Abstracts

“So, you’re interested in studying science?” supporting bias-aware student ambassadors

Donna Hurford (University of Southern Denmark, Denmark)

During this symposium session, participants can find out how a university’s science study programmes are developing their student ambassadors’ bias-awareness and equipping them with bias-aware practices. Why is this necessary? Because we are all affected by our conscious and implicit biases. Biases, including those manifesting as social and cultural norms, stereotypes and first impressions can easily influence pupil decisions about further studies and employment. For example, when visualising a scientist, which image comes to mind more readily, an older black woman working on mathematical formula or an older white man wearing a whitecoat and working in a laboratory? Many universities appoint student ambassadors to spread the word about their study programmes at schools and career events and to host school pupil visits. However, through their verbal and non-verbal communication, student ambassadors may reinforce pupils’ preconceptions and social norms about studying science. This means it’s critical that student ambassadors are bias-aware and equipped with the knowledge and skills to help them address stereotypes and celebrate diversity. The University of Southern Denmark’s science and engineering faculties, engage student ambassadors with bias-awareness practices. The student ambassadors have access to online self-study resources on how bias affects interactions and communication, workshops where they are introduced to bias-aware practices for one-to-one interactions and presentations, and a reflective checklist activity, which they apply to their own student ambassador experiences. Participants will be invited to discuss such initiatives’ relevance for student recruitment to their science subjects.
 

A coordinated approach to decolonising the curriculum within Bioscience degree programmes at LJMU

Nicola F Koyama (Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom)

Calls to decolonise the curriculum often ask individuals to embark on a journey of self-reflection, to question their positionality and the dominance of western, Eurocentric epistemologies and to re-imagine what they teach, how they teach it and how they assess it. In a reflection of a departmental initiative, I present the challenges of engaging staff with this process and discuss how we made progress designing an initiative to decolonise the curriculum across Bioscience degree programmes within the School of Biological & Environmental Sciences at Liverpool John Moores University. I evaluate to what extent we were able to move beyond diverse representation and diversification of resources to introduce an understanding of a decolonial perspective within programmes.

A student-staff collaborative approach to decolonising a biosciences curriculum

David P Doupe (Durham University, United Kingdom), John H Bothwell (Durham University, United Kingdom), Jonathan P Drury (Durham University, United Kingdom), Ari Sadanandom (Durham University, United Kingdom), Maddy A H Sargent (Durham University, United Kingdom), Jennifer F Topping (Durham University, United Kingdom), Gina Y W Vong (Durham University, United Kingdom), Andreanna J Welch (Durham University, United Kingdom)

We have recently begun a Science Faculty-wide effort to decolonise our curricula through department working groups and funded student decolonisation internships. As a starting point in Biosciences, we conducted surveys of both staff and students to assess understanding of, and attitudes towards, decolonising the curriculum. Our student survey highlighted a clear enthusiasm for a more diverse curriculum both in terms of topics and the scientists highlighted, and for more contextualisation of science in society. Our staff survey revealed broad support for decolonisation and identified potential barriers along with the support and resources that would help overcome them. Informed by these survey results our Decolonising Working Group have worked closely with student interns who have developed decolonising projects with support from Department and Faculty. These projects have developed materials for staff and students including posters showcasing scientists from underrepresented groups, reading lists and podcasts. We are now developing a range of case studies that have been, or could be, incorporated across our modules, and have used informal breakout discussion groups at our department-wide teaching away day to initiate wider conversation around decolonising. Our aim is to establish an ongoing sustainable process that integrates diversification and contextualisation into the reform of existing modules and as an integral part of the design of new modules. We will assess progress through discussion with students and staff at our staff student liaison committee and open meetings of our working group.

