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Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History

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Research Study

The State of Illinois General Assembly’s passage of House Bill 376 in April 2021, known as the TEAACH Act (Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History), marks Illinois as the first state to mandate the teaching of Asian American history in K-12 schools, starting with 2022-2023 school year. At the University of Illinois, a group of scholars and experts have developed a series of three online professional development modules, in an effort to provide some guidance and resources for Illinois teachers to incorporate Asian American history in their curriculum. These modules meet requirements for professional development (PD) credits for educators in the state. 

As part of this PD, educators will participate in course assignments that prompt them to reflect on their identities in teaching Asian American history; to create lesson plans and other curricular materials to implement; and to assess their overall learning. Through examination of participants’ submitted assignments, this research project aims to better understand teacher identities, examining what teachers need to interrogate their dispositions and what resources and tools do they need to engage in teaching of racial inequity and Asian American history.

Eligibility to Participate

Anyone taking part of the online PD provided by the University of Illinois is eligible as long as they are 18 years of age or older and are physically present in the United States when completing the modules.

Providing Consent

When completing the participant information form to access the PD modules, you will be prompted on screen to provide or decline consent. Providing consent is voluntary and will not affect your learning assessments, access to PD materials, or earning of PD credits.

This project has been approved by the University of Illinois Institutional Review Board.

Consent Form Information

Participation in Research Study

Your participation in this online PD module provides an important opportunity to better understand teacher experiences with professional development on teaching about racial inequity. With your consent, data collected from your course assignments completed in the PD will be analyzed by University of Illinois researchers to better understand teacher experiences and identities in teaching Asian American history/ herstory.

Your decision to allow your class assignments and information be included in this research study is voluntary. Your decision will not affect or your relationship with the University of Illinois in any way.  If you decide to participate, you are also free to withdraw your consent and discontinue participation at any time. Your decision whether or not to participate, or to withdraw after beginning participation, will not affect your learning assessments, access to PD materials, earning of PD credits (which will occur through completion of the PD regardless of your consent to allow researchers access to your data), or your current or future dealings with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Risks of loss of confidentiality may occur in this study; however, researchers will take all required steps to protect your identity. Faculty, staff, students, and others with permission or authority to see your study information will maintain its confidentiality to the extent permitted and required by laws and university policies.  Identifying information will be removed prior to any data analysis. The names or personal identifiers of participants (beyond general descriptors) will not be published or presented. Benefits related to this study will be to help understand teacher experiences preparing for this new curriculum and identifying what resources are most helpful in supporting teacher education and professional development along racial equity pedagogy. Your de-identified information could be used for future research without additional informed consent.

Whom Should I Contact if I Have Questions?

Contact the listed principal investigator if you have any questions about this study or your part in it, or if you have concerns or complaints about the research, or if you wish to withdraw from the study.

Principal Investigator Name and Title: Dr. Sharon S. Lee, Teaching Assistant Professor, Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership
Department and Institution: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Contact Information: 217-300-6599; lee1@illinois.edu

What are My Rights as a Research Subject?

If you have any questions about your rights as a research subject, including concerns, complaints, or to offer input, you may call the Office for the Protection of Research Subjects (OPRS) at 217-333-2670 or e-mail OPRS at irb@illinois.edu. If you would like to complete a brief survey to provide OPRS feedback about your experiences as a research participant, please follow the link here or through a link on the OPRS website: https://oprs.research.illinois.edu/. You will have the option to provide feedback or concerns anonymously or you may provide your name and contact information for follow-up purposes.

Please print this screen if you would like to retain a copy for your records.

I have read and understand the above consent form. I certify that I am 18 years old or older and that I am physically present in the United States while taking part in this PD. By clicking the YES button, I indicate my willingness to take part in this study.