Diversity in Schools

When you talk about phenomenon like cultural diversity and multicultural integration, one question that always arises is about the importance of promoting diversity in schools. How does it help to promote cultural diversity? Well the answer is simple, studies show that students who study in schools that encourage cultural integration show better adaptation to situations in which they have to deal with multi-ethnicity. They also show an attitude that is more all-encompassing and open to new ideas and situations. It has also been noticed that studying about different cultures allow them to imbibe the good from these cultures and become evolved in many ways. Why is diversity important? The importance of diversity cannot be highlighted enough as it also goes a long way in eradicating feelings of prejudice and superiority.

While promoting diversity and intercultural communications, it is also important to train educators in teaching a diverse student population. This is important as you need to have a staff that is motivated, has no prejudices and know how to deal with a classroom that is diverse in nature. Also if you have a staff that is diverse then there are more chances that your school will be preferred by parents of a prospective applicant. They also need to be trained in making decisions that are taken keeping in mind the diversity in their classrooms which brings many perspectives and inputs.

Promoting Diversity in Educational Institutions

Why is it important to promote diversity? This is something that we looked at in the previous section but how do you go about the entire process. How do you ensure that the kids in your classroom learn to appreciate the heritage and traditions of cultures that are alien to them. Learning about other cultures allow kids to also derive a deeper interest in their own culture. In this section we will try to understand how you can promote cultural diversity in the classroom.

At the start of the term, dedicate the first day of school to an introduction. Call on every student to come and introduce themselves and talk about their hobbies, background, etc. If you have many students in your class who belong to countries other than America, then this will serve as a good way to let the students learn about the different cultural backgrounds their classmates come from. When the kids are younger, you can keep changing their seating arrangements in the classroom. This way you will be allowing them to get to know each other and learn more about their respective cultures. Have different activities wherein the students fill out forms with details like which country they belong to, which language they speak, the popular festivals in the country they come from, etc. Ask them to pass on these sheets and study them. You can then play a game wherein the students answer questions about each other.

Another great way to promote ethnic diversity in schools is to play different team building games for schools. With older students you can divide them into teams and allot them different countries. Ask them to learn whatever they can about these countries and present this information in an interesting manner like a skit or a movie, or even an interactive presentation. You could also have food festival with students preparing delicacies of different countries. These are just some of the ideas that you can use to promote diversity. For different important days, like the independence day of different countries, you can decorate the classroom with the flags and memorabilia from the respective countries. You could also organize field trips to museums where the students can learn about different cultures.

Foreign exchange student programs are a great way of improving the understanding of cultural diversity. The importance of diversity goes to a whole new level when you think about the fact that today the world is no more divided by geographical boundaries. The phenomenon of global village has gone to a whole new level with more people traveling to other countries and settling down there. In such a scenario, diversity needs to be understood and promoted.