Building an inclusive curriculum in Biomedical Science with staff student collaboration

Fran N Henshaw (University of Sheffield, United Kingdom), Dagmara Szmaglinska (University of Sheffield, United Kingdom), Jaya Sharma (University of Sheffield, United Kingdom)

In 2021 the Biomedical Science Department ED&I committee wanted to incorporate the student voice in its work to decolonise the curriculum.  To that end, two biomedical science students were employed to survey the inclusive curriculum projects across UK HE institutions and to perform an internal curriculum audit. In this presentation I will share the students' findings and recommendations, with practical suggestions in the fields of Development Biology, Neuroscience and Cell Biology. The assoicate authors of this presentation are current students.

Capstones; Creating inclusive, equitable and transformative collaborative learning experiences and partnerships

David I Lewis (University of Leeds, United Kingdom), Stephanie Allen (University of Leeds, United Kingdom), Charlotte Haigh (University of Leeds, United Kingdom)

In an increasing unequal world, there is a critical need to create inclusive partnership learning opportunities within degree programmes, where all are equally valued and respected, and which capitalise on individual learner’s knowledge, expertise and prior lived experiences.  The goal to increase equity, address awarding gaps, and develop global graduates equipped with the competencies, cultural capital and awareness both to create sustainable solutions to the complex socio-economic problems facing the world, and to realise their own personal ambitions and goals.
We have used the transformative and translational potential of capstones to realise these goals, creating sixteen different capstone experiences: research-focused, industry-facing or social justice. Each realises substantial learning gain. The portfolio is inclusive; the learning gain the same regardless of gender, ethnicity or socio-economic background. Increasing we are focusing on team-based Social Justice capstones, where learners collaborate with the community. We offer trans-national educational opportunities where they collaborate with learners in the Global South to co-create frugal solutions, applicable in both the Global South and North, to UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Capstones have a huge, largely untapped potential to increase equity, address awarding gaps, promote global cultural awareness, and for every learner to realise their full academic potential and goals.

Co-creating Inclusivity and Ethnic Diversity in  Life Science and Medical Curriculum: Role models and representation.

Wright Jacob (King's College London, United Kingdom)

Underrepresented groups' performance and retention in STEM fields depend on their social integration, sense of belonging, and development of a science identity. Increasing the diversity of scientists discussed in the classroom is one method to promote a sense of belonging among students.A teaching and learning resource was developed in form of a booklet which highlighted the contribution of self-identified BAME and LGBTQ scientists who distinguished themselves in filed of pharacology/pharmacy.The resources was developed with inputs from teachers and students of department of pharmacology and therapeuctuics  and pharmacy,King's College London.

Cultural Awareness in an UG BioScience Module

Yusra Siddiqui (University of Derby, United Kingdom), Caroline Ball (University of Derby, United Kingdom), Ian Turner (University of Derby, United Kingdom)

Thomas and Quinlan (2021) developed a series of Culturally Sensitive Curricula Scales (CSCS) to explore: 1) if students perceive their curriculum as culturally sensitive; and 2) the relationship between cultural sensitivity and interest in their individual subject.  The CSCS are four scales that evaluate a curriculum in the following area: a) diversity is present, b) positive portrayals, c) challenge power and d) inclusive classroom. We piloted an approach that used the principles of the CSCS at a modular level, to reflect and modify, the slides and materials, narrative, activities, and asynchronous activities.   Science communication a level six bioscience module with dominant Eurocentric curriculum was used to pilot this modular CSCS approach.  Students were asked a fundamental module question “What is Science Communication” pre- and post- module, responses were capture using individual post-it notes and collective mind maps.  These maps and student coursework submissions were thematically analysed using the approach outlined by Braun & Clarke (2012) to identify any alignments to the CSCS.  This presentation will present the initial findings from the pilot study and a revised version of the module level CSCS tool.

