Module:

Cultural and Linguistic Differences: What Teachers Should Know

Wrap Up

Recognizing culture in the classroom is not just about sharing ethnic foods and holidays with students. Rather, it is about embracing differences in backgrounds, values, and experiences in order to help teach students. Learning about one's own culture, values, and beliefs is an important first step to recognizing and valuing other cultures. By utilizing this honest self-reflection, teachers are able to acknowledge the extent to which their personal worldviews have influenced their teaching and how these may have led to inappropriate expectations for their students. To recognize the connections between culture and learning is to gain the potential to change how instruction occurs. Culturally responsive teachers create classroom environments that make students feel empowered and successful, regardless of their cultural or linguistic differences. They also identify ways to encourage family involvement, a step that can foster further school success for their students.

Donna Ford Professor of special education and Betts Chair of Education and Human Development Vanderbilt University

Donna Ford summarizes why it is important for teachers to be culturally competent. (Time: 2:05) View Transcript

Think back to your initial responses to the following questions. After working through the resources in this module, do you still agree with your Initial Thoughts? If not, what aspects of your answers would you change? What influence does culture have on a student's school success? How does linguistic diversity influence classroom performance? What impact do culture and language have on a family's involvement in school and on their child's education?