Following my earlier reflection on intersectionality and disability, this piece focuses specifically on how faith intersects with other identities within my practice as a science educator and personal tutor in higher education. Teaching disciplines such as biology, microbiology and materials science requires careful navigation of knowledge systems that are often framed as objective, value-neutral, and secular. Reflecting on my practice has highlighted how this framing can create tensions for students for whom faith is a significant and integrated aspect of identity.
In my role as a personal tutor, students occasionally disclose that their faith shapes how they experience university life, including their engagement with scientific study. These disclosures are rarely framed as challenges to scientific content, but rather relate to belonging, representation, and the emotional labour of negotiating perceived incompatibilities between faith and science. This is particularly evident where faith intersects with ethnicity, gender, or migration status, and where students may already experience marginalisation within academic spaces. Such intersections can amplify feelings of visibility, scrutiny, or pressure to conform to dominant norms.
One notable exception was when a student disclosed to me that they ceased having relationships with their family as they were going against the family’s faith, culture and wishes, and as a female they chose to pursue university studies, in a creative scientific field – which was not the norm for other female members of their family. Again, I had to think about my reactions during this exchange and how I could better support the student in their new reality, rather than collude with them in their anger and sadness over losing their family’s support.
Within the classroom, I have also become increasingly aware that science education can unintentionally reinforce binaries between rationality and belief. For example, curriculum narratives that present scientific knowledge as entirely detached from social, cultural, or historical context may implicitly position faith as antithetical to academic legitimacy. Reflecting on this has prompted me to reconsider how I frame scientific inquiry, not by compromising disciplinary rigor, but by acknowledging the human, historical, and ethical dimensions of scientific knowledge production. I constantly share tidbits of information on the history of scientific research, prompting the students to think how they can avoid historical injustices and how they can safeguard their practices from causing harm. This approach creates space for students to engage critically without feeling that aspects of their identity must be left at the door. It is however a very delicate process, that requires me to understand and have a good relationship with each student cohort, to avoid revictimisation and perpetration of outdated beliefs as facts.
Intersectionality has also sharpened my awareness that faith does not exist in isolation. Students who hold visible faith identities, particularly women or students from racialised backgrounds, may experience additional layers of surveillance or stereotyping in laboratory and classroom settings. As a tutor and educator, this has reinforced the importance of attentive listening, reflexivity, and cultural humility and understanding, particularly when supporting students navigating both academic and personal pressures.
Moving forward, I aim to continue developing an inclusive science pedagogy that recognises faith as one of many intersecting identities shaping student experience. This includes being mindful of language, teaching examples, and assessment scheduling, as well as fostering learning environments where intellectual challenge does not require identity erasure. This reflection has reinforced that inclusive practice in science education is not about resolving tensions between faith and science, but about creating spaces where complexity can be acknowledged and engaged with thoughtfully.