Decolonising and diversifying learning resources through inclusive co-creation can support equitable transitions

Parag Y Bhatt (De Montfort University, United Kingdom), Muhammed Allana (De Montfort University, United Kingdom), Aidan Barker (LearnSci, United Kingdom), Paul D Bremner (De Montfort University, United Kingdom), Nisha Valand (De Montfort University, United Kingdom), Ines R.M. Ramos (De Montfort University, United Kingdom), Jo V Rushworth (University of Lincoln, United Kingdom)

Diversifying and decolonising learning resources is critical to allow all students to feel represented. We need urgently to tackle “representation and student experience gaps” which may underpin awarding and progression gaps, to ensure an equitable transition where all students feel that they belong and can succeed in the bioscience classroom. We worked in partnership with Learning Science Ltd. to create the first student-led Inclusive Avatar-based Micropipetting (I-AM) Smart Worksheet. Using the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), we designed ten avatars to reflect diverse student identities, each with personal pronouns and a diverse name bank. We co-created our Smart Worksheet’s question bank using feedback from students and staff. The I-AM Smart Worksheet was released to first year students De Montfort University. Students completed a pipetting MCQ and a pre- and post-activity survey (n=94; Likert scale 1-7 where 7 = strongly agree) and provided free-text and verbal comments. Students enjoyed the Smart Worksheet activity (median score = 6) and felt that it increased their confidence in micro-pipetting (median score = 6), with no significant differences based on ethnicity, age, gender, learning style or disability. Students’ scores on a micro-pipetting MCQ test increased significantly by 12% on average after doing the activity. Students felt that the Smart Worksheet was inclusive and that their identity was represented in the resource (median score = 6). This co-created approach could encourage STEM lecturers to work in a more democratic way with students as equal partners in the design of learning resources and assessment tools.

Decolonising and Diversifying the Biomedical Sciences Curricula

Bronwen R Burton (University of Bristol, United Kingdom), Tianqi Lu (University of Bath, United Kingdom), Caroline McKinnon (University of Bristol, United Kingdom), Alice Robson (University of Bristol, United Kingdom)

In the biomedical sciences, it is critical that students consider the wider context in which knowledge has been built, to support them to identify and address long held biases in biomedical research and health care. Previously, we employed students to identify opportunities to decolonise and diversify teaching material, creating a dialogue with staff to drive positive changes to our curricula. Now, we seek to understand attitudes towards decolonisation and diversification in the wider student and staff population, enabling us to measure impact and deliver change. Staff and students across the Biomedical Sciences Schools at the University of Bristol were surveyed for their understanding of, and attitude towards, decolonising the curriculum. Results revealed that both staff (n=71) and students (n=121) felt decolonising the curriculum was important, but this was more important to female respondents (p<0.001). The survey also highlighted that members of certain minoritized groups did not feel represented by the curriculum, highlighting the need to develop a curriculum that is inclusive and representative for all students.
Focus groups were undertaken to gain a deeper understanding of attitudes towards colonial influences in our curricula. Thematic analysis revealed three important themes which students consider essential for a decolonised curriculum. We propose that these themes could form a useful framework to guide future work to decolonise and diversify the curriculum, in the biomedical sciences and beyond. Going forward, we will repeat both the surveys and focus groups after an interval of one year to monitor changes in attitudes as we refine our curricula.

Decolonising and diversifying through inclusive co-creation of a lab escape game

Furaiya Spibey (De Montfort University, United Kingdom), Shabana Cassambai (University of Leicester, United Kingdom), Jo V Rushworth (University of Lincoln, United Kingdom)

Inclusive co-creation is an approach to tackle gaps in students’ sense of belonging, experience, confidence and attainment, to ensure an equitable experience for all. Working with student partners in curriculum design, using a Universal Design for Learning approach, embeds the student cohort’s diverse identities, preferences and needs from the outset. Rather than a tokenistic model of student involvement, inclusive co-creation requires students to be actively involved as leaders in the development and delivery of learning and assessment materials and sessions. Thus, the student body is actively represented from the outset. Here, we present a student-created “Escape the Lab” formative assessment which aimed to provide an inclusive experience for large, diverse cohorts of bioscience students (~250 first year students, mostly BAME, female and non-A level, including disabled, mature and international students). A remote, biochemistry Escape the Lab” game was created by an undergraduate dissertation student, with input from the first-years and peer “lab assistants”. In addition to the diverse representation provided by the lab assistants, the game included inclusive photographs and avatars of people with diverse identities and names. Playing the game increased students’ confidence and remote lab skills with no significant differences in confidence or enjoyment between students of different ethnicity, gender or age (Mann-Whitney U test; p>0.05). Players obtained a higher mark (6% mean increase) in the summative assessment with mean grade increased from a 2.2 to a 2.1. We feel that inclusive co-creation of games and playful approaches to learning also helps students to build diverse learning communities.

