Building on my earlier reflections on intersectionality, this piece considers how race intersects with other identities to shape student experiences within my practice as a science educator and personal tutor in higher education. Reflecting on race has required me to engage more critically with the structural dimensions of education, moving beyond individual interactions to consider how institutional norms, policies, and expectations are racialised.
As a personal tutor, I work closely with students navigating academic and personal challenges that are often shaped by racialised experiences. Students from minoritised backgrounds may describe feelings of heightened visibility, pressure to perform, or uncertainty about belonging within the university environment. These experiences frequently intersect with class, faith, disability, and migration status, compounding barriers to engagement and confidence. Reflecting on these encounters has made me more attentive to how race shapes not only access to support, but also students’ willingness to trust institutional processes and articulate their needs.
Bradbury’s (2020) application of Critical Race Theory to education policy highlights how ostensibly neutral systems can reproduce racial inequities through assumptions about language, assessment, and standards. This has prompted me to reflect on how assessment practices within science education may similarly privilege particular forms of academic ‘capital’. Expectations around written expression, scientific communication, and “professional” behaviour can disadvantage students whose prior educational experiences or linguistic backgrounds differ from dominant norms. While these practices are rarely intended to exclude, their cumulative impact can reinforce racialised patterns of attainment and participation.
Teaching in scientific disciplines has also led me to reflect on representation and imagined futures. Garrett’s (2024) work on the career trajectories of racialised minority PhD graduates underscores how racism continues to shape academic pathways, aspirations, and perceptions of legitimacy within higher education. This has encouraged me to consider how the undergraduate and postgraduate teaching spaces that I am routinely part of, contribute to students’ sense of whether they belong within science, research, or academia more broadly. The absence of diverse role models, coupled with implicit assumptions about who is suited to scientific careers, can subtly constrain students’ imagined futures.
I could say that this understanding I have, stems from my own experiences. Despite all the privileges I had – being a heterosexual female from a European country, I did not have parents or grandparents who attended university, nevertheless in a different country than my own. Hence navigating the complexities of academia, understanding the different levels of education, and eventually accepting that I can be part of this ‘system’, was a lengthy process. I can only imagine how much more difficult or long this process could be for my students that come from even more underprivileged backgrounds, where the lack of ‘inside knowledge’ is compounded with systemic racism, sexism and homophobia.
Reflecting on my practice, I recognise the importance of adopting a more explicitly anti-racist but simultaneously agile and reflexive approach. This includes critically examining curriculum content, assessment design, and everyday interactions, as well as listening attentively to students’ lived experiences without individualising systemic issues. An intersectional approach to race, disability, and faith in HE requires sustained attention to power, representation, and structural inequalities, reinforcing that inclusive practice is not simply about supporting individuals, but about challenging the conditions that shape educational opportunity.
References:
Bradbury, A. (2020) ‘A critical race theory framework for education policy analysis: The case of bilingual learners and assessment policy in England’, Race Ethnicity and Education, 23(2), pp. 241–260.
Garrett, R. (2024) ‘Racism shapes careers: career trajectories and imagined futures of racialised minority PhDs in UK higher education’, Globalisation, Societies and Education, pp. 1–15.