Week 3 Assignment 1 Submission

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Assignment 1: Diversity and Inclusion Training Presentation

Due Week 3 and worth 185 points

Review the case study below titled “Terms of Endearment”, in which teacher Virginia Lawson is confronted with issues of racially insensitive name-calling in her classroom and struggles with handling the situation appropriately. As you read, imagine you are asked by the Principal at Greenstown High School to serve as a champion for issues of diversity and inclusion at your school. You have identified issues with diversity, cultural competence, and inclusivity among the students and staff.

Ms. Lawson was glad to be teaching math at Greenstown High School, a racially and economically diverse school. She previously had worked at predominantly white schools with very few students receiving free or reduced-price lunches. After losing her job due to budget cuts, and after taking a course on diversity while earning her Masters of Arts in Teaching degree, she accepted a job teaching in a more diverse environment. She arrived at Greenstown feeling eager and prepared to take on a more culturally diverse student body.

Several weeks into her first year at Greenstown, Ms. Lawson was happy about how well she had adjusted to her new environment. She had taken several measures early in the school year to demonstrate her commitment to racial equity, and it seemed as though students were responding positively. She was especially pleased when she saw students of color reading the Diversity in Mathematics posters she hung around the room, highlighting historically important mathematicians of color from around the world.

The students complained a little — predictably, she thought — in all of her classes on the second day of school when, responding to the racially segregated seating patterns she noticed on the first day of class, she re-assigned seats. She never mentioned her reason for assigning seats, though, and students were accustomed to seat assignments from some of their other classes, so that tension passed quickly. All in all, things were progressing smoothly.

One afternoon around mid-October, as she gathered her materials for her fifth-period class and students made their way into her classroom, Ms. Lawson overheard one of her students use the n-word. Understanding how inflammatory the n-word can be, her immediate reaction was concern that there would be a fight in her classroom. When she looked up from her desk and peered toward the back of her classroom, where she was sure the word came from, she was surprised to see Reggie, an African American student, Adolfo, a Latino student, and Anthony, a white student, all laughing together.

“Who said that”? Ms. Lawson asked as she stood and walked toward the back of the room.

“Said what?” Adolfo asked, still laughing.

“You all know exactly what I mean. The n-word,” Ms. Lawson replied. Nobody responded, but Adolfo and Reggie both glanced at Anthony.

“Anthony?” Ms. Lawson prodded.

“I didn’t say the n-word, I said n-i-g-g-a, nigga,” he explained. Ms. Lawson was unsettled by how confident Anthony sounded, as though he really did not believe he had done anything wrong. “I always call Reggie that,” he continued. “He’s cool with it. It’s a term of endearment.”

Keisha, an African American young woman who had overheard their conversation, interjected, “That’s no term of endearment, you idiot. It’s racist. And you’re lucky you’re not getting a beatdown right now for saying it.” 

“Enough of that,” Ms. Lawson said, glaring at Keisha. “There won’t be any threats of violence in this classroom. Sit down and let me take care of this.”

Unsure what to say next, Ms. Lawson turned toward Reggie. He no longer was laughing and, she thought, was beginning to look uncomfortable.

“Is that true, Reggie, that he calls you that all the time and you’re fine with it?” she asked.

“It’s no big deal,” Anthony explained. “Right, Reg?” he asked playfully, nudging Reggie with his elbow.

“Reggie can speak for himself,” Ms. Lawson said, then looked back at Reggie, who was looking even more uncomfortable. Just then, the start-of-class bell rang and Ms. Lawson looked up to see everybody in the room staring at her and Reggie. Feeling that, whatever he really felt about Anthony’s use of the n-word, Reggie was even more uneasy with the spotlight she was shining on him in that moment, she decided to drop the issue and commence with teaching class.

As she walked back toward her desk, she said with a half-defeated sigh, “Please remember, everyone, that one of our community norms is respect. I don’t care you how pronounce it or what you mean by it, there is no room in this classroom for that kind of language.” She knew, even as she was making that statement, that she had not handled the situation well. She also knew she needed to figure out a way to respond more thoughtfully in case it happened again.

Training Policy Document and Presentation Assignment

You will need to create a training presentation in which you share various aspects of diversity and inclusion and their importance to the school in a one (1) page policy document to be shared with the trainees.

Training Requirements

 Be sure the presentation includes:

• An explanation of diversity and inclusion, including their various components/aspects.
• Examples of what inclusion might look like throughout the school and within individual classrooms with teachers, staff, and students.
• Strategies for fostering diversity and inclusion within the school environment and classroom setting.
• Tips for how to deal with situations similar to what is presented in the case study.
• New policy information for the school (what is outlined in the one [1] page policy document; refer to the presentation requirements).

Presentation Requirements 

You may use Prezi or PowerPoint to design this presentation. Be sure the presentation meets these requirements: 

• Includes ten to twelve (10-12) slides
• A title slide that includes your name, the professor’s name, course title, and date. Note: This slide is not included in the ten to twelve (10-12) slide requirement.
• Reference slide(s) that include at least four (4) peer-reviewed academic resources. (Please use https://research.strayer.edu to look for these resources.) These should be in APA format.

