Diversity in the Classroom

From: Jennifer McKay
Email:
Course: Psyc100G: Diversity in Development
College: University of California, Santa Cruz
Instructor: Eugene Matusov
ClassWeb: http://www.ematusov.com/psych100G
ChildrenObservations: No
Date: 12 Dec 1996
Time: 17:57:39
Remote Name: crown-lab-mac24.ucsc.edu

Abstract

As a future teacher in the diverse classrooms in the United States, I find that I am interested in the issues of language barriers and relating to students with different backgrounds from mine own. The different cultures and homes of students seem to be in conflict with the school environment. By adding the diversity of the our schools, will can create a link between school and daily life. By not ignoring the fact that children come into the classroom with different backgrounds, and instead using them, we might be better able to help them succeed.

Paper

The United States is undoubtedly a very diverse country, with representatives from almost every culture and background. This diversity can be noticed in the increase in number of children who are attending our schools. The number of children in our classrooms is increasing each year, as well as is the diversity of these children. And while the diversity of students is on the increase, that of the teachers within our schools is decreasing; making most of the teaching population White. These situations are creating new conflicts and questions to arise, such as the how to address different home and cultural backgrounds in the classroom, the use of native languages, and ways of increasing the represenation of different backgrounds in the teaching staff.

The classroom has always seemed to be worlds apart from daily life, with few concrete connections between the two. The home and outside environments rarely match that of the classroom. Ideally, parents start preparing their children for school early on, with such activities as reading, counting, using language, and learning how the listen and respond. These activities can be very different from household to household, especially when the households are not ideal. A child raised by a single, working mother with several siblings will come into the classroom with a different way of dealing with things and learning than a child with two working parents with one other sibling. Add on top of these different languages and different cultural backgrounds, and the diversity in which each child learns and relates to others in huge. Two conflicts with the diversity of students in the classroom that I, as a future teacher, find important are the differences in languages used inside and outside the classroom, andthe difficulty of the teacher to related to the different backgrounds of the children.

Native languages in the classroom are being addressed and acknowledged more and more. The Bilingual Education Act of 1968, held that ever child deserved equal opportunities to learn the material, even if that material need to be presented in a language other that English (OBEMLA, 1996). Bilingual education serves to teach English while teaching complex tasks; and holds that all children can be taught complex tasks, if given the proper tools, and that uses of a native language will not interfer with acquiring English (OBEMLA, 1996). It is easier to learn, understand, and express ideas in a native language, and for most students less intimidating. It is harder to learn a language when you are constantly told the rules, and forced to use it. Most children will have a harder time learning the new language when they find it threating or are forced to study the rules (Delpit, 1995). The best way for children to learn Standard English is through mere exposure; and the best way to learn new skills is in a non-threating situation.

Although the native language of most students is English, many times there is still a language barrier. The Standard English used in schools and formal settings in our society, is not always the language spoken at home and with peers. Dialects of English are often overlooked and not accepted within the classroom, causing some children not to be able to express themselves properly. Since Standard English is necessary to succeed in our society today, there is no doubt is should be taught to our children. But to insure a comfortable environment for our students, and to bring their "world" into the classroom, children should be allowed to use their native langauge. One way of doing this is to have the children distinguish between Standard English and different languages and dialects, and their uses and effects of people (Delpit, 1995; Kuykendall, 1992). This allows students not only to understand the need of Standard English, but express themselves and have themselves represented in the classroom.

The majority of teachers in out schools today are White. Although there are efforts being made to increase the number of "minorities" represented in the teaching staff, teaching is still a very much unicultural profession. This makes it even harder for children to feel represented in the classroom. Even when a teacher is able to relate with a student there is still, a large part of the class that will be left out. How can a teacher include a variety of cultures and backgrounds into the classroom, and at the same time not be biased by his/her lack of understanding? Three main ideas can be used to include the lives of the students into the classrrom, even when the teacher is unknowledgeable about them: respect each student, learn about your student, and including the student's background in daily activities. Each student has a lot to offer, and respecting each child learning about them is a big key. By understanding the students outside of the classroom, you can understand how better to help them in the classroom. Including different background into classroom activites does not necessarily mean to celebrate Black History Month or Cinco de Mayo; this means having the children share and tell, do activities that allow them to learn and teach you about their backgrounds exploring the community, and involving the parents. By bring the student's lives into the classroom and using them in their learning to let the child know they are important and learn more about how they learn and work.

There are many issues in the topic of diversity with our classrooms. As a future teacher, I find the issues of langauge barriers and relating to my students to be key issues in this topic. I have come to realize that by respecting and learning about your students, they not only learn more, but so do you. Diversity can be seen as a problem, or it can be seen a wonderful opportunity. I believe our classrooms are full of students who are just waiting to learn and to teach; noone should be denied this opportunity, regardless of their background or yours.

REFERENCES

Delpit, L. (1995). Other's People Children: Cultural conflict in the classroom. The New Press: New York.

Kuykendall, C. (1992). From Rage to Hope: Strategies for reclaiming Black and Hispanic students. National Educational Services: Bloomington.

Multicultural Alliance (1996) "Minority Teacher Development Program". http://MCA.NET/alliance/mca.mtdp.shtml.

National Center for Research on Cultural Diversity and Second Langauge Learning (1996). http://zzyx.ucsc.edu/Cntr/cntr.html.

Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Language Affairs (1996). "About Us". http://www.edgov/offices/OBEMLA/aboutus.html.

Whittaker, A. (October 3, 1996). "Valuing Students and Their Communities". University of California, Santa Cruz.

Last modified January 12, 1997