Teaching in Multi-Ethnic Classrooms Experts

Teaching in Multi-Ethnic Classrooms

Experts in education talk about "cultural competence," or the need for teachers to understand the cultures their students come from (Battle et. al., 2002). It's an important concept in education, because The United States is becoming a country of increasingly diverse subcultures (Araoe & Nelson, 2000). Teachers have to understand their own cultures well, and learn about the cultures of their students, so they can better understand not only the students' cultures but how the majority culture interplays with other cultures within the classroom. Teachers have to work hard at that. Even though our student population is becoming more and more culturally varied, the number of teachers not from the majority culture (American of European descent) has been decreasing (Araoe & Nelson, 2000).

Lack of understanding regarding minority of cultures can create missed opportunities to enrich the education of all children in the classroom. For instance, we talk about "Hispanics," but often we do so without thinking about who these "Hispanics" are. People classified as Hispanic have lived within the present day borders of the United States for centuries (Holman, 1997). While many think of Hispanics as recent immigrants from Mexico, some have been here for generations. People classified as Hispanic have also come here from Puerto Rico, Cuba, Spain, and many countries in Central and South America (Battle et. al., 2002). It is not a homogenous group, so as a classroom teacher it will not be enough to know that a child is "Hispanic." That won't tell me much more about the child than the fact that another child might have red, curly hair.

Such grouping of people together, suggesting they have more similarities than they really do, can lead to stereotyping. In one source I read that "Many Hispanic children are likely to be from lower socioeconomic backgrounds." It went on to report that according to one census, about 40% of "Hispanic" children lived in poverty compared to only 13% of non-Hispanic, white children. It went on to describe how Hispanic populations can vary geographically (Holman, 1997), making the information less valuable. I do not teach in a county bordering Mexico, so I have no way to know if those statistics on poverty have anything to do with my students. In addition, it doesn't tell me what it means about teaching a specific child of Hispanic heritage I might have in my classroom.

Other information was more useful. The same article suggested that Hispanics living as a minority in the United States might be homesick for the customs practices common in their native country (Holman, 1997). That is more useful information and suggests that incorporating some traditions from the child's country into my classroom might help the child feel more at ease there.

Other information I found suggests that Hispanic students may not completely feel a part of our educational system. The rate for both dropping out before graduating and for school suspensions have increased among Hispanic students even though they have been dropping among other students. In high school, Hispanic students are less likely to be active in extra-curricular activities such as academic clubs and student government associations (Lewis, 1998). This also suggests to me that some Hispanic students may not feel they "ll fit in" in the larger school culture.

At the same time, while one author suggests that Hispanic students may miss being in an atmosphere where their first language is spoken (Holman, 1997), others are frustrated by bilingual education practices. Some activists in Los Angeles have been working to end "bilingual" classes, which are done mostly in Spanish. They feel that it leads to an inadequate education and that it communicates the idea that Hispanic children aren't capable of learning English (Amselle, 1997). What this communicates to me is that the process of living in two cultures is a complicated one, and that I should ask questions of my students and their parents rather than making assumptions regarding what they want and what would help them have the best educational experience possible in my classroom.

Another student population not well understood by many teachers is those who are of Native American heritage. Once again, we tend to speak of "Native Americans" as if they are one group of people. Actually, the label may serve, at least sometimes, to separate us, the majority culture from "them," or "those who are different." In actuality there are 332 distinct tribes recognized by the federal government, speaking over 200 different languages (Allison & Vining, 1999). So just learning a few words of "Native American" wouldn't help me much as a teacher. Which language? Which culture? Just as it does with any student, understanding a student who is Native American would mean getting to know the individual.

This tendency to clump all Native Americans may be reflected in our curriculum in ways we don't realize. Shaffer (1993) notes that units about Thanksgiving that explore the Native Americans of the time may or may not contain accurate information. In addition, the parent of a Native American student in her class pointed out that little in this unit related to the history of most Native Americans. Focused on a Native American culture that was largely extinct, it had no reference to the profound effects of more recent history, such as the "Trail of Tears" ordeal of the Cherokee Nation. Until I read this it would not have occurred to me to try to verify information taught about Native American experience, but it would be tremendously alienating to a Native American student to feel that what little was mentioned in class was inaccurate, irrelevant, or both.

Little Soldier (1997) offers some valuable insights into difficulties Native American students may face in a setting when the family lives away from the tribe. For instance, in many tribes, extended family ties and kinship bonds are the network of help in times of crisis. If a family moves away from the tribe, they may not know where to go in the community for help when needed. In some tribes, precise measurement of time is not valued, and students from such cultures may not understand the meaning of time pressure on timed tests (Little Soldier, 1997). Only by understanding the student and his or her culture can I avoid making judgments such as "He just doesn't care; that's why he missed the bus," or "Clearly she doesn't know her multiplication facts. Look how she did on the timed test." Other cultural differences could relate to views about material things. If many in the tribe or poor, then being poor does not affect one's social status (Little Soldier, 1997). At the same time, economists who look at these issues but don't take the tribal culture into consideration can draw incorrect inferences (Mushiniski & Pickering, 2000). The message there for me as a teacher is that cultural aspects affect every part of our lives. Understanding another culture takes more than a superficial demonstration such as "Native American Day."