The purpose of a Dream: Hispanic and African Americans adult students within a Multicultural Environment.
An analysis of this problem is due to such issues as age, gender and power. In working with adult students and multicultural groups as a teacher¡¦s assistant (which consist of related factors such as teaching along with instructor and applying knowledge and promoting learning skills in away to help older students learn and help to apply a technique of understanding (which motivate students in a way to learn. It been claimed that adult aged student¡¦s accounts for problems in the classroom, especially ethnic groups as Hispanic and African Americans. As an observer, I have encountered such an environment of students, returning to school after being away for many years.
These students are back again willing to take on classes which will further
Their education and prepare them for better jobs. In an environment of culture differences, these students are not only focusing on learning but engaged in grouping whether with their own culture or others. Much of the problems as I had observed, stems from the categories as was mentioned.
The semester working with this group was challenging and yet what took place was a learning experience with a diverse group. These people will eventually express a form of a new beginning of affliction in the classroom. We as educators have struggled throughout the times. Our cohorts, and this adult community manner of relating within the classroom shows that there lies a division of differences that needed to be mended.
This class was held at a high school for evening students. The students were African Americans and Asian Americans and Hispanics. I observed the relationship between African-Americans and Hispanics. Communication was dealt with uncertainty. Many students grouped with people of their own culture , although the class was constructed to teach these students skills that would help both into the work place, no concern for communicating was seen between this group. It was observed as cultural conflict in the classroom among adults. There were no confrontations but nonverbal oppositions were there. The Asian American s did not respond yet, kept their distant- another form of not accepting change in a diverse community.
Multi-cultural citizens soon learn to recognizing limitations and the meaning of what white norms and practices of dominancy. Ruth Frankenburg (1993) speaks of three meanings of such. She names them as; race cognizance ¡Vcultural practices seen as different but the same in value ; (2) essential racism, races are seen as different and unequal within the systems of White superiority; (3) this is called a discourse of power evasiveness which is called color blindness, or essential
Bonnie Kae Grover is a white female who believes that race has been used as a weapon. Specifically, she focuses on how white people use their color of skin to be controlling of other people. Her gripe is on the notion of “white culture.” She questions the validity of the statement and believes it is simply just American culture and those who think of it as white culture “just moved in like they’ve discovered it” (Grover 377).
Dr. Peggy McIntosh looks at white privilege, by “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” She describes white privilege as almost a special check or coin that she gets to cash in on. Dr. McIntosh tells that white privilege has been a taboo and repressed subject – and that many white people are taught not to see or recognize it. However, she is granted privileges (McIntosh 30). Dr. McIntosh goes on to describe twenty-six ways in which her skin-color grants her certain privileges. In example twenty, she describes how she can buy “…posters, postcards, picture books…” and other items that “…feature people of my race” (32). Additionally, in her first example, she talks about being able to be in the “company of people of my race most of the time” (McIntosh 31). Instances in which a privilege person would not even recognize unless they were looking, show evidence for white privilege. People take these advantages for granted because they simply expect them. Due to the lack of melatonin in her skin, she was granted privileges and her skin served as an asset to her. Dr. McIntosh conveys how her privilege is not only a “favored state,” but also a power over other
The question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is often asked by teachers, parents, friends, and family addressing younger children. It would seem that most Americans have within them the sense that dreams do have the potential to become reality. People often choose to see the “bright futures” of children in order to reassure them they can be anything they want to be. It seems as though there are no barriers to reach a goal if enough hard work is applied. Does this truth transcend cultural divides? Do people of minority in the United States have the same hope about their futures as the majority does? Sandra Cisneros depicts the unique dreams of Mexican-American women despite cultural depression in her story The House on Mango Street.
Cultural differences pose several barriers for students and may impair their opportunity to learn. These barriers are created by differences in language expression, communication style, preferred learning style, gender-role customs and behaviors, and limited parental involvement due to these cultural or socioeconomic barriers (Ralabate, & Klotz, 2007).
These questions, and many more, have long been a part of the agenda for multicultural education but are recently coming more clearly into focus. Most of the work and studies in race relations and teaching in a multicultural environment in the U.S. have put an emphasis on the unique cultural experiences and perspectives of Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American groups. These are the groups that have historically been marginalized in various ways by the repeated asserted dominance by American people of European backgrounds. As the populations of the U.S. changes to take in even larger numbers of those groups...
The purpose of this essay is to familiarize the reader with some of the cultural values of two prevalent minority cultures in the Western Washington area classrooms in order to create a positive learning environ resulting in higher academic achievement for these students. The two cultures discussed in this essay are Mexican Americans and Filipino Americans. Although the Sumner School District, where I work, is not highly diverse, these two minorities are represented to some degree in most of the schools. Among the important factors that influence one’s cultural identity and are discussed in this essay are: language, socioeconomics, traditions, immigration, religion, and the family organization.
D’Angelo, Raymond and Douglas, Herbert. Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Race and Ethnicity (8th Edition). New York: Contemporary Learning Series group within the McGraw-Hill Higher Education division, 2011.
The world is a complex mixture of people with diverse languages, skin tones, and cultural differences. These differences are the most evident in human beings. People are classified according to one or more of these differences. But the division gives the impression of being a negative one. Exposing these differences in universities and colleges should not be the source any problems. In fact, exposing these differences should help people understand and at times lend a hand to disadvantaged college students.
Due to the large number of opportunities and freedom that the American Dream supposedly offers, individuals from all walks of life have their own personal American Dream that they wish to achieve. For most people, those dreams will, however, never turn into reality. Especially African Americans, who have a hard time realizing their dreams and achieving their goals in the 1950’s through the 60’s. Too many challenges that hamper the achievements of their dreams are part of their daily life and difficult to overcome in the. What adds to the hardships of black American families is a generation gap that seems to widen due to the diverging perceptions of the American Dream.
When the majority of teachers in America are White, middle class women who only speak English in a country were students are starting to come from a multitude of backgrounds it is no wonder problems are arising. As more people from different cultures and religions immigrate to the United States the average classroom is losing the cultural uniformity it had in the past. Though the faces in classrooms are steadily changing many teachers have not been able to adjust as quickly to the ever growing diversity taking place. One would expect for teachers to still be able to teach students effectively whether they share a similar background or not, but in actuality cultural conflicts between teachers and students are only getting worse. Especially when
We can all agree, educators and future educators alike, that teaching students is so much more than just presenting information to them. There is more to learning than only speaking. We’ve all had those teachers who were brilliant in their subject area, but not brilliant in making the students know the information. These are not true teachers; they are only smart. They teach in one way only, and doesn’t believe in individualized instruction, even though we all know that “low-income students and students of color tend to feel less “connected” to their schools than affluent and Anglo students, and that older students feel less connected than younger ones” (Schaps). As a future educator, sometimes I fear that I will become like one of these teachers, and I want to make sure that each of my students enjoy coming in class to learn, and is able to apply what they’ve learned to their unique lives. So for this inquiry project, I’ve decided to focus on classroom community. I believe that every great teacher establishes this concept in his/her classroom; without this concept, learning cannot happen. In this paper, I will define classroom community, discuss different ways to implement it in every classroom, and show the results of making an effort to keep it in your classroom.
The learning process for adults is never ending and can be very challenging. As an adult educator, teaching adult learners you will face many challenges in the learning process. It is our responsibility to keep the learners engaged, and to help them to realize their full learning potential.
Even though this increasing awareness of the multicultural issues, many supervisors are not being trained how to deal with this issues in the daily practice. As a school administrator it is important to be a motivator for the teachers that are under your supervision, it is necessary to stimulate enthusiasm in all the staff (McNair, 2011). In order to cultivate passion for a change, even when people has the tendencies of not wanting changes (Glickman, et al., 2014). As humans changes are seeing as other’s plans, sometimes feel that they being imposed to someone else’s plans, when communication it is not establish it is perceived as imposition, something that it is imposed on them, feeling threat if they do not realized what they being told. People perceived different when they feel that they are in control and the supervisor is there to collaborate...
Culture is a powerful influence plays a big role in our interactions. Culture may also impact parenting style and a developing child. Having a strong sense of their own cultural history and the traditions associated with it helps children build a positive cultural identity for themselves. This also supports children’s sense of belonging and, by extension, their mental health and wellbeing. This class is crucial in understanding and working well parents, staff, and children. An effective educator understands how students’ cultures affect their perceptions, self-esteem, values, classroom behavior, and learning. As director, I need to use that understanding to help my students and staff feel welcomed, affirmed, respected, and valued. One way that I can do this is by using multicultural literature, especially children’s literature, to honor students’ culture and foster cross-cultural understanding. If cultural differences are not understood by teachers and management, it can lead to miscommunication and misunderstandings on both sides. It will be my job to do all I can to overcome both language and cultural differences to ensure a positive learning environment for
Tisdell, E. Creating Inclusive Adult Learning Environments: Insights from Multicultural Education and Feminist Pedagogy. Information Series no. 361. Columbus: ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, Center on Education and Training for Employment, The Ohio State University, 1995.