Discussion

Souto-Manning and Martell (2017) write, "There is a puzzling mismatch between the diversity of children and the standardization and regimentation of curriculum and teaching (Genishi & Dyson, 2009). Many children in today's K-2 classrooms do not see themselves on their classroom walls, in materials, or within the curriculum. As previously documented, literacy curriculum and teaching are often not representative, relevant, or accessible to children of color who have historically been left out of the curriculum (Sleeter, 2005; Souto-Manning, 2013)."

The diversity that students represent spans learning ability, learning style, race, ethnicity, language, and religion, among others. Describe the culture of your school and its accommodations for such diversity. Also, consider additional efforts that you believe might make students see themselves in the curriculum more. Please share any information from any of the course readings so far that is relevant.

In the middle school where I work, there are over 1600 students in an urban setting. Since we have reopened in a newly built redevelopment which has a renamed, we have been overcrowded since we rezoned our building to create the redevelopment. Matthew 9:17 says, "Do not put new wine in old bottles, or the bottles will break, the wine will run out, and the wine will perish." That describes how there is a lack of diversity in education today. The truth lies that no matter how significant something is, if it is to find a new use for it or if it was to be applied or added to an old-fashioned, longstanding, retro, or outdated method, system, or organization, you cannot do it. Most of the school's 1600 or so students are of African-American and Latino descent, while some students are white and of Middle Eastern descent. The Latino population has English Language Learners (ELL) levels 1 and 2. In contrast, the other populations include disadvantaged children, and 30 percent of our students are exceptional education students that have been identified with a learning, emotional disability, or autistic. To accommodate the needs of this size population, our district has exceptional education teachers for collaboration classes. These teachers are New Comers Academy teachers who do not instruct year 1 English Language Learners on state curriculum standards and LIEP teachers who teach elective Reading classes. My school district accepts all religious practices, and all practices are reflected in the district's calendar. The district's English curriculum specialist has implemented novels reflecting diverse cultures and languages. We must be sensitive to cultural differences when we are lecturing about the history of Africans and Indians in the United States. Among the teachers at my school, there are an equal number of African American and white teachers. Two Middle Eastern educators and one Latino educator are part of the teaching staff. Male teachers are the majority at my middle school.

I live in Virginia, where the diversity of the student population is minimal, but recognizing the importance of cultural responsiveness is heading in the right direction. In the first place, I was born and raised in New York City, a melting pot in which I met and became friends with people from all types of backgrounds. Building relationships with my students is an essential part of my approach to teaching. According to Southo-Manning and Martell (2017), teachers should commit to learning about and from their students, families, and communities. It is critical to develop relationships with others, value their knowledge, and incorporate this knowledge into the teaching and learning process. This includes mapping family knowledge and resources and integrating them into the learning process. The young ladies from my class, for example, were

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having conversations in Spanglish (English and Spanish, respectively). A few of us have contributed to the discussion about the chancla (flip flop or slipper, depending on where you are from in a Spanish-speaking country). They were surprised to find that I was familiar with the chancla. As a member of the Latino population attending my high school, I shared with my peers that most of my classmates were Latinos from Argentina, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, etc. As a result, I learned about the culture of my Latino classmates. Their classmates were present at the time, and they did not understand what I was talking about. This event turned out to be the perfect moment to teach the students that they are not "Mexicans" just because they speak Spanish.

References

Souto-Manning, M., & Martell, J. (2017). Committing to Culturally Relevant Literacy Teaching as an Everyday Practice: It's Critical! Language Arts, 94(4), 252-256. http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fscholarly- journals%2Fcommitting-culturally-relevant-literacy-teaching%2Fdocview %2F1871416007%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D12085

Pamela Shealy,

The school that I teach at is a representation of our community’s culture. We have students from all races, religions, and abilities. Our teachers are also diverse in their backgrounds, degrees, race, religion, and ability. We are culturally homogenous in that 97% of our student population is Hispanic with the remaining 3% comprised of African American, Asian, and White. Our school culture has slowly been changing to more reflect the community culture around us. We have also been working on changing the inward culture of our school to be one of understanding and acceptance. To help us in this endeavor, our teachers and administration have planned and worked on a few community events such as Winter Wonderland in December, theatre presentations during the spring at the high school, and joining up with the local Goodwill centers for community events. Our Winter Wonderland night takes place in December just before we release for the winter holidays. On this night, music is played from around the world that highlights the various music that different cultures play during this time period. Craft tables are manned by the school staff while parents and students are able to create various crafts from around the world to take home. The high school theatre teacher and students will put on a play for the community to come see every spring. This past school year, our district has been invited to the various Goodwill Community Centers in our city to help promote our school and teachers. Teachers will also help plan cultural mini-events during the school day to mark significant historical cultural events. Students study cultures and events from around the world in some of the fine arts classes. When the teacher acknowledges the potential of the children, their cultures, and teaches the students to actively think about materials read and seen in the classrooms and in the world (Souto-Manning & Martell, 2017) then, we will

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start to see the change in the community and in the world that is needed to make this world a better place.

The 2021-2022 school year marked the completion of my 20th year as a certified teacher, and I have seen many students pass through my classrooms and have taught many different variations of the curriculum. With all this knowledge in my background, I have noticed a few things. One is that the English/Language Arts curriculum publishers are starting to notice that our students are not culturally homogenous. Slowly, surely, students are starting to see themselves in the stories that are in their readers. Publishers are taking what we the teachers and our parents have been saying that we need representation evident in our stories of all our students, and they are starting to respond. Two, the teachers that are being hired and “trained” are bringing in other cultures, traditions, and perspectives that are unknown to the current student population. This brings a whole new world to our students, and they are learning to form good questions to ask to gain needed information. In our school, more is needed to help our students understand that though the neighborhood is homogenous in the culture, the world is not. As teachers, we need to include more books that talk about diversity instead of just relying on what the publisher sends. This needs to translate to the classrooms that are beyond the core, or the specials teachers, art, music, PE, computers, library, science lab, etc. When we use all the classrooms to help students see the world in diverse light, then true understanding can take place.

