Trelawney Matthys.

Through my engagement with the literature, peer discussions and weekly seminar activities within EXC440 - Teaching For Diversity, my understanding of diversity within the classroom has been developed and extended.

Personally, I have experienced a life of relative privilege due to my middle class up bringing and Anglo-Saxon background. Due to this, I was largely ignorant of the struggles experienced by diverse students within the classroom. I have now developed an understanding that many students who do not 'fit the bill' of the majority can be left behind, with their diverse experiences and skills left unacknowledged. 

This understanding has informed and developed my professional identity as a teacher, highlighting that it is essential I ensure I focus on supporting and celebrating diversity within my classroom.

The core of my professional philosophy is to ensure each and every one of my students is given equitable opportunities to achieve within my classroom. In order for this to be achieved a number of elements must be focused on:

Positive, Respectful & Meaningful Relationships:​
Meaningful relationships with students, based on mutual respect, an understanding of diversity and positive, thoughtful interactions provides teachers with a wealth of knowledge about individual students and a greats genuine connection with them. Due to these teacher-learner relationships teachers are able to cater to the diverse needs of students in planning, creating more equitable opportunities for each student to achieve and feel like their diversity is valued.

Supportive, Inclusive & Engaging Classroom Environment:
The first step to creating a classroom environment that supports diversity is to prevent assumptions and preconceived ideas from informing your decisions and interactions within the classroom. Teachers must also plan for student's individual needs, skills and interests within learning activities in order to promote engagement and provide support. It is essential that teachers draw on the knowledge gained from the meaningful relationships created with students in order to prevent assumptions and effectively plan for individual student needs.

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Diversity within the classroom will always be a relevant issue for teachers to consider. Unfortunately, there will never be a one-size fits all solution, simply due to the nature of diversity. As we know, each student is different and, therefore, each solution will be different. It is possible, however, to create more equitable opportunities for diverse learners to achieve through teachers making a commitment to developing their skills and knowledge surrounding diversity in the classroom.