Elizabeth Marotti

Final Exam
March 17, 2016 1

Final Reflection

Prior to beginning Multicultural Education I was looking forward to all that I would learn

in the class. I knew that the class would provide me with plenty of information regarding

multiculturalism as well as strategies for building a classroom environment that is equitable,

using culturally responsive teaching methods. What I did not anticipate was all that I would learn

about my own identity throughout the course of this class. The readings, activities, discussions,

panels, and presentations throughout this class really encouraged, if not forced, me to take a hard

look within myself to discover any biases or beliefs of which I was previously unaware. I have to

admit that digging around in my subconscious was not a comfortable process. That being said, I

am grateful for all that I learned about myself and others. I now realize that by learning about

myself and releasing any unconscious biases, I am able to embrace others more genuinely. This

combined with all that I learned (and will continue to learn!) about other cultures will help me to

be authentic in my teaching and will help me as I build a classroom that is equitable and

inclusive.

Throughout this course, it was stressed that in order for a person to be an effective

multicultural education teacher they must first understand their own cultural identity. As a means

to this, I was asked several times throughout this course to define or characterize my own

culture. Identifying the components of my own culture is very difficult for me. Culture is a

complicated concept. We all live within our culture every day, yet it is not always something that

can be easily identified. This school term I read a definition that really paints a picture of the

complexity of culture. Libi Susag defines culture as "the smoke that hangs over the fire. You
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know it's there, you can actually see it. Too much of it affects you in various ways, and yet you

still cannot reach out and grab a hold of it" (Saifer, Edwards, Ellis, Ko, & Stuczynski, 2010).

While I do continue to struggle to truly identify all the elements of my own personal

culture, I have uncovered some understanding of my own identity of which I was unaware or

unwilling to recognize prior to taking this class. The assigned article readings in this class were

all really eye-opening for me. One article in particular really caused me to take a step back and

look at my life and the privileges bestowed upon me merely for the color of my skin. I have

always heard people use the term "white privilege" and it always made me cringe a bit. I do not

want to have an advantage in this society just for being white, and I certainly do not want any

privilege at the expense of someone else. Because of my guilt, I have always just ignored and

even denied my white privilege. It wasn't until I read White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible

Knapsack by Peggy McIntosh (1992) that I could see the realities of white privilege and how I

am affected by it on a daily basis. I realize now that it does not do anyone any good for me to

deny my privilege nor does it make me a racist to admit that this privilege exists. Being "white"

is a part of who I am and it contributes greatly to my identity.

Accepting the realities of white privilege was difficult for me but it did help to open the

door for me to have an honest look at myself and to uncover any hidden biases that I may have.

"Understanding our own biases is a first step toward improving the interactions that we have

with all people and is essential if we hope to build deep community in our schools" (Moule,

2009, p. 321). I realize now the importance of understanding my own biases and beliefs and

where they come from. In order to be a teacher that is effective and objective, I have to

understand all that I can about my own identity so that I can embrace each of my students and

their cultures in a way that is free of bias.

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I am confident that when I become a teacher I will be one that embraces each of my

students, their families, and their cultures. Something that I have learned from this class is that in

order to fully embrace others who are different than me, it is essential to first learn all that I can

about what makes them different, especially their culture. Throughout this course I have learned

much about the differing characteristics of many cultural groups. As I did research for my paper

on students in poverty, I learned a great deal about young people from financially poor

households, their strengths, and best teaching practices for these students. Additionally, by

watching the group presentations on other marginalized cultural and ethnic groups, I learned

some very valuable information about how to be an effective teacher to diverse groups of

students. One concept I learned that is essential when teaching diverse learners is the importance

of holding each student to an equally high standard regardless of their ethnicity or socioeconomic

status. This concept was stressed in our textbook (Manning & Baruth, 2009, p. 218) and was

further pointed out within several of the group final presentations.

Another thing that I learned from the group presentations is the importance of

understanding and embracing language differences. With the increasing number of Hispanic

students in American schools, it is crucial that teachers understand and accommodate the varying

needs of these students with regard to language (Final Group Presentation on Hispanic Students).

The group that presented about African American students provided some interesting information

about language differences as well. I learned from this group that students who speak English

language variations, such as Ebonics, are no less intelligent than those who speak "standard

English" and it is dangerous for teachers to assume this (Final Group Presentation on African

American Students). This knowledge will help me to not only to interact responsibly with my

students and their families, but also to fully embrace those who are different than me.
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Throughout this course, I have learned many ways in which I can provide an inclusive

learning environment with a culturally responsive curriculum and materials and instruction that

are relevant to all students. This can be done in part by ensuring that the classroom is decorated

in a culturally diverse manner. For example, if the decorations in the classroom include pictures

of children, these children should be of all different races and dress. Also, it can be of great

benefit to all students to have books in the classroom that portray people and stories from a wide

range of cultures, especially those of the minority children in the classroom. One of my biggest

takeaways from this class is that multicultural education benefits all students, not just minority

children. "Majority cultures can benefit from a better understanding of cultural differences and,

eventually, of their own cultural backgrounds" (Manning & Baruth, 2009, p. 9). What this means

is that it is important to have materials in the classroom and provide lessons that explore various

cultures, not just the cultures of those in the classroom.

In order to provide a truly inclusive learning environment for all students I have learned

that it is essential to understand the different learning styles of students from varying cultural

backgrounds. For example, Native American students tend to value community involvement and

cooperative learning. Therefore, Native American students can benefit from working in groups

and collaborating on projects (Final Group Presentation on Native American Students). African

American students can benefit from incorporating movement and music into the curriculum

(Final Group Presentation on African American Students). Each student is a unique individual

and not all students from similar cultural backgrounds are the same. However, by understanding

where each student in my class comes from and what their life is like outside of school, I can

better provide an environment where each student can learn to their full potential.
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All that I have learned throughout this course about my own identity and about

understanding and embracing those who are different than me will help me to be a better teacher

and mentor. The knowledge I have gained from this class in combination with all that I will learn

about each individual student in my future classrooms will be put to good use as I build a

classroom environment that is a "salad bowl" rather than a "melting pot". Having schools that

adopt the "salad bowl" perspective is very important to the wellbeing of today's youth. Students

should not be forced to leave their culture at the door of the classroom and assimilate to the

mainstream culture while they are at school. As I look to the future and envision my ideal

classroom, I know that this space will be one where students can not only celebrate their own

cultures but also the cultures of those around them.

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References

Manning, M. L., & Baruth, L. G. (2009). Multicultural education of children and adolescents.

Boston: Pearson.

McIntosh, P. (1992). White privilege. Creation Spirituality, 33-35.

Moule, J. (2009). Understanding unconscious bias and unintentional racism. Phi Delta Kappan,

90(5), 321.

Saifer, S., Edwards, K., Ellis, D., Ko, L., & Stuczynski, A. (2010). The foundation for culturally

responsive standards-based teaching. Culturally responsive standards-based teaching:

Classroom to community and back (pp. 39-64). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.