Decolonising the Biological Sciences Curriculum: A Student-led Approach

David Lawson (University of Bristol, United Kingdom), Kamara Venner (University of Bristol, United Kingdom), Celine Petitjean (University of Bristol, United Kingdom)

Scientific research and education are characterised by their basis on evidence and theory, but they exist within a social and historical space which is built on system of racial inequality and colonial legacy. This talk details the findings of three student-led project to contribute to the decolonisation and diversifying of the curriculum in the University of Bristol School of Biological Sciences, alongside details of wider faculty-level efforts in the Life Sciences faculty. The students undertook content reviews of mandatory and optional units, alongside collection of data through surveys and focus groups to gauge the opinions of staff and students surrounding decolonisation and related topics, and produced a shared online virtual environment dedicated to sharing ideas surrounding decolonisation. Content reviews identified several opportunities to discuss and acknowledge colonial narratives and diversify perspectives in the subject areas such as taxonomy, conservation and ecology, and evolution and genetics. Student surveys also revealed a mix of opinions and degrees of understanding of decolonising the curriculum, with the majority of students recognising its importance and some differences between year groups. Student responses noted that related topics are already discussed in multiple units already, but more discussion was necessary. Staff surveys identified and general lack of confidence and experience related to diversifying and decolonising unit content, but a willingness to learn more. These projects contribute to an ongoing conversation of decolonisation with the school and encourages future dialogue between staff and students.

Decolonising the Life Sciences Curriculum at the University of Glasgow

Nicola J Veitch (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom), Leighann Sherry (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom), Lidia Errico (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom), Zara Gatt (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom)

Movements such as the Rhodes Must Fall and Black Lives Matter have highlighted the need for ‘decolonising the curriculum’ efforts in academia. Decolonising the curriculum seeks to acknowledge and dismantle the way that imperialism and colonialism have shaped global education, with a focus on inclusion and visibility of a wider range of viewpoints which have been historically excluded. To create awareness of the Decolonising the Curriculum movement and its relevance to Life Sciences, tutorials were developed by students undertaking their final year projects and delivered to undergraduate students in the Microbiology and Immunology programmes at the University of Glasgow. The tutorials acted as an introduction to the movement, focusing on contextualising how the material linked to existing topics within their respective curricula, through group discussions and case studies. Knowledge progression as well as the resources produced, were evaluated by pre- and post-questionnaires. Throughout the tutorial, students were receptive to and engaged with the subject material, taking active roles in group discussions. General feedback from students was largely positive with clear indications of knowledge progression. Thus, highlighting a desire for and value in the incorporation of ‘Decolonising the Curriculum’ and other ‘Equality, Diversity, Inclusion’ material within their curricula. With ever-growing pressures to address issues of inequality and colonial histories, universities in the UK are slowly beginning to work with students and take action. Our work showcases the relevance and scope of these issues within Life Sciences subjects.

Decolonizing and Diversifying the Biomedical Science Curriculum at St George’s, University of London.