References:

Souto-Manning, M., & Martell, J. (2017). Committing to culturally relevant literacy teaching as an everyday practice: it's critical! Language Arts, 94(4), 252-256. http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?qurl=https%3A%2F %2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fscholarly-journals%2Fcommitting-culturally- relevant-literacy-teaching%2Fdocview%2F1871416007%2Fse-2%3Faccountid %3D12085

Pamela, I enjoyed reading your initial thread about cultural diversity. Your school offers students many opportunities to learn about and exchange cultures. I was reminded of the Cultural Bazaar I attended in high school while reading your thread. There was a theme to each room, but I think there was one room that stood out to me more than the others. The room was dedicated to the Tainos and the memorable name they gave me. I still have the scrapbook with this information in it. Souto- Manning & Martell (2017) states that multicultural education uses education that teaches about other cultures to create acceptance of, or at least tolerance of, other cultures. Multicultural education is more than just teaching about color or culture. The teacher must ensure that the lesson includes all students other than what is read. As students, I believe they will feel a sense of belonging when they see or read about people who are just like them. In this way, they will feel part of a community. It comes to my mind that Jesus instructed his disciples to spread the gospel worldwide. Unlike other religious leaders, Jesus sat among the

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sinners without making judgments. His love for them was evident. Like you, I believe educators need to do more than just read about how cultures are represented in the curriculum when designing courses. Meanwhile, some books are banned, including books our students should read. As a result, multicultural education should be part of every learning discipline.

Reference Souto-Manning, M., & Martell, J. (2017). Committing to Culturally Relevant Literacy Teaching as an Everyday Practice: It's Critical! Language Arts, 94(4), 252-256. http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fscholarly- journals%2Fcommitting-culturally-relevant-literacy-teaching%2Fdocview %2F1871416007%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D12085

Kimberly Bowers

This is a description of the school I am leaving this year, because I am transferring to a new school next year that is much closer to my home. For the past three years, I have been teaching at a diverse school. The school has approximately 2500 students in high school. African Americans and Latinos make up the majority of the student body. A variety of clubs are offered to individuals from different cultures throughout the year. All of our teachers are wonderful and we do not discriminate on the basis of color, race, or ethnicity. Our administration did a great job when hiring to ensure that everyone is able to work effectively with a very diverse group of students. Our children come from a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds, ranging from very well off families to transient families. Several of our children live in cars, with friends, or in hotels. Our school has a program we call "The Hub". It is a place where families from the community can seek assistance. Among the services we provide are clothing, food, psychological assistance, help with adult job searches and home purchases, as well as help with basic necessities such as electricity and water. I am delighted to have this facility in the community.

In terms of curriculum, I am a self-contained special education teacher. The children I work with are non-verbal and have severe intellectual disabilities. They are amazing and very intelligent when challenged at a level they can relate to. By the end of the year, many of my students had learned a few words. Our classroom was multicultural. I had two Vietnamese children, two African American children, one Caucasian student, and five Hispanic students. I used every holiday related to their cultures that we could find, we learned some Spanish, and I used the resources of my parents. My classroom was successful due to the parents' involvement. We would encourage them to visit us, speak in their native tongue, and interact with everyone, making

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us feel as a unit and not divided by our "skin color" or disability. We were all part of one family.

As a professional teacher for the last 21 years, this has been my goal. The don't smile until Christmas rule has never been applied to me. I always smile! I love my kids. As they leave the room, I tell them I love them. I treat them as human beings and not just a means of obtaining a paycheck. Many students from 20 years ago still contact me for advice and assistance.

As I read the article from Souto-Manning & Martell (2017), culturally relevant teaching requires planning and a purposeful commitment spoke volumes to me and made me feel as though I have been doing this unknowingly for years. I really enjoy the aspect of letting children talk with one another and learn from one another. In many different aspects of real-world living, this is vital for critical thinking and being enriched by each other. Throughout the years, I have also learned a great deal from students both personally and academically. In the past, I have taught math topics in a variety of ways to students from different countries. I believe that a multicultural classroom opens us to the real world and helps us learn from one another and be kind to one another.

Reference

Souto-Manning, M., & Martell, J. (2017). Committing to Culturally Relevant Literacy Teaching as an Everyday Practice: It's Critical! Language Arts Lessons, 94(4), 252– 256. https://doi.org/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1871416007/fulltextP DF/168E084C4E1D4571PQ/1?accountid=12085

Kimberly, It was a pleasure reading your thread about cultural diversity. It was terrific how you shared the dynamics of your self-contained classroom and the growth your students have shown as a result of your teaching methods. In your comment, you mentioned that parents are instrumental in your student's success at the secondary level, especially when they are involved in their children's education. After elementary school, a few parents stay involved in their child's school by participating on the board or by volunteering. While reading the article, I became aware that I, too, was practicing some of the same practices suggested by Souto- Manning & Martell. Sometimes, I wonder if there is more to it than simply implementing resources into the curriculum? Although we are just skimming the surface of multicultural education, I believe we are on the right track. Providing students with a multicultural education allows them to be able to embrace the diversity of society. This, in turn, will enable them to become more open to the interchangeability of community. As a result, children can identify with other cultures regardless of their differences, and the differences they encounter are presented in a positive, healthy, and educational environment. By building positive relationships with the other students in the class, they will reduce stereotyping and prejudice. In addition, they will see an increase in productivity due to the diversity of mental resources available.

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