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Importance of diversity in undergraduate education
Research on diversity in education
Essay on diversity in higher education
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A major issue for today’s colleges and universities is the increased diversity of students. Thoroughly define the term ‘diversity’. Also, discuss the implications that this increased diversity has for college and university academic and/or administrative leaders.
According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary (2016), the definition of diversity is, the condition of having or being composed of differing elements, variety; especially the inclusion of different types of people (as people of different races or cultures) in a group or organization. By the same token difference is difficult, and is often used to oppress and exploit the underprivileged. Diversity is a very prominent and pressing issue within higher education as a whole. Individuals that are affected negatively can have damaging emotional educational experiences. According to Ghosh (2012), diversity is influenced by location and position in society. An individual’s life experiences and encounters are led by their race, gender, religion, and sexual orientation (p.351). Race, gender, and sexuality are everywhere and Baumgartner and Johnson-Bailey (2008) point out several revealing matters including the fact that race and ethnicity play a primary part in determining how society functions. Racial privilege and
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Tienda (2013), explained that if higher education leaders sincerely believe that racial diversity enriches the mission of an institution, then it is appropriate for them to continually develop innovative strategies to take full advantage of the learning benefits, to establish what works and what doesn’t and to institutionalize the best practices on achieving integration for the future (p. 474). Now in the twenty-first century excellence and quality are an essential institutional promise to diversity and globalism (Nysse, 2011, p.
This article discusses the different forms of racial diversity contribution to students’ educational and learning experiences and the autonomous positive effects on students who adopt these diversity opportunities. The author demonstrates how the quality of higher education is substantially heightened by diversity-connected efforts. Those efforts improve students learning and experiences by cultivating key behaviors and knowledge and by providing a unique educational context.
Diversity is a prominent aspect of the real world which creates the need for students to have the opportunity to engage and to experience a variety of possible backgrounds and ideas. The American Council of Education states the following in an article “Education within a diverse setting prepares students to become good citizens in an increasingly complex, pluralistic society; it fosters mutual respect and teamwork; and it helps build communities whose members are judged by the quality of their character and their contributions.” (Diversity in Higher Education). The skills that are learned through a diverse college community will translate into the workplace. In the workplace, no two coworkers will process the same history or life experiences as another. Due to this, graduates must have the ability to respect and cooperate with other people so that both parties create the best possible outcome for job performance. If colleges and universities set the foundation for students, it would greatly benefit students in their future career interactions. The article Diversity in Higher Education suggest the statement listed, “It enhances America's economic competitiveness. Sustaining the nation’s prosperity in the 21st century requires us to make effective use of the talents and abilities of
When I hear diversity many things comes to mind covering a wide range of interests, backgrounds, experiences. Some of the different types of diversity in which I have taken the chance to be a leader in whether it is among groups of people and individuals on the topic of ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, gender, exceptionalities, language, religion, sexual orientation diversity, etc. Diversity of experiences, viewpoints, backgrounds, and life experiences. Tolerance of thought, ideas, people with differing viewpoints, backgrounds, and life experiences. I have challenged myself to be a leader on issues of diversity by continue challenge for racial diversity and wrong racial ideology in the debate space.
There are many misconceptions about the term student diversity. Student diversity does not only represent the different races of the student body, but also many other aspects that set some people apart from others. The official definition of student diversity is, “The understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies”(Rock). The term student diversity goes back to the days of overcoming segregation and is set in place for several different reasons. The education department is full of obstacles created by the diversity
The following is a definition of diversity in higher education, description of the diversity of the students and staff of WGU, and how WGU addresses tolerance university-wide. Diversity in Higher Education In the past, many universities and other large organizations focused on the majority of the population for both its workforce and student clientele. Recently, whether because of the self-seeking need to increase the client-base or from the moral perspective that equal opportunity applies to both employees and students, educational facilities have moved away from appealing to the typical college student and faculty. Attention has shifted to broaden the scope to all who desire a higher education and faculty that demonstrate the competency to teach the students. Diversity in higher education means providing equal opportunities regardless of race, gender, religious preferences, and sexual orientation for both students and staff.
