Student Needs Regarding Security
As we enter the second decade of the 21st century, our school
communities continue to reflect the increasing diversity of our society in terms of culture, ethnicity, language, race, colour, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and other characteristics. Alberta’s rapidly changing demographics are creating an exciting cultural diversity that is reflected in the province’s classrooms, both urban and rural. The new
landscape of the school provides one of the best contexts in
which to teach young Canadians that strength lies in diversity. To teach this effectively, however, requires an appropriate frame of mind, a broad skill set and a dedicated “heart set.” http://www.teachers.ab.ca/sitecollectiondocuments/ata/publications
/human-rights-issues/mon-3%20here%20comes%20everyone.pdf
communities continue to reflect the increasing diversity of our society in terms of culture, ethnicity, language, race, colour, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and other characteristics. Alberta’s rapidly changing demographics are creating an exciting cultural diversity that is reflected in the province’s classrooms, both urban and rural. The new
landscape of the school provides one of the best contexts in
which to teach young Canadians that strength lies in diversity. To teach this effectively, however, requires an appropriate frame of mind, a broad skill set and a dedicated “heart set.” http://www.teachers.ab.ca/sitecollectiondocuments/ata/publications
/human-rights-issues/mon-3%20here%20comes%20everyone.pdf
As a result of this ever increasing amount of diversity, it is more important now than ever to have safe classroom environments. Students must not only be safe physically, but must also have a solid emotional, social, cultural and psychological blanket of security. Being, and indeed also, feeling secure is essential to successful learning, no matter what age.
Physical Security:
The physical environment of a classroom must be as safe and conductive to learning as possible because it really does affect learning. Some methods of making a classroom physically safe are:
* Considering room arrangement and organisation
* Making sure aisle ways are always clear
* Ensuring easy access to exit door(s)
* Store books, boxes, sharp materials, etc., in safe places
* Use and secure any electrical cords properly
* Do not have students move any heavy equipment (such as TV carts)
* Avoid clutter
* Establish traffic patterns in classroom and other movement in safe manner
* Teacher should have full view of classroom at all times
* Safety equipment is available and used as needed (goggles, safety posters, etc.)
* Have clear procedures for and practice fire drills and other safety drills regularly
www.kentschools.net/rbutler/files/2011/04/B5-200911
Social Security:
"It is common knowledge that the success of a teacher... depends as much on the social atmosphere he [or she] creates as on his [or her] mastering [or on] the laws of learning."
Kurt Lewin (1944, p. 115)
Why should helping students in the social and emotional realms of their lives enhance their academic learning? If we think back to our school days and remember a teacher we enjoyed, we almost certainly will bring to mind also a classroom environment where we enjoyed learning. From the perspective of
neuroscience, that optimal learning environment reflects an internal brain state well attuned for learning.
Most of us have assumed that the kind of academic learning that goes on in school has little or nothing to do with one’s emotions or social environment. Now neuroscience is telling us exactly the opposite. The emotional centers of the brain are intricately interwoven with the neurocortical areas involved in
cognitive learning. When a child trying to learn is caught up in a distressing emotion, the centers for learning are temporarily hampered. The child’s attention becomes preoccupied with whatever may be the source of the trouble. Because attention is itself a limited capacity, the child has that much less
ability to hear, understand, or remember what a teacher or a book is saying. In short, there is a direct link between emotions and learning. http://danielgoleman.info/topics/social-emotional-learning/
Some ways of creating a safe social environment include:
* Build a safe social environment where all of our students feel accepted and respected, where each has an opportunity to state his or her own opinions without fear of judgment, and where students and teachers are willing to learn collaboratively from each other. * Be a role model. We teachers play a crucial role in creating a safe environment in our classes not only by the way we structure the class, but also in the way we model social behavior. Our students learn much more from us than merely the content of the course. * Ensure social justice. A safe social environment means that each person feels valued and respected. One way to ensure that this happens is to celebrate our diversity. However, we need to be careful that we don't trivialize diversity by looking at it only superficially. * Build a strong community consensus. If students feel included in a classroom and see themselves as part of multiple support groups, they immediately feel a sense of security and empathy. They can also draw energy, ask for feedback, and receive encouragement from a group of peers when they feel overwhelmed The videos below give a clear example of creating an effective emotional and social environment in a music classroom.
Part 2: Creating an effective emotional and social environment in a music classroom. |
Psychological / Emotional Security:
Emotions are important in the classroom in two major ways. First, emotions have an impact on learning. They influence our ability to process information and to accurately understand what we encounter. For these reasons, it is important for teachers to create a positive, emotionally safe classroom environment to provide for the optimal learning of students. Second, learning how to manage feelings and relationships constitutes a kind of “emotional intelligence” that enables people to be successful. http://www.learner.org/courses/ learningclassroom/support/05_emotions_learning.pdf Some ways of creating safe psychological and emotional environments include: * Avoid negative emotions (threats, stress, anxieties, etc.). Because we are mind/body creatures, we cannot separate learning from our emotions. * Do all you can to encourage engage students with low self esteem and those with learned helplessness issues. * Seek to motivate those students who show little of their own motivation. * Be fair. At the lower levels of education, many teachers use rewards as well as the threat of punishment or the loss of a reward to increase motivation. But current brain research indicates that the brain prefers and is capable of making its own rewards. In some instances, rewards might be useful, but they must be used judiciously to increase motivation in all students. * Give positive feedback to all students and coat constructive criticism with kindness and encouragement (in confidence). * Reduce focus on grades. Although we must give grades, there are ways we can reduce anxiety about grades. The types of assignments that we give can make a difference. For example, projects, portfolios, and performances that require a demonstration of many different skills, especially when they are guided step by step, can emphasize what has been learned. http://www.dialogueonlearning.tc3.edu/model/ environment/Emotional%20Safety-grp.htm |
Cultural Security:
Marginalized students are associated with groups perceived as having little or no value by other groups (Ghosh and Abdi 2004). They usually fall into one of three minority-group categories — ethno/cultural, linguistic or sexual — and have experienced rejection or discrimination based on unequal treatment.
