D2L Response to Group Presentations of Weekly Topic (2)
docx
keyboard_arrow_up
School
St. John's University *
*We aren’t endorsed by this school
Course
1010C
Subject
Communications
Date
Feb 20, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
4
Uploaded by mariann12345music
1.
How can we as educators recognize our biases and create a supportive and inclusive class for every child?
According to Graham & Harwood (2015) an inclusive education movement conceptualizes deep change to school cultures, practices, and structures. Developing cultural practices in schools
and how these practices can generate knowledge are beneficial for children. Supporting children through their educational achievements and capabilities, represents an equitable environment in a
class setting. Such approaches that bring attention to cultural factors of children area critical component in understanding the individual differences of children. It can be used as a conceptual
approach to explain diversity and inclusion in an early learning environment (Graham & Harwood, 2015). Graham & Harwood (2015) describes enabling access for children with disabilities as ways of engaging diversity through inclusive school communities. Educators need to focus on the barriers children encounter to create equal opportunity. This can allow children to
develop individual capabilities. Supporting differently abled children and providing access to promote an equitable environment, can enable children to feel a sense of belonging in their community.
In addition, children are provided with a sense of value and respect when they are in an environment with a focus on school culture and care for children (Mowat, 2023). A more inclusive and equitable school culture focuses on the different interpretations and meanings that children bring to nurture the garden to spark new ideas. Mowat (2023) refers this garden as the culture of school. It is described as a rationale for action to inform more about inclusive and equitable cultures in schools. As a result, the rationale is supported by the enquiry approach, which are based on frameworks that are designed to support the process as a scaffold for
reflection. The first approach states are schools a place where children can feel a sense of belonging? If not, what are the solutions to fix this lack of belonging (Mowat, 2023)? The second
approach states how can schools engage children with their voices to avoid marginalization, but promote inclusion (Mowat, 2023)? By using this enquiry framework, it helps create an equitable community for all. To conclude, as educators, we can recognize our own biases by educating ourselves. Paying attention to our own thoughts and examining our beliefs can helps us identify our own assumptions we withhold. By recognizing our own biases can ensure that we consider the well-
being of the individuals around is. We can ensure we create a positive environment, while also making effective decisions in the classroom setting. 2.
What changes do you think need to be made to modern education to support the whole child and family?
Focusing on children’s well-being
Allowing children to be creative in their own way and implementing creative based activities into the curriculum can support children’s well-being. In fact, the Ontario Ministry of Education (2014) states that the well-being principle highlights the significance of physical and mental-being of children. It can help children achieve a sense of self, self-regulation skills and self-care. As educators supporting the well-being principle, can allow children to be creative in their thought process. For instance, providing children with a range of inclusive materials, can help children foster creative expression.
Implementing outdoor education
Simply providing children with a facilitated curriculum and neglecting outdoor education
can be detrimental to the lives of children. This approach does not provide children with the tools
to challenge forms of knowledge-making skills. Educators need to implement outdoor education to re-think nature-based approaches in early childhood education. For example, children and families benefited from nature and the outdoors during the pandemic. As a result, outdoor education offers various opportunities for stimulating physical and mental development. educators can make outdoors a part of children’s routine. This means choosing certain days of the week for outdoor learning. This ensures outdoor learning will occur regularly through the school year, while also embedding classroom curriculum.
Implementing diverse materials: Implementing diverse materials can help children identify their own racial and ethnic identity. It can also help them appreciate and respect their differences and similarities in the classroom setting. For example, utilizing multi-cultural tissue paper can help highlight cultural influences and indicate racial and ethnic diversity. This is beneficial for activities, such as self-
portraits that generate aspects of self-identity and cultural awareness. In fact, children’s backgrounds are composed of their racial, and cultural differences. Their differences are expressed through their skin colour and other physical characteristics, but also in language and values. It is important to note that our role as an educator is to implement cultural perspectives of
traditions, and values to help children recognize their cultural identity, which can promote inclusion.
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
References
Graham & Harwood (2015). Developing capabilities for social inclusion engaging diversity through inclusive school communities. International Journal of Inclusive Education,
15(1), 135-152.
Mowat, J. G. (2023) Building community to create equitable, inclusive, and compassionate schools through relational approaches. Routledge.
Ontario Ministry of Education. (2014). How does learning happen? Ontario’s pedagogy for how does learning happens.
Queen’s Printer for Ontario. https://files.ontario.ca/edu-how-
does-learning-happen-en-2021-03-23.pdf