Alysa V

In our classrooms, we are starting to see more and more multicultural students. I teach in a school that is very diverse and I love it. It is important for us to make sure that students are interacting with each other and the instruction in the best ways possible. However, sometimes our students experience completely different environments at school than they do at home (Mackay, H. & Strickland, M. J., 2018, 1). In my classroom, for the first two weeks of school, I have had my students participating in some Social Emotional Learning (SEL). I pose questions that get them to write about themselves, their lives, family, goals, etc. I then have them share with a partner that is near them of my choice. This has allowed the students to share about themselves to others that they may not have shared with. I have noticed how in just the first few weeks of schools my students have already made new connections and are willing to work with anyone in the classroom.  

In the article used for this discussion post, I have started to use one of the activities. As I stated above, I have had them write a lot about themselves and their lives, which could be a part of the “Knowing the Classroom Community activity” (Blue, C., Muninga, D., Clark, A., DeLuca, V. W., & Kelly, D., 2018, 28). This has helped the students be confident in sharing about themselves and also allow the students to learn more about other types of people that make up our classroom community. As for grouping, I do allow them to pick partners sometimes, but I like to pick their partners and small groups. I like to do this because it allows them to engage with different students and it teaches them how to problem-solve with different types of people (Blue, C., Muninga, D., Clark, A., DeLuca, V. W., & Kelly, D., 2018, 29). Overall, by simply allowing students to talk about themselves and putting them in strategic, diverse groups, the students are already learning valuable lessons and life skills. 

Amy M

 Blue et al. (2018) give five guidelines for addressing student interaction in the classroom. The first three really struck a chord with me, as they focus on avoiding assumptions and allowing students to self-identify. This is something that I believe in for my classroom. I live in an area that is sustained by farming, and as such we have many migrant workers and their families in the area. While some of my Hispanic students are very proud and vocal about their background, I have learned that it is very important to recognize that not all Hispanic students in my classroom want to identify as part of that group. As you can see from my last statement, I struggle somewhat with the fourth guideline of being specific. While I have had one or two students over the years refer to themselves specifically as “Mexican,” if a student does not specify to me what particular country they come from, I certainly do not want to make an assumptions and I have relied more on a general term. I do focus on giving students the opportunities to talk about their backgrounds and their cultures, as we live in a minimally diverse area (over 90% of students in my school identify as white) and I think it is important for all of my students to be exposed to and learn about other cultures in any opportunity they have. I certainly will embrace any teachable moments that come up when my students are talking with each other regarding culture or diversity. I join the conversation and guide students towards being open and respectful in learning about each other’s backgrounds.

            I can’t honestly say that I have ever considered cultural diversity when putting together activities or groupings in my high school mathematics classroom. I really like the “Knowing the Classroom Community” (Blue et al., 2018, p. 28) with using post-it notes for students to describe their backgrounds, hobbies and interests, then hanging those post-it notes around the classroom. I have done something similar in the past where ever student brings in 3-5 photos of themselves and their interests and I feel this goes a long way towards making the students feel welcome in the classroom and like a piece of it belongs to them. As we start school again in two and a half weeks this article was an excellent reminder of the importance of a small activity like this to help students feel welcome, learn a bit about each other, and start the conversation about similarities and differences between learners. I especially think it is useful this year as we return to a full classroom full of diverse learners for the first time in 18 months. Many of my students have not been exposed to anyone outside of their immediate circle of family or friends in over a year and half and the post-it note idea is such an excellent way to start breaking down any walls that have been put up.

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