Increasingly, teachers are turning to parents to gather information about their children. This information is important to teachers who are trying to design a curriculum that is relevant to the home culture of children in the classroom.
What do teachers learn about dealing with diversity in the classroom?

Recently, Dr. Arlette Willis of the University of Illinois made the following statement to a group of pre-service teachers in an early childhood education course. Dr. Willis was addressing the class about working with children of other cultures, and how they may best enlist the help of parents. She commented to these students, who were learning to be teachers: "You ARE going to make mistakes. A much greater mistake would be to not try at all." The students in the course were days away from beginning their field-based experience of student teaching.

These students, full of energy and enthusiasm for their chosen field, were about to enter classrooms that, in today's society, are increasingly composed of children from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Broadly stated, classrooms in the United States are becoming more visibly multicultural. Recognizing this, education colleges across the country are trying to provide their students with information that will help them reach out to parents as they develop curriculum that contains accurate and nonstereotypic information that promotes development of positive attitudes (Williams, 1991). Within schools, teachers attend workshops on multicultural education. Some principals (Davis, 1995) suggest teachers make home visits, seeking assistance from parents, and giving credit to the parents when their ideas and suggestions are incorporated in the classroom.

Pre-service and in-service teachers learn that in Asian American and Native American cultures, eye contact is impolite (Leister, 1993), that Hispanic values include a strong emphasis on family loyalty (Griggs & Dunn, 1996), and that African Americans view things in their entirety rather than in isolated parts, and are people rather than object oriented (Hale, 1983).

Along with this general information, pre-service and in-service teachers are also told there is great variation within each cultural group, and that any single generalized statement may or may not apply to the children in his or her classroom. They learn that within these groups, there are many subgroups (e.g., the term Native American represents over 500 different tribes). Thus, many teachers want to incorporate elements of other cultures into their classrooms, but they are afraid of awkwardly stating a request to parents to assist in this endeavor. Many decide to ignore the opportunities of enriching the classroom by not asking at all; others decide not to ask in fear of offending the parent; and still others are willing to take the risk, knowing their students will reap the benefits of their courage.

How can parents help?

As parents, we can reach out to those teachers as they work toward making their classrooms ones in which our children feel that their cultural and/or ethnic identity is valued and affirmed. We must remember that although we regard teachers as experts, they are still learning about diversity. We can help them in that process, because the parent is an important and reliable resource for linguistic and cultural information (Edwards, Fear, & Gallego, 1995).

Your child's teacher may wish to learn about your home culture by asking your child to take photographs of family members to class. Such photos can be the basis for a variation of the show-and-tell activity in which your child will describe the people in the photograph, using the same words and phrases you use within your home. For example, many African Americans use the term "nappy" to describe hair, and Latino/a families often turn to a curandera (folk healer) as well as a Western physician during illness (Leister, 1993). Photos can also convey information about family structures other than the nuclear family, such as extended families common among Native Americans. Across cultures, we capture the special moments that we celebrate with photographs. These photographs can convey a wealth of information about birth rituals, rites of passage, or traditional wedding practices.

You can serve as a resource to the teacher as a classroom guest. Artifacts, books, music, or even home videos you have at home that are specific to your home culture can be taken into the classroom and used as learning tools. Swick, Boutte, and Van Scoy (1994) suggest families create a book with photos, drawings, and writings prepared by family members. Such a book could also be taken into the classroom and used as a learning tool. With your child by your side and as a partner in leading this activity, discuss these items in the context of their use within your home. This activity will work towards breaking down common stereotypes and misconceptions about items that have become associated with specific cultures. You can lead cooking activities, telling the children about the reasons why this particular food is special to your family or culture.

Teachers are encouraged to make classroom readers (similar to basal reading texts) that use children's own words and phrases. The teacher may ask a parent for assistance in preparing such a text (Grant, 1995).

These activities should be followed up with a period in which children can ask questions to clarify their thinking or to gain further information. Some questions may reflect the misconceptions children have learned, and you should be prepared to receive and answer the questions in an honest yet sensitive manner that imparts accurate information.

Parent-teacher conferences offer another opportunity for parents to help teachers deal with diversity in the classroom. During parent-teacher conferences, provide the teacher with information about specific cultural practices in which your child will participate, especially if participation requires an absence from school. The teacher may have a prepared list of questions to ask you about various aspects of family life such as sleep patterns, bedtime routines, toilet training, holidays, or special family events (York, 1995). The teacher may ask you to review a book about your home culture that he/she may want to use with the children. Or, she may ask you about the authenticity and appropriateness of artifacts he/she has collected for use in the classroom. The teacher may ask you to help her develop a lesson on some aspect of your home culture. If you are comfortable with the request, offer your honest feedback.

If your child comes home with materials or information that, from your perspective, are inappropriate or contain factual errors, contact the teacher and discuss specifically what you deem inappropriate. If you can, suggest alternative activities or materials that more accurately represent your culture.

How important is it for parents to be involved?

Recent research indicates that family involvement in your child's education enhances your child's achievement and fosters positive attitudes--resulting in higher graduation rates and higher enrollment rates in post secondary education (Henderson, 1995). Research also indicates that students learn best when the classroom curriculum reflects the history and culture of the students (Hudley & Barnes, 1993). Your child and others in this and future classrooms will benefit from a teacher/parent partnership that has involved fruitful discussion and interaction on multiculturalism in the classroom.

Sources:

Davis, Bruce. (1995). How To Involve Parents in a Multicultural School Alexandria VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Edwards, Patricia A., Kathlene Fear, and Margaret A. Gallego. (1995). Role of Parents in Responding to Issues of Linguistic and Cultural Diversity (pp. 141-153). In Meeting the Challenge of Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in Early Childhood Education. Edited by Eugene E. Garcia, Barry McLaughlin, Bernard Spodek, and Olivia N. Saracho. New York: Teachers College Press.

Grant, Rachel. (1995). Meeting the Needs of Young Second Language Learners (pp. 1-17). In Meeting the Challenge of Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in Early Childhood Education. Edited by Eugene E. Garcia, Barry McLaughlin, Bernard Spodek, and Olivia N. Saracho. New York: Teachers College Press.

Griggs, Shirley, and Rita Dunn. (1996). Hispanic American Students and Learning Style. ERIC Digest EDO-PS-96-4.

Hale, Janice. (1983). Black children: Their Roots, Culture, and Learning Styles. In Understanding the Multicultural Experience in Early Childhood Education. Edited by Olivia N. Saracho and Bernard Spodek. Washington DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Henderson, Anne. T. (1995). Families and Student Achievement. PTA Today 20(4): 12-14.

Hudley, Cynthia A., and Rhoda Barnes. (1993). Home School Partnerships through the Eyes of Parents. ED 373 441.

Leister, Clarissa. (1993). Working with Parents of Different Cultures. Dimensions of Early Childhood 21(2): 13-14.

Swick, Kevin J., Gloria Boutte, and Irma Van Scoy. (1994). Multicultural Learning through Family Involvement. Dimensions of Early Childhood 22(4): 17-21.

Williams, Leslie R. (1991). Curriculum Making in Two Voices: Dilemmas of Inclusion in Early Childhood Education. Early Childhood Research Quarterly 6: 303-311.

Willis, Arlette. (1996). Personal communication.

York, Stacy. (1991). Roots and Wings: Affirming Culture in Early Childhood Programs. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.