Daniel Berwick (St George's University of London, United Kingdom), Erica Appiah (St George's University of London, United Kingdom), Ashley Ulaikere (St George's University of London, United Kingdom), Natasha Wollen (St George's University of London, United Kingdom), David Ross (St George's University of London, United Kingdom), Michelle Moroney (St George's University of London, United Kingdom)

Diversification is part of the culture at St George’s, thanks largely to the ‘Mind the Gap’ project to ensure medical conditions are depicted as they present on black and brown skin. Transferring this philosophy beyond clinical subjects has been more challenging, however.
Here we describe a student-led initiative to decolonise and diversify the Biomedical Science (BMS) degree. Three BMS undergraduate students (‘Student Advisors’ or SAs) reviewed BMS teaching material for EDI issues, with a primary focus on race inequalities. Where problems were identified, SAs provided suggested SMART solutions. SAs also reviewed standard practice at other UK HEIs.
The SAs found a number of issues that the BMS course team are addressing. As expected, most problems are at the clinical end of BMS, although issues related to the teaching of more basic bioscience disciplines were also identified. Problems include: lack of diversity in small group tutorial scenario characters (e.g., ethnic diversity, and LGBTQ+); lack of images of black and brown skin in Anatomy; and the need to account for cultural differences when referring, e.g., social stigmas associated with mental health disorders. We also identified a need for Anatomy teaching acknowledge its dark history of illegal cadaver use, in particular the cadavers of Black people.
Many of our findings will be specific to BMS at St George’s, but some overarching observations are likely to be transferable. In particular, our project highlights the value of a student-led approach and of evaluating EDI issues at the course level, and not in a piecemeal fashion.

Disposition of Teaching Staff Towards Decolonising the Science Curriculum – a UK HE Case Study

Lena Grinsted (University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom)

Scientific advances are historically linked to colonial actions of past empires resulting in Western-biased knowledge production and minimal representation of non-White scholars in science curricula in Higher Education (HE). Calls to decolonise science curricula seeks to diversify content and acknowledge the role of racism and privilege in the history of science to create a HE that is less isolating for non-Whites and equally welcoming to students of all ethnicities. This study explored science teaching staff’s familiarity with and misconceptions of decolonisation at a UK HE institution using an online questionnaire. We further assessed participants' perceptions of barriers, benefits and risks, training needs, and preparedness to take actions in their teaching. We found that a majority of participants were positive about decolonising their teaching, but that critical misconceptions, e.g. links to ‘cancel culture’ and ‘colour-blind’ behaviour were common, and important barriers, e.g. a lack of training and constraints on time, halt progress. We provide specific recommendations for staff training and teaching activities and a brief historical background relevant to biological sciences. By supporting teachers, that train future generations of scientists, to decolonise the curriculum we can improve equity in HE, academia, and society.

Equality, diversity and inclusion within the new QAA Subject Benchmark Statement for Biosciences

Kate Hammond (University of Liverpool, United Kingdom), Salma Ali (University of St Andrews, United Kingdom)

This year the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) initiated a full review of the Subject Benchmark Statements for Biosciences. For the first time sections dedicated to equality, diversity, inclusion (EDI) and accessibility are included.  Equity and inclusion has also been considered throughout. This is a crucial development for UK biosciences education since the QAA Benchmark Statements inform biosciences program content and development throughout the UK higher education sector.
We will present the EDI and accessibility content of the draft Benchmark Statement and discuss the rationale behind its development.

Facilitating opportunities for Black bioscience students to see themselves belonging and reflected within the wider scientific community

Nigel Page (Kingston University London, United Kingdom)

Black students face significant disadvantages when it comes to achievement at university including differential degree awarding outcomes and poorer employment prospects than their white counterparts. These differences exist at every stage of the student life cycle and persist beyond higher education. Black students often report feeling excluded, not having relatable academics, or lack the soft skills, confidence, and professional networks crucial to their future employability. Consequently, I have taken action to tackle these injustices with proactive measures to not only enhance the student experience for all but cultivate the talent of our Black students. Grasping the importance of students seeing themselves belonging and reflected within the curriculum, I recognised the necessity for facilitating appropriate peer networks and mentors beyond into their wider scientific community. I have done this through establishing several school-wide initiatives affording students first-hand opportunities to interact more broadly with our researchers, external employers, and their own peers to help navigate, apply, and learn more about the prospects available to them. These have included establishing an annual ‘Discover Research’ event, where students can meet/socialise with the next generation of bioscientific researchers (PhD students/post-docs), who look more like them. Partnering with industry to provide year-long employability support packages targeted towards Black students to encourage embracing careers within the pharmaceutical industry. The development of a supportive peer learning network within our tutor scheme to encourage greater inclusivity/engagement through collaborative reflection, discussion, and debate. This presentation outlines these achievements through individual journeys, storytelling, and creation of vital role model networking opportunities.

