Creating a climate of caring and concern for students from diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural groups in a classroom.

Creating a climate that promotes learning in the classroom involves a number of different factors, which can be broken down into a few main categories; Classroom environment and culture, teacher approaches and attitudes, student attributes and attitudes, and school climate.

Classroom environment involves all physical aspects of the classroom that can affect student comfort and learning. As Dewey (1916) notes, student involvement/engagement and ownership are inextricably linked. Creating ownership creates pride in students accomplishments, but even more importantly, it creates a responsibility for when things aren’t going as well- this acts as an intrinsic motivation, which is well documented to be the preferred method of motivation (Gianni 2010) as extrinsic motivation can actually undermine its effects. (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999) While there is still some debate as to the extent of this, what is uncontroversial is that student ownership does enhance the intrinsic motivating factors due to the very nature and meaning of ownership. That said, there are many ways we can encourage student ownership, which I will discuss where appropriate throughout this blog post. When considering the classroom environment, creation of roles and duties towards upkeep and cleanliness of the classroom helps engender this sense of responsibility we desire our students to have. A classroom pet in which students are in charge of taking care of works in multiple ways; first through the actual care and responsibility of a living thing, but also through the naming process, development of emotional attachment and use of the pet as a teaching tool all work to improve student motivation. (Gee, N.R. 2010) The walls of the classroom can also be divided into subject sections, and students should be encouraged to put work they are proud of for each subject. Adding decorations celebrating students’ cultures’ holiday festivals as well as including messaging from sources that they relate to helps to make the classroom more like a home environment. For example, my coworker has little minions figurines as well as motivational posters from “Captain Underpants” which he uses to assure students of his empathy and understanding of where they are coming from. Other elements to consider in the classroom environment include dividing the room into sections, each with different purposes. One corner can have carpet on the floor and be surrounded by books, another may be an open space used for various activities, etc. The furniture of a classroom is as important as it is overlooked, with some studies showing that a variety of choices can increase satisfaction, and others showing that rolling, form-fitting chairs and trapezoidal tables are best for encouraging student interaction and collaboration. The traditional wooden chairs actually tend to be the worst type for students, as they often don’t fit for most students and are uncomfortable, increasing the student’s susceptibility to distraction. Lastly, to truly encourage student ownership, all of the above options and choices should be arrived at in collaboration with the students- discuss with them what works best with them. I was reading another article in which the teacher actually solicited input before rearranging the class with new furniture and things, and one thing that really stuck with me was that the teacher realized that he/she needed to lower the whiteboard, as it was too high for the students to effectively use it, and it was only at that height because it was natural for the teacher. Soliciting student input and being reactive to it seems to me to be the best way to show respect for the students, and it helps to reinforce a classroom culture/climate in which the focus is enabling student achievement as opposed to students meeting some seemingly arbitrary criteria such as passing tests.

Teacher approaches and attitudes can be summed up in a single sentence that on its surface seems incredibly contradictory. This is because the proper teacher approach and attitude is a balancing act between two extremes, with an incredibly thin line between the two. A teacher needs to be fair and impartial, but invested in student success, warm and approachable, but emotionally distant, empathetic and understanding, but not in a personal way, and finally, using student interests in planning, but maintain a firm hand in guidance and control. It’s no wonder that there are volumes of literature and research on the subject of education considering the numerous pitfalls and narrow paths one has to walk to optimize students for success.

Considering that our sensitivity to fairness is quite developed as early as 3 and a half years,(Kanngiesser, Warneken 2012) and the fact that it seems to be a naturally occurring feature among primates, teacher sensitivity towards appearing impartial is an essential part of the job, as it causes a loss of trust that leads to a range of negative responses including lack of engagement and defiant behavior, sometimes with lasting effects for years after the initiating incident as demonstrated by Cohen et al. (2017). That said, most teachers cite one of the best ways to engage students is to take an interest in them, and to use humor where applicable. This would seem counterintuitive considering the stress previous research puts on impartiality- most types of humor tends to create “butts” of the joke- something that is remarkable for its absence of impartiality. Indeed, most recommendations focus specifically on humor that couldn’t possibly be considered in that way, such as “corny” jokes, or dry wit. I am not sure I agree with this however, as an ability to laugh at oneself seems to be a useful coping mechanism in dealing with the real world. An obsessive worry over not getting too involved seems to be exactly the kind of extreme that should be avoided. I am not a big fan of today’s air of political correctness, as it masks the very real problems and inequalities behind a surface varnish of acceptability. Being able to point out such inconsistencies in class and the ability to laugh at our mistakes, our ability to use sarcasm to point out our occasional inescapable hypocrisies through wry humor seems to me to be one of the great qualities of a “human” teacher, rather than an unthinking unfeeling robot. The ability of the teacher to be politically incorrect would seem to me to be a feature rather than a flaw, as it humanizes us and it keeps us from being put on an unapproachable pedestal. This idea runs counter to much of my research however, in which people like Brian P. Gates, superintendent of schools for the Emerson Public School District in New Jersey discuss sarcasm as a “poison”. Perhaps this is because there is not enough nuance applied to the word, but in my experience, sparse use, combined with a caring attitude, can be more effective than any other form of chastisement. I can absolutely see where sarcasm can be poisonous, where people use it as Dr. Gatens believes, as a euphemism for cruelty. It rankles me to see such a flat and broad ban applied to it, especially when it is often the language of choice for teenagers. Again however, it seems the key is a balancing act between overuse and underuse of humor to achieve the goal of relating and seeming human to the students without being perceived as one of the students. Some levels of control and authoritarian separation must be maintained. This applies to not just humor, but love, empathy, friendliness etc. The difficult part as always is judging where that middle path is- we must be invested in the students, but not so much that they see us more as friends than as instructors.

