Cultural Diversity In Education Essay

Cultural diversity flourishes in the United States even though the golden door are no longer as open as they once were. Americans’ doors have rusted shut through disuse. It doesn’t matter how many people come to the United States looking for freedom and opportunity there will always be groups of people who voluntarily discredit immigrants. Despite Emma Lazarus’s optimistic view, immigrants have and will almost always be looked upon with a predisposition of judgement and shame. With this they will most likely have a harder time reaching the freedom they aspired for.

One of the reasons I chose to the book Other People’s Children by Lisa Delpit was because I want to be aware of the stereotypes and prejudices this books might uncover that I had and didn’t know I has. Teaching in a DLI program there is big diversity in our school and community. I want to be able to be culturally competent and be able to eliminate my cultural assumptions. I want to be able to understand where my students are and families are coming from so I can adjust my teaching methods and strategies.

According to Pratt-Johnson (2005), there are six basic cultural differences that teachers are likely to encounter in the culturally diverse classroom. Familiarity with these differences will begin

Cultural competency is found within different settings however, the setting which will be discussed in this paper will apply to a school setting. A school setting is where social workers “enhance the social and emotional growth and academic outcomes of all students” (SSWAA, n.d.). Furthermore, social workers not only work with students but also, work with parents, school administration, food department, special needs department, and school health services (nursing department). In conclusion, in this paper the culturally competent social work practice of working with the Latino community will be further discussed and analyzed.

The article “Acting on Beliefs in Teacher Education for Cultural Diversity” by Gay (2010), who is a Professor at University of Washington in Faculty of Education, focuses on educating teachers for cultural diversity in classroom environments, which is frequently discussed but not a well-developed topic. According to Gay (2010), the society we live in has a huge impact on our lives, although we try to ignore or minimize its effect on educational area. There is a huge Eurocentric emphasis in the educational setting that affect students from culturally, ethnically and racially diverse backgrounds, and because of this she thinks that some major changes

When beginning this course, I had little knowledge of the depth of diversity found in our world today. I lived in a small town, which acted as a shelter from the harsh realities faced by many ethnicities, but also prevented me from experiencing cultural diversity. With my lack of background knowledge concerning diversity, I would say that my level of cultural competence was nearly non-existent. I had never been exposed to any ethnicities, other than my own, until moving to college. It wasn’t until moving away to college that I realized how naïve I was concerning the diversity of our nation. While learning of cultural competence I became aware of all I still needed to learn and experience if I were to become an ethical social worker.

In this paper I will discuss the culture of Hispanic Americans, whom are sometimes called Latinos. Five demographic characteristics will be identified, which will follow their beliefs on family, education, and society. Although this culture has seen many challenges in today’s society there are many opportunities for advantages, and new traditions.

Within the world of academia, aptitude and intelligence are usually measured by standardized testing and the level of information one can attain within a certain amount of time. When a particular group consistently scores lower than another in terms of performance, the group with the lower score is considered to be inferior, or subordinate. Throughout the years there has been a noticeable disparity between African American students and European American students as it relates to education. However, are the differences and experiences that accompany the African-American culture being factored in when

In the United States, there exists a gap in equality for different demographics of students. The factors contributing to educational disadvantages include socioeconomic struggles, gender of students, language or culture, and particularly for the scope of this paper, race. Racial inequality in education is predominant in black students and is perpetuated further by educators. A theory that explains this could be the “hidden curriculum” theory which conditions students to believe that their cultural backgrounds must be silenced to resemble the model white student. Studies show that training educators in cultural sensitivity and establishing trust between students and teachers allows students from varying cultural backgrounds to improve in classroom settings.

According to Angelina Castagno ethnic studies professor at Northern Arizona University states, “Most teacher preparation programs focus on content/subject-matter knowledge, as well as procedural knowledge about how to manage one’s classroom and curricula”. Beginning teachers start off with just trying to command and manage their classroom than after that they begin teaching the content of their instruction. If you were to have a teacher preparation program just focusing on integrating the Dine culture and language your students would thrive better in the content knowledge. Should teacher preparation programs teach the pre-service teachers how to be culturally responsive teachers in Native schools?

Every student with disabilities is also obligated to an IEP specifically for the student’s needs between the ages of 3 and 21 under IDEA. The IEP is created by a team of six or seven, depending on the age of the student. The six members are the parents, an individual that can explain the assessment results, keep in mind, the faculty of the school must not under any circumstances conduct the evaluations without parental consent. Also included is the general education teacher, a local representative from the local education department, the special education teacher and of course the student, who must be included in the meeting if the student is fourteen or older. In this IEP meeting the team members go over what has been planned for the IEP

While issues associated with socio-economic diversity are extremely important in the classroom, this is only one of several elements of diversity which must be considered in order to minimize inequity in students ' experience of education. Another important issue is that of cultural diversity.

A classroom should be filled with a wide variety of languages, experiences, and cultural diversity. An effective teacher understands the importance of culturally responsive teaching, and recognizes the significance of including students ' cultural references in all aspects of learning. Having an enriching classroom that engages all students does not mean making judgments about a student’s culture based on their skin color, gender, or socioeconomic status, rather it means knowing each student in a way that is individualized. According to the authors of The First Day of School: How to be an Effective Teacher Harry Wong, race, gender, religion, financial statue, and skin color is the least important factor determining a student’s achievement. Moreover, demographics and culture are not an excuse for students’ lack of achievement. (pg.80) Acknowledging and embracing a student’s racial or ethnic background is important, but it is just a piece of the educational puzzle. Effective teachers must be culturally responsive, with fine-tuned classroom management skills, and high expectations for all their students.

The importance of good parent-teacher relationships has been well documented. Research has shown that parent involvement in education benefits not only the child but also the parents and teachers (Eldridge, 2001).

All students deserve to be treated fairly as individuals. When considering the diversity of the class members, we will celebrate the uniqueness that the differences contribute. Because I have high expectations that all my children can be successful, adjustments may be necessary because everyone is not the same (Burden, 2017, p. 115). It is vital that a spirit of understanding and edification is active amongst the students and from the teacher (Romans 14:19, King James Version) to produce fruits of mutual respect: reduced bias, positive academic outcomes, enhanced problem solving, and healthy group dynamics (Cousik, 2015, p. 54). For differences that stem from culture, gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status, the adjustments will involve bridging the cultural gap between the students’ diversity and the curriculum. For differences that result from cognitive abilities, learning styles, or developmental stages, the differentiation in delivery style and product styles support students’ academic, emotional, and social growth. Strategies that support diversity: