Literature Review : Prejudice And Diversity In The Elementary Schools

As an adult, a parent, and an educator it is my social responsibility to make sure that the children I am entrusted with are aware that not everyone lives the same kind of lifestyle. We are all different in some way or another and that doesn’t make me any better or worse than anyone else. This can be a challenging concept for children that have grown up with only people of the same race, which hold the same beliefs and are very similar in the majority of their ways.

There are many ways to provide children with the necessary skills and understanding they need in order to grow to be respectful and accepting citizens. The most important aspect of teaching children about cultural identities is reinforcing the understanding that difference is not a bad thing. Children have simple mindsets when it comes to differences in personalities and cultures, however while they may innocently ask questions that seem bias or discriminatory, they are simply seeking an explanation of something they don’t currently understand. One strategy to ensure children understand cultures is to simply and positively explain that everyone is different and there are people that come from all over the world, have different languages, accepts,

Obtaining a good education allows a person to gain the basic skills he or she would need to thrive in the world as an adult. In order for a child to acquire the benefits of a good education, a stable environment must be provided without the influence of any negative outside forces. One negative force that can directly impact a minority child’s education is racism. Interestingly enough, there are several other aspects that are involved in the making of the standard quality education, which include student life and disciplinary actions. A troubled student life and the impact of bias disciplinary actions can result in a lack of standard educational opportunities for children in a minority group situation. Racism can negatively affect the quality of a minority child’s education by causing difficulties in a student’s life inside the classroom, unfair disciplinary actions, and academic failure.

Racism isn’t hating someone because of their race. Prejudice is not a misconception of who a person is. Racism is being prejudiced because a person believes their race is superior; and, prejudice is a preconceived opinion not based on any prior experience. In other words, racism is when a person has a preconceived opinion about another person because they feel their race is superior. Racism and prejudice are probably two of the most talked about and controversial words 60 years ago and still today. When Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat and Martin L. King marched on Selma they didn’t think we would still be in such a place today; we are in a place where people are not allowed to be themselves without facing judgment. This is the same prejudice and racism members of society face in schools, by students and educators which limits their ability to progress in a world full of competition and rise above what demographics say they are destined to become. As the great Charles Albert Tindley once said, “We Shall Overcome!”

We will house kids who are products of all facets of society. For example, children of immigrants, children who have affluence, children who are loved and cared for greatly and children who may be in a situation of neglect. Teaching is about reaching out to each student, helping them to overcome challenges and be the best that they can be. It seems that an increasing number of these challenges may not be academic in nature. I believe that conquering these challenges actually beings with the little community forming within our classrooms. As teachers we have the obligation to teach our students how to have respect and compassion for one another. How to be on the same team and work together, no matter each person’s background.

The documentary “A Class Divided” is very eye opening into the world of racism and discrimination. The textbook Racial and Ethnic Groups defines racism as “a doctrine that one race is superior” and discrimination as “the denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and groups because of prejudice or for other arbitrary reasons” (Schaefer, pp. 14,41). The film’s set the tone for only being able to comprehend these concepts by truly “walking in their moccasins” as Ms. Elliot states. She was just an ordinary teacher that felt a mere discussion on these subjects just wasn’t enough

Policies that Miamifield should implement are a required class on race, diversity and culture, club that meets once a week about race, diversity, and culture, a room in the school where students can go and talk about their issues with no judgement or consequences, changing the mascot, change the way that teachers are hired, make clear rules on what will cause a student to be suspended, and full day of school every year where the mayor, community, students all talk about what is happening in the school with race and other issues and how it can be solve. By requiring a class on race, diversity, and culture will allow for the students to learn about people that are different than they are and it will open up their eyes to a new perspective. I would make this class mandatory for all students

Do you think that racism still exists in public schools in the United States? Do you think ________? Well in a survey I took of middle schoolers of many different races including, Caucasian, African American, Hispanic and more, ___% of students answered “yes” to the first question. African Americans can often be discriminated against in schools. Racism in schools has been going on ever since slavery ended in the United States, and they have segregated African Americans from everything, including schools. Then in 1965, the Brown vs Board of Education court case, ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. But ever since the integration of whites and blacks started, there has always been some sort of prejudice, or unfair treatment

The diversity found in public schools are those who speak another language other than English, come from different cultural backgrounds, are different socioeconomically, have learning disabilities, physical conditions, have different sexual orientations or genders. Students that are not straight, European American, and come from a comfortable or high socioeconomic status, resulting in private schools or have accessibility to paid for tutoring, are not always at arm’s reach for help or proper resources regarding their education at home or school, in some cases. These students face challenges and overcome them in a plethora of ways.

“I say to you, quite frankly, that the time for racial discrimination is over.” Is a statement that most people can get behind in today’s world, where news of racial injustice sprouts up seemingly every day from across the globe. The call for equality in the United States has been around since its genesis as a colony, with different eras finding various cases of success. Such examples could include: the abolition of slavery, the legalization of interracial marriage or the desegregation of public schools. Even with these cases, and many others, standing tall as marks of progress, our country could use further reform in the education department. It has become apparent, through much research, that desegregating schools by law doesn’t clean up the internal prejudice present in many of our classrooms today.

To solve the racism in school problem we need to recognize the problem and discover where the disadvantages stem from. The major problem with the public schools is the lack of improvements to the education system that protect students regardless of ethnic background. The United States have developed the CERD, ICCPR, and CAT; these are reform treaties that are supposed to protect students. though, minority students in America are not benefitting from these programs due to lack of enforcement of the policies represented in each program. These treaties are described as:

I’m not going to argue that teaching every single student in a public or private school system is necessary. I believe it helps when trying to solve the problem the US has been having with racism, but there are some cases where it’s just not going to help. So instead I’m going to argue that we teach every student in or above grade five with parent consent. This is because teaching a five-year-old or a student around that age isn’t going to do anything but cause more harm. This is because a five-year-old more than likely has never has a single thought go through there head about different skin colors. If you start introducing racism and the issues involving racism to a five-year-old that’s when things like a little kid saying they don’t want

As a part of a minority race at my high school I have personally dealt with racial diversity growing up. Being one of the few Asian students attending my high school I felt like I always had to be extra conscious about what I said, did, and looked like. This being my first encounter with a lack of diversity I was not afraid of the gap between men and women engineers because I knew I would not let it get in the way of pursuing my goals. Going through school I became more and more interested in the STEM field and eventually decided to major in bioengineering. When I first heard of bioengineering I began to research it because it sound like a major made just for me. I saw numbers after numbers stating that the number of female engineers is significantly

Another way to provide education is through reading. Barnes & Nobles partnered with the Anti-Defamation League to produce several books including Hate Hurts: How Children Learn and Unlearn Prejudice and 101 Ways to Combat Prejudice that were designed to be educational resources for individuals to learn more about prejudices and diversity. Businesses and schools can include resources like these and diversity training to enhance their employees’ understanding of diversity. These methods can help improve understanding and encourage employees to develop a diversity

Prejudice does not always have to deal with racism, it is just the preconceived opinion that is not based reason or actual experience. But I can admit that racism and prejudice do go hand-in-hand at times. The assumption that the Latino-American and African-American teachers are not as good or qualified as the Caucasian ones is a terrible belief to have. That even now in the twenty-first century, there is still forms of prejudice and racism. I am glad to hear that you will not hold any prejudice or racism for your students. That every single one of your students, no matter the color of their skin, has the opportunity to do well in your classroom. It is not the Black race or the White race or the Mexican