"Multi-Cultural" Views

Everyone has their "culture" and has their own point of views about other cultures. America and its schools have become so diverse with different cultures, beliefs, and etc. The issue is that many people are not wanting to take the time to learn about other cultures and respect them. Many people are afraid of the "unknown" and that puts fear into them that leads to wide, confused, and closed minded views of other cultures. But there are also the people that believe their culture is superior to others and this too creates the clash of cultures in America.

I am aware that America is the LAND OF THE FREE and our Constitution allows us the freedom of speech and to choose whatever we would like to believe. But what happened to equality and respect. It all goes back to why can't we just get along. Or what about "you don't have to like me but you should respect me". It is scary to think that America and its schools can not unite and celebrate all cultures.Or is that asking for too much? Should schools just learn to respect other cultures but not even think about embracing them? Or are we embracing on culture more than the other?

I don't know if there is one correct answer because everyone is going to have their point of view. Therefore, as educators we should find a balance in the classroom and learn about all cultures and compare and contrast them to our own. This allows students to embrace their culture and view similarities in others. Also in history an educator can balance different views of a certian era like the Civil War by discussing all the views of each culture it affected.

In my second year of teaching I have really noticed the students value their culture to the highest point and do embrace somewhta of other students' culture. There are still a lot of misconceptions and stereotypes, but that is where I fall under to ensure that stops or never begins. In a diverse school where about half of the school is ELL or have been an ELL student it is very important to expose the students other cultures.

I believe that the more you know about a person's culture you learn to respect them more, and find similarities in each others' cultures. In the end we are all human beings and that alone is one similarity like it or not that we all have.

Grammar

As an educator I have never thought about what Standard English really means. I had always been under the impression that it was what the majority of society was using when they spoke English. It is what society has chosen as certain linguistic rules that many different groups of people define themselves. Many linguistic specialists do not have a set definition due to different social classes and views on the English language. Therefore, I believe it’s not so much important the definition of Standard English but the how it is used and taught.

Many people believe that it all depends on where and what kind of social class one belongs to, or the one chooses to associate themselves with that defines their Standard English. Grammar on the other hand is viewed as essential to the human mind. It doesn’t separate social classes. It is more of an assessment to communicate with the rest of the world in a correct and common way.

I personally believe that Grammar is a center piece of every ESL/ELL teacher’s classroom. As educators we are constantly taking vital steps in helping the ELL student to become a fluent speaker of the English language. A lot of the steps include teaching the Grammar that the state or school system has chosen as part of the curriculum. I believe in preparing the students in speaking, writing, and reading grammar the correct way prepares them for usage in the future. Of course it is up to the educator to decide how an ELL student needs to be taught grammar.

One of the first things I do is have the student tested to see what level of English proficiency they are on, and then build my lessons around that information. I usually don’t grade on correct grammar usage as long as they are in the beginning levels of English proficiency. Modeling and full immersion is a method that I have used and seen progress with some students. The interactions between the teacher and students really expose the ELL student to the correct grammar usage because they must work to make their words comprehendible. There are many ways I go about teaching grammar but this seems to be my favorite method.