AGENDA

Introduction & Warm-Up: Group Activity: Sexism: 3 minutes 5 minutes 10 minutes

Ethnocentrism:
Racism & Classism: Ableism: What Can You Do:

10 minutes
5 minutes 5 minutes 3 minutes

Wrap-up:
44 Minutes

3 minutes

OBJECTIVES
The participant will be able to: Define diversity, sexism, ethnocentrism, classism, racism and ableism Explain the role of diversity in the classroom

Identify support methods available when confronting diversity in the classroom

Diversity: The inclusion of different types of people.

INTRODUCTION
The teacher will create a seating chart placing the females and males on opposite sides of the room There will be 3-4 participants at each table

The female tables will be given fresh boxes of crayons, while the males will be given storage bins with broken leftover crayons

Warm-Up Activity: Each table will be given 1 fruit, an orange. They will have 3 minutes to examine the orange and identify its characteristics. The song, Dont Laugh At Me will be playing in the background

GROUP ACTIVITY
The teacher will: Ask one member from each group to report on the characteristics of their orange

Ask the participants to identify which characteristics were most common? Least common?
Ask participants to explain why each orange didnt look exactly the same Collect and place all the oranges back into the bin Ask participants if they think they could pick out their orange and how they can be certain it is theirs

GROUP ACTIVITY (CONTINUED)

The teacher will: Facilitate a discussion on how they label their students. Is it by their gender, behavior, physical characteristics, academic level or background

Explain that the days lesson will focus on the differences that each student brings to the classroom, the challenges and methods that will support the participant when instructing

SEXISM:
Definition: Discrimination based on gender

The song Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better will be playing softly in the background (song is from the Broadway Musical, Annie Get Your Gun The teacher will ask participants which gender causes them the most behavior problems? Performs better academically? Communicate better? Participants are asked to support their answers by giving examples (data, if possible) The teacher will facilitate a discussion on how classroom reading materials depict males and females. Note: Begin with childrens literature Research has found that textbooks often show more pictures of males AND they area shown in more intelligent, strong, scenarios, often career oriented

SEXISM (CONTINUED)
Stewart, Cooper & Stewart (2003) comment that while females may not be as visible in textbooks and literature, they are used more frequently in advertisements. However, they are portrayed as sexy and sometimes weaker than their male counterpart.

Sadker & Sadker (1994) observed that teachers allowed boys to call out, responded more positively to boys, called on boys more frequently, and provided more feedback to the boys
The teacher will facilitate a discussion on both research findings. The teacher will ask the participants to look at their tables supply of crayons. Why were fresh boxes of crayons given to the females and broken ones to the males? Could it be because one gender is perceived to take better care of class supplies?

SEXISM: ACTIVITY
The teacher will ask each participant to take 2-3 minutes to write down their perception of the opposite gender The teacher will pair each student with a member from the opposite gender (teacher will need to be flexible in the pairing if there is an uneven amount of gender groups) Each mixed pair/group is to take 2-3 minutes to discuss their perceptions A great lead-in topic is to discuss how far each gender has travelled through history (i.e., careers, roles in the family unit)

The teacher will re-arrange the seating assignments, mixing the genders, for the remainder of the session.

ETHNOCENTRISM
Definition: Believing ones culture is superior, while all others are inferior

The teacher must set aside time, throughout the year, to get to know their students and their heritage. While this may be taboo for some students to discuss openly, most students will be engaged and eager to share. The teacher will ask each group to discuss, among themselves, their cultural backgrounds, including family traditions The teacher will point out that todays workforce has moved many ethnic workers into our communities. This influx creates not only a language barrier in the classroom but also differences in the way families perceive the role of education and educators.

ETHNOCENTRISM (CONTINUED)
Hofstedes 2005 work on the four cultural dimensions is worth discussing and developing an understanding.

