ECE 405 Entire Course Children and
Families in a Diverse Society
ECE 405 Entire Course Children and
Families in a Diverse Society
Commonly Held Beliefs and Bias.
Review the questions, links and
accompanying videos for the Commonly Held Beliefs that Influence Teachers’
Work with Diverse Students at http://www.tolerance.org/tdsi/cb_intro. Which
of the 13 misconceptions stand out for you as being particularly important for
you to recognize and avoid as an early childhood educator? How can we become
more aware of our own hidden biases and cultural assumptions when it comes to
educating children of different backgrounds? Respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
Children and Prejudice.
In Vivian Gussin Paley’s book, “You
Can’t Say, You Can’t Play”, a hierarchy of “bosses” and “outcasts” emerges
year after year in her classroom. What, in your experience with children,
determines this hierarchy and how much of it is due to the development of
pre-prejudicial behavior in children? Provide examples and then consider why it
is important to address this behavior earlier rather than later. Would Vivian
Gussin’s Paley’s rule have worked in the example you provide? Why or why not?
Respond to at least two of your classmates’ postings.
Race: Illusion vs. Reality.
Review the seven “propositions”
including the accompanying videos on “Understanding the Influence of Race”
(http://www.tolerance.org/tdsi/uir_intro). From these links and videos, you
will learn that much of what we hold to be true about race is a social
construction, which has little connection to human biology. Unfortunately this
means children of different races may face stereotypes based on the way they
look or speak. As an early childhood educator, you will be in a unique position
to make an impact on children of all racial backgrounds. Refer to the
information provided in the links as you consider the scenario below:
§ How would you address a child who
seems to exhibit prejudice against children of other races?
Respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
Cultural Differences.
On page 64, your text offers a list
of 13 childrearing patterns that differ between cultures. These can create
challenges for educators when family structures and norms conflict with the
assumed norms of the school. In the US, these are most often based on white,
middle-class cultural assumptions. Provide an example from your own life or one
in the media where these values have led to conflict or misunderstandings
between the school and family. How might the educator or school have responded
in a more culturally sensitive manner? Respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
Exposure to Stereotypes.
Children are bombarded by racial,
cultural and gender stereotypes both within and outside the classroom. Consider
the movies, television series and products (including toys and videogames),
which are marketed to young children. Submit a 2-3 page paper (not including
title and reference page) arguing why you believe the movie, television series
or product chosen taints children’s understanding of race, culture, gender, and
the message being conveyed. Include the following in your argument:
a. Critique one example from these
categories, which you find to particularly problematic in perpetuating
stereotypes.
b. Assess the potential impacts of
these messages on children of diverse backgrounds in the early childhood
classroom (think especially about the hierarchy described in Vivian Gussin
Paley’s book? Are they, in any way to blame for who is seen to be among the
“bosses” and the “rejected”?)
c. Describe how the problem of
stereotypes extends to commercial teaching material.
d. Recommend strategies to
counteract the stereotypes children are exposed to outside the classroom as an
early childhood educator? (Hint: You may want to skim through the culturally
relevant and unbiased activities in Chapter 9 for inspiration).
At a minimum, use one external
source, in addition to the course text. Remember to cite all references using
APA style.
Second Language Learners.
Imagine that you teach in a school
where the majority of the student population is English speaking, and there is
a growing a number of English language learners. You are assigned to a
first-grade classroom where 60% of children speak English only and the other
40% speak mostly Spanish with varying levels of English. How will you approach
and organize this classroom? What challenges do English language learners face?
What challenges will you face? How will foster a positive, collaborative
classroom community despite a language barrier? Respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
The Role of Families and Communities
in Culturally Relevant Anti-Bias Education.
Often school attempts to connect
with families fail. One reason is that schools assume the role of “educator”
and expect families to go out of their way to learn how they can help modify
family patterns to best suit the school environment. However, a more effective
way to connect to families is for teachers to go out into the communities they
serve and “learn” more about those communities. Based on this idea, describe
two-to-three specific ways you can become more educated and knowledgeable of
the families you will be serving locally and identify resources you might like
to explore. Then, explain what you believe the role family and community should
play in helping teachers deliver culturally relevant anti-bias curriculum. Is
it that of learner, educator or both? Respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
The IRIS Center Module.
The IRIS Center is a national center
that aims to provide high quality resources and training for educators. Go to
http://www.iriscenter.com/clde/chalcycle.htm. Begin by selecting the Challenge
balloon. Listen to the Case study. Then select the Initial Thoughts balloon.
Focus on the question regarding the level of involvement of Maria’s parents.
Continue on to the Perspectives and Resources balloon (focusing on Page 3) and
finally go to the Assessment balloon. After completing the module, submit a 2-3
page paper (not including the title and reference page) which addresses the
cultural differences that exist between Maria, Mr. Bennett and the school.
Using at least one external resource to help you better understand Maria’s
culture:
§ Analyze how Maria’s bilingualism
is being addressed by the school and Mr. Bennett and any cultural or linguistic
considerations which seem to have been largely ignored.
