Beyond Diversity: Envisioning Inclusion in Medical Education Research and Practice

Abstract

This commentary examines the publications in Teaching and Learning in Medicine's Issue 32(5) from the perspectives of Black, female medical trainees. Its purpose is to demonstrate how including diverse perspectives in general medical education scholarship could prompt reconsideration of basic concepts and the development of richer, more nuanced, and practicable understanding of who medical learners are. An inclusive concept of medical education is a first step toward "culturally responsive universal design for learning," an approach to educational design that views barriers to learning as a systems problem, recognizes racism as a learning barrier, and offers learners multiple means to achieve academic success. Augmenting studies that explicitly target the experiences of trainees and faculty from marginalized racial groups, this commentary aims to establish a vision for what to do educationally with the knowledge that people bring diverse backgrounds and perspectives to their learning.

Acknowledgments

The first three authors of this commentary contributed in equal measure to the intellectual content of this article, from conception to writing and final revision. The last author organized the collaborative process and structured the article. We gratefully thank the authors of the Teaching and Learning in Medicine articles discussed in this commentary for stimulating very engaging and enjoyable discussion about the future of medical education research. We also thank Dr. Tasha Wyatt for reviewing this manuscript and providing helpful feedback on its framing.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.