Policy Requirements 

Be sure your policy meets the following requirements:

• One-page single spaced
• Created in Microsoft Word
• Outlines your organization’s policy on diversity and inclusion.

The specific course learning outcome associated with this assignment is: 

• Determine how to foster inclusivity within a group of learners.

Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic/organization of the paper and presentation, and language and writing skills, using the following rubric:

Points: 185

Assignment 1: Diversity and Inclusion Training Presentation

Criteria

Unacceptable

Below 70% F

Fair

70-79% C

Proficient

80-89% B

Exemplary

90-100% A

1. Training includes an explanation of diversity and inclusion, including its various components/ aspects, and

examples of what inclusion might look like throughout the school and within individual classrooms, with teachers, staff, and students.

Weight: 25%

Does not explain what diversity inclusion is in the context of the learning environment. Lacks examples of what inclusion looks like in the school and within the classroom.

Partially explains what diversity inclusion is in the context of the learning environment. Contains broad examples of what inclusion looks like in the school and within the classroom.

Explains what diversity inclusion is in the context of the learning environment. Contains some specific and some broad examples of what inclusion looks like in the school and within the classroom.

Thoroughly explains what diversity inclusion is in the context of the learning environment. Contains specific examples of what inclusion looks like in the school and within the classroom.

2. Training includes strategies for fostering diversity & inclusion within the school environment and classroom setting.

Weight: 10%

Does not include strategies for fostering diversity and inclusion within the school and classroom setting.

Includes one (1) strategy for fostering diversity and inclusion within the school and classroom setting.

Includes two (2) strategies for fostering diversity and inclusion within the school and classroom setting.

Includes three (3) or more strategies for fostering diversity and inclusion within the school and classroom setting.

3. Training includes tips for how to deal with situations similar to what is presented in the case study and new policy information for the school.

Weight: 15%

Provides no tips for dealing with situations similar to what is presented in the case study. New policy is not communicated in any form.

Provides few or ineffective tips for dealing with situations similar to what is presented in the case study. New policy is not communicated within the training.

Provides tips for dealing with situations similar to what is presented in the case study. New policy shared and explained in some form during the presentation.

Provides clear and practical tips for dealing with situations similar to what is presented in the case study. New policy information is clearly and concisely shared during the presentation.

4. Presentation Requirements

Weight: 5%

Contains fewer than ten (10) slides. Is missing a title slide that includes your name, the professor’s name, course title, and date and/or a reference slide.

Contains fewer than ten (10) slides or more than 12 (twelve) slides, not including the title and reference slides.
Is missing or has an incomplete title slide that includes your name, the professor’s name, course title, and date and/or a reference slide.

Contains fewer than ten (10) slides or more than 12 (twelve) slides, not including the title and reference slides.
Contains a title slide that includes your name, the professor’s name, course title, and date and a reference slide.

Meets the requirement of ten to twelve (10-12) slides, not including the title and reference slides.

Contains a title slide that includes your name, the professor’s name, course title, and date and a reference slide.

5. Diversity and Inclusion Policy Document

Weight: 25%

Policy exceeds a 1 (one) page single spaced document or is not a full page. Fails to outline your organization’s policy on diversity and inclusion. OR no policy is created.

Policy partially addresses various aspects of diversity and inclusion and/or policy exceeds a one (1) page single spaced document, is created in Microsoft Word and partially outlines your organization’s policy on diversity and inclusion.

Policy thoroughly addresses various aspects of diversity and inclusion and may exceed a one (1) page single spaced document, is created in Microsoft Word and in-concisely but thoroughly outlines your organization’s policy on diversity and inclusion.

Policy thoroughly addresses various aspects of diversity and inclusion and is kept to a one (1) page single spaced document created in Microsoft Word and concisely but thoroughly outlines your organization’s policy on diversity and inclusion.

6. Use at least four (4) peer-reviewed academic resources in this assignment. Appropriate use of APA citations on reference slide.

Weight: 10%

No references provided. Lack of reference slide citations and / or lack of reference slide.

Does not meet the required number of references; some or all references poor-quality choices and/or Reference slide citations and references are provided, but they are only partially formatted correctly in APA style.

Meets required number of references; most references high-quality choices and/or most reference slide citations and references are provided, and they are generally formatted correctly in APA style.

Meets required number of references; all references high-quality choices. Reference slide citations and references are error free or almost error free and consistently formatted correctly in APA style.

7. Clarity of Writing, Writing Mechanics, Grammar, and Formatting.

Weight: 5%

Information is confusing to the reader. Serious and persistent errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, or formatting.

Information is partially clear. Partially free of errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, or formatting.

Information is mostly clear. Mostly free of errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, or formatting.

Information is provided in a clear, coherent, and consistent manner. Error free or almost error free grammar, spelling, punctuation, and formatting.

8. Information Literacy / Integration of Sources.

Weight: 5%

Serious errors in the integration of sources, such as intentional or accidental plagiarism, or failure to use in-text citations.

Sources are partially integrated using effective techniques of quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing.

Sources are mostly integrated using effective techniques of quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing.

Sources are consistently integrated using effective techniques of quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing.