TEFL Nassau Delaware

CULTURAL SENSITIVITY IN THE CLASSROOM (27) In this day and age, crossing borders is much easier than it used to be, therefore, it is not surprising that you would find students of different nationalities and races in a classroom. I grew up in Sabah, East Malaysia, otherwise known as North Borneo, where there are local people of varying ethnics, and foreigners, intrigued by its exotic allure, often end up staying longer than intended. So naturally in a classroom there was a real mix of students. Nobody ever thought twice about this and it was never a serious problem in my experience. Because of this, our world in class was colourful – students and teachers alike would broaden our knowledge of the cultures and heritage that surrounded us, by sharing stories passed down the generations. Some of these stories consisted of folklore, beliefs, and superstition. Whether we personally believed them or not did not matter – we still listened. All that mattered was that if someone believed in it then we would respect that fact, and it did not bother them if the rest of us did not have the same belief. Whenever a festive season came around, be it chinese New Year, the Muslim new year, harvest festival, national day, etc., we would decorate the school with colours and ornaments befitting the tradition. The teachers would encourage us to write stories or poems, draw or paint artworks, have singing competitions, or dress up in our traditional costumes for the occasion. Every year the school would bring in a lion dance troupe to perform during chinese New Year. I believe that growing up in an environment like this instilled in us patience, “tolerance” – for lack of a better word, and acceptance of others and who they were. So when a teacher goes to class, I feel that he/ she should encourage sensitivity, whether the class is multicultural or otherwise, because this would then breed better world citizens. Just because one is an english teacher, it does not mean that that is all he/ she is able to teach the students. Being a teacher is a very influential role – it is a vehicle. After all, the primary purpose of a teacher is to guide. children spend a substantial amount of their young years in a classroom and therefore, would look up to their teachers. So although students may be in an english lesson, their doors to the information of the world can be unlocked by the teacher through the chosen topics and attitudes in class. In a classroom full of culturally diverse students it would be quite difficult for the teacher to attempt to learn everything about every student's culture. This is simply not possible because the teacher, as it is, already has quite a full plate. The best way to approach such a situation is to assume nothing – empty your cup. Establish rapport with each student – get to know them and their families. This is more realistic and it will be your biggest asset. We should not assume that we know a person based on what we think we know about their culture. There are various activities a teacher could do to learn about his/ her students. Some of which could be getting students to keep a diary and write down what they did on the weekend, or bringing in family pictures and telling the class who they are, or discuss what students would do on festive occasions. Students need to embrace cultural diversity in order to assist positive learning outcomes. When this happens it will naturally create more comfortable interaction with others in a diverse environment. Also, should they travel to a foreign country, being surrounded by people of a different culture would not come as such a shock. When one is exposed to this realm of positive attitude, citizens are likely to develop an abiding affinity, a never-ending interest, a human-friendly, and slow-to-judge curiosity in humanity, environment, history and culture. Language is a major medium to either enrich relationships, or to make them defensive, suspicious and shrunken. This pivotal choice is the power of being a teacher.