Heather Sauer

Learning Journey Timeline

EDU230 Cultural Diversity in Education

Mesa Community College

• What is culture and what are some major aspects of culture?

Culture by definition is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. According to the Center for Advance Research on Language Acquisition this definition can be expanded to include shared patterns of behaviors and interactions, cognitive constructs and understanding that are learned by socialization.

• What is multicultural education?  What are the goals of multicultural education?

Any form of education that integrates the traditions, values, beliefs, and outlooks of people from different cultural background, some goals include integrating other aspects of different cultures so that a student may better understand peers with diverse backgrounds

• How does multicultural education reflect responsive teaching to help meet the academic needs of diverse student populations?

Multicultural education reflects responsive teaching by giving the teacher the ability to acknowledge the needs of all their students on more than just an academic level but a personal level as well. 

• How can multicultural education affect broader social issues that impact our society? (e.g. intercultural communication/relations, prejudice, stereotypes, crime & poverty rates, achievement gaps, etc.)

By implementing multicultural education we are opening the eyes of younger generations to things like prejudice and combat stereotypes they might come to learn without having any experience with people of different cultures.

• What other significant insight(s) have you gained and how will this insight impact your personal/professional life?

This class has taught me the value of embracing different cultures as not only a future teacher but as a person as well. I have learned how the privileges that I have had throughput my life differ from others around me. I have been introduced to the importance of giving my future students the opportunity to learn about cultures different than their own to create stronger, more tolerant interpersonal relationships with people around them as well.

Imagine by John Lennon

I chose this song because at its core its massage is simply that one day we will be a world united

"You may say I'm a dreamer

But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one"