I wanted to mention my thoughts on the discussion in class. We talked about the diversity among students in a school setting, and how some minority students sometimes feel left out or out of place. As a teacher, I am completely aware that there will be students in my class who will feel out of place. My goal is to make each feel inclusive. Some ideas that I had for my own classroom is to provide academic information throughout the classroom that may be of different languages (ie. spanish materials),or do fun lessons on different culture groups. As you are doing this, you do not have to tell the students why you are doing them, however, this will incorporate cultural diversity within the classroom and hopefully make each student aware of their similarities and maybe even some beneficial differences.

I thought our discussion today was really interesting. I think that it is essential to consider the idea of diversity with cultural backgrounds before teaching because we will all face this in our classroom no matter where we are teaching. Like some people mentioned in class, I think that we can all feel like the minority sometimes depending on what situation we are in. However, as the teacher i think it is essential to make the students aware of diversity and hopefully make them appreciate it. I like Hope's ideas on incorporating diversity activities in the classroom to encourage students to be aware of it. I think that this topic is something we all must think about because there is not an easy solution to making all students respect and appreciate everyone else. HOwever, we can do everything possible to make them see the similarities and hopefully see past the differences, because al in all we are all different. We can also treat every student the same and through our actions, hopefully the students can learn to treat each other the same. I am anxious to see others ideas on this, because personally I do not have an answer to how to over come this in the classroom.

I definitely agree with Hope about making each child feel welcome and inclusive in a classroom setting. I feel as though teaching children about diversity it a very important subject. With a little effort teachers can inform their students about the different cultures and backgrounds people come from. I feel as though children often times make fun of other people because they are different merely because they do not know any better. As teachers it is our job to give them the knowledge about other cultures and allow them to understand that everyone is different.

I agree with what everyone is saying about embracing diversity in the classroom. Children are growing up in a world of diversity. The world is becoming more and more diverse everyday. It is our jobs (along with many other jobs) as teachers to make sure that students are aware of the many diversities in the classroom, the schools, and the outside world. I know that as a teacher I will have many diversity lessons incorporated into my classroom. Even if I do not have certain diversities in my classroom any particular year, I will definitely introduce them to my students anyway to broaden their horizon. I feel that students need to be aware of what is around them and if their is the off chance that there is no diversity in their second grade class then most likely they will see diversity in their other classes.

Well said, ladies. In my opinion, diversity is absolutely essential in any classroom. Whether you’re privileged enough to actually have a diverse group of students, or you’re simply furthering your childrens’ knowledge of the world around them, it’s crucial. Teaching children about the world around them and informing them about the differences among other cultures sparks interest and gives ‘different’ a positive connotation. I wish I could say the days of ridiculing those deemed ‘different’ are in the past, but that’s not the case. However, if we as future teachers do everything in our power to educate children about embracing other cultures, belief systems, lifestyles, etc. perhaps we can reduce the number of ignorant individuals in the world.

Diversity is very important. Not only do we want to educate our future students on the importance of accepting those who are different, but we, as educators, must continue to learn about other ethnicities and customs. Sometimes, I feel it is quite easy to generalize about other people, especially if they look similar to us. The thing is, we do not know where they are coming from. It is essential to make everyone feel included, I agree, but there's the rub. How in the world can one teacher make 30 different students feel welcome at every moment? I am not trying to say that it is impossible. I think what I am merely trying to get at is that it's going to be a difficult road for us, especially at first, to make all feel welcome. I really hope to never be negligent, but I honestly fear that in my first years as a teacher, I'm going to be so green that it may just happen. I do not want any student to leave my class with a bad taste, but I know that's something that will happen regardless of my efforts. It just worries me a bit.

I am taking this class right now in Block I about diversity, and the professor mentioned something really interesting to me. He said that everyone is so focused on being diverse and different that sometimes people forget that we are all humans. Diversity is great and should be celebrated, but we should definitely recognize our similarities as human beings as well. Just a thought.

I agree with everyone that diversity is an integral part of the classroom. Diversity is very prevalent in the world and the classroom, so it cannot and absolutely should not be ignored. I am taking a learner diversity class as well and I wanted to mention an idea that Dr.Bryant talked about. I know some of you already know about it, but I figured others might not of it and it's pretty cool. Dr. Bryant doesn't like the ideas of the melting pot or the salad bowl to explain diversity; he prefers using rock and roll to express it. The melting pot involves us all assimilating and becoming the same. This doesn't actually happen because none of us have the same culture. The salad bowl says that we are all different entities that combine in the same area, but have not effect on each other. This isn't true either because we all have influence on each other and are affected by different cultures. We aren't in little bubbles protected from the ideas of other people. Rock and Roll works because it has been influenced by a variety of cultures from all over the country and was originally created in the United States. Rock and roll would not have existed without country, gospel, African slave songs, blues, jazz, etc. Not only that, but there are a variety of forms that have evolved from rock and roll as well, such as grunge, punk, metal, etc. There is a great amount of diversity that creates and comes from rock and roll making our country ever-changing due to influences, but always holding on to certain roots. If anyone else has Dr. Bryant and thinks I messed up any part of this, please feel free to comment.

I think that sometimes people forget that even in a class of students from similar backgrounds, classes, or races you can find an incredibly diverse environment. People, just by being themselves, are diverse. Yes, we need to learn as much as we can about other cultures, religions, and races, but we also need to try to learn as much as we can from our seemingly "un-diverse" classes that we will have at some point in our careers. Regardless of how you see diversity, we, as future educators, do need to do our best to celebrate diversity and teach your students that diversity should be respected and embraced in any situation you encounter.

I always attended public schools that were very diverse and I enjoyed it. I feel that it is a good thing for students to be around lots of diversity. This way, children can learn from each other. And, yes it is very important to incorporate different cultures and knowledge of cultures into your classroom. I remember in my third grade class there was a girl from Japan and my class and I learned so much from her throughout the year. She taught us how to do oragami and I learned all about Japan and where she was from. I think students accept diversity better if they grow up around diversity. I cannot stress how important diversity in the classroom is. Students and teachers can learn so much from each other. And, even if there is not much diversity it is still important to incorporate diversity lessons into the curriculum.

I agree that diversity is going to be present in a classroom. As a future teacher, I am aware that I have to embrace diversity in my classroom and make sure that students understand it as well. I really like what Nicole said about diversity. Although we are all diverse, I think we also need to try to find similarities between us and help students to see similarities with others they may see as different from themselves. I think diversity in a classroom should be recognized, but I think it is also important for everyone to know that they do have similarities.

I agree with Kelsey that we need to celebrate our seemingly "un-diverse" classroom because for the most part, there will be a large majority of the same kinds of students in a classroom with the minority making up a very tiny portion. We can't forget to talk about the majority as well when learning about diverse cultures. We do need to make every child feel welcome, regardless of their cultural background.

Speaking of different cultures in the classroom, I had to do a project last week where I teach my teaching composition class a lesson in writing. While my partner and I were preparing for this lesson we realized that it was strictly geared toward white american students. So we had to think about some modifications that must be made in order to allow the other students who may be minority to feel involved. It made me realize how difficult it will be when I am teaching because being a white american I just think in that way. I will want to teach in that way too so it will take a lot of work in order to blend in other cultures while teaching in order for those other students to feel welcome and invited into the learning environment.

I believe that being around diversity is good for students. It is good for them to see how different people live and act. It is also very interesting to learn about different cultures. It would be good for a diverse student to share something about their culture with the class. Diversity will DEFINITELY be found in any classroom you enter. It is important to learn how to meet the needs of all your diverse learners so no one is left out.