Activity
The teacher will divide the class into 4 groups. Each group will be given the task of reading and creating a visual to describe one of Hofstedes dimensions to the rest of the class: Individualism/collectivism; power distance; uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity/femininity

HOFSTEDES CULTURAL DIMENSIONS

Individualism/Collectivism Focus on the student and their family. Knowledge=Money & SelfRespect. Mexicans. (individualistic) Anyone belongs to an in-group and will not be detached. Loyalty is crucial. Knowledge=Prestige. Independent. Native Americans. (collectivist) Power Distance Accepts and considers inequality normal. Teacher encourages discussion, discovery and debate (small power) Student centered (small power). United States Teacher is never contradicted. Focus is on the wisdom of the teacher (large power) Teacher centered (large power). China

(Calloway-Thomas, Cooper & Simonds, 2007)

(Wallach & Metcalf, 1995)

HOFSTEDES DIMENSIONS (CONTINUED)

Uncertainty Avoidance Strong: Want clear directions, no surprises. Objectives are clear. Behavior is followed and beliefs are the truth Not competitive and avoid conflict France, Spain, Japan students Women: Weak: Rewarded for creativity No timelines or structure U.S., Great Britain, India students Serve others Take care of the family & the weak Socialization is rewarded Masculinity/Femininity Men: Assertive & competitive Materialistic Academics are rewarded

RACISM AND CLASSISM

Racism: Stereotyping = Categorizing A study by Sherman-Williams (1993) discusses how we categorize work ethics based on culture. Asians=Lazy; Blacks=Not Smart Is the way we teach based on the race of each child in our class? Prejudice is the foundation for how teachers discriminate against their students Classism: Assigning students based on worth and ability Norm = Middle & Higher Class students The norm often receives more attention and better benefits Impoverished = Not included, left out, forgotten

(Beagan, 2005)

RACISM/CLASSISM: ACTIVITY
Each table group will: Identify movies, books or songs that focus on a certain group AND explain the effects they may have on the younger generation (ex: how are they portrayed) Read and interpret the lyrics to Living for the City by Stevie Wonder and Ebony & Ivory by Sir Paul McCartney

The teacher will:

Facilitate a discussion on the groups interpretation from both activities

ABLEISM ACTIVITY
Definition: The discrimination of individuals with a disability. The teacher will ask the participants to individually estimate the % of students in their class (those teaching secondary may choose 1 of their classes) with some form of disability (physical or learning). Next, each participant will create a pie chart that depicts the % of each. For example, 70% have a learning disability, 10% have a physical disability, 20% have not been identified as having a disability). NOTE: Physical is not just mobility, it includes visual, emotional, behavioral and social. For this activity, ADHD and ADD will be included in the learning disability. The teacher will facilitate a discussion as to why the rate % of disabled students is increasing. Is it because of nutrition, lack of medical care, the environment or something else?

ABLEISM
The participants will share what accommodations they currently have in place to assist their disabled students. For example, do they give extra time, reduce the amount of work, have an assistant in the room, give the student an abled student to buddy with

The law states that students with IEPs and 504 plans be given the accommodations, however, what about those students without this paperwork? What are the steps the participant takes when they have identified a possible disability?

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Ask the students how you can help? Ask them to write down their needs, if you cant get them to speak Change your seating arrangement frequently, so that the students can learn from each other. This change is also good for the teacher, in that there will be new students sitting in the front of the room Find literature and other resources that meet the needs of all students. Ask your media or curriculum specialist for assistance. Follow Langers (1989, p. 140) advice and become mindful not mindless. I suggest building your own profile of the new students. While it is okay to find out the data, do not let comments from former teachers cloud your mind. Be willing to be flexible at a moments change. Every day should not be the same, as every student is not the same. When in doubt, ask questions.

WRAP-UP
The teacher will, once again, play the song Dont Laugh at Me. This time asking the participants to reflect on the lyrics, facilitating the discussion. What can we do, as educators, to ensure that No Child Is Left Behind; and that the schools village does raise all children and foster their communication? Communication barriers hinder the students growth and development. We discussed some of these barriers today: sexism, ethnocentrism, racism, classism, and ableism. It is critical that the teacher: maintains equality and fairness among all students learn as much about the child, as well as the information behind each barrier ask for assistance from experts in the fields re: the barriers mentioned keep open communication between themselves, the family, and the student