Diversity In Schools: A High Point University Twitter Chat

On April 7th, Ms. Lisa Pagano (@edu_ms_pagano) hosted a diversity chat on Twitter for High Point University students. Ms. Pagano is a gifted education specialist in Charlotte, NC. The twitter chat was held where she posted a question and all participants were invited to answer using the hashtag HPU4200. The majority of participants were from High Point University but others participated from Charlotte, Lenoir, Davidson County, Davie County among other various North Carolina locations and school districts. If you would like to view the archive for the twitter chat, you can see it here.

The questions and various answers were as follows:

Q1. What does 'diversity' mean to you?

• "It's all encompassing - race, gender, cultural, socioeconomic, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical appearance"
• "Diversity may refer to the student demographic, instructional needs, instructional materials/resources"
• Diversity means accepting and adapting to my students no matter what is deemed the norm to society"

Q2. How can teachers show that they embrace diversity in the school community and in the world?

• "Attitude towards others is the best way! Find the good that each person has to offer and celebrate it."
• "It's important for teachers to get to know each student and their background, and form meaningful relationships with all students"
• Classroom libraries, being representative of all cultures is an easy, welcoming way to show an embrace toward diversity"

Q3. What are some strategies that you have for building meaningful relationships with the diverse group of students we serve?

• "Endeavor to create a classroom culture that gives voice and choice"
• "Building common experiences changes the climate in diverse classrooms. Focusing on similarities and sharing differences openly"

Q4. What are some ideas for incorporating different cultures into your classroom?

• "Allow students to bring in items or share with the class how the lesson you're teaching may connect with their culture"
• "Use books that talk about different cultures frequently. Bring in diverse guests to share with the class"
• "Have students bring something from home to share with the class. Then read to compare/contrast that tradition to other cultures"

Q5. When dealing with diverse populations, what are some strategies and suggestions for effective classroom management?

• "From day one, step up a safe environment and set the expectations for your students regarding treatment of one another and respect"
• "Treating all students equally and with respect. Also, being a positive role model and a reliable figure in their life!"

Q6. How can you best prepare yourself to work in a highly diverse school?

• "Gain knowledge about various cultures, be open minded, be purposeful with everything you do in class"
• "Put yourself in highly diverse situations. You have to be willing to step outside of the classroom and into the community"

Q7. What resources or links can you share to help teachers establish a respectful learning environment for their students?

• ACSD
• Teaching Tolerance

I felt as though this twitter chat was a way for many educators of all levels to collaborate, share their resources, and enjoy discussion about something that is so truly important to our own education, and the education of our students. "How can teachers effectively engage students from diverse backgrounds? It's a question many teachers face at the beginning of the school year, and of course, there isn't one prescribed strategy that works." (Davis, 2013) There is indeed, no one way to engage students from diverse populations. Through collaboration, PLC's and research, teachers can find new ideas and ways to constantly keep their students engaged. We want our students to be engaged no matter their background, race, religion, etc. I was thoroughly impressed with the amount of ideas and resources that I gained just from one twitter PLC. I would highly recommend another to colleagues, friends, and educators.

Resources:

http://www.ascd.org/Default.aspx

Davis, M. (2013). Preparing for Cultural Diversity: Resources for Teachers. Edutopia. Retrieved April, 2016, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/preparing-cultural-diversity-resources-teachers 

http://www.tolerance.org/

Town Hall Meeting: Diversity at High Point University

"High Point University is not a diverse school." This is a phrase I have heard prior to attending a diversity talk on HPU's campus. What I learned through this discussion on campus was today was that no, in comparison to other schools, High Point University is not very diverse, in faculty, staff and students. But what makes the difference, is that they are actively trying to increase diversity in all areas of the campus and it is working.