Meeting fungal kin: Indigenous approaches to teaching undergraduate mycology

Ashley A Klymiuk (University of Manitoba, Canada)

Amongst organismal biology disciplines, no science has been more radically transformed by molecular phylogenetic approaches than mycology.  As genomics-informed classifications have stabilized, it has become obvious that classic approaches emphasizing morphological features rarely reflect legitimate taxonomies.  Morphological synapomorphies for major clades are lacking, or are microscopic, and thus lend poorly to survey classes introducing the diversity, evolution, and life histories of these organisms.  There are both challenges and opportunities inherent in teaching fungal diversity in a phylogenetic framework while retaining student interest. In undertaking such a redevelopment of a fungal diversity course, I have drawn on my understanding of Cree (and Métis) natural law governing relationality to the natural world.  Fungi, as sources of medicine (e.g., antibiotics, immunosuppressants, etc.), can be understood within our cultural paradigms for medicinal plants, i.e., as sacred gifts.  It is also feasible to approach fungi through a kinship lens, in accordance with both contemporary understanding of fungi as opisthokont eukaryotes, and Indigenous understanding of the relatedness of all life, wâhkôhtiwin.  Principles inherent in wâhkôhtiwin include respecting and honouring other-than-human kin – as a scientist and educator, I view this as fundamentally aligned with developing an appreciation for their biology, i.e., their ways of being in the world.  In this talk, I will share cultural frameworks that guide my approach, and present examples of successful integration of self-directed land-based learning, projects that develop scientific literacy, and integrate creative expression in a large undergraduate (second-year, ~200 person) mycology course at a public university in Manitoba, Canada.

Rethinking the “gypsy” retrotransposon: A roadmap for community-driven reconsideration of problematic gene names

Kevin H-C Wei (University of California Berkeley, United States), Reema Aldaimalani (University of California Berkeley, United States), Ethel Brooks (Rutgers University, United States)

Transposable elements (TE) can replicate and mobilize at the detriment of the host genome they reside in; thus, they are considered selfish or parasitic genetic elements. First discovered in the model organism Drosophila, the "gypsy" retroelement was named in reference to the migratory history of the Romani people. This name later came to denote an entire superfamily of wide-spread TEs and phylogenetically related viruses. We will discuss why the continued use of “gypsy” in this scientific context is insensitive and perpetuates racial stereotypes. Further, we outline a series of steps for the reconsideration of problematic gene names that take into account the relevant scientific communities, literature continuity, and, importantly, the harmed communities.

South African Students’ STEM Attitudes and Self Efficacy: Exploring STEM Non-Formal Learning Contexts

Joseph A. Isaac (Texas Tech University, United States)

There are few studies which look at STEM self-efficacy and attitude through the lens of students in South Africa.  Because students’ experiences outside the classroom have an insightful impact on their in-class accomplishments, support for the importance of non-formal and informal learning in the South African context should be encouraged.  Using a non-formal education model in South Africa known as the Taylor Education Framework (TEF), this study sought to add to the knowledge base of non-formal programs, namely in a country which has been hampered by chronic student underperformance and underachievement, as shown through consistently low scores on international assessments.  The purpose of this study was to explore the self-efficacy and attitude of South African adolescents related to STEM before and after participating in the non-formal learning experience.  A comparison study was done between those who took part in the camp and a population of South African adolescents who did not participate.   After data was collected from three validated survey instruments by both paper and computer resources, the data was analyzed using non-parametric statistical tests.  Results from this study suggest that participating in effective non-formal STEM learning opportunities may prove to be educationally advantageous for middle and high school students in South Africa, while shedding light onto potential best practices for attracting and retaining student interest in STEM areas of study and career choices.

