Supporting Diversity with Intercultural Education in the Classroom

Description

Concept by Dženana Kalamujić, Jelena Posavec Smilović

In the time of globalization, cultures and identities constantly blend in the classroom. Teachers face classrooms full of students from different backgrounds and needs. In order to fight discrimination and prejudice, they are required to have more and more skills that standard education is not offering.

This course will give you tools and resources on how to successfully navigate an intercultural classroom.

The course will give teachers, as well as other professionals working with people of different backgrounds, a set of practical exercises and a legal framework that they can use in their classroom to create a more inclusive and diverse classroom.

With creative workshops, participants will build resilient classrooms that foster respect and give students not only a place to learn but also a place to thrive.

Learning outcomes

The course will help the participants to:  

• Learn tools that help you fight prejudice and discrimination;
• Encourage diversity and inclusion in the classroom;
• Learn about legal instruments to protect children from discrimination;
• Apply storytelling in your everyday work;
• Improve competencies for intercultural learning;
• Learn new approaches to culturally diverse classrooms.

Tentative schedule

Day 1 – Culture and identity

• Introduction to the course, the school, and the external week activities;
• Icebreaker activities;
• Presentations of the participants’ schools;
• Needs and expectations evaluation;
• Intercultural classroom as a new challenge for teachers;
• Exploring Identity and Culture in the classroom;
• Sharing experiences and challenges in your work.

Day 2 – Intercultural communication and stereotypes

• Learning about cultural patterns;
• Intercultural communication;
• High and low context cultures;
• Stereotypes and prejudices: their role in the perception process;
• Confronting personal prejudices.

Day 3 – Building teachers’ capacities related to anti-discrimination and equality

• Learning about EU anti-discrimination legal framework;
• Recognizing discrimination – practical empowerment exercises;
• Legal protection in case of discrimination;
• Understanding your responsibility to prevent discrimination in the group and work environment.

Day 4 – Building teachers’ competencies with storytelling

• The role of empathy in human relations;
• Storytelling as a tool for intercultural awareness;
• Storytelling and social change;
• Story circles and intercultural competence development.

Day 5 – Raising awareness and respect for an inclusive classroom

• Key competencies for an inclusive classroom;
• Emotional investigation;
• Practical exercises for building teachers’ capacity.

Day 6 – Course closure & cultural activities

• Course evaluation: round-up of acquired competencies, feedback, and discussion;
• Awarding of the course Certificate of Attendance;
• Excursion and other external cultural activities.