Importance Of Teaching Materials In The Classroom

For the past decade, I have taught in one of the smaller classrooms in my school. Nestled into a central hallway, the classroom sees a lot of traffic and is conveniently located near the Special Education office that houses a printer that I can pillage from in a pinch. Being an older classroom with original vents and windows that look directly into windows of another classroom, the room is not without its rustic charms (And by charms, I mean dust. An abounding amount of DUST). Nevertheless, I love this little classroom and the memories that have been created with my students and speechies through the years. This year, my husband also purchased a portable air purifier for, which significantly improved my ability to breathe through allergy season. Why didn't I think of that years ago?

I decided to review an article by Martha J. Strickland titled, Storylines: Listening to Immigrant Students, Teachers, and Cultural-Bridge Persons Making Sense of Classroom Interactions. I found the article in National University’s library. This article describes a study in which “storylines” is used to capture and analyze how newly arrived immigrant students in U. S. classrooms make meaning of lessons with limited English and how their teachers, without prior experience with the cultures of these students, manage to educate them. Pursuing understanding (knowledge construction) of academic content is a multicultural education dimension.

Thank you for the opportunity to interview for the 11th and 12th grade English/language arts position at Long County High School. I would like to describe for you my philosophy of teaching English/language arts so that you can better understand how I plan to teach students at your school. In “Vygotsky and the Social Dynamics of the Classroom,” Peter Smagorinsky (2007) writes, “thinking is a product of cultural practice and so people from diverse backgrounds often frame social situations and how to act in them differently” (p. 66). What I believe Smagornisky is concluding here is that our cultural background helps determine how we will frame our social interactions. Coming into your school as an outsider, I have little knowledge of the cultural backgrounds of your students. Therefore, my first initial aim will be one of discovery. I will need to discover what the culture of my 11th and 12th grade students is. Where do they come from? Are

Language is an art form through which shapes our understanding of ourselves and our world. (BOSTES, 2012). It is through language; where human beings are able express their inner thoughts and emotions. Language is defined as the verbal behaviour; gestures, body movement (Pierce & Eplin, 1999). The NSW K-10 English Syllabus emphasises that language is central to the intellectual, social, and emotional development of all students and that the model of language development is through a sociolinguistic approach. Sociolinguistics is referred to as the study of language and its relationship with culture and society (Kennedy, 2014). Sociolinguistics is an approach through which correlates with the NSW K-10 English Syllabus, as learning English, is recursive and develops through ever-widening contexts (BOSTES, 2012). It is through English, where students develop their critical and imaginative faculties to broaden their capacity for cultural understanding. (BOSTES, 2012). Through the syllabus (the rationale, aims, objectives, outcomes, stage statements and content), is the notion of how students will develop an appreciation of language as well as the skills in composing, understanding values and attitudes. Thus, the study of English, as expressed in the syllabus, allows students to learn across the curriculum as well as develop an understanding about and dress contemporary issues they face (BOSTES, 2012).

We live in a country where an educational requirement should be learn about foreign cultures and to be conversant in different languages because of the high percentage of immigration to United States. In the article: “How To Bring Our School Into The 21st Century” the authors talk more about how to improve different types of things, i.e to modernize, improve book to make them shorter but with value content and among other things. Among the different point of view of the authors knowing more about the world helps prepare young people for college studies, international experience, and active participation in civic life. I believe this is really important because United States have a lot of diversity in languages and cultures and is kind of important

As a future educator it’s important to understand that diversity will be seen in classrooms. As a result, it’s the educator’s role to become cultural competence, which is the ability to successfully teach students who come from cultures other than your own. Diversity can be different types of race, religions, gender, languages, customs, and culture. Teachers need to see all their students equal regardless of their diversity and culture background. This course helped shape my character and broaden my views toward other cultures. I had many memorable experiences due to taking this course.

