI is very essential for future public relations professionals and that's why it is of necessity to address such issues in a PR class.

After being introduced to my syllabus, my students actively discussed their expected class norms, especially in relation to building an inclusive learning environment. The norms they came up with include "mutual respect" "safe place to express oneself" and "supportive learning environment." I can tell students felt more comfortable sharing their opinions in class and via online discussion forum. The module on DEI will be introduced next week and students' feedback will be collected then.

The FLC learning activities that most influenced my changes are "implementation resources" and "practice and reflect written assignment." The former gives me systematic and comprehensive summary of hands-on pedagogy practice that I can directly implement in my class, while the latter allows me to examine all the teaching techniques I have learned and think about what immediate actions I can take.

In the "Observe and Analyze Session," I learned a lot from my colleagues. One aha moment is that my colleagues suggest me to introduce the module of DEI in the beginning of the semester, which will help me develop a DEI perspective among my students when I talk about other PR topics such as employee relations and customer relations.

Evidence of Instructional Change

Images
Screenshot of class meeting agenda for the module on DEI and public relations	Class discussion on class norms	Module Completion badges

Practice and Reflect on Embracing Diversity in Your Classroom PlantoImp_ReflectionGuide.docx

Course Syllabus 2022 Fall COMS 118-01_Survey of Public Relations_Hong.docx Faculty Bio

Faculty Bio
	Dr. Cheng Hong is an assistant professor at Department of Communication Studies. She got her PhD from University of Miami in strategic communication. Her teaching and research areas are public relations. Before joining Sac State, she was an assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University.

This work was supported by:
	National Science Foundation Hispanic Serving Institution Project STEM Zone DUE 1832335 CSU Office of the Chancellor Academic Affairs grant for Faculty Professional Development US Department of Education Hispanic Serving Institution Project STEM4Equity P031C210012 *Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation or the US Department of Education.