Affirming
Diversity in Multiculturalism
In the lecture given by Sonla Nieto,
she led a very inspirational speech regarding multicultural issues that are
affecting us all in schools today. She stressed the fact that many teachers are
not very comfortable with certain issues within the students’ background and
such. With affirming diversity in multiculturalism, there is a sociopolitical
context that goes along with it. Students overall, have an identity that needs
to be taken into account and their personal differences are what makes them,
them. It is also essential to bring in their cultures into the learning and
acknowledge it, because teachers sometimes ignore this aspect of the students.
A quote that she read said, “I don’t see color, all my students are the same to
me”. This quote may be commonly said by teachers, in an attempt to not
discriminate any students. On the other hand, it may be seen as a way to
deflect focusing on the students’ differences that make them special and may
define their personalities, characteristics, etc. Among these differences, this
diversity brings all the students and teacher together.
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| UNITY FOR ALL! |
Another aspect of the speech
regarded challenging the “post-racial” society myth, which provides a currently
rising concept of educational inequality. The dropout rate in high school that
is in between 50-80% in some places, due to various occurrences (Africans,
Latinos, Asians, American Indians); some are because testing is strenuous and
amounts to pressure that the students cannot take, and the teachers may not
necessarily make it easier for them. We need to explore multi-cultural
education, inclusive of many differences, including language, ethnicity,
religion, race, etc. Identity, differences, power, and privilege are all
intertwined. The question of who benefits and who loses affects the given
situation. The policy or curriculum is the rule that everyone must follow, thus
it affects everyone involved. There is a gift of power that must not be
underestimated. It is a real influence and consistently impacts people’s lives.
Sonla Nieto also introduced a
framework for promoting quality education for all students. The first part
includes the sociopolitical context of the schools and the
society(institutional and ideological, including accents that may or may not
affect how people perceive that certain person according to his/her way of
communicating with an accent). The second part is the socio-cultural knowledge
and understandings. This incorporates the ultimate acceptance of peoples’
differences and unique qualities resembling symbols representing their
communities and neighborhoods. The third one is personal values and
commitments. People need to acknowledge the fact that morals differ from
household to household, and these differences should be noticed, and
appreciated. In an environment where teachers are new and confused, it is
always wise to make a friend and participate in meetings, events, etc., to be
more comfortable. It is a huge transition, and may not be easy at first.
Companions ease the tension at the beginning.
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Overall, this session was extremely
informative and interesting. We have come to know how to think on a deeper
level and not be closed minded, as future teachers, or educators, or simply as
people and individuals. We need to ask questions and students should do the same.
By asking questions, there will be a better understanding and appreciation of
our diverse and beautiful environment. Let us lean to accept and embrace our unique and special differences!
