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Addressing cultural diversity in the classrooms
Addressing cultural diversity in the classrooms
Addressing cultural diversity in the classrooms
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Changes in language and culture in the classroom have been swift and dramatic. In the period between 1980 and 2000, the white, non-Hispanic population grew by 7.9percent. The population that identifies itself as nonwhite or Hispanic grew by 88 percent (Lynch & Hanson, 2004). We cannot continue to ignore the facts. The classroom population is changing at a rapid rate. Our students have contrasting backgrounds, possess multiple languages, and have particular views of the world. We ought to take the time to understand and appreciate the difference that make them unique. A good first step is to have a good idea of the population that we teach.
Student data including cultural and linguistic background should be used to set goals. “When students’ cultural and linguistically backgrounds are viewed as a strength on which educators can draw and build, pedagogy changes” (Nieto & Bode, 2008, p. 63). To make my predictions, I considered many factors. I used student data shared during our staff meetings by administrators, observations in my community, and facts I know about history geography. I know for a fact that the population of Hispanics and language learners in my school is more than 60 percent. Each grade level in our school has a class with 10 or more language learners at a beginning level. They are called the center groups. They are clustered homogeneously to help the teacher focus on language practices. Kindergarten has the biggest amount. There are two center classes and each class has twenty students. The students that scored at the developing levels are grouped in the other classes with the native English speakers. Each class has more than five or more language learners at developing and reaching levels. District wide the amoun...
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... and the culture that shaped their views and attitudes.
Works Cited
School District Statistics. (2012). 2012 CSAP/TCAP District and School Disaggregate Summary
Results. Retrieved fro (http://www.cde.state.co.us)
Lynch, E., & Hanson, M, (2004). Developing cross – cultural competence (3rd ed.).
Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2010). School Districts Maps and Demographics.
Retrieved from (http://www.ed.gov)
Nieto, S., & Bode, P. (2008). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education (Laureate custom edition). Boston: Pearson.
Tomlinson, C. A. (2010). Differentiating instruction in response to academically diverse student
populations. In R.Marzano (Ed.), On excellence in teaching (pp. 247-268). Bloomington,
IN: Solution Tree Press
Lisa Delpit’s book, “The Skin We Speak”, talked about language and culture, and how it relates to the classroom. How we speak gives people hits as to where we are from and what culture we are a part of. Unfortunately there are also negative stereotypes that come with certain language variations. There is an “unfounded belief that the language of low income groups in rural or urban industrial areas is somehow structurally “impoverished” or “simpler” than Standard English” (Delpit 71). The United States is made of people from various cultures and speak many different variations of languages. As teachers we must be aware of some of the prejudices we may have about language and culture.
The purpose of this study is to figure out which ways experienced teachers work best with culturally and linguistically diverse students. This study illustrates which strategies experienced teachers have found to work best. The diversity in school in the United States has increased each year. This means that there are an increasing amount of students who are learning English, English language learners (ELLs). This article comes from the perspective that each child should be taught to their specific needs. All students deserve a fair chance to learn. Fair means that every student is treated differently, not equally. Every student learns differently. In order to give every student a fair chance at learning, you must teach them according to their needs. An experienced teacher, Tiffany, describes her experiences working with culturally and linguistically diverse students. This study watches her methods and discusses what works based on data analysis of the success of her students.
Due to the rise in immigration and the demographics of classrooms in America are changing. As a result, English Language Learners are becoming more common in schools. English Language Learners make up one of the largest demographics in the American Classroom (Flynn & Hill, 2005). These students have been observed to have a major achievement gap because many of these students are placed in mainstream classrooms with basic literacy skills. Many English Language Learners are born in the United States (Goldenberg, 2008). These students have only attended the school system in America. However, the achievement levels are nowhere near the level of their peers. According to Calderon, Slavin, and Sanchez (2011) “these students, who have been in U.S. schools since kindergarten, are still classified as limited English proficient when they reach middle or high school— suggesting strongly that preschool and elementary programs are not adequately addressing the needs of English learners.” The achievement gap between English Language Learners and native English speaking students is extremely high. English Language Learners tests scores are low. According to the 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress, “fourth grade ELLs scored 36 points lower than their peers on the reading section of the test and 25 points below their peers in math. The results in eighth grade were worse with a difference of 42 points in reading and 37 points in math” (Goldenberg, 2008). The gap between ELLs and non-ELLs are three to eighteen points larger then students from low-income households.
