Preparing the class to be culturally responsive and open to diversities

In today's educational landscape, schools and educational programs are embracing individuals from rich socio-cultural backgrounds. A major challenge for educators lies in not only assisting students in getting acquainted with their new cultural surroundings but also in cultivating critical thinking and open-mindedness that appreciate and embrace diversity.

​A special edition of the course “Intercultural learning and cultural diversity in the classroom​” took place in Bologna from 30/10/2023 to 03/11/2023. The participants came from Pruszyn Primary School in Poland, with Beata, Małgorzata, Martyna, Monika and Katarzyna.

The course started by recognizing the significance of pondering words. Participant altogether tried to build an understanding of what “cultural diversity” means to them and reflected with the trainer on the challenges and needs that they face in everyday job related to interculturality. Being prepared to welcome diversities, overcoming language barriers and building bridges across different cultural norms and behaviors emerged to be the key want to learn of our group.

We firstly delved into the concept of identity as an initial exploration to dig deeper into the realm of diversity. Through visual and storytelling exercises, our participants contemplated their own identities and value sets, and explored the interconnection between identity and culture. Next, we reflected on the societal dynamics that lead to the vicious cycle of stereotypes. Participants were invited to reflect about how stereotypes can convert into prejudices and discrimination, generating a vicious cycle that strengthens stereotypes. 

The biggest topic we explored was how to create an interculturally responsive class, the key ingredients considered have been cultural awareness, empathy and membership. First, participants have been involved in simulation activities to acknowledge and discuss about the challenges of intercultural communication. The activities can help students questioning common assumptions while thinking about finding connections among different cultures. The concept of empathy was explored with the goal of recognizing the best strategies to connect with students that are going through personal issues, this represented a chance for the participants to discuss about their perceived role as educators and not only teachers. Finally, we reflected on the importance of preparing students’ welcoming in the class in an inclusive way that could make the newly arrived students feel  full members of the class in a non threatening way. A set of group challenges adaptable to different subject and classroom activities was proposed to show the importance of including every student in the learning process and allowing everyone to bring valuable contributions. 

As part of the learning process and the (inter)cultural focus of the course, participants had the chance to get to know more about Italian culture, put some widely known stereotypes into context, share elements of the Polish culture, and learn language and curiosities about Italy in a fun and interactive way! 
Discover more about this course here.