-- Contributed by Eileen
Gale Kugler
 |
| Photo by WoodleyWonderWorks |
A high school chemistry teacher
engaged his students in a discussion of the relationship of science and
society, which quickly evolved into safety testing and animal rights. A student
in the back shyly raised his hand. “What are ‘animal rights’?” he asked.
Recently emigrating from an African country to escape starvation, his deep
connection to animals was based in their vital role of providing food and
clothing. The rest of the class thoughtfully quieted. Many had never considered
what it might be like if they didn’t come home to a well-stocked refrigerator,
complete with vegetarian options. The teacher knew this was a moment of
awareness that he couldn’t have taught alone. His students were thinking
critically beyond their own frame of reference, inspired by a peer.
A kindergartener told a visitor that her friend would not be in
class that day. Her classmate was visiting his grandparents in Korea. This
young student could even show you where Korea is on the map in the front of the
room. Her world view, at five, was that her friends might have family who were
not born in the same place as hers, who ate different foods, who sometimes used
words she didn’t understand. She couldn’t wait for her friend to come back to
see what new things he would bring for show-and-tell from far-away Korea.
A
young mother worried that her son would be teased at school. In first grade, he
wore a baseball cap to cover his bald head, the result of the disease alopecia areata. But his head became
itchy and he soon took the cap off. What happened that year and the rest of his
time at this school? Nothing. Because at this school, there was no such thing
as being “different” – some students sang songs in Spanish, some had freckles
that came out when they played in the sun, some wound their long hair in
turbans, and some had no hair. That’s just life.
Yes,
this is life in schools with immigrant students. There are enrichments on so
many levels because of the diversity of experiences and background knowledge. A
middle school world history teacher put the academic enhancements this way: “I
know I have to be extra prepared for what I teach every day because the
students bring such a range of perspectives and insights to discussions,”
adding, “That’s why I love teaching in this school.”
The
many contributions of immigrant students go largely unnoticed. Our society
values schools based on their high average test scores or the predominance of
middle-class students (strongly linked together), ignoring the unique benefits
of schools rich with immigrant students of every economic level. Many
American-born parents with the luxury of choosing a school seek places where
there are others with backgrounds like their own child, rather than seeing the
value – academic as well as social – in schools with immigrant students.
Immigrant
students and their families contribute to the learning of every one who is a
part of that school. I know this first-hand from the experiences of my family
as our children went to one of the most ethnically and economically diverse
public high schools in the country, in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. They are
now well-educated broad-minded adults, engaged in the world around them. And my
husband and I learned so much from the immigrant families, like resilience and
commitment, all the while enjoying the opportunity to share in family
celebrations from a quinceañera, a joyous coming-of-age for a 15-year old
Latina, to a Seik wedding with the groom riding in on a white horse.
And
I know the benefits that immigrants bring to a school from my work
strengthening school culture around the world over the past decade. With
diverse perspectives and insights, classroom discussions become more dynamic.
Students learn to question more, to think more deeply, and to collaborate
effectively with those who are different from themselves. They become better
problem-solvers, understanding that there is more than one "right” perspective.
Stereotypes
break down and evaporate in these schools. At a high school basketball game, a
mother wondered out loud why the star player was a little off. Her daughter
rolled her eyes, saying, “Mom, don’t you know it is Ramadan and she fasted all
day?”
But
this enriched learning environment doesn’t take place in every multicultural
school. Only
when immigrant students feel truly connected to school will they engage in
their learning and share their own wisdom. It takes hard work from the school
leadership and the entire school community to create a culture of equity where
every student, and every family, feels authentically welcomed and valued. As
one experienced principal said to me, “When we saw an influx of immigrant students
to our school, we thought all we had to do was welcome them with open arms. But
we soon learned that is not enough.”
Instead
of focusing on test-taking skills and fact drills to diminish the achievement
gap, schools need to first pay attention to building a culture that says every
student of every background has value. It requires some challenging
introspection about how the school and the classrooms operate, beyond the
curriculum and instructional methods.
Tough
questions need to be asked. Do the “traditions” of the school mean we do it the way it has always been done
and newcomers must just fit in? Are English Language Learners isolated in a
corner of the school with little integration into school life? Are immigrants
viewed as people who need simply to be taught the American way, with no one
listening to the lessons that they can teach the rest? Are well-meaning
teachers lowering expectations for immigrant students out of pity because they
focus on what they may lack?
Creating
a culture of equity is important to American society because of the inherent
unfairness of providing some students a meaningful education and some not. But
it is more than that. It is about valuing the innate ability of every child,
recognizing their strengths, and helping them thrive and contribute in school
and in society at large. This benefits each of us, and the future of American
society depends upon it.
Parents
like me, whose children were part of strong multicultural schools, know that
our families were given a gift. Yet we still fight the image that a
multicultural school is not academically challenging, not a good place for
every student.
“How
can we get parents beyond these school walls to understand how special these
schools are?” asked a parent at a community dialogue I led. By sharing the
truth, I replied.
Let’s
break down the myths and hail the values that immigrant students bring to our
schools every day. We all need the lessons that they can teach us.
***
Eileen Gale Kugler helps schools
develop positive high-achieving culture that values every student and family.
She is author of the award-winning “Debunking the Middle-class Myth: Why
Diverse Schools are Good for All Kids” and Executive Editor of the global
resource, Innovative
Voices in Education: Engaging Diverse Communities. She can be reached at
EKugler@EmbraceDiverseSchools. Follow her on Twitter at @embracediversiT
Want to read
more? Click here
to purchase Innovative Voices in Education: Engaging Diverse Communities and read
our book
review of this important resource.
Join our free summer book club! Combat
summer reading loss and learn about immigration with high school students,
parents, and administrators with our guidance. Click here for
details to sign up by Friday, June 5, 2015.
No comments:
Post a Comment