Acknowledging Diversity in the Classroom - Essay Example

Acknowledging Diversity in the room Initial Thoughts Diversity is an important factor that is found in most international learning institutions worldwide, and it should be acknowledged and embraced by both students and teachers since it helps in enhancing the school’s experience. Students from different places come together with different ideas that not only help in academic performance, but also in learning how to work in a multiethnic and multicultural environment. On the other hand, teachers should understand the importance of diversity before addressing it to the students. They need to be creative, put more effort, diligent and courageous enough to address some of the most crucial issues that come together with the diversity, in general. In addition, it is important for the lecturers to understand different cultures, disabilities, race among other factors. Through that, teachers will be able to understand some of the needs of different students with different characters. Handling students after knowing them deeply will be easier than failing to do so. Similarly, teachers can use diversity effects to build a foundation for academic growth and development that will benefit all students within the institution. To achieve this goal, teachers must be open to the students and be able to know the learners both inside and outside the classroom. Assessments 1. Four ways in which Students are diverse in classrooms Student diversity exists in many institutions around the world, but, in this case, the main focus is in the United States. There are many ways in which students are diverse in the current classrooms. They are diverse; I. Racially II. Culturally III. Ethnically and, IV. Linguistically. Apart from these major ways, there are those students who come from families and communities with a lower socioeconomic status. 2. Four ways to make sure that the voting process lesson in the class is culturally responsive United States is a cosmopolitan nation that has almost all the world represented. For this reason, teaching voting process lesson might be tricky sometimes especially in a classroom where people of all cultures are represented. However, there are ways to ensure that the lesson is culturally responsive. These include; I. Making all the students feel equally included in the process. II. The teacher should be sensitive to the students’ culture especially on matters of the electoral process. III. To encourage students make personal connections between their political cultures and academic experience to the outside world. IV. The teacher should introduce a candid discussion on the voting process and its importance to students’ lives and academic needs. 3. (a) Why Zahara might be more successful in social situations than in academic ones Zahara is more exposed to different social and cultural lives. She understands more than one culture, having stayed in Kazakhstan, she also learned a lot about culture and social ways of life that can help her do well in this category than she can perform in academics. Having just come from another country with a different education system, she will take time to be acquainted with the U.S system. (b) Three effective supports and strategies can be used to strengthen Zahara’s learning outcomes i. The drive- This is a motivating factor to help her learn and adopt the new culture. It will also help her in learning new language and many things needed in the academics. Cultural knowledge is not only about learning new culture, but getting to know how culture transforms people’s characters, beliefs and values. ii. Offer support and belief in Zahara- Believing in her and providing necessary support can improve her academic standard. She will likely succeed when she feels the teacher is supportive, cares about her welfare and honestly assesses her weaknesses and strengths. iii. Provide hands-on assignments- This is a way of incorporating several learning styles into Zahara’s coursework. It will make her always engaged in the new style of learning; hence keeping away the traditional style that makes not perform well in the new system. Providing assignments will give Zahara something different and motivates movement that might help in reducing problems related to boredom and attention disorders. 4. Ways that can be used to better the needs of students with disabilities Students with disabilities need special attention to enable them cope up with the learning process. Other than that, there are ways that be used to better their academic needs, these include; i. Maintain an organized classroom and limit distractions ii. Use music and voice inflection to help them understand the content of the topics and lessons. iii. Breaking down instructions into smaller, manageable tasks for easier understanding. 5 (a). Three challenges related to low SES that might explain why Arlene is having difficulty in school Socioeconomic status (SES) is always viewed as a combination of academics, income and employment. It is the social position or class of a group of people or an individual. There are challenges that are related to low SES, they include; I. Discrimination ii. Marginalization and iii. Socioeconomic deprivation that might create psychological distress. In Arlene’s case, these are some of the things why she is having difficulty in performing her classroom duties. (b) Four ways that can be used to help Arlene succeed in the classroom work. Despite all these challenges, Arlene can still perform well like other students in her class. To help her achieve her academic goals, a lot of important things can be done to her. These include; i. Counseling is always the best practice to help anybody who is distressed. Arlene should feel valued and respected by both the teachers and students. ii. Encourage Arlene to continue working hard in class and stay away from thinking about her family status. iii. Support her to get access to some of the important learning materials to make her improve in her classwork. iv. Offer financial support or getting educational sponsorship to enable her concentrate with the studies without interference such as being sent away for the fee. In conclusion, teachers must create a conducive learning environment for the students. The academic performance of a class can drastically decrease if students feel uncomfortable, unsafe and disrespected. Students should also value and make good use of diversity to enhance both academic and cultural knowledge. Read More