When students and teachers don’t recognize the diversity of others, it can put a hold on the educational process. According to Barbara Gross David from the University of California, Berkeley, minorities can sometimes feel overlooked in the classroom. For example, women may feel that their opinions aren’t valued as highly in the classroom as the opinion of men. This feeling of inadequacy can cause members of the minority to separate themselves from the classroom environment, resulting in low grades and other antisocial behavior.
Ignorance of cultural sensitivity and background can create tense situations in the classroom through miscommunication or lack of understanding. For example, some minorities consider certain terms highly offensive. Improper or careless use of insensitive vernacular can cause conflict among your students. Teaching about cultural history will help improve tolerance and cultural sensitivity in the classroom, which will lead to fewer tense confrontations among your students. Encourage your students to share their experiences and personal history. This promotes personal understanding along with cultural understanding.
Your students may feel limited by their cultural bias in society. For example, women may feel as though they can’t achieve a prestigious career due to their gender while minorities may feel limitations due to their race. Express the value of diversity to your students and ensure them that any future they desire is within their reach with the proper motivation. Students from financially challenged families can attend a prestigious college and ethnicity doesn’t limit your students to a certain job field.
If you limit your school curriculum to artistic, literary and scientific exploits of one culture, your students will miss a wide range of information. Share the accomplishments of people such as Madame Curie and Langston Hughes. Explain their backgrounds so minorities can understand the cultural accomplishments of their niche. Keep the information you teach varied, though. Teach about the cultural contributions of people from a variety of backgrounds instead of focusing on one particular area.