Running head: Diversity in our Society 1

Diversity in our Society:

In and Out of the Classroom

Tiffani Linville

Wesleyan College
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Diversity in our Society: In and Out of the Classroom

Diversity is shown in a lot of individuals because diversity is the uniqueness

found in other people. People express themselves in many different ways and it

creates their own identity. When we create an identity for ourselves we are part of

certain diverse groups. Many aspects can identify a person, whether it is physical,

mental, or emotional. Racial, learning styles, physical disabilities, and sexual

orientation are a few of the things that can identify a person.

Stereotypes do not help with diversity because it gives people ideas of others

that are not always correct. Society has such power over people that it influences

our thoughts of each other. When people allow society to take over they do not get

to know people and become quick to judge. Stereotypes create diversity in some

ways because it creates new ideas on how to classify people, racially, in learning

styles, sexually, and even physically.

In the classroom, students can feel out of place if they are “different” from

other students. It is important that teachers learn how to help the students learn to

use diversity in the best way they can. Taking the time to get to know a student and

understand the student will help a teacher get an idea of how to help their student

(NDT Resource Center 1996).

Racial Diversity

In 1954 and 1955, there were five cases that had to do with segregation in

the public schools. Of these five cases one is spoken about often, Brown v. Board of

Education. Marshall personally argued the case that blacks and whites were not

treated as equals in the classroom or in the school at all. One of the biggest points
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that Marshall brought up was that they were violating the Fourteenth Amendment

of equality (United States Courts 1955). In the end result of this case, desegregation

was put in place in public schools because the court came to the result that the issue

was major and needed to be taken care of.

I have see racial diversity happen inside and outside of the classroom before.

In the classroom, I have seen a teacher discriminate against a student because of the

color of her skin. She did not mean to do it intentionally but it sounded like it and

when it was brought to her attention she immediately apologized to the student and

explained to the class what she thought. I did not believe that she was a racist

teacher, she actually saw everyone for whom they were and actually worked with

each student based on the needs they had. Outside of the classroom racial diversity

is everywhere. People will take their race for granted in some ways. There is a term,

“white privilege,” which explains how white people take their privileges to the

extreme and do not know what it is like to not have privilege, which is not true in all

cases. I see racial diversity physically here at Wesleyan because there are over 20

different countries shown here. When I got to know some people from other

countries I learned that they were not much different from me and we created a

bond, based on what we had in common.

Diversity shown through Learning Styles

Earlier, I talked about a teacher having to get to know their students to figure

out how to work with them. Identifying a students’ learning style will help the

teacher help the student learn best. Students may not understand what learning

style they are which is why the teacher must observe their students to discover
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what learning style they are. There are a lot of different types of learning styles and

most of them will be represented in every classroom. Teachers must find the

balance of the learning styles in the classroom to create the best environment for

each student in the classroom (Guild, 2001).

In Guild’s article, some learning styles are cognition, conceptualization, affect,

and behavior. Cognition is when a student wants to understand how they know

what they are learning. Conceptualization is how a student thinks about the

knowledge they have gained. Affect is when a student uses judgment and emotions

to make the decisions they do in the classroom. Finally, behavior is how students

put what they learned into action. A student will put other factors of their identity

into their learning styles, for example their culture, religion, and gender. When

students put these aspects into effect the whole entire learning style they have

makes them different.

Diversity in the Physically and Mentally Disabled People

Physically disabled students have struggles with moving around the

classroom and other parts of the school. I would know from my own experience. I

was on crutches for a month during my senior year of high school and I had to leave

classes early to get to my classes on time and not be in the way of other people. I

hated being stared at by other students because I was different and I stood out from

other people. My injury was minor to other major disabilities that will put people in

wheelchairs. Teachers have to find a way to work with these students as well. They

have to accommodate to the things that other students can do and the physically

disabled students can’t to help every student understand what the teacher is trying
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to teach them. There is a student in my Public Speaking class that is in a wheelchair

and we are always helping her out. She needs support, as HR Council states, to help

her perform to the best of her ability (2013).

Mentally disabled people need just as much support to help them get

through any activity because they are seen as “not normal” because society has put

what “normal” is in our minds. During field experience at Elam Alexander Academy,

I have seen mental disabilities first handed and I have seen how quickly I have

judged people who are not like me. I have changed through the experiences I have

had with these children over the past few weeks. They are really sweet and even

though they do act out I can tell they are just trying to do what any “normal “ child

would want to do, play. They do not understand that there is a time and place to

play and it is not all the time. They understand when it is time to stop when the

teacher says a “trigger word,” which seems to stop the kid for some time, but not for

too long. In the end, these disabled kids create more diversity in the world that most

people do not notice is diversity.

Diversity through Sexual Orientation

When people get to know each other they find out their sexual orientation

and most of the time judge them right away, based on this new fact. People are gay,

lesbian, straight, bisexual, or other. Society says that straight is “normal” and some

religion has a lot of influence of what people believe is right. Society has caused

people to hide their identity because everyone wants to be accepted in the world (J.

Buccigrossi, 2003). When people come out from hiding that they are, they create

more diversity in the world because they are admitting whom they are. In the world
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people care about that knows whom they are seen as. Everyone wants to be

accepted so they can will make friends, they do not truly realize they already have

friends with the people that were there for them before they created a fake them.

In the classroom, teachers need to be aware of who the student is and what is

going on in their life. To figure out whom they are and what is going on in their life

in and out of school, a teacher must create a bond with their student so the student

will feel comfortable coming to them. Teachers who are approachable will be the

teachers that help the students learn best. A student cannot learn when they have a

million things on their mind so they have to get it all out.

Conclusion

Diversity, inside and outside of the classroom, is a key factor in creating the

best learning environment. Creating a relationship that is “different” will reveal who

they really are and who you really are. You can truly discover yourself through your

judgment of others. When a teacher creates a relationship with their students they

will have the best chance at getting them to understand what is happening around

them. Racial, learning styles, physical/mental disabilities, and sexual orientation

diversity are just a few of the ways people identify them and create the diversity

throughout the world.

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Citations:

Buccigrossi, J. (2003). Sexual Orientation. Retrieved from:

http://www.workforcediversitynetwork.com/docs/sexual_orientation_6.pdf.

Guild, P.(2012). Diversity, Learning Style, and Culture. Retrieved

from:http://education.jhu.edu/PD/newhorizons/strategies/topics/Learning

%20Styles/diversity.html.

HR Council. (2013). Diversity at Work. Retrieved from: http://hrcouncil.ca/hr-

toolkit/diversity-disabilities.cfm.

NDT Resource Center. (1996). Appreciating and Valuing Diversity. Retrieved from:

https://www.nde-ed.org/TeachingResources/ClassroomTips/Diversity.htm

United States Courts. (1954). History-Brown v. Broad of Education. Retrieved from:

http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-

activities/history-brown-v-board-education-re-enactment.