Student populations are becoming more diverse and schools need to begin to foster an educational environment that is culturally aware enough to include all ethnic backgrounds in the classroom. Becoming more cognizant of the many cultures and ethnic groups that make up the student body will not only encourage children to seek out and learn about people and places that are foreign to them, but create an inviting and inclusive learning experience in which every child may participate to the best of his or her ability. This includes maintaining a focus on parental engagement as well, schools can go one step further in their effort towards culturally responsive teaching by developing a method for parental involvement, particularly with children who hail from families that are underserved in the community. Studies have shown that a growing percentage of Hispanic students are part of families where the parents completed only a portion of their own education. In addition, many Hispanic parents have a difficulty with access to teachers due to cultural and language difficulties that may exist. Some of them may also be wary of initiating or continuing any contact with the school due to their legal status.

Cultural awareness isn’t only about tolerance of other cultures in the classroom it also requires a knowledge of the specific backgrounds and barriers of the families of minority students. Hispanic parents decline to keep communication with teachers and school staffs for a variety of reasons and teachers should be trained in how to properly navigate these issues. A number of these families don’t feel welcome at the school, they are uncomfortable in social interactions with teachers, or believe that the school does not hold the same values as they do for the well being of their child. There’s a perception among some families that the school treats their children differently than others because they come from low-income backgrounds or live in public housing. Proper cultural awareness requires that teachers are equipped to navigate these matters successfully in order to steer the children towards positive and meaningful academic outcomes. The value of training teachers in cultural awareness is found in the effect it can have on the student body from all walks of life.

Many schools and programs offer bilingual support from teachers who have learned the language of the majority of English Language Learners in the classroom and they make a concerted effort to engage with the parents of these children in their native tongue. It’s a way to acknowledge the sensitivity of the family while also attempting to bring them into the learning process of the student in order for that child to achieve his or her goals in class.

The Latino Family Literacy Project can help your school with being more culturally aware. This award-winning program has years of experience working with teachers and culturally diverse students and parents. If you’re interested in finding more information about this program schedule a training meeting. They offer both online webinar training and in person workshops.

If you’re interested in the latest information regarding culturally aware classrooms visit our Facebook and Twitter. We look forward to hearing from you.

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The Latino Family Literacy Project helps parents to establish a family reading routine, and to build strong Spanish and English skills.

An anti-bias preschool curriculum is one that seeks to acknowledge and challenge prejudices in education and works to remove them from the teaching and learning environment. Schools using an anti-bias curriculum are acknowledging that many Western societies, though growingly diverse, continue to function with inherent inequity and racial cultural bias, and that this naturally carries over into education, which is intrinsically a sociocultural institution. Louise Derman-Sparks and Julie Olsen Edwards, authors of Anti-bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves, write that “Inequity of resources in society, and the biases we use to justify that inequity, have an enormous impact on children’s lives. The dynamics of advantage and disadvantage, deeply rooted in our history, continue to shape the degree of access children have to education, medical care, security . . .”

Their work, at the forefront of anti-bias education, seeks to reduce cultural bias and misinformation in classrooms and to help children and the adults who work with them in schools to respect each other and to respect people in general.

Anti-bias education encourages educators to examine their own biases and cultural identities so that they may have strong self-awareness and also be aware of negative messages they may inadvertently be sending to students. This process allows teachers and other staff to model having a positive cultural self-image for students and encourages adults to begin to counteract their own biases in the classroom. Children can notice differences between people early on and will notice how adults treat others, so actively teaching them to respect all people is a powerful and important choice. One of the central ways that teachers put anti-bias curriculum to work in early childhood education settings is by exploring and honoring each person’s identity and fostering acceptance of diversity in the classroom and community.

Ellen Wolpert, long term preschool director and author of Redefining the Norm: Early Childhood Anti-Bias Strategies, shares this description of the anti-bias curriculum at work with young children:

“Children make comparisons among themselves, looking at the ways they are both similar and different. They learn that different is OK. This creates the foundation for respecting and valuing differences beyond their own families and communities.”

Children who share stereotypes and biases can be engaged in conversation about the bias and presented with visual and narrative examples that contradict the bias. The site, Teaching for Change, which focuses on social justice in education, shares a wealth of anti-bias articles with activity recommendations and professional development activities covering identity development, anti-bias curriculum, language development, and family resources.

The focus in an anti-bias program is on encouraging everyone in the educational community, young and old, to learn about and explore cultural identities and to get to know one another and the world around them with an open mind. Dr. Francis Aboud, who studied prejudice amongst youth, found that “after age 9, racial attitudes tend to stay constant unless the child experiences a life-changing event.” This trend underscores the importance of the implementation of preschool anti-bias curriculum and the promotion of tolerance.

Lectura Books is one of the leading publishers of multicultural and bilingual books, focusing on publishing for Parent Involvement with Latino parents and kids.

The post How an Anti-bias Curriculum Benefits the School Community appeared first on The Latino Family Literacy Project.

Culture, in its broadest sense, is “the way of life” for a group of people, comprised of beliefs, values, symbols, attitudes, language, experiences, and religion. It can greatly shape a person’s sense of identity, how they fit into society, and characterize their behavior and personality. In a classroom setting, where students come from many different backgrounds, cultures can collide. In such an instance, it is especially important for educators to recognize these differences and how to assess the challenges that come with it. Being culturally competent and practicing culturally responsive methods can help educators to better listen, understand, and communicate effectively with their students, leading to an overall enriching and nourishing educational environment.

To read more about cultural competence, visit our blog, or plan on attending a workshop to understand in more detail why bilingual parent programs are beneficial to both parents and children as Hispanic parents move through the acculturation process of learning to live in a new culture, with family changes and new language development.

The Latino Family Literacy Project are experts at providing bilingual and meaningful parent involvement programs so that parents learn a new role for working with academics with their children.

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