The semester all her students had a better understanding of the English Language and could share their different culture and ideas to the class. Because the student understanding of cultural literacy help create a cultural bind with the teacher and her that will last forever. This example of Narrative 3 supports the authors lesson that is that cultural literacy can bind two opposing cultural and allow them to exchange cultural ideas that benefits both groups to a mutual understanding of both

I thoroughly enjoyed the reading, Learning and Teaching Styles In Foreign and Second Language Education by Richard M. Felder –Eunice R. Henriques. I have related this reading selection to my personal teaching/ learning style and my student’s learning styles, but especially to one particular student that I work with.

It is important that schools offer students a deepened understanding of the world around them and many diverse cultural viewpoints. A wide selection in classroom literature gives students a foundation to examine other cultures and beliefs. With a unified curriculum, everyone (all the students in the country) are given at least a small exposure to the rest of the world. This idea is exemplified by Pirofski who addresses the importance of multicultural literature, “ the use of African- American folktales by the teacher...teach respect for African-American culture and affirm a child’s feeling of self-worth” (Source E). Not only can multicultural literature help a student's understanding of the world, it also helps the child find his or her place

Another personal growth activity effected in the classroom consists of reading books about teachers working in similar communities and school conditions as myself. For instance, although being raised in a diverse urban community, immigration is much more prominent integration of cultures presently than throughout my childhood. Therefore, if located in community with plentiful of immigrant students, I plan to read literature which teaches educators how to teach in such a designed community. Moreover, I think multicultural education literature provides an understanding of a similar community to the school district before experience the community firsthand. Nonetheless, through reading, teaching books with a similar cultural climate, I can comprehend and implement approaches deemed as successful with other teachers.

Six Key Points I found interesting from Chapter 2- New Literacies  Cultural and linguistic sensitivity is a crucial first step in working with students to meet academic strands (Vacca et al, p.62, chapter 3).I found this point interesting because as a teacher, it is important to take into considerations the cultural background of students in order to integrate some aspects of their culture into the lesson as a strategy to keep student actively involved during the lesson and also to help them relate with what is being taught.  Students from different cultural backgrounds bring different ways of knowing, questioning and different patterns of interactions to school (Vacca et al, p.68, chapter 3) I am originally from West Africa and where I

Every child as a unique background and story to tell. It is important that everyone in the class be able to express beliefs, ideas, traditions, and information from their culture. We will be learning to support and celebrate each student’s unique culture. When students are exposed to diverse cultures research says that they have a stronger understanding of appreciating the differences in others. They feel more connected to the peers by being able to discuss aspects from their culture, this promotes students to become stronger critical thinker’s school. (Berg, Blank,.2006).

An interdisciplinary approach towards curriculum development is indispensable in achieving an all-inclusive syllabus. Important subjects include art, language, and literature due to their relevance to human behavior. Migration is a significant historical event as it helps in understanding the different cultures settled in the U.S. and their implications on teaching methods. An example of the Southern and Eastern Europeans is applicable in understanding community dynamics as compared to other societies. Understanding the educational needs of various cultures is vital in providing quality

The practitioner should consider that the assessments that they are using are accessible to all of the children and that they are all able show what they know. Also they need to consider that the adapted materials that they use in all their lessons are individualized to meet both student needs and

Adding a multicultural dynamic can be an engaging method that activates prior knowledge or interest that can add to the rigor of the lesson. Each lesson provides literature that can be used whether it is a primary or secondary resources that can be utilized in small or whole group instruction. Using resources to enhance the lesson brings about the ability to challenge the students using higher levels of questioning, engagement, and activities. “Examining children’s literature is essential because scholars are often the teachers of teachers” (Willis-Rivera and Meeks 270). If a teacher wanted to teach fairytales to a class, he or she can use two books of the same story using a multicultural viewpoint. For example, the teacher can read the European version of Cinderella and the Chinese version called Lin Po Po to teach the skill of compare and contrast. These two stories could illustrate the two perspectives of two cultures using the concept. The multicultural aspect creates dialogue and identification of a classic story that can be morph into another grim