Information technology has spread its ubiquitous web across the entire universe and hence the world is not compartmentalized into narrow homogeneous demographies but is now a global village with a multicultural population.
Individuals and organizations can no longer indulge in the ostrich act and cling to prejudices regarding cultures that are different from their native culture.
Multicultural awareness is crucial to the growth and development of any organization and more so in schools where values are inculcated and young minds are moulded.
Inclusive education is the need of the hour and teacher sensitivity towards varied multicultural contexts and expectations is critical to foster positive classroom environments that directly impact student attainment.
With greater outsourcing and the job market providing opportunities for aspirants across the globe, international schools with a diverse student population are burgeoning across the world.
It is therefore increasingly important for people to work collaboratively, with mutual respect in a pluralistic society with teachers developing and refining their cross-cultural pedagogy to cater to the needs of a diverse population of students.
International schools are teeming with cultural diversity and on a daily basis teachers interact with culturally different students, colleagues, parents and community members.
The mission statements of most schools encourage global citizenship as schools seek to intentionally promote diversity through an inclusive ethos. Inspection and accreditation bodies lay emphasis on education for all groups of learners and differentiation is a high priority to ensure that schools receive a creditable rating.
This means that inclusion not only includes students with special needs, talents and giftedness but also students who belong to different nationalities and ethnicities.
Teachers sensitive to the needs of all students will definitely promote a culture of harmony, shared understanding, support and tolerance in their classrooms.
Research suggests that besides teachers’ curricular and instructional accommodations their cultural knowledge and awareness can make a major difference in student learning and engagement.
Culturally sensitive pedagogy is instrumental in creating an atmosphere that is comfortable and friendly and students willingly engage in classroom activities and discussions when they perceive their teacher to be more culturally competent.
Teachers’ unconditional positive regard for all students through support and trust is exponentially linked to high student engagement as students feel a sense of belonging and value in the classroom.
This filters down to the fact that inclusive school environments require a specialized approach that focusses on:
= a student centered approach to motivate all groups of learners
= creating an environment of mutual trust that builds self esteem
= teaching students life-long learning skills which include collaboration, peer support and accepting differing views and opinions
= engaging students in challenging tasks that promote critical thinking and problem solving
= providing adequate support to help students identify and achieve their innate potential
= ensuring high expectations that demand sustained performance
As part of the teachers’ professional development it is of vital importance to ensure that these competencies form an integral part of their repertoire of culturally sensitive pedagogy along with additional skills that include curriculum content, learning climate, instructional strategies, and interpersonal interactions.
Having worked in UAE for more than three decades, witnessing it developing into a bustling metropolis of multicultural awareness with a very diverse population estimated at 10 million, of which only 10% are UAE nationals and the remainder are made up of expatriates.
The UAE is home to over 200 nationalities and its leaders are deeply committed to promoting cultural understanding and awareness and a vision of universal peace. The educational landscape offers enriched environment for cultural sensitization to practicing educators with powerful insights.
The privilege to work for GEMS Education, as Global Head, an international community based in UAE committed to supporting the vision of the leaders, operates in 14 countries is a hub of multicultural diversity with students from over 150 nationalities across the Middle East, North America, Europe, Asia and Africa and with over 13,000 educators from across the globe.
The organization epitomizes ‘unity in diversity’ as the teachers have an edge over their contemporaries in other schools due to their exposure to so many different cultures. GEMS schools’ USP is its unique offering of multiple curricular choices – IB, IGCSE, CBSE or American, where culturally sensitive pedagogy caters to diverse needs of the international community and is embedded through differentiation strategies that take into account the individual differences and needs of the students.
These schools are closely aligned with the regulatory bodies across the educational sector in Middle East KHDA, ADEC, and MOE. These bodies are instrumental in conducting school Inspections with differentiation being a key focus area and learning for all groups of learners is a mandatory requirement for an outstanding rating in school evaluations.
Multicultural competency is therefore an integral part of leadership training as this will be the first step towards laying the foundation of a pluralistic society that promotes tolerance and global harmony. Accordingly schools across our state must recognise that multicultural awareness will boost teacher competencies and improve learner standards.
Fortunately some progressive schools have come forward and were willing to support the idea of Audit and capacity building which is very reassuring. The management and leadership of these schools have become willing partners on this great journey of exploration and learning.
Our ability to change dreams and thoughts into actions inspires us to not only aspire for the seemingly impossible but also to achieve it and to explore unchartered territories to realize that teachers influence eternity and they must stay on continuous learning curve.
Cultural competencies will offer multiple opportunities to teachers in the valley to seek employment outside the state. School is a miniature society and their goodness will reflect if they create a culture of celebrating and cherishing diversity.
Dr. Farooq Ahmad Wasil, a published author, and an educationist, is Consultant and Advisor, to TSPL (Thinksite Services Private Limited) He has over 3 decades of experience in the field of education Management – setting up, operating and managing schools.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of GK.