Understanding Culture and Race
EDUC 600
As the nation's population shifts toward a strongly multiracial and multicultural composition, teacher effectiveness can improve significantly from gaining insight and staying up-to-date on the latest research on "best practices" in teaching in a culturally diverse environment. This course explores how culture shapes both students and educators and gives expert guidance on learning how to interpret, understand and incorporate insight into cultural diversity in the classroom. Teachers will learn how to best navigate through and even avoid misunderstandings and misinterpretations that can easily happen in a culturally diverse environment and will gain greater awareness about how cultural differences can affect their own behavior, discipline decisions and assessments of student ability and potential.
Objectives:
After completing this course, educators will know:
- Culture and its effects in the classroom.
- Racism and its effects in the classroom.
- Critical cross-cultural communication skills.
- Tools and skills necessary to be an effective educator in intercultural contexts.
Student Learning Outcomes:
After completing this course, educators will apply the following skills:
- Employ cultural competence in their teaching practice.
- Meet students’ needs as determined by their worldviews.
- Recognize and counter racism and its impact in the classroom.
- Communicate effectively with all their students.