Session 14 - Multicultural Competence

What are you curious about?
What will happen when the population has no majority group anymore? How will this impact how teachers teach?

• I think that we are already moving in this direction, and thus the reason why we need to understand various cultures, and how to interact with others that are not the same as us.

About the population statistics. I had no idea.

Different city schools to visit. Where are the city schools?

• In PA our most urban schools are W.B. Saul  and Lincoln high in Philadelphia. We also have schools near population centers near Pittsburgh.

How to develop a relationship with Spanish teachers?

• I think it is a matter of talking with the other teachers, and seeing how you can work together.

How to get involved in Agri-ability?

• I would contact Dr. Connie Baggett at bbc@psu.edu

Growing ethnic populations.

Can I use National FFA Convention for some of my student choice points and/or 80 hour requirement?

• Yes, National FFA Convention can count for 50 points, and you can count towards your hours if you are working with a specific group of students that you can observe (ie student teaching center students).

I am curious about the diversity in FFA. (Ideas of incorporating inclusion).

• Check out this page https://www.ffa.org/About/NationalFFA/diversity_and_inclusion/Pages/Diversity-Milestones.aspx

What did you learn?

Multi-cultural competence (be aware of your learners experiences)

Respect other cultures (must understand your own)

Minority populations are growing quickly

How to incorporate multi-cultural topics into your classroom

Ways to incorporate diversity into your class

How the population is changing

What do you want to learn more about?

I think that INTAG could be more incorporated into this topic. How can we do this?

Why is the non-hispanic white population is dropping so quickly?

• The percentage is dropping, as the other groups are growing more quickly.

How to have more multi-cultural experiences in ag. classes?

• I think that we need to be sure to know what our school/community population looks like and then recruit students from our school population that represents those numbers. This will ensure your students will have multi-cultural experiences, if you school has this diversity.

The Spanish Ag. course that the speaker mentioned?

• The course is Spanish 105 and it is being taught this Spring semester. Check it out on the schedule of courses, and in the bulletin for a more thorough description.

How to motivate my students (if from a very rural area with little diversity) to care about International agriculture?

• I think that you would make them realize that international agriculture is important by teaching them about it in your classes, sharing videos of international agriculture, and how it impacts their lives each an every day from trade to foods that we would not have, if it wasn't for international opportunities.

Resources on diversity?

Here is just one school district's list that they provided to their teachers... http://mason.k12.il.us/havanajh/diversity_teacher.html

How do you incorporate teaching of diversity into your classroom, without making them feel targeted?

• I think this all comes back to making your classroom a safe environment for all students. Your students need to trust you that no matter what you are learning in your class, that you have their best in mind. You also need to make sure students know that they can come to you when they don't feel comfortable. They need to know that you care about them and that they can trust you.