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Posted by: Topic: Message: Educators are often unfamiliar with the communities in which students and their families live. This lack of familiarity may engender difficulty in communicating with students and their parents. When teachers feel unable to reach specific groups of students, expectations for these students tend to be less than high. Uninformed judgement of student potential often results in low expectations for achievement.
A first critical step that educators can take is to assume the role of student. Teachers who exhibit a willingness to learn about students' communities as well as openness to adopting new attitudes have the best chance of facilitating learning effectively. New awareness and beliefs enhance teachers' capacity to create warm, challenging and successful classrooms for children.
Students and their cultures need to be at the center of teaching and learning. Successful educators acknowledge, respect, and build on the knowledge, beliefs and experiences that children bring with them to class, affirming the value of students' cultures. A trusting and motivating classroom environment, commitment to incorporating students' communities, and high expectations are all important elements in the process of a focusing on each student, wholly, within the classroom community.
The way we see diversity colors our responses to it. Educators' responses to ethnic diversity have a direct effect on students' academic performance. It is important that we teach, model and discuss how specific attitudes and values affect each student and all students. We need to help students understand themselves in relation to others. Acknowledging, encouraging and modeling small, significant acts of engagement with students can make all the difference. Meaningful and purposeful experiences in the diverse classroom will lead students to author positive changes in our shared community.
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