Diversity

Standard 3. A teacher teaches with respect for their individual and cultural characteristics.

Candidates demonstrate an understanding of the need to consider individual differences and

diverse communities to ensure inclusive learning environments that allow each learner to meet

high standards and of how providing differentiation of instruction in the areas of content,

process, product, or learning environment is in the best interests of the students.

Each student that enters our school is a unique individual with his or her own life story

that is built on both the students’ genetics and life history. Genetics can include race and

ethnicity, gender, physical ability, and anything else that is set at birth. Life history on the other

hand is fluid and constantly evolving. It may include, but is certainly not limited to, family

make-up and support, socio-economic status, and any personal experience that has influenced the

way the student perceives the world. When I started this program, like many teachers, I believed

that regardless of these life stories, every student is a unique individual who is capable of

success, and that success may not look the same for each student. Now, however, I believe that

because of these life stories, every child is a unique individual who is capable of success, and

that success will not look the same for each student. While the wording is a subtle change, the

shift in understanding has impacted by my practice significantly.

When educators have a mindset that embraces diversity, they are able to facilitate

opportunities for students to flourish and become active contributing members to the overall

learning environment. Viewing their unique qualities and learning preferences as an enriching

aspect of the classroom culture allows educators and classmates to value students as individuals
and see their strengths. “When we view children from strengths-based perspective, we show

them that we believe in their abilities to succeed, even in the face of adversity. We also lessen the

likelihood that we will lower our expectations for these children, and thus lower their self-

confidence and social competence” (Fields, Meritt, & Fields, 2014, p. 325).

By embedding differentiation into curriculum lessons and assessments as I did in this

language arts lesson, all students are set up to succeed in meeting the learning objectives. For this

lesson, students were taught the rubrics, rated an example together, and given choices within the

assignment. “Students learn in various ways, and we can let them show their learning in various

ways… Giving students a choice allows them to take ownership of their learning as well as

create a product that feels authentic to them” (Usher, 2019, p.1). Students could create either a

comic strip or a storyboard and perform a skit, which they could choose to do in individually, in

pairs, or in small groups.

Educators must also provide needed support for students with specific needs. While

student teaching, I found the ELL Shadowing Protocol to be a valuable tool in helping me

identify the strengths and areas in need of growth for my ELL student. An educator should also

be able to evaluate when to incorporate assistive technologies and which technologies would be

the most beneficial to an individual student. They should be familiar with many options and stay

current in technological advancements that may benefit their students. Cultural responsive

teaching and differentiation are frameworks that are forever evolving in response to the change

and growth of our society and our individual students. Therefore, our educational system needs

educators committed to the profession and best practices.

 Following is a link to a Prezi I created to demonstrate my understanding of cultural

responsive teaching and how to implement the approach into my own practice. Cultural

responsive teaching, as defined by Zaretta Hammond (2015), is ”an educator's ability to

recognize students' cultural displays of learning and meaning making and respond positively and

constructively with teaching moves that use cultural knowledge as a scaffold to connect what the

student knows to new concepts and content in order to promote effective information processing.

All the while, the educator understands the importance of being in a relationship and having a

social-emotional connection to the student in order to create a safe space for learning" (p. 17). In

addition, “Modifying and adapting lessons to include culturally relevant information and

examples enhances student motivation” (Echevarria, 2015, p. 124).

Thus is the basis for differentiation in education. “Differentiation is neither revolutionary

nor something extra. It is simply teaching mindfully and with the intent to support the success of

each human being for whom we accept professional responsibility” (Sousa & Tomlinson, 2011,

p. 9). Differentiation is most successful when it is imbedded into all aspects of teaching through

quality instruction and design of content, the process of learning, the various forms of products,

and the environment in which learning occurs all in response to student readiness, interests, and

learning profile. “[T]eachers in differentiated classes use time flexibly, call upon a range of

instructional strategies, and become partners with their students so that both what is learned and

the learning environment are shaped to support the learners and learning” (Tomlinson, 2014, p.

4). Educators must know and understand their students well and implement informed assessment

that ensures responsive instruction. It is critical to hold all students to high expectations.

"Students learn more when they are challenged by teachers who have high expectations for them,
encourage them to identify problems, involve them in collaborative activities, and accelerate

their learning" (ASCD, 2008, p. 1). It is the teachers responsibility to differentiate the learning to

allow all students the opportunity to succeed in meeting the learning objectives.

An educator who has an in-depth and comprehensive understanding of diversity and its

impact on learning is one whom is knowledgeable and respectful of the the various cultures

represented by his or her students and their collective community. They must be skilled at

planning, designing, and implementing content using culturally responsive teaching and

differentiation strategies. In his text Human Diversity in Action: Developing Multicultural

Competencies for the Classroom, educator and researcher Kenneth Cushner (2002) identified

twelve cultural attributes that profoundly influence the construction of identity. These include;

race, social class, language, social status, geographic location, ethnicity and nationality, ability

and/or disability, sex and gender, sexuality, religion and spirituality, age, and health. Each of the

attributes contributes to the student’s understanding of self and the world. Effective educators

know and understand their students well and are able to recognize these attributes. They strive to

establish and maintain positive relationships with students and their families that are built on

mutual respect and collaboration.

 References

Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. (2008). Diverse teaching strategies

for diverse learners. http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/107003/chapters/Diverse-

Teaching-Strategies-for-Diverse-Learners.aspx

Cushner, K.H. (2002). Human diversity in action: Developing multicultural competencies for

the classroom. 2nd Ed. McGraw-Hill.

Echevarria, J. & Graves, A. (2015) Sheltered content instruction: Teaching english learners

with diverse abilities. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Fields, M., Meritt, P. & Fields, D. (2014). Constructive guidance and discipline: Birth to age

eight. 6th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Hammond, Z. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain. Thousand Oaks, CA. Sage

Publications.

Sousa, D. & Tomlinson, C.A. (2011). Differentiation and the brain: How neuroscience supports

the learner-friendly classroom. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

Tomlinson, C. (2014). Differentiated classrooms: Responding to the needs of all learners. 2nd

ed. ASCD.

Usher, K. (2019, April 10). Differentiating by offering choices: Elementary students have a better

chance of showing what they’ve learned when they have a choice about how to show it.

Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/differentiating-offering-choices