Shannan Johnson

Teacher Academy

Mrs. Shank

March 3rd, 2021

Section 2.4- Culture

3.7.7 Determine personal contributions to working with culturally diverse communities

According to a TedTalk by Gustavo Grodnitzky, Culture trumps everything else. Culture

refers to the environment, people, and everything else that influences you. Culture trumps

behavior and biology, meaning that if you change a students culture (environment) then their

behavior will change. This means that within a classroom, it is the teachers job to create an

environment that is conducive to desired behavior and learning. An effective way to create a

comfortable environment is to separate one’s own bias and culture that way it can be a place of

neutrality and conversation.

To separate one’s culture, a teacher must identify their own culture. For myself, I grew up

in a predominantly white, suburban, middle class area. I grew up in a district where most

students go to college after high school, and a district that has a low dropout rate. I was raised

with the financial privilege of my parents and I’ve never struggled with receiving basic human

needs like food, water, shelter (evidence 2.4.1). Growing up I had the privilege of bonding over

food, travel, without major financial or basic concerns.

With my personal perspective and past in mind, it is important to note that my future

students may have far more cultural, basic needs, and privilege problems. This means that

students I am teaching could be facing way bigger challenges than what I have ever faced. It is

my job to focus not just on what I observe but take a look under the iceberg.. I believe that to be
a successful teacher you need to fully understand your students. Understanding your students is

not just evaluating the tip of the iceberg but choosing to have conversations to see what is

underneath. True understanding is having compassion, the openness to speak with each student,

and the willingness to see their struggles. To get to understanding, a teacher must educate

themselves on their students and their culture, fully immersing themselves in the child’s culture.

This means learning about the mindset that was taught to them, the food they eat, the importance

of education to them, their current schema from when they first enter the classroom, listening to

each opinion, and learn about their home life with their friends and family.

I have family who have lived and still live in poverty, however I have never lived in

poverty. I haven’t ever become remotely close to live in poverty. I was born into a financially

privileged direct family. I have lived in middle class, safe neighborhoods my whole life. I’ve

never had to worry about anything having to do with money, this includes the activities I could

do, the food I eat, and the clothes I wear. These worries I’ve never had to face are the worries

that children in poverty have to face everyday. I would be teaching children who are facing

challenges I have never faced. The ultimate challenge this presents to me is how can I relate?

How can I understand? How can I maximize their learning by better understanding my students?

The answer to these questions is to immerse myself in their environment, culture, and differences

in the community that I have never experienced before. When a teacher is able to understand

each student's culture and struggles, then you can use that knowledge to cater to the students

needs and the efficient way to teach them as an individual. By observing an extremely diverse

and struggling class I saw how different cultures see and respect (or disrespect) teachers and how

to work with troubling parents and students (evidence 2.4.2) and students struggling with poverty

(evidence 2.4.3).
 To ensure students feel comfortable to open up with me, I will create a welcoming

environment and with a warming, helpful atmosphere. That way, no matter what is happening at

home, they know they can talk to me. I will always keep snacks in my room, so no kid has to feel

hungry in class. Teaching wise, I will give each of my students a personal and private journal and

encourage them to write, even if they don’t want to share. That way, if they feel like they can’t

confide in me, they can confide in paper. I will not be harsh when it comes to assignments and

grades, I will give exceptions as they might have a lot more going on than having to worry about

school. I will offer tutoring and extra help for students who need it, catering assignments using

differentiated instruction for each learning style. I will also create and provide assignments that

promote acceptance of diversity (evidence 2.4.4). I will offer office hours, contacts, and free time

to make myself available to each student while encouraging them to seek out professional help

when needed.

I also believe that I should teach students for the future. I will teach them social skills and

cues they might need in the future to begin the daunting task of escaping poverty. The hidden

cues that society uses such as the proper language they should use in interviews to help secure a

career that will ensure more financial stability. I want to not just help my students in the present,

I want to help set them up for the future. For all students I think that accommodation is the best

way to teach children from all different cultures, keeping in mind the different backgrounds and

differences.