Escaping Inequity: A Digital Escape Room Professional Development for Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

In this design-based research study, in-service educators participated in a grant-funded professional development (PD) project to increase district capacity for multilingual learner instruction. Initial data indicated teacher comfort with technology but difficulty tailoring it to the unique multiliterate practices of culturally and linguistically diverse students. Based on teachers' needs and a departmental goal, a modification of a digital escape room (the JEDI Library Escape) was designed and implemented to teach principles of culturally sustaining pedagogies (CSPs) and multiliteracies. Results indicate that infusing CSP and multiliteracies into a digital escape room as PD enacted critical reflection, increased multiliteracies awareness, and created an overall enjoyable experience while shifting teachers' holistic impressions of multilinguals and their caregivers. Future iterations of the JEDI escape will include more opportunities for applying multiliteracies and JEDI principles to classroom settings, followed by opportunities for peer reflection through coursework.