Inclusive Classroom Practice Discussion 2022

Running head: INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM PRACTICE
INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM PRACTICE
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM PRACTICE
As stated by Irvin (2016), the transformation that the societal framework of the different
nations of the world had undergone in the present times becomes perceptible when the diversity
of people coexisting side-by-side is being taken into account. Cooke and Jacobs (2018) are of the
viewpoint that the process of diversity even becomes perceptible within the classroom
environment of the diverse educational institutions as well wherein unlike the earlier times the
students are from different backgrounds, be it in terms of social, cultural, economic and others.
More importantly, it had been seen that the teachers or the educators are required to play an ever-
important role since they not only need to impart the required education education to the students
but also create the kind of classroom climate wherein the students would respect and appreciate
each others’ differences. This essay intends to discuss the importance of the usage of diversity
and inclusion within the classroom environment of the diverse educational institutions.
Garvey and Rankin (2015) are of the viewpoint that the change which had undergone in
the educational framework becomes apparent when the fact that unlike the earlier times when
education was restricted to only a handful of children presently children from all strata of society
have the opportunity to study is being taken into account. Adding to this, Schwarzenthal et al.
(2018) have noted that this transformation had been made possible through the effective usage of
the concepts of Diversity and inclusion by the different educational institutions for imparting the
required education to the children. As discussed by Booker, Merriweather and Campbell-
Whatley (2016), the primary reason behind the usage of the concepts of diversity and inclusion
within the classroom setting is to ensure the fact that equal educational or for that matter learning
opportunities are being available to all the students regardless of the social, cultural, economic
backgrounds or the other differences in their backgrounds. More importantly, the educators or
for that matter the teachers are also required to ensure the fact that the students do not

2INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM PRACTICE
discriminate each other on the basis of the differences in their backgrounds or the strata of the
society from which they hail from (Geske, 2018). Thus, it becomes imperative for the educators
and the teachers to create the kind of environment within the classroom wherein the social or the
cultural differences would not only be acknowledged but respected as well. This in would greatly
facilitate the process of knowledge transfer or knowledge sharing between the teacher and the
students and also among the students themselves as well.
As discussed by Vaz et al. (2015), an important reason which had influenced the various
educational institutions and also the teachers who are associated with the same to undertake the
arduous task of fostering diversity within the classroom environment can be ascribed to the
benefits which the usage of the concerned process offers. Gómez-Zepeda et al. (2017) are of the
viewpoint that the effective usage of the process of diversity within the classroom environment
greatly improves the quality of the education that is imparted to the students by the teachers. For
instance, the students from different cultural or social background hold different perspectives
about society, life and other important things which are unique to their culture. Thus, if diversity
is being promoted the classmates would be able to share this knowledge and thereby improve
their outlook on life, society and others which in turn is going to positively affect their cognitive
development. Furthermore, if the classroom is divers, the teachers or for that matter the
educational institutions have the opportunity to devise or formulate the kind of curriculum which
will integrate topics from all major cultures or backgrounds (Kaur, Noman & Awang-Hashim,
2016). This would greatly improve the quality of things which are being taught to the students
and thereby facilitate their cognitive development.
Vommi and LaVergne (2016) are of the viewpoint that the teachers as well as the
educational institutions by fostering diversity and inclusion within the classroom environment

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have the opportunity to help the students gain cultural or social intelligence. Adding to this,
Schachner et al. (2016) have noted that the concept of social or cultural intelligence had become
vital from the perspective of the contemporary world wherein it is seen that the individuals are
required to work or for that matter cohabit with people from other backgrounds. Thus, it is likely
that by fostering diversity within the classroom setting, the teachers would be able to help the
students acquire social or cultural intelligence which in turn would help them to not only
acknowledge but also respect the culture or the traditions followed by the people from other
backgrounds. However, despite the benefits offered by the usage of the processes of diversity
and inclusion within the classroom setting, it is seen that not many educational institutions or the
teachers like to use the same because of the challenges involved in the same.
According to Askew (2015), an important factor which influences the integration of
diversity and inclusion within the classroom environment can be attributed to the teacher’s
actions or attitude towards the students or for that matter the manner in which the education is
being imparted to the students by them. More importantly, the teachers and also the students
need to celebrate the diversity within the classroom rather than accepting or for that matter
tolerating the same (Irvin, 2016). Booker, Merriweather and Campbell-Whatley (2016) are of the
teachers or for that matter the educators are required to ensure the fact that they themselves do
not indulge in the process of discrimination or favoritism and all the students are being treated
equally. Furthermore, the teachers are themselves required to have a positive attitude or for that
matter behavior towards all the students. Moreover, the adequate usage of the operant
conditioning theory is highly recommended for the promotion of diversity and inclusion within
the classroom setting for the teachers and the educational institutions.

