Today's+Students

=Today's Students Table of Contents=

[|Race]  3c **:** a category of humankind that shares certain distinctive physical traits   (3) > >  [|Nationalities]  5 a **:** a people having a common origin, tradition, and language and capable of forming or actually constituting a nation-state     (3) >
 * Common Types of Diversity**
 * Do not adopt preconceived notions and attitudes about minority students' ability to perform, high or low.
 * Do not assume that there is a "collective identity" minority students share. Instead, treat minority students as individuals.
 * Encourage students to get to know each other both during and after class. This would allow students the opportunity to let others in class know the terminology they would like others in the class to use to refer to them, their culture, and etc.
 * Do not assume the identity or racial affiliation of a student based on his/her physical appearances. (1)
 * "Students are encouraged to develop an appreciation for their religious, cultural, or ethnic backgrounds" (5).
 * "Students are encouraged to develop an appreciation for the religious, cultural, or ethnic backgrounds of their fellow students" (5).
 * Students are encouraged to develop a strong identity as an American.
 * A student is prejudiced if he or she dislikes other students because they are members of another race, religion, sex, or ethnicity.
 * Cooperative learning helps students develop an appreciation for theirs and others' cultures, races, religions, genders, and ethnicities.
 * Cooperative learning can help students interact with, trust, and be candid with students who are different from them so that they can understand each other better. Miscommunication can be clarified, and students can form positive identities.
 * Students will learn how to communicate effectively and politely with diverse peers.
 * Do not make assumptions regarding students' language capabilities based on their ethnic background.
 * Get to know your students at the beginning of the semester and learn to pronounce their names correctly.
 * Do not single out the international student to "represent" his/her country.
 * Incorporate the special angle/perspective international students can bring into your class. (1)
 * Nationalities at Mt. Blue High School. [[file:JMBObservation.doc]]

Socioeconomics  of, relating to, or involving a combination of social and economic factors (3)  [|Gender] <span class="sense_label"> b <span class="sense_content">**:** the behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with one sex  (3) > [|Sexuality] The preference one shows by having a sexual interest in members of the same, opposite, or either sex.(3) >
 * According to McKinney-Venot Homeless Assistance Act schools must provide transportation to school for homeless students.
 * Schools can not deny enrollment to homeless students.
 * Many students apply for free or reduced price lunches.
 * Middle class often have both parents working, most people with white collar jobs consider themselves middle class.
 * Middle class parents are more likely to be involved in school activities.
 * Upper Middle Class many parents are active in civic and voluntary organizations and are politically active.
 * Some choose to send their students to private schools.
 * Many will provide advantages to ensure students receive good grades.(6)
 * Income is often a very uncomfortable subject no mater what class students are from.
 * Don't make assumptions to what class students are in and try to not single students out.
 * Give female and male students equal attention and equally specific feedback.
 * Monitor classroom dynamics to ensure that discussion does not become dominated by more aggressive students.
 * Revise curricula if necessary to include female experiences, and to include them in more than just stereotypical ways.
 * Avoid sexist language in classroom discussions, lectures, and in written materials that you distribute to the class.
 * Do not simply let students choose their own groups, for this will result in the same students always working with each other
 * If you observe students making sexist remarks, whether in front of the whole class or in smaller groups, it is best to confront the student(s) and tell them that such remarks are inappropriate and do not further the purposes of the course.
 * Treat students as individuals not as representatives of their gender. Do not assume that a female student is necessarily interested in "women issues." (1)
 * Assume that not all students in a class are heterosexual.
 * React firmly to homophobic remarks made in class. Laughing them off in the hopes they will go away does not work.
 * Do not assume that HIV positive people are all gay, or that only gay people engage in activities which put themselves and others at risk. (1)

[|Religion] <span class="sense_break"><span class="sense_break"><span class="sense_break"><span class="sense_break"><span class="sense_label start"> 4 <span class="sense_content">**:** a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith (3) >
 * Accommodate students' important religious holidays: allow for them in your syllabus planning and a make-up schedule.
 * Critique a religion or religious belief only if such criticism is important to course material.
 * Assume each student has his or her specific beliefs and rituals, and cannot "speak for" an entire religion. (1)

[|Disabilities] <span class="sense_break"><span class="sense_label start"> 1 a <span class="sense_content">**:** the condition of being disabled (3) > > >
 * Remember that the student's disability is only a small part of his or her total identity as a person.
 * Always address the student directly, not through an interpreter or caretaker.
 * Do not spend an inordinate amount of time focusing on the disability of the students.
 * Treat the students as individuals and as not representatives or spokespersons for the entire group. (1)
 * Cooperative learning groups can be a great way to include students with disabilities.
 * When using cooperative learning, it is important to remember to select goals and materials that fit students' IEPs. They should also be age appropriate and be selected with input from the parents.
 * Be sure to assign groups so that each group is as diverse as possible.
 * There should be a goal, reward, and resource interdependency in all the groups.
 * The criteria for every activity should be specified and instructions should be step by step.
 * The teacher should monitor all groups.
 * If the teacher finds it necessary to teach academic or social skills during group work, she should do so.
 * The cooperative skills used should be evaluated along with the final product.
 * Be flexible with responses. Sometimes, allowing a disabled student can express what he has learned in a way that the requirement for the rest of the class would not allow him to do.
 * Allow for different work loads or rates of completion for students with disabilities.
 * Computer assisted instruction can be a big help for students with disabilities.
 * Use criterion referenced and personalized evaluations.
 * There are three types of groups that can be used in the classroom. Core groups that stay the same all year, formal groups that last for three or four weeks, and temporary groups that last for two to three days.
 * Here is a personal account of what it was like to put two legally blind children through public school, by Susan Hall. [[file:DP.doc]]

[|Classroom Integration]
 * Make clear and simple classroom rules with the help of students.
 * Teach information that relates to students' lives and realities.
 * Notice and respect individual differences as well as similarities.
 * Have high expectations for all students.
 * Use culturally and linguistically relevant curriculum materials and instructional strategies.
 * Desist from making derogatory assumptions about culture, language, race, gender and socioeconomic status.
 * Use creative ideas to develop community interactions.
 * Express thoughts about global world view. (2)
 * Teach students how to handle diversity conflicts. Conflict resolution, peer mediation training, and conflict resolution will help students learn to handle conflict in a constructive manner.
 * Students need to be taught what is and is not a conflict, how to handle the conflict effectively, and the value of the conflict.
 * All students should be taught how to engage in problem solving negotiations.
 * Conflict resolution should be a recurring theme throughout a child's school career so that he can refine those skills.
 * Academic controversy is beneficial to students because they retain more information when it is over than they do from debates or individual competition. (5)

(4)
 * Issues You May Encounter and How to Deal

[|Racial Diversity Statistics for 2005] [|Donnell Butler: Diversity in the Classroom] (1) [|Instructional consulting] (2) [|It Even Happens in "Good" Schools.] Festus E. Obiakor** (4) [|Cultures in Conflict.] Martha R. Bireda (5) [|Cooperative Learning and Strategies for Inclusion] JoAnne W. Putnam (6) Today's Students [|Diversity Day] [|Music]**
 * <span class="wiki_link_ext">(3) [| Merriam Webster Dictionary]