Introduction

Welcome to Teaching Diversity: Influences & Issues in the Classroom, an interactive computer-based instruction course, designed to give you the knowledge and tools to effectively facilitate a diverse classroom. This course will help you understand and identify differences in approaches to learning and performance, including different learning styles and ways in which students demonstrate learning. This course will emphasize understanding how students’ learning is influenced by individual experiences, talents, disabilities, gender, language, culture, family, and community values. You will be challenged to apply knowledge of the richness of contributions from our diverse society to your teaching field.

This computer-based instruction course is a self-supporting program that provides instruction, structured practice, and evaluation all on your home or school computer. Technical support information can be found, in the Help section of your course.

Course Materials

Title: Teaching Diversity: Influences & Issues in the Classroom (software package)

Author: Karen A. Lea, Ph.D.

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Academic Integrity Statement

The structure and format of most distance-learning courses presume a high level of personal and academic integrity in completion and submission of coursework. Individuals enrolled in a CBI distance-learning course are expected to adhere to the following standards of academic conduct.

Academic Work

Academic work submitted by the individual (such as papers, assignments, reports, tests) shall be the student’s own work or appropriately attributed, in part or in whole, to its correct source. Submission of commercially prepared (or group prepared) materials as if they are one’s own work is unacceptable.

Aiding Honesty in Others

The individual will encourage honesty in others by refraining from providing materials or information to another person with knowledge that these materials or information will be used improperly.

Violations of these academic standards will result in the assignment of a failing grade and subsequent loss of credit for the course.

Level of Application

This course is designed to be an informational course with application to educational settings. The strategies were designed to be used to aid in teaching students in a diverse classroom ranging from K-12. The strategies are general in nature, are not intended to be prescriptive, and are not intended to be used as a formula. As is true of all information, the information covered in this course should not be used to stereotype any students based on cultural or ethnic differences.

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Course Objectives:

· Demonstrate knowledge of how students’ learning is influenced by individual experiences, language, poverty, culture, and gender.

· Use information about students’ families, culture, and communities as a basis for connecting instruction to students’ experiences.

· Use cultural diversity and individual student experiences to enrich instruction.

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Course Description

This course is designed to help classroom teachers, school counselors, and other educational personnel gain strategies to understand how our diverse society influences student learning in the classroom. Participants will explore issues of culture, gender, and individuals with exceptionalities, and how these affect a student’s learning and behavior in the classroom.

The course is divided into four chapters. At the completion of each chapter, there will be an examination covering the material. Students must complete the examination before proceeding to the next chapter. This sequential approach to learning will help all participants to gain a better understanding of what they have learned as they proceed through the course.

Although this course is a presentation of societal issues and how these affect the classroom, there is certainly a wealth of research and topics that are not covered in the scope of this course. The instructor highly recommends that you augment your readings from this course with further research to gain a fuller understanding of the complexities of this subject. In addition to what is required in this course and your individual research, the instructor recommends that you read the following books.

· Darling-Hammond, L., French, J., & Garcia-Lopea, S. P. (2002). Learning to teach for social justice. New York: Teachers College Press. (May be purchased at many bookstores or online)

Delpit, L. (1995). Other people’s children: Cultural conflict in the classroom. New York: The New Press.
Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, & practice. New York: Teachers College Press.
Kellough, R. D., & Kelough, N. G. (2007). Secondary school teaching: A guide to methods and resources. Columbus: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.
Knight, J. T. (2003). Teaching tools for the twenty-first century: How to achieve and maintain teaching success. Orlando: Rivercross Publishing.

Nieto, S. (1999). The light in their eyes: Creating multicultural learning communities. New York: Teachers College Press
Obidah, J. E., & Teel, K. M. (2001). Because of the kids: Facing racial and cultural differences in schools. New York: Teachers College Press.
Orlich, D. C., Harder, R. J., Callahan, R. C., Trevisan, M. S., & Brown, A. H. (2007). Teaching strategies: A guide to effective instruction. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Payne, R. K. (2005). A framework for understanding poverty. Highlands, TX: Aha Process, Inc.

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Student Expectations

As a student you will be expected to:

· Complete all four information chapters covering Teaching Diversity: Influences and Issues in the Classroom, showing a competent understanding of the material presented.

· Complete all chapter examinations, showing a competent understanding of the material presented.

· Complete a review of any chapter on which your examination score was below 70%.

· Retake any chapter examination, after completing an information review, to increase that examination score to a minimum of 70% (maximum of three attempts).

· Complete a course evaluation form at the end of the course.

Course Overview

Chapter 1: Living and Teaching in an Ethnically Diverse Society – This chapter will explore how our society has changed, the diversity of our society as a whole, and the community in which the participant lives and works.

Chapter 2: Learning Styles, Preferences, Modalities and Culture – This chapter will explore learning styles and how these influence student learning. Participants will determine their own learning/teaching style and apply this knowledge in adapting instruction for all student learning styles, especially for students of diverse cultures.

Chapter 3: Poverty – This chapter will explore poverty issues in our society and how they affect the students in your classroom. Participants will be challenged to honestly evaluate their own attitudes and teaching, and to change those if needed in order to teach so that all students succeed in their classrooms.

Chapter 4: Classroom Management – The chapter will include teaching and classroom management strategies to be used in conjunction with the knowledge of all the chapters of this course.