When the majority of teachers in America are White, middle class women who only speak English in a country were students are starting to come from a multitude of backgrounds it is no wonder problems are arising. As more people from different cultures and religions immigrate to the United States the average classroom is losing the cultural uniformity it had in the past. Though the faces in classrooms are steadily changing many teachers have not been able to adjust as quickly to the ever growing diversity taking place. One would expect for teachers to still be able to teach students effectively whether they share a similar background or not, but in actuality cultural conflicts between teachers and students are only getting worse. Especially when
Echevarria, J. Teaching language minority students in elementary schools (Research Brief No. 1). Santa Cruz, CA, and Washington, DC: Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence. (2003)
My experience at Oak Park Elementary was an experience I will not forget. Oak Park is a school that has a great amount of diversity within their system. While there was a vast measure of diversity there was some similarities within the student body. Majority of the student body is the same race, with a few other that are a different ethnicity. I was in the library for my observation hours and at the beginning of my time I was first disappointed I was not assigned to a class room, but I was very grateful for my opportunity in the library. The teacher I observed was a lady that had a beautiful heart for children and passionate about her subject she taught. The students I observed ranged from various backgrounds. I attended to Mrs. Lee who is
“In recent years the Hispanic population in America has achieved status as the largest minority group in the United States surpassing African-Americans (Baker, p.438).” This sudden increase in the Hispanic-American population is monumental when looking at the past few hundred years when African-Americans held the spot as the largest minority group in the United States. Across the United States this sudden and unprecedented influx of primarily native Spanish speakers has become more visible in some areas than others. Due to the rapid growth and migration of this group it can be seen that many migrant children have not had the time or the opportunity to learn English well enough to achieve success at their particular grade level in the public school system. Many of these bright and eager to learn migrant students fall by the wayside upon entering the public school system. Due to the rapid increase in populations of migrant students in various parts in the United States it has become necessary for localized school systems to adopt and implement programs, utilizing assistive technology, to incorporate English language proficiency programs to help teach migrant students so that they might have a chance at achieving success and continuing to higher education taught exclusively in English.
Hispanic culture has had a profound effect on American education when it comes to diversity in schools. “Here are now approximately 10 million Hispanic students in the nation’s public kindergartens and its elementary and high schools; they make up about one-in-five public school students in the United States” (Fry 5). There is predicted to be a strong growth in Hispanic students, by 2050 bureau projects predicts that the Hispanic school-age population will increase by 166% (Gonzales 5). With the increase of Hispanics in America, there has been an increase of the graduating Hispanics in school “A record seven- in – ten (69%) A Hispanic high school graduates in the class of 2012” (Fry 5). There has been a 97.1% enrollment rate for Hispanics in America ranging from ages 5 through 7 in 2011 (Fry 5). For college there has been a 15.3% enrollment for Hispanics ages 18 through 24, and for ages 25 and up the enrollment rate is 2.1% (Fry 5). More than 21% of schoolchildren are Hispanic (Samuels ...
When I first read about the ESL academy, I was intrigued because I had never attended a professional development that addressed the needs of ELL students. I applied for the academy because there were no teachers in my district with ESL training or endorsements and because I saw it as an opportunity for both professional growth and professional advancement. Although I work in a district where there are very few ELL students, most of the surrounding districts have a statistically significant percentage of ELL learners. I hoped by attending the ESL academy, I would have an advantage by receiving training that will soon be essential for teachers in my district. Because of my previous training on meeting the educational needs of struggling learners and students from poverty, I expected that the ESL academy to offer more information along those same lines.
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