Culturally Proficient Schools

3634 Words15 Pages
Dr. Darlene Leiding Manuscript: Culturally Proficient Schools Racial Bias in the Classroom: Can teachers reach all children? On the fringes of most school environments gathers a shadow population of students whose motivation and achievement are stymied. Many of these are culturally diverse students who are not being well served by our public schools. Precious little attention is given either to the needs of these young people or to their assets. They are often viewed as deviants from the “regular” students, outsiders who are not productive members of the learning community. This persistent problem of increasing numbers of students who are not succeeding in the classrooms must be attacked because youth who fall on the margins are as deserving as those who thrive in the mainstream. What is wrong with the following statements? “LaMar is such a social and active child; if only he would calm down, talk less, and stay out of trouble, he would be a good student. He might be able to be a leader if only he would conform.” “Mai Lee is one of my brightest students, but she has priorities other than school. She belongs to a Hmong community dance group that appears to be her focus. She puts more effort into dancing and performing than into achieving in school.” “Hector shows some promise and wants to become a doctor. He’ll never make it because his grades in math and science are less than desirable. He seldom comes to class and when he does he is not prepared. The other Hispanic kids seem to be struggling too.” “Thunder’s performance is inconsistent. He makes a D as easily as he makes an A. His projects are excellent when he feels motivated, but he does poorly on tests and he seems lazy and uncooperative.” The told and untold stories of many culturally diverse students have not been positive when it comes to education. The above comments come in
Open Document