WRJ 1 In Diaz- Rico & Weed’s chapter The Intercultural Educator, discusses the role of culture and the influence it has on a student’s education in the classroom. The reading mentions the key traits of culture and analyzes the problems some student may face when put into a diverse American classroom setting. To resolve this issue, the authors mention the important initiatives educators must adhere to in order to create an equal educational platform for all students with diverse cultural backgrounds. Diaz-Rico & Weed defines culture in a broader sense by adding that people belong to more than one culture, culture creates structure, culture has deep values, and that culture can be both verbal and nonverbal. By explaining the key concepts of culture, …show more content…
The chapter stresses on how culture influences attitudes towards education, how teachers can learn more about specific cultures and adapt their teaching styles as necessary, and how adaptations to a dominant culture may affect a child’s education. “When an individual comes in contact with another in adapting with another culture, there are characteristic responses, usually stages… [and] it may be fraught with issues of prejudice, discrimination and misunderstanding. Means of meditation or resolution must be found … in classrooms” (Diaz- Rico & Weed, 2010, p. 249). This quote defines the issues of cultural adaptation in students and families. Families with backgrounds other than the dominant culture fear that cultural assimilation would pull away their child’s ethnic and traditional beliefs. This fear causes parents to shield activities and involvements of the dominant culture from their children which then affects how these students learn in classrooms. …show more content…
7). Personally, I believe certain life experiences are important in developing critical skills and understanding new academic material. If a student for example has never been to a certain place, or experienced certain things that an average student is exposed to he or she will be at a disadvantage. Experience builds on learning and teachers should acknowledge the differences among backgrounds of students. I grew up not exposed to certain instances that the majority of the class was exposed to. This in turn caused me to feel left out and not understand certain situations. I believe experiences affects social links and self esteem. The more experience one has, the better they are able to connect with peers and the