[MUSIC] You're welcome to lecture four, which looks at the multicultural classroom.

Multiculturalism refers to the "sharing and celebration of many cultures." Each person is a part of at least one culture. Some families participate in several cultures. So, the first goal of the teacher in a classroom, in terms of a multicultural classroom environment, is to assist children with recognising differences, as well as similarities, among all people. Allowing children to explore varying cultures creates opportunities for them to see that even when people have different customs and traditions, they often share some common traits, too. The second goal is to encourage cooperative social skills. As children learn to accept differences and similarities among people, they can work and get along with others better. They feel good about themselves as other children recognise the worth of their traditions and customs. We need to learn about the traditions of each child in a classroom as teachers. You need to learn and understand the traditions of each child in your classroom. Questions such as, "What do children do when they are not in school?" should be of concern to you. Similarly, you need to consider questions like: what holidays do children celebrate? What beliefs and values explain their traditions? How do children celebrate birthdays? Do they even celebrate birthdays in some cultures? What is the nature of the family of the child, or the children you teach? What are parental expectations of children? What are their favorite foods and family traditions? These are some questions which you need to be thinking about in creating multicultural classrooms. You also need to

help the learner to suspend judgment. You need to help them to develop the habit of comparing, contrasting, and learning about other cultures without making judgments about them. This will require an attitude of acceptance and respect of other cultures. As teachers lead children to respect others who are different, they will begin to appreciate individuality. And as children grow and mature with these attitudes, they will have social skills that not only accept, but also applaud individuality. Think about a child coming to a new school, the issues that would be going around in the mind of this child: "I am new to the school. I don't know anybody. I wonder what they will think of me." What can you do as a teacher to help this child think of the classroom as an inviting classroom, where his or her culture does not make him different? To achieve this, there is the need for planning. Planning becomes a critical ingredient for the teacher's success in creating a culturally diverse classroom. To do this it requires careful consideration of children's cultures and traditions, and necessitates planning to help other children experience them in learning centers and activities. Planning becomes critical. You need to address issues of racism as well. Racism within the context of personal and interpersonal relationships. Racism in terms of cultural differences. And racism within the context of institutional handling of different types of children. An anti-racism approach is critical to the creation of a multicultural classroom. And anti-racism includes beliefs, actions, movements, and policies adopted or developed to oppose racism. Strategies to promote a society in which people do not face discrimination on the basis of their race.

When a teacher adopts an anti-racist approach, it promotes, or he or she promotes the view that racism is pernicious and pervasive, and that can only be eliminated by changes in political, economic, social, and educational life. As a teacher, you need to create an anti-racist environment in a classroom. You need to consider questions such as: who are the students you are most likely to punish in a classroom? Who receives your praise and how often? Does he or she receive the praise? Who do you provide with positive reinforcement? Do you have high expectations for all of your students? How do you express these as their teacher? Do you explicitly address racism and anti-racism with your class, as a teacher? And lastly, how do you monitor and sanction the use of unacceptable language? Think about these questions, as well: what does multiculturalism mean to me as a teacher? What do I understand by racism and how is it expressed, in my work as a teacher? What are my responses to racist language and attitudes? These are questions that can help you promote a multicultural classroom. [MUSIC]