Discriminatory design refers to systems that appear to be fair for everyone, when in reality they reinforce inequalities. When thinking about this type of design in education, it appears in subtle ways, often in the curriculum, instruction, and types of assessments. These kinds of designs unintentionally disadvantage emergent bilinguals and students with disabilities as well. This can happen when people design and center what it means to learn, communicate, and demonstrate knowledge in limited ways.

One place where discriminatory design appears is within curriculum that lacks representation. When texts or materials being taught to students do not reflect students’ culture, language, or lived experiences, students may not see themselves in the curriculum. When students do not see themselves, they may feel invisible or excluded and may not want to learn, which can be particularly harmful to emerging bilingual students whose identities intertwine with language.

As teachers, it is important to understand our students’ cultures. We must be culturally responsive in our classrooms because if we are not, some classroom norms may not align with students from different cultural backgrounds. If you, as a teacher, are not knowledgeable about your students’ backgrounds, you may unintentionally cause harm to that student.

When it comes to me being a future teacher, I must be intentional about getting to know my students and their families. I will include translanguaging and UDL in my lessons to provide students with multiple ways to access the curriculum. I will provide videos, hands-on activities, and audio in the student’s native language. I will allow and encourage my emergent bilingual students to use their native language to properly express how they feel. I will also make sure that my lessons are culturally responsive and connected to students’ backgrounds and cultures, ensuring that everyone’s identity is celebrated and highlighted.

Teachers should keep in mind when designing their classrooms that not everyone learns the same, and we must teach students based on their abilities and capabilities. When it comes to emerging bilingual students, we must allow them to speak in their home language while also providing readings in their home language. For students with disabilities, we need to meet them at their needs. If they need text-to-speech, we should allow them to use it. If they need auditory read-aloud support, we should provide that. We do not want to perpetuate unfair, unintentional discriminatory design toward our students.