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Cooke and Jacobs (2018) have noted that the teachers in order to create adequate
classroom climate wherein diversity of the students would be respected should try to design her
teaching plan by taking into account examples, fables, anecdotes, stories and others from the
different cultures. This in turn would help the teachers or the educators to offer the required
cultural information to the students and thereby help them to overcome the bias that they hold
against the people from other cultural or social backgrounds. In addition to these, the teachers in
order to cascade the required cultural information and also to promote bonding among the
students from diverse backgrounds needs to organize outdoor planned supervised trips to the
different cultural heritage sites (Geske, 2018). This in turn would enable the students to
understand the rich culture heritage of the different cultures and thereby develop a feeling of
respect towards the people from other cultures. Lastly, the teachers and the educational
institutions need to formulate adequate policies for dealing with the students who purposely
discriminate the students from other backgrounds or for that matter indulge in bullying or
discriminating them.
To conclude, diversity and inclusion had become an important part of the classroom
environment of the different educational institutions. More importantly, the students and the
teachers rather than merely tolerating or for that matter accepting the diversity within the
classroom need to celebrate the same. This in turn would enable them to derive the maximum
amount of benefit from the diversity within the classroom setting. Furthermore, the educators or
the teachers are required to display a positive attitude or behavior towards the students within the
classroom from diverse background and this in turn would help in the creation of the kind of
classroom setting wherein the students from different backgrounds would be able to come
together and learn in the best possible manner.

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References
Askew, M. (2015). Diversity, inclusion and equity in mathematics classrooms: From individual
problems to collective possibility. In Diversity in mathematics education(pp. 129-145).
Springer, Cham.
Booker, K. C., Merriweather, L., & Campbell-Whatley, G. (2016). The Effects of Diversity
Training on Faculty and Students' Classroom Experiences. International Journal for the
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 10(1), n1.
Cooke, N. A., & Jacobs, J. A. (2018). Diversity and cultural competence in the LIS classroom: A
curriculum audit. Urban Library Journal, 24(1), 2.
Garvey, J. C., & Rankin, S. R. (2015). Making the grade? Classroom climate for LGBTQ
students across gender conformity. Journal of Student Affairs Research and
Practice, 52(2), 190-203.
Geske, J. (2018). Creating Inclusive Groups in the Advertising Classroom. Journal of
Advertising Education, 22(1), 34-48.
Gómez-Zepeda, G., Petreñas, C., Sabando, D., & Puigdellívol, I. (2017). The role of the Support
and Attention to Diversity Teacher (SADT) from a community-based perspective:
Promoting educational success and educational inclusion for all. Teaching and Teacher
Education, 64, 127-138.
Irvin, V. (2016). Gazing the diversity stance in North America: Bringing practitioner inquiry into
the LIS classroom. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 57(2),
151-160.

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Kaur, A., Noman, M., & Awang-Hashim, R. (2016). Exploring strategies of teaching and
classroom practices in response to challenges of inclusion in a Thai school: a case
study. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 20(5), 474-485.
Schachner, M. K., Noack, P., Van de Vijver, F. J., & Eckstein, K. (2016). Cultural diversity
climate and psychological adjustment at school—Equality and inclusion versus cultural
pluralism. Child development, 87(4), 1175-1191.
Schwarzenthal, M., Schachner, M. K., van de Vijver, F. J., & Juang, L. P. (2018). Equal but
different: Effects of equality/inclusion and cultural pluralism on intergroup outcomes in
multiethnic classrooms. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 24(2), 260.
Vaz, S., Wilson, N., Falkmer, M., Sim, A., Scott, M., Cordier, R., & Falkmer, T. (2015). Factors
associated with primary school teachers’ attitudes towards the inclusion of students with
disabilities. PloS one, 10(8), e0137002.
Vommi, H. K., & LaVergne, D. D. (2016, February). Analyzing the Needs of High School
Agricultural Education Teachers towards Classroom Diversity & Inclusion. In Southern
Region Conference of the American Association for Agricultural Education (p. 84).