The role of students in decolonising life sciences curricula through co-curricular learning

Carl Larsen (University of Liverpool, United Kingdom)

Too often, workshops on decolonising explore what it means, not really how to do it. A common theme is that students provide effective allies in promoting the impetus to decolonise. The purpose of this intervention was to address issues of decolonising and inclusivity in my HEI that aren’t covered in taught curricula by allowing students to take an optional, non-credit-bearing award. Via a series of live and online lectures, this award explored the history and philosophy of science and the core competencies associated with global citizenship, the social responsibilities it and science entail, and the civic engagement that this may lead to. Students also learned about environmental philosophy and the interrelations between environmental exploitation and the subjugation of females and black people. Students learned about the hidden contribution of female scientists and the need to decolonise science that is not representative of scientists from marginalised groups and the complex issues surrounding intersectionality.
In first-year students took part in a range of decolonising initiatives including forming the DeCoL-SoL-Advocates (a reading and activist group focussed on decolonising the School of Life Sciences), compiling decolonising and anti-racist science reading lists for the life sciences programmes, designing a decolonising toolkit for life sciences curricula, running a rolling exhibit on decolonising in our sciences library and displaying an awareness poster on themes in the award.
In second-year students are embarking on civic engagement placements working with marginalised and underrepresented groups including asylum seekers, black and brown school children, and as decolonising advocates within our university.

What do we really mean when we use the term ethnicity and why does it matter in biomedical education?

Jennifer A Koenig (University of Nottingham, United Kingdom), Olusola Olafuyi (University of Nottingham, United Kingdom), Rakesh Patel (University of Nottingham, United Kingdom)

In pharmacology and physiology undergraduate curricula, ethnicity appears with regard to differences in physiological parameters such as renal function and in the prescription and/or dose of certain drugs. Ethnicity can also appear more indirectly in case studies and problem-based learning for example. We investigated the ways in which ethnicity is defined both in everyday life and more specifically in the pharmacological research literature. We used both questionnaires and focus groups to investigate how students in medical physiology and medicine undergraduate courses understand ethnicity and how they relate this understanding to what they are learning about biomedical science. We identified significant gaps in student understanding about the relationship between ethnicity and genetic ancestry and between ethnicity and ill-health. As a result, we have recommended changes to our curriculum to help our students better understand ethnicity and its implications for health and disease.

What has commuting and COVID-19 taught us about understanding awarding gaps, a case study in the biosciences?

Nigel Page (Kingston University London, United Kingdom)

Reasons for HE awarding gaps are complex with numerous causes proposed. London has some of the largest awarding gaps, where paradoxically there is higher secondary education attainment amongst ethnic pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. Post-92 London universities such as Kingston attract a high percentage of these students, where many remain in the home environment. Nonetheless, these students can fair less academically than their white counterparts. We identified commuting as a significant differentiator between our ethnically diverse and white bioscience students, where 75% of white students lived local to campus compared to 40% ethnic students. This leads to significantly longer and complex journeys for those commuting that could play a significant role in explaining the awarding gap. Our wide-ranging analysis (n≈4000) found pre-pandemic awarding gaps for Asian, Black, and mixed race existed irrelevant of commuting status, where commuting added its own premium irrespective of ethnicity. We estimated that commuting contributed to around 10% of our observed awarding gap by virtue of having greater numbers of BME students who also commuted, leaving a significant contribution unaccounted. Commuting awarding gaps closed during the pandemic but not corresponding BME awarding gaps. Three-way intersectionality revealed lockdown benefited previously commuting white students whilst attainment for commuting ethnic groups remained unaffected. Non-commuting ethnic students were significantly affected by lockdown and suggest clear benefits for these students in normal circumstances living closer to campus. These results have implications in understanding decolonising the curriculum as irrespective of commuting or COVID-19, a substantive part of the awarding gap remained unexplained.