Mikaela Deur

EDUC 302/303
Prof. Sjoerdsma, Prof. Terpstra
10/12/15
Statement of Faith-based Teaching and Learning
Culture defines who we are. It is what makes us unique. My
culture has shaped how I interact with people and what I enjoy. I value
time with my family, shared meals, and classical music because thats
what I grew up with. Out of my desire to become a teacher who is
culturally relevant comes my interest in stretching myself to learn
about other cultures.
As I step into this unit on traditional literature, I am reminded
that I bring my own distinct thoughts, opinions, and ideas with me. I
need to remember that each of my students will bring thoughts,
opinions, and ideas that are one-of-a-kind as well. Because I strive to
represent Christ in what I do, my job is to love and accept people as
they are. This means that I should respect different cultures and the
ways that they are expressed. As a Christian teacher in a public school,
this looks like valuing every students perspective on the traditional
literature, because they all come from different backgrounds and they
all have different insights which can help the class have a deeper and
more profound understanding of both different cultures and each other.
This connects well with Woolfolks idea of culturally relevant pedagogy.
Students need to have academic success, they need to grow their

cultural competence, and they need to develop their desire to change

the norm, to push against the status quo (2013).
These messages from the past are all about different worldviews
and celebrating the cultures that go with them. They give us a deeper
understanding of our world and the different traditions and habits that
others practice in it. Through this unit, I hope that my students will
become better global citizens: that they will recognize the importance
of studying stories that have been passed down through the
generations in parts of the world that may be different than ours.
I believe that every student and every culture should be valued.
There is so much that we can learn from each student about their ways
of life and ideas about how things should be done. When I allow my
students to interpret these three forms of traditional literature, I am
giving them the chance to understand culture themselves. They will be
able to connect with the stories on a deeper level if they understand
the background and context of where they were written.
This unit gives students the chance to take ownership of the
culture, history, and background. In the final lesson of the unit, they
will have the opportunity to create their own folktale, fable or myth.
This is a time in which they can create this greater global community in
the classroom and share about their own culture with their classmates.
As a Christian, I believe that I am called to love. In the context of
my unit, this looks like fully-heartedly embracing all different forms of

culture. In order for my students to know that I love and care about
who they are and what makes them special, they need to see me care
about the context of these folktales, myths, and fables that I will be
teaching them about.