§ Suggest possible reasons for
Maria’s behavior in the classroom, tardiness for school and Maria’s parents’
perceived lack of involvement in her education.
§ Assess what this scenario tells us
about the concept of multicultural education and how race and gender come into
play.
§ Recommend strategies which you, as
her teacher, would use to better equip Maria for academic success.
At a minimum, use one external
source, in addition to the course text. Remember to cite all references using
APA style.
Classroom Environments and Learning.
Both your reading in Roots and
Wings and the lessons from Vivian Gussin Paley’s book demonstrate that
classroom environments give children and parents strong messages in the way
they are set up and decorated. Identify and describe at least two ways you can
structure and design the classroom environment to enhance anti-bias education
and culturally relevant learning. Provide specific examples and respond to at
least two of your classmates’ postings.
Multicultural Literature.
There are many different kinds of
multicultural children’s books. Choose one book from the titles presented in
your text. Read the book and provide a brief summary of the story. Describe how
the book fosters one of the curriculum goals listed on page 162 in your text.
Be specific and give examples related to the text to support your thinking. Respond
to at least two of your classmates’ postings.
PowerPoint Presentation.
You will create an 8-10 slide (not
including the title and reference slide) presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint.
The presentation should provide an overview of the arguments, ideas, facts, and
information students will be applying to their final paper. The information
should be presented in a visually compelling manner and discuss how the
information provided can be applied to the design and development of
multicultural, anti-bias curriculum as future early childhood educators. Please
be aware that this presentation should not simply be cut and paste from the
actual paper and should be tailored to share what you learned about the group
you are studying. The presentation should:
a. Describe the background and
history on the culture chosen.
b. Recommend how to best provide a
multicultural and anti-bias curriculum for that background throughout the
curriculum.
c. Explain the activities you have
recommended to educate other children about this background in your Summative
Assessment and your suggestions for providing a more culturally inclusive and
sensitive environment.
d. Provide specific recommendations
for ESL learners and give an application of any lessons which can be drawn from
Vivian Gussin Paley’s book.
Font should generally be 24-point
and in an easy to read style. Points should be written in clear, concise, and
contain complete sentences. Please note that the presentation should not simply
be cut and paste from your paper. Instead, it should be a visually interesting
overview of the main ideas covered in the paper. Support claims and recommended
activities and curriculum suggestions with facts and research throughout.
Provide sources for any information, graphs, or pictures that are not your own.
Graphics and sound can be effective, but strive to include only those which
help you make your point without allowing them to become overly distracting.
Submit your completed presentation to Waypoint.
At a minimum, use one external source,
in addition to the course text. Remember to cite all references using APA
style.
Evaluative Multiculturalism in the
Classroom.
Teachers can be genuine in their
efforts to deliver a culturally-relevant and anti-bias curriculum, but still
fail to produce a classroom where children are fully inclusive of others and
prejudice-free. What criteria will be most important to you as you evaluate
your literature selections and activities in the classroom for multicultural
and anti-bias? What behaviors will you be looking for in your students that
indicate your program has been successful? How will your activities and
application of multicultural methods help to teach children to be more
inclusive? Discuss specific criteria and appropriate strategies and techniques
that you will use in your own classroom. Respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
Focus of the Final Paper:
This paper should be a combination
of philosophies, theories, and concepts learned and how they apply to the early
childhood classroom. The primary focus will be on the comprehensiveness of
understanding the many components that are necessary for the preschool
classroom.
In a 4-6 page paper (not including
the title and reference page) respond to the following situation:
You have just been hired to teach
pre-school children at an international school. You will be teaching a diverse
class of 3-5 year olds. Some will stem from white backgrounds, but more than
half the class will come from diverse backgrounds which includes Middle Eastern,
Asian, African, Hispanic, Native American, and European descent. Some families
will be recent immigrants who do not yet speak English, while others will come
from backgrounds who have been in the U.S. for generations.
The Director has asked teachers to
become experts on one diverse background or “culture” which they know the least
about. Choose one of these diverse backgrounds listed above, research the
history and culture of that group, and in your paper:
1. Assess the usefulness of the term
you’ve chosen, such as “Hispanic” or “Middle Eastern” as a category and how
race or gender issues factor into the description and consider how this “group”
might be misrepresented, misunderstood, or ignored in U.S. early childhood
programs.
2. Propose ways that staff can
engage with the children and their families and demonstrate an appreciation of
their background while also respecting each student as a unique individual.
3. Design at least 2 activities,
which will educate other children about students from this background and then
tie this to lessons garnered from Vivian Gussin Paley’s book.
4. Identify 3 or more ways that this
culture should be addressed throughout the standard curriculum including
specific recommendations for ESL learners. Be sure to provide a list of at
least 3 recommended resources, which you believe the school should utilize.
At a minimum, use two external
sources, in addition to the course text. Remember to cite all references using
APA style.
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