TEFL Milan Tennessee

Teaching, by definition, is the passing on to others information one knows and allowing them to use that information in a beneficial way in their daily lives. It's a skill which involves dealing with people, either on an intimate or remote level, that requires sensitivity in all areas of communication and understanding. I will venture to explore in this essay three aspects of the topic relating specifically to the cultural sensitivity involved in teaching. The three points covered will be the cultural sensitivity of the student's ethnic background, the cultural sensitivity of the student's social background and the cultural sensitivity of the student's economic status. To begin with, the student's ethnic background plays a significant role in their motivation to want to learn the language. If the student comes from a country which is unfamiliar or does not value the english language, they will be less motivated to learn. However, on the other hand, if they are learning in a country which requires them to know the language, they will need to motivate themselves to learn as a simple means of survival. The positive results created from the dynamics of a multilingual class is an environment which promotes and encourages the understanding of different student's ethnic backgrounds which brings about for a more interesting and culturally-sensitive class. The teacher must motivate the students to be interested and tolerant of each other's culture and to get along and help each other despite their various interest levels in learning the language. The second point I wish to mention is the student's family and social background. Families from various social backgrounds place different emphasis on what they value as important and thus, the interest level of learning the english language may also vary from family to family. The social status of the family may not require them to know the language as they are, perhaps, in an environment where the language is not needed. Study habits are also considered when speaking of a student's family background. An academic family may place a strong emphasis in this area whereas a more working class family may not have acquired this habit before. This, therefore, brings about a dynamic to the class whereby students must learn to be sensitive to each other because of their varying family backgrounds. Students who come from families who value learning will need to help motivate their classmates who are less interested in learning as they are. Lastly, the economic status of a student might also play a significant role in the student's performance in class. A student who feels they are wealthy and not in need might be less aggressive in achievement than their classmate who is less fortunate or visa versa. Students will need to be sensitive to each other's economic background and help one another excel in class. This is a sensitive area of social behavior as it might be offensive to speak of one's economic situation. The wealthy might try to downplay their wealth and the less fortunate might mask their lack by overachieving. Thus, a sensitivity to one's economic background must be exhibited and will be learned as a result of the environment created by this dynamic. In conclusion, cultural sensitivity in the classroom plays a vital role in the success of a class. Students will, more or less, acquire skills in dealing with this matter at the end of the course because they will be given the opportunity to interact with people from different cultural, social and economic backgrounds. This exposure in a classroom environment will prove invaluable to the success of the student's future.