Improving the quality of teaching and increasing student achievement outcomes are shared goals among college educators. It is well documented throughout higher education literature that particular teacher characteristics and teaching techniques affect how and what a student learns. However, far less research exists examining the impact of a teacher’s race, ethnicity, and gender on student expectations for receiving quality teaching, particularly at the community college level. This study advances higher education literature by challenging us to think more broadly and critically about factors that influence the classroom environment and academic success. Therefore, this study’s central question is whether a teacher’s race-ethnicity and gender impact student expectations regarding quality instruction. This study argues that students come into the classroom environment with certain perceptions and develop particular expectations based on a teacher’s race-ethnicity and gender. Such race-ethnic and gender based expectations, arguably, influence how students evaluate the quality of teaching. This proposition is tested by using original data collected from community college students across one academic school year. Students were given a questionnaire at the beginning of the course asking about their initial expectations regarding quality teaching and a follow-up questionnaire towards the end of the course. Findings suggest students have lower expectations for receiving quality teaching from minority and female teachers compared to their white and male counterparts.