Conversations with students who feel marginalized because of their culture reveal that feelings of isolation, frustration and rejection are common. These feelings can seriously affect a student’s self-esteem, academic motivation and achievement and sense of identity.
The gap in achievement between students from the mainstream culture and those outside of it continues to grow. In classrooms where teachers depend on practices based on and steeped in mainstream culture, students from outside that culture will be left behind. In these classrooms, already-marginalized students are further challenged and often fail, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure.
http://www.teachers.ab.ca/sitecollectiondocuments/ata/publications/human-rights-issues/mon-3%20here%20comes%20everyone.pdf
Some things to remember in building a culturally safe classroom are:
• Contact and involve parents or caregivers early in the year to make them and their student feel welcome and included, offering help and support
• Get to know them and help them get to know each other, in order to nurture a sense of belonging in your students
• Recognize that students are equal as human beings, but not equal in their needs
• Establish safe spaces in the school for students who may be on the fringes of mainstream culture
• Confront Inequity and Assumptions with all students
• Be aware of obvious and hidden manifestations of culture
• Familiarize yourself with cultural differences
• Don't exhibit bias or favoritism in any way
• Honour diversity in the classroom
• Provide opportunities for students to share their cultural values, experiences and practices
• Promote peer interactions
• Emphasize unity through human similarities
• Highlight strengths and give positive feedback
• Foster perspective taking in your class discussions
• Pronounce students' names correctly
• Highlight various cultural holidays and celebrations
• Include second language learning in the classroom for all students
• Become familiar with community resources in the area that provide knowledge about nations or ethnic groups
• Have high expectations of all students.
Marginalized students are associated with groups perceived as having little or no value by other groups (Ghosh and Abdi 2004). They usually fall into one of three minority-group categories — ethno/cultural, linguistic or sexual — and have experienced rejection or discrimination based on unequal treatment.
Conversations with students who feel marginalized because of their culture reveal that feelings of isolation, frustration and rejection are common. These feelings can seriously affect a student’s self-esteem, academic motivation and achievement and sense of identity.
The gap in achievement between students from the mainstream culture and those outside of it continues to grow. In classrooms where teachers depend on practices based on and steeped in mainstream culture, students from outside that culture will be left behind. In these classrooms, already-marginalized students are further challenged and often fail, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure.
http://www.teachers.ab.ca/sitecollectiondocuments/ata/publications/human-rights-issues/mon-3%20here%20comes%20everyone.pdf
Some things to remember in building a culturally safe classroom are:
• Contact and involve parents or caregivers early in the year to make them and their student feel welcome and included, offering help and support
• Get to know them and help them get to know each other, in order to nurture a sense of belonging in your students
• Recognize that students are equal as human beings, but not equal in their needs
• Establish safe spaces in the school for students who may be on the fringes of mainstream culture
• Confront Inequity and Assumptions with all students
• Be aware of obvious and hidden manifestations of culture
• Familiarize yourself with cultural differences
• Don't exhibit bias or favoritism in any way
• Honour diversity in the classroom
• Provide opportunities for students to share their cultural values, experiences and practices
• Promote peer interactions
• Emphasize unity through human similarities
• Highlight strengths and give positive feedback
• Foster perspective taking in your class discussions
• Pronounce students' names correctly
• Highlight various cultural holidays and celebrations
• Include second language learning in the classroom for all students
• Become familiar with community resources in the area that provide knowledge about nations or ethnic groups
• Have high expectations of all students.
Additional online resources:
http://education.alberta.ca/media/513151/e_chap4.pdf
http://education.alberta.ca/media/307119/o04.pdf
http://www.teachers.ab.ca/sitecollectiondocuments/ata/publications/human-rights-issues/mon-3%20here%20comes%20everyone.pdf
http://education.alberta.ca/media/1234045/makingadifference_2010.pdf
http://www.uww.edu/learn/diversity/safeclassroom.php
http://education.alberta.ca/media/697934/behaviour-complete%20for%20posting.pdf
http://www.dialogueonlearning.tc3.edu/model/environment/physical%20safety-grp.htm
http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/PH012Guidance.pdf
https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/about-us/statistics-and-research/public-reviews-and-enquiries/school-counselling-services-review/models-of-effective-practice.pdf
http://www.teachers.ab.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/ATA/Publications/Human-Rights-Issues/Compassionate%20classrooms%20booklet%20COOR-79e.pdf
Photo resources:
http://www.teachersofcolor.com/2009/04/incorporating-cultural-diversity-in-the-classroom/
http://vimeo.com/28870765
http://www.education.umd.edu/CYC/preschool.html
www.mommyhotspot.com
www.shutterstock.com
www.emiratesgroupcareers.com