A final note about teacher attitudes involves empathy. Students come from all types of backgrounds and walks of life. One of the resources TeachNow posted talked about common mistakes teachers commit when trying to teach to a diverse range of students, especially minorities. One point stuck out which was that teachers should focus on teaching appropriate material considering minorities such as black or American Indian. It noted that our understanding of the “culture” of these minorities is a terrible substitute for actually getting to know the students and where they are individually coming from. For example, a teacher might identify toughness and a willingness to use force to protect oneself an integral part of black culture, as seen in rap videos and popular culture depictions, but this image may be completely at odds with what an individual black student may experience in their own home. We cannot rely on generalities when trying to accommodate students, whether it’s with our attitude towards why they didn’t do their homework or why they won’t volunteer in class, or any number of other situations in which our assumptions may not simply be wrong, but harmful as well. Sumer Seiki’s use of the candle to demonstrate how we need to work to understand the perspectives our students are bringing to the classroom helps to make clear that every single incident that can happen, every interaction between two people involves a clash of different “stories” or narratives. What may be perceived as hateful action by one student, could be perceived as simple carelessness by the other. The fact that humans have a tendency towards negativity bias only reinforces the necessity of being able and willing to see things from alternate perspectives.

Student attitudes and attributes need to focus on empowerment. Many of the soft skills are increasingly being recognized as essential to student well-being and success. Bovey (2017) notes the necessity for students to develop a strong sense of self-worth, which is key for students to develop positive work habits such as persistence. Students should learn to see failure as a sign of progress, rather than associating it with stupidity or other negative attributes. They need to create a culture of openness and acceptance, efforts which will lead to an intolerance for bullying, creating a self-regulating atmosphere.

As school climate is a difficult subject to tackle, especially since it relies on top down enforcement and creation, I am going to not discuss it in this blog post, as it’s difficult to quantify and work on on an individual basis, instead requiring the involvement and direct action by the principal, and communication and coordination between teachers.

Works Cited

Connelly, M. F., & Clandinin, D. J. (1988). Teachers as curriculum planners: Narratives of experience. New York: Teachers College Press.

Dewey, J. (1916). Democracy and education. New York: Macmillan.

Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. New York: Collier-Macmillan.

Giani, Matt, and O’Guinn, Christina. “Motivation to Learn: Igniting a Love of Learning in All Students.” John W. Garder Center at Stanford University. 2010. PDF file retrieved from: jgc.stanford.edu/docs/YiM_WA3_Motivation_to_Learn.doc

Gee, N. R. (2010). The Role of Pets in the Classroom. In P. McCardle, S. McCune, J.A. Griffin,

Kanngiesser P, Warneken F (2012) Young Children Consider Merit when Sharing Resources with Others. PLoS ONE7(8): e43979. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0043979

Cohen, G., Purdie-Vaughns, V., Yeager, D. and Yang Hooper, S. (2017). Loss of institutional trust among racial and ethnic minority adolescents: A consequence of procedural injustice and a cause of life-span outcomes. mindset scholars network. [online] Available at: http://mindsetscholarsnetwork.org/research_library/loss-institutional-trust-among-racial-ethnic-minority-adolescents-consequence-procedural-injustice-cause-life-span-outcomes/ [Accessed 10 Nov. 2017].

Seiki, S. (2014). Embodying Shared History: Narrative Inquiry as Pedagogy. Teacher Education Quarterly, 41(1), pp.29-44.

Bovey, T., & Strain, P. (n.d.). Using Environmental Strategies to Promote Positive Social Interactions. Retrieved November 09, 2017, from http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/briefs/wwb6.pdf

Marsh H, Byrne B, Yeung A. Causal ordering of academic self-concept and achievement: Reanalysis of a pioneering study and revised recommendations. Educational Psychologist. 1999;34:155–167.

Cushman, P., & Cowan, J. (2010). Enhancing student self‐worth in the primary school learning environment: teachers views and students views. Pastoral Care in Education, 28(2), 81-95. doi:10.1080/02643944.2010.481311