It wasn’t until my freshman year of college (last year) that I was exposed to significant diversity. Growing up I went to the same private Catholic school from pre-school to the day that I graduated from high school. While I often refer to Hawai’i as being a “melting pot,” that term could not really be applied to my education prior to attending University of Portland. About ninety-five percent of the students that I went to school with were caucasian, and the other small portion of five percent were students of asian and/or pacific islander ancestry. While I once considered this to be diverse, I wasn 't aware that the term “diverse” would mean so much more when coming to Oregon. Not only would it have to do with one’s ethnicity, but it would also encompass one’s family culture and social class. As it could be assumed I due to the fact that I went to a private school, on average all students came from middle-class families and a few could be considered as belonging to a family from the upper-class of society.
After carefully reviewing the diversity and inclusion plans of the universities, I realized that my insights are needed. I envision to display what I have noticed and to also comment on the different plans.
Diversity and Inclusion in Schools Diversity and inclusion are two topics that are becoming increasingly important in classrooms. There is becoming a larger push to include students of all abilities in regular classroom activities. As schools become more diverse, teachers change their curriculum to fit the wider variety of individuals. Both Klotz in Culturally Competent Schools: Guidelines for Secondary School Principals and Page and Marlowe in Rejecting Instruction That Disables address the topic of diversity and the importance of inclusion in education.
Diversity is a value that shows respect for the differences and similarities of age, sex, culture, ethnicity, beliefs and much more. Having a diverse organization, helps notice the value in other people and also how to teach respect to people that might not know how. The world is filled with different cultures and people that might believe in different things as you, but that doesn’t mean you need to treat them any different. It is imperative for people to grasp diversity because it’ll help people how to engage with others in a respectful yet a hospitable way.
The impact of diversity on college campus have continuously be associated with the positive and productive outcomes of students. Classroom learning allows the students to begin to see life and relationships different and directly impacts of the university experience. Diversity affects group work performance and individual learning outcomes as well. Learning outcomes can be given by the instructor or the professor at the begin the course work. It allows for the instructor or the professor to give guidelines on what they expect from the students throughout the course. The impact of diversity in the classroom gives the students the in-depth views of individuals who do not agree with them, however they may have similar
Diversity is an important concept to many different organizations. Some of these organizations are universities and colleges, such as the University of Oklahoma. Additionally, there are numerous groups and organizations that are invested in how diverse universities are, these groups will be referred to collectively as the stakeholders. While exploring different groups that are invested in how diverse school settings are, it is important to locate and understand the marginalized groups, and their history, who have become the interest of the stakeholders of diversity. People debate over what distinguishes a group to be marginalized. Elizabeth Cox and Jesse Watson contribute to this debate and, “define students as marginalized when they are subordinated,
The 21st century American classroom, by most accounts, is diverse. According to Snowman and McCown (2014), “diversity can be a strength in the classroom; it supplies the learning environment with different perspectives and experiences that can enrich discussions and lead to new questions (p. 143). However, in order to fully realize diversity as a strength, diversity must be understood. What do you think about when you are asked to define diversity? Most people would list different skin tones, food preferences, native languages, all traits centering on ethnicity. Yes, ethnicity is an important aspect of diversity; however we must take into account, gender, sexual orientation, culture, socioeconomics, intellectual and emotional
The point of these journal entries is to see how my understanding of diversity and my own personal identity evolves throughout this course. Looking back at this past month I realized just how many key factors we have covered, some that I might have heard of before and others that were brand new to me. Although every discussion and reading was important, there were two main topics that influenced my train of thought the most: privilege and the impacts of a campus climate.
In the future, the world will only become more diverse. People should learn to appreciate it by acknowledging the differences around them. Sometimes people are scared that “recognizing differences will divide people from each other. However, learning about cultural differences can actually bring people closer together” ( “Section 1”). It would be better if people became closer together instead of growing apart because of discrimination and other mistreatment. Building relationships with different cultures should be a goal of everyone and even nations as a whole. Each group has different strengths that can benefit the the community altogether. Since the world will definitely become more diverse, it is important to be informed about cultural groups so you can become more marketable and succeed in a diverse world.
When a group of workers come from diverse backgrounds, they bring with them unique and varied training and experience. They may view things very differently based on their experiences, and bring with them a plethora of very creative and innovative ideas. Their diverse perspectives on different cultural groups can be advantageous in promoting products, or in this case, programs of study, in response to the global market demands for professionals in certain fields of study. Those in positions of educational administration need to ensure that a sense of “cohesion” is paramount among this varied group of professionals, so the team works together for “the greater good” and not for individual competition and recognition.