Hello beautiful people...So much has happened since my last blog. Deadlines have passed, assignments have been submitted...so now I can breathe a little more now...

I have fond memories of music when I was in primary school. I especially loved being in the school choir. I wasn't much of a singer so my teacher included me by finding me an instrument to play. She gave me a little triangle instrument to play. It made me feel so special and included. I played that triangle with a huge smile on my face. I have fond memories of my music teacher and I wouldn't change a single thing about how my school music experience turned out.

What possibly made some learners uncomfortable during these activities?

These students most probably didn’t feel included. Some of them find it difficult to adapt especially when they are doing an activity that they were not comfortable with from the beginning. Because of their apprehension towards the song and the activity they most likely didn’t want to participate in the activity. Children can also feel inferior to their friends who are familiar with the language and will do well in the activity.

Why were some learners uncomfortable?

Every student has different strengths and weaknesses as well as their own way of learning. Most importantly, every student has their own way of expressing themselves. These learners that were uncomfortable are most probably not familiar with the rules and therefore this will prevent them from playing along.

Can you think of ways to address these issues in future? What will you change?

As a teacher, I must set the tone for activities that I plan for my class. I must take full    responsibility to ensure that activities are embraced by all children.   I must have hindsight to not allow any biases to manifest in my lessons. I need to change how I approach learners that will find certain activities socially challenging. I also need to make sure that students have a choice to participate in activities.

When they have choice, they feel validated and empowered. Students should also be allowed   to participate in activities that will also expresses their uniqueness. This will create the opportunity for all activities to transcend cultural barriers.

How can we accommodate diverse learner profiles in our classrooms? What must we beware of?

We need to remember that if a child doesn’t feel safe and secure then learning will not take place so we must ensure that learners are not placed in difficult situations that make them to feel isolated and unworthy.  It can be challenging to meet the needs of a culturally diverse classroom, there are many benefits. We, as teachers, have a unique opportunity to bring students together. We need to be careful that we create a classroom environment that is sensitive to all students’ cultural identities

 

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