Multicultural Classrooms

Paper Summary:

The paper examines how the classroom of today is different in that multiculturalism in the classroom has become the norm. The paper explores how the educator must be prepared to provide instruction in a multicultural context if the instructional practice is to be effective, informed and focused on providing education equally to all students from all cultural backgrounds. The objective of this work is to provide an explanation of how consciousness and sensitivity, related to the effects of culture in the classroom, has evolved.

Outline:
Objective
Introduction
Characteristics of the Culturally Adept Educator
Differential Cultural Patterns of Learning
Strategic Groupings of Students is Key
Inter-group Learning Activities and Exercises
Grammatical - Lexical - Sociolinguistic - Pragmatic
Summary and Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Fish (2006) states the importance of teaching students "to be comfortable with their cultural background and essentially themselves is to encourage and value their input in a small group of other students. This has to do with the organization of the classroom and the development of lesson plans." The teacher should group students that are from different backgrounds together and as well students with different learning styles should be grouped together as well. Fish states: "Students who are from a socialized culture that prioritizes group achievement, cooperation, obedience, and respect toward authority tend to be externally motivated, dependent on praise and reinforcement from significant others, and more responsive to a socially oriented curriculum. Countries that teach using a social structure and curriculum include Israel, Germany, and Italy. While students who are from cultures that emphasize individualism, assertiveness, personal initiative, and material well-being (Vietnam, Japan, United States) tend to be analytical, competitive, impersonal, and task-oriented (Jones 14). (Fish, 2006)"

Sample of Sources Used:

• Fish, Larri (2006) Building Blocks: The First Steps of Creating a Multicultural Classroom College EdChange Multicultural Pavilion Online available at: http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/papers/buildingblocks.html.
• Boutte, Gloria S. and Christine McCormick. "Authentic Multicultural Activities: Avoiding Pseudomulticulturalism." Childhood Education 68 (1992): 140-44.
• Canning, Christine. "Getting from the Outside In: Teaching Mexican Americans When You Are an 'Anglo.'" High School Journal 78 (1995): 195-205.
• Jones, Charlotte M. Practical Applications of Multicultural Communication Theory in the Classroom Setting. Typed version of speech given at the Annual Meeting of The Western Speech Communication Association (Fresno, CA, Feb. 16-19, 1985).
• Kazemek, Francis E. "African Literature in the Secondary English Language Arts Classroom." English Journal 84 (1995): 95-102.

More papers on Multicultural Classrooms:

• Persuasive Essay # 108046 : "The Multicultural Classroom"
• Essay # 72190 : "Instruction in Multicultural Classrooms"
• Essay # 72162 : "Teaching in a Multicultural and Diverse Society"

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