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Examinations

At the end of each chapter, you will be expected to complete an examination designed to assess your knowledge. You may take these exams a total of three times. Your last score will save, not the highest score. After your third attempt, each examination will lock and not allow further access. Your final grade for the course will be determined by calculating an average score of all exams. This score will be printed on your final certificate. As this is a self-paced computerized instruction program, you may review course information as often as necessary. You will not be able to exit any examinations until you have answered all questions. If you try to exit the exam before you complete all questions, your information will be lost. You are expected to complete the entire exam in one sitting.

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Instructor Description

Karen Lea has over 12 years of experience teaching in culturally diverse settings in classrooms that reflect every area of diversity. She has experience as a high school private math/computer instructor, a high school inner-city math instructor, a junior high inner-city math/science instructor and a college instructor. Currently, Karen is a professor at Trevecca Nazarene University.

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Contacting the Instructor

You may contact the instructor by emailing karen_lea@virtualeduc.com or by calling (800) 313-6744, Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PST. Phone messages will be answered within 24 hours. Phone conferences will be limited to ten minutes per student, per day, given that this is a self-paced instructional program. Please do not contact the instructor about technical problems, course glitches, or other issues that involve the operation of the course.

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Technical Questions

If you have questions or problems related to the operation of this course, please try everything twice. If the problem persists please check our support pages for FAQs and known issues at www.virtualeduc.com and also the Help section of your course.

If you need personal assistance then email support@virtualeduc.com or call (509) 891-7219. When contacting technical support, please know your course version number (it is located at the bottom left side of the Welcome Screen) and your operating system, and be seated in front of the computer at the time of your call.

Minimum Computer Requirements

Please refer to VESi’s website: www.virtualeduc.com or contact VESi if you have further questions about the compatibility of your operating system.

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Refer to the addendum regarding Grading Criteria, Course Completion Information, Items to be Submitted, and how to submit your completed information.

Bibliography

Banks, J. A. (2006). Cultural diversity and education: Foundations, curriculum, and teaching. Boston: Pearson, Allyn and Bacon.

Banks, J. A. (Ed.). (1996). Multicultural education transformative knowledge & action: Historical and contemporary perspectives. New York: Teachers College Press.

Banks, J. A. (1999). An introduction to multicultural education. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Cipani, E. (2004). Classroom management for all teachers: 12 plans for evidence-based practice. Columbus: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.

Contreras, A. (2006). Impact of Brown on multicultural education of Hispanic Americans. Educational Administration Abstracts, 41(1), 395.

Darling-Hammond, L., French, J., & Garcia-Lopez, S .P. (2002). Learning to teach for social justice. New York: Teachers College Press.

Delpit, L. (1995). Other people’s children: Cultural conflict in the classroom. New York: The New Press.

Evertson, C. M., Emmer, E. T. & Worsham, M. E. (2006).Classroom management for elementary teachers. Columbus: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.

Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, & practice. New York: Teachers College Press.

Hawkins, J. (2006). Accessing multicultural issues through critical thinking, critical inquiry, and the student research process. Urban Education, 41(2), 169-191.

Kellough, R. D., & Kelough, N. G. (2007). Secondary school teaching: A guide to methods and resources. Columbus: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.

Knight, J. T. (2003). Teaching tools for the twenty-first century: How to achieve and maintain teaching success. Orlando: Rivercross Publishing.

Koppelman, K. L., & Goodhart, R. L. (2005). Understanding human differences: Multicultural education for a diverse America. Boston: Pearson, Allyn and Bacon.

Landau, B. M. (2004). The art of classroom management: Building equitable learning communities. Columbus: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.

Louie, B. Y. (2006). Guiding principles for teaching multicultural literature. The Reading Teacher, 59(5), 438-460.

Nieto, S. (1999). The light in their eyes: Creating multicultural learning communities. New York: Teachers College Press.

Orlich, D. C., Harder, R. J., Callahan, R. C., Trevisan, M. S., & Brown, A. H. (2007). Teaching strategies: A guide to effective instruction. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Payne, R. K. (2005). A framework for understanding poverty. Highlands, TX: Aha Process, Inc.

Payne, R. K., Devol, P., & Smith, T. D. (2001). Bridges out of poverty: Strategies for professionals and communities. Highlands, TX: Aha Process. Inc.

Prothereo, N. (2006). Cultural diversity and the school-family connection. Principal, 85(4), 52-55.

Redman, G. L. (1999). A casebook for exploring diversity in K-12 classrooms. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.

Sheets, R. H. (2005). Diversity pedagogy: Examining the role of culture in the teaching-learning process. Boston: Pearson, Allyn and Bacon.

Silver, H. F., Strong, R. W., & Perini, M. J. (2000). So each may learn: Integrating learning styles and multiple intelligences. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Slocumb, P.D., & Payne, R. K. (2000). Removing the mask: Giftedness in poverty. Highlands, TX: Aha Process, Inc.

Tiedt, P. L., & Tiedt, I. M. (2005). Multicultural teaching: A handbook of activities, information, and resources. Boston: Pearson, Allyn and Bacon.

Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Trumbull, E., Rothstein-Fisch, C., Greenfield, P. M., & Quiroz, B. (2001). Bridging cultures between home and school: A guide for teachers. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.

Wardle, F., & Cruz-Janzan, M. I. (2004). Meeting the needs of multiethnic and multiracial children in schools. Boston: Pearson, Allyn and Bacon.

Updated 3/4/10 JN