In educational research we use standardized terms when discussing students. Using common terminology when we speak about different groups shows that we speak the language of academia.
In education we use standardized terms when discussing students. Using common terminology when we speak about different groups shows that we speak the language of academia. However, these standardized terms often perpetuate inequity and most often “others” certain groups. When we use these terms in work that is intended to disrupt the status quo, we create a contradictory message between our words and our overall intentions. This guide will help us develop an inclusive, shared vocabulary, allowing our words to match the true intentions of our work.
Language is constantly changing. The terms in this guide could soon be out of date. Even though this guide is comprehensive, there are groups, identities, terms, and nuances we’ve most likely missed. We know this language will not resonate with everyone, and that we will make mistakes as we continue to learn.
We realize that not everyone will agree or identify with the terms we’ve used. These are terms we have chosen to create a shared language for our work around diversity, equity, and inclusion.
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New York Times: What is DACA? And Where Does It Stand Now?
https://www.nytimes.com/article/what-is-daca.html
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
National Center for Institutional Diversity: Identifying and Disrupting Deficit Thinking
https://medium.com/national-center-for-institutional-diversity/identifying-and-disrupting-deficit-thinking-cbc6da326995
The Education Trust: Questioning the Deficit
https://edtrust.org/the-equity-line/questioning-deficit/
Inside Higher Ed: Beyond a Deficit View
https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2016/04/19/importance-viewing-minority-low-income-and-first-generation-students-assets-essay
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
University of South Carolina-Aiken
https://www.usca.edu/diversity-initiatives/training-resources/guide-to-inclusive-language/inclusive-language-guide/file
Oregon Health & Science University
https://www.ohsu.edu/sites/default/files/2021-03/OHSU%20Inclusive%20Language%20Guide_031521.pdf
Education Writers Association: Guide for Inclusive Coverage
https://www.ewa.org/reporter-guide/ewa-reporter-guide-inclusive-coverage
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
American Psychological Association (APA) Style Guide
https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/bias-free-language/general-principles
Conscious Style Guide
https://consciousstyleguide.com/
The Diversity Style Guide
https://www.diversitystyleguide.com/
GLAAD Media Reference Guide
https://www.glaad.org/reference
Native American Journalist Association
https://najanewsroom.com/reporting-guides/
National Association of Black Journalists
https://www.nabj.org/page/styleguide
National Center on Disability and Journalism
https://ncdj.org/style-guide/
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Pew Research Center: Who is Hispanic?
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/09/23/who-is-hispanic/
Vox: LatinX is growing in popularity. I made a comic to help you understand why.
https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/2019/10/15/20914347/latin-latina-latino-latinx-means
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Sotto-Santiago Sylk. (2019). Time to Reconsider the Word Minority in Academic Medicine. Journal of Best Practices in Health Professions Diversity, 12(1), 72–78.
The Baltimore Sun: ‘Minoritized’ a Violent Word
https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/op-ed/bs-ed-op-0328-minoritized-word-20190320-story.html
National Association of Hispanic Journalists: Drop the Use of Minority when Referencing Communities of Color
https://nahj.org/2020/08/04/nahj-asks-newsrooms-to-drop-the-use-of-minority/
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
National Public Radio (NPR): Today’s College Students Aren’t Who You Think They Are
https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/09/04/638561407/todays-college-students-arent-who-you-think-they-are
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Amnesty International: Refugees, Asylum-Seekers, Migrants
https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/refugees-asylum-seekers-and-migrants/
BBC News: Asylum Seekers, Migrants, or Refugees: Which Word is Correct?
https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-46747502
BBC News: The Battle Over the Words Used to Describe Migrants
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34061097
Washington Post: Is it Time to Ditch the Word Migrant?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/08/24/is-it-time-to-ditch-the-word-migrant/
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Resilience is not inherently a “bad” term or a term we should avoid, but we must consider how/why we’re using that term to describe a person or group.
Are we using the term to suggest that certain aspects of a person’s identity, life, or experience were barriers they had to overcome, rather than strengths that added to their success?
Sometimes students must show resilience to navigate inequitable educational systems, but they shouldn’t have to. This illustrates problems with the design of the educational system. On other occasions, a person’s resilience can be a strength that they bring to the workplace or other settings.
Author Bee Quamie states: “Before we dismissively praise someone for being resilient, we should give them room to define their experiences in their own words. We can still uplift them by saying “From my vantage point, you seem like you’re handling it so well,” but not try to define their experiences for them.
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
APA Style Guide: Socioeconomic Status
https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/bias-free-language/socioeconomic-status
Why We Don’t Use the Term Homeless or Homeless Person
https://my.neighbor.org/terms-the-homeless-or-homeless-people/
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Use this phrase instead of using “vulnerable populations” use “populations experiencing inequities.”
Natalie S. Burke, the president and CEO of CommonHealth ACTION states, “The word ‘vulnerable’ is often viewed as a character assessment and creates a perception of weakness when the truth is that people experience physical, emotional, social, and economic vulnerability when systems and institutions fail to allow access, respond to, or even plan for their existence.”
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
At Labs, we can use the term “Support for students who have expressed need” to remove the “savior” complex sometimes associated with the word “help” and allow the student to determine their own level of need.
The trouble with using terms like “disadvantaged” and “underprivileged” is that they have become catch-all terms to refer to anyone from a historically minoritized group, regardless of their socioeconomic status.
In the Chronicle of Higher Education article, “Who Are You Calling Underprivileged?” A college student suggests that “simply labeling materials as ‘help for students in need’ would be more accurate and less insulting.”
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
The Chronicle of Higher Education: Who Are You Calling Underprivileged?
https://www.chronicle.com/article/who-are-you-calling-underprivileged/
ATTN: 5 Once Common Phrases with Troubling Histories
https://archive.attn.com/stories/16834/common-words-nobody-actually-uses-anymore
Medium: How to Fix a Broken Tongue
https://natalie4health.medium.com/how-to-fix-a-broken-tongue-cade93816add
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
Associated Press (AP): Why we will lowercase white
https://blog.ap.org/announcements/why-we-will-lowercase-white
University of Minnesota: Time to Phase Out “Caucasian”
https://med.umn.edu/news-events/time-phase-out-caucasian
Last Updated
August 30, 2023
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