Diversity is defined as "the quality or state of having many different forms, types, ideas, etc. or the state of having people who are differnet races or who have different cultues in a group or organization." (Merriam-Webster) The session held on High Point's campus was to talk about and address issues that students felt about diversity. Questions were taken from a survey and asked to administration by Dr. Robert E. Moses, Assistant Professor of Religion. Most of the questions were answered by President Dr. Nido R. Qubein. Other questions throughout the session were also answered by Gail C. Tuttle, Vice President for Student Life and Dr. Denniss Carroll, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Dr. Qubein gave a brief introduction at the start of the discussion, and then introduced Dr. Robert Moses, who posed the questions that he had compiled from an anonymous survey. The first question asked addressed the issue of High Point University not having an office of diversity or multicultural affairs. Dr. Qubein answered this question, stating that it upset him to have students compare HPU to other schools (the question stated the Guilford College and UNCG both have offices of multicultural affairs). Dr. Qubein spoke very passionately and stated that High Point University would start an office on multicultural affairs, as that is something that the student body is requesting. He stated that "High Point University is a global institution and it is part of our focus to be inclusive." He stressed the importance of High Point being a community, a family. 

The second question was given to Ms. Tuttle, asking her about student opportunity and freedom of expression on campus, including posting materials on campus and peaceful protesting. Ms. Tuttle stated that students do have to follow the "poster policy" and the guide to campus life, but that the students on High Point's campus have a great sense of freedom of expression. Posters and boards are often used on campus for students to raise awareness and spread the word for events and ongoings to other students. Because this is such a large part of student life, they are investing in purchasing a video messaging board for these purposes. Tuttle stated that posting are always allowed, assuming they uphold High Point University standards and expectations (i.e. respectful). She also covered information on protests, stating that "there is no protocol for having a peaceful protest. If students want to protest, they can." The only time an issue like this is banned would be during finals, or if it was not a respectful, peaceful protest.

The third question was given again to Dr. Qubein, coming directly from students who had felt profiled on campus, specifically by campus security. Many students of either Middle Eastern descent or African American students had identified issues of feeling profiled on campus. Dr. Qubein was clearly upset, and asked that if anyone ever feels uncomfortable, disrespected, or the like, to speak out. He made it clear that if there was an issue he wanted to know the specifics (i.e. time, date, name, etc.) and that he would do with it what he could to make it right. "If someone is mistreated on this campus, I will take responsibility for it. I will handle it" Dr. Qubein said.

A final question, which spiraled into other questions, was answered by Dr. Carroll and Dr. Qubein. Dr. Carroll took the initial portion of the question, how can/are we increasing diversity among faculty and administration? The question also acknowledged that we have a very diverse curriculum, but how are we making students aware of the specific courses that offer such diverse topics? Dr. Carroll clearly appreciate the question and the insight that those who had expressed interested were asking a question to benefit what goes on at High Point University. He stated that they are making strides in hiring more diverse staff, recruiting through specific medias and websites, as well as trying to make students aware of courses that they can take which are rich in diversity. He understood and relayed the importance of educating freshman coaches as well as the student body as a whole. He stated that there is a talk of creating a diversity minor at High Point University and how they are hiring 35-40 faculty and staff per year, actively trying to make that population more diverse.

Dr. Carroll also brought up the Accreditation visits that High Point's academic schools go though, most recently The School of Communication and The School of Education. These accreditation visits have diversity standards and High Point has passed them with flying colors. But, these are steps in the journey that High Point University is taking in order to make the campus a more diverse place. Dr. Qubein then added to what Dr. Carroll had stated, saying "I'm embarrassed by the lack of diversity of faculty, staff and students."

As a participant of this discussion, it was eye opening. Especially as both a teacher and a student, I found this topic particularly interesting. "Multicultural education has evolved into a well-established discipline based on the work of scholars and researchers committed to its vision and basic principles." (Hollins, 2008) It was a very valuable experience. To hear Dr. Qubein himself make comments about how hard he and the staff have worked to make High Point the University it is today, it was clear how passionate he is. It was also clear that High Point is making strides to achieve a more diverse community. 

