Cultural Diversity Classroom

2.2.5. Cultural diversity in Classroom:
There are various cultural differences that teachers are likely to come across culturally diverse classrooms including Gender, Age, Cognition, Norms, beliefs, Primary language, Exceptionality, Cultural heritage, Socio-economic status, Opinions, ideas, Attitudes, Expectations, Behavioral styles, Geography, Learning styles, Communication Styles, Decision making styles, Ways of Communicating Non-verbally, Ways of Learning, Ways of Dealing with Conflict, Ways of Using Symbols and Approaches to completing tasks etc.
According to Pratt-Johnson (2005), there are six basic cultural differences that teachers are likely to encounter in the culturally diverse classroom. Familiarity with these differences will begin

It is in observing how people deal with and react to conflicts that we see clear differences between cultures. Some cultures view conflict as a positive thing, while others view it as something to be avoided. In the United States, conflict is not usually desirable; nonetheless, conventional wisdom in this country encourages individuals to deal directly with conflicts when they do arise. In fact, face-to-face encounters are usually suggested as the way to work through whatever problems exist. By contrast, in many Asian countries, open conflict is experienced as embarrassing or demeaning. As a rule, these cultures hold that differences are best worked out quietly. Thus, written exchanges might be preferred over face-to-face encounters as a means of conflict resolution (Dupraw and Axner,

Issues of cultural diversity are more focused, especially in the class room setting. There are several techniques that may be applied to teaching to accommodate students of diverse backgrounds. Teachers must first be aware of stereotypes, ethnocentrism, and biasness. They should apply management techniques to the physical space as well as students’ behavior. Multiple intelligence theory active learning, technology and multi cultural education are among some of the techniques that may be applied to teaching in the class room. In addition to teaching modifications, teachers must include the parents in the class room activities. Teachers should be familiar with the obstacles they may face when implementing the techniques. These methods also have future implications in the higher education setting. Professors may utilize these techniques in their lectures. Students who have had these practices integrated into their learning will also be better prepared for higher education and for the workforce (Dominick L. Sturz,