Resources:

Hollins, E. R. (2008) Culture in School Learning: Revealing the Deep Meaning. New York: Routledge.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diversity

Special Needs Diversity: Self-Contained Classroom

In a classroom where there are only nine students and three adults (one teacher, two teacher assistants) you may think it would be an ideal world. The teacher and teacher assistants in the self-contained classroom at Thomasville Primary School could tell you that in order to achieve that ideal world, it takes hard work. Day in and day out these ladies give love and support to the students in their self-contained classroom. They establish a strict routine, but know how to be flexible. They incorporate movement and dance, but know when to work. They do so many wonderful things for the children in their classroom, which I'm sure most of them they do not even realize.

A self-contained classroom is defined as a "typically smaller setting with a fewer number of students. Created to help foster enhanced support for students with special needs or specific difficulties, self-contained rooms are generally comprised of about ten students with unique struggles who are most commonly instructed by a lead teacher with a certification in special education. Self-contained classrooms will also have at least one paraeducator who provides instructional support under the guidance of the classroom teacher." (Public School Review) 

I was only able to observe in the self-contained classroom during the same time block each day, due to my busy schedule. I was able to see the morning routine, but how it varied depending on what the day held. When I first visited the classroom, I was captivated by the room itself. I noticed print everywhere. Everything in the room had a label. It had a lot of open space, with three U-shaped in various places around the room. The carpet space was large and open as well. There were two desks in the room, but off to the side with no chairs near them. I later learned that these were focus spots, and only used if a child needed a separate space to work on their own. The classroom had an activboard, as do all of the other classrooms at Thomasville Primary School.

It seemed as though each day began with a writing activity when I came into the classroom. The students were asked to sign in each day in order to practice writing their name. Then, their morning would consist of breakfast in the classroom and calendar. I was unable to see this part of the day during my observations but was well aware of the schedule that they followed each day. They would then gather around the U-shaped table closest to the activboard to begin writing. In large print, the board would contain sentence stems like "My name is _____., My birthday is ______., My favorite color is ______." Only one sentence would be visible at a time, in order to minimize distraction or create stressors. Students were also given options. For example, when asked when their birthday was, the teacher or teacher assistant would write down a few birthdays and have the students identify which was theirs. When it came time to answer questions about their favorite color or food, a discussion began about what "favorite" means. This was repeated each time the word favorite was used in a sentence stem.

Although each student was doing the same thing, it seemed individualized. The teacher and teacher's assistants were meeting the students' needs by challenging those who needed to be challenged or guiding those who needed extra support. I was able to see a student become frustrated and upset during the writing. Whether this came from inability to complete the task or something else, I am unsure. But one of the teacher's assistants pulled her to another table immediately and gave her an activity for fine motor skills. She had a heart shaped object with many holes it in where she began threading yarn through the holes to make a pattern. This calmed her down and she was quickly back to her bubbly self. Knowing your students and being able to anticipate or be flexible to their moods is so important, especially in a self-contained classroom with so many varying disabilities.

On some days after writing came songs. Other days, the students did this prior to writing. Again, it all depended on the needs in the classroom at that current time. Songs they would play throughout the week included the good morning song, the weather song, the months and then movement and dance songs which varied based on student preference. You could see the smiles on the students faces and feel their sense of comfort and excitement as the songs played and they danced around.

"Efforts should be taken to emphasis a child’s talents, not their shortcomings, which is why self-contained classrooms offer a welcome respite from the jungle that can be elementary, middle or high school." (SpecialEdResource.com) Incorporating dance and movement, real life skills, and a flexible schedule are many of the reasons that this self-contained classroom is so beneficial for its students.  Although I was only able to observe the morning part of this classroom during my visits, I left each observation feeling confident that the students in this classroom not only felt safe, but were spending meaningful time learning life skills in their classroom.

Resources:

Self-Contained Classroom Defined | SpecialEdResource.com. (2014). Retrieved March 01, 2016, from http://specialedresource.com/resource-center/self-contained-classroom-defined 

Understanding Self-Contained Classrooms in Public Schools | PublicSchoolReview.com. (n.d.). Retrieved March 01, 2016, from http://www.publicschoolreview.com/blog/understanding-self-contained-classrooms-in-public-schools 

A Priest And A Rabbi

On the third Thursday of every month, a Priest and a Rabbi walk into Finnegan's Wake, in Winston Salem, North Carolina. They discuss various topics from both the Testament and Torah perspectives. You can see their facebook page for more information.

On February 18th I joined the festivities to see what this was all about. Dozens of people gathered around tables, some with friends, some with people they didn't know. Despite that, it seemed like a community, people who get together every four weeks to share food, drink, and chatter. Although the event begins at 6pm, when I arrived at 5:45 I could barely find a seat. People had gathered far earlier and already begun sharing their dinners, drinks and stories. Me and my friend that I attended with were quickly offered a seat at a table with a group of older couples. They immediately introduced themselves, asked us what brought us to the event, and passed over the menus. I felt an instant sense of comfort, which I did not expect when I initially walked in to see so many crowded tables.

The discussion began shortly after we had ordered our dinners. Father Steve of St. Timothy's Episcopalian Church and Rabbi Mark of Temple Emanuel introduced themselves, for those of us who were new. The topic of discussion scheduled for the evening was "love and sex". At first I was surprised, and felt a bit strange that this was the topic of discussion, as I was sitting with strangers. Despite that feeling, I knew it would be interesting. Unfortunately, questions and comments came first - and took up the whole hour! While this did lead to rather interesting topics of discussion, it left me wondering what would have come of the love and sex discussion if it had been played out.

Many people asked general questions which lead to what seemed an introduction of each faith. The various questions were answered with brief yet satisfying answers. What I found most interesting were two of the questions asked that lead to much further in depth discussion.

1.) Can you practice both Christianity and Judaism?
2.) What future do you see for your religions with the growth of millennials?

When asked "do you believe that someone could practice both Christianity and Judaism (not meaning Messianic Judaism)?" both Father Steve and Rabbi Mark agreed to take a moment and think about the question, but quickly reconvened, knowing that they both had the same belief. Messianic Judaism is "a Biblically based movement of people who, as committed Jews, believe in Yeshua (Jesus) as the Jewish Messiah of Israel of whom the Jewish Law and Prophets spoke." (mjaa.org) Both men agreed. "You cannot be both, it negates the other" was the idea behind what they were saying. Because the two religions have such different fundamental beliefs, the two stated that you simply cannot fully practice both religions without negating the other, or becoming something else.

I found this very interesting, as I had never really thought about it prior. I am not a very religious person. I believe in God, but I do not attend a church, nor have I felt inclined to affiliate with a specific religion since adulthood. So it had never really crossed my mind that two religions may try to become one, and if so, what would that mean?

This leads me to the next question that was posed: what do you see for your religions in the future? Millennials are growing and a majority of people are not affiliating with religions. So now what? While both Father and Rabbi expressed concerns about people who they referred to as "nones, neither of them felt as though there would ever be a time when people were not practicing their religion. "Nones" were the people who check the "none" or "not affiliated" box on a survey asking them which religion they practice and/or if they currently belong to a synagog or church. They discussed how in Christianity, many people practice by going to church, where as in the Jewish religion, there are many home rituals. Father Steve stated that he wished there were more home rituals for church goers to practice, while he thought that Father Steve probably the same for more members attending Synagog regularly. They each felt strongly in opposite areas and wished for just a but more in the other. Over all, both felt as though despite these differences, there would always be true followers of their religion.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at Finnegan's Wake, and would highly recommend it to anyone. If you are looking for more information on the differences between Christianity and Judaism, you can find some here. Or, you could just pop into Finnegan's Wake on the third Thursday of each month for an authentic taste of each experience, and some Irish cuisine!


Resources:

"Christianity vs. Judaism." - Difference and Comparison. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

"Messianic Jewish Alliance of America." MJAA. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.