“Diversity in the classroom: teaching tolerance and overcoming prejudices and

discrimination”
http://www.erasmustrainingcourses.com/teaching-diversity.html

COURSE OVERVIEW
The course “Diversity in the classroom” explores key challenges and strategies related to addressing
diversity in the school environment and promoting tolerance. As teachers and education staff, we always
aim for our student to be successful, to have the right knowledge, skills and attitudes to find their best
place in the society we live in. Our modern society is extremely diversified as well as multicultural, as such,
promoting diversity and tolerance in the classroomhas become a crucial goal for teachers, school and adult
education.
Building empathic and open-minded characters welcoming for diversity can make a real impact for learners
and for the whole society. Participating in this course teachers and education staff will share and discuss
challenges, best practices and strategies about promoting tolerance and acknowledging and celebrating
diversity in the classroom.

MAIN OBJECTIVES
This course aims to provide teachers and education staff working in a diverse environment or interested in
developing students’ tolerance with tools, strategies and best practices to address and promote diversity in
the classroom and overcoming prejudices and discrimination.
Thanks to this course the participants will:
- Get familiar with the key challenges and concerns in acknowledging and promoting diversity;
- Share and discuss concrete examples, ideas and tools to inspire and support teachers in their lesson
planning;
- Learn how confront head-on stereotypes and personal prejudices, while developing cultural sensibilities
and tolerance;
- Explore different points of view through the participation of simulation exercises and storytelling;
- Learn new teaching methods and tools that can be applied to promote diversity and tolerance in the
classroom;
- Exchange good practices and discuss challenges with fellow teachers and the course trainers.

TARGET AUDIENCE
This course is addressed to teachers, trainers, educational counsellors, career counsellors, school
psychologists, headmasters, school management and administrative staff working in primary schools,
secondary schools, vocational schools, training centres, adulteducation schools, highereducation,
kindergarten and NGOs.
Please mind that the coursemay include teachers from different school levels. In case youwould like to
attend a session tailored for your school level, pleasewrite to staff@ifom.info to check ifthereisany session
planned.

DAILY PROGRAMME
Please find below the standard indicative daily programme that will be personalized on participants needs
and professional profiles.
Our standard programme comprises 7 days, of which the first one is dedicated to networking, preparation
and cultural immersion and the last one to follow up, specific needs and cultural activities. Please note that
we always do our best to accommodate the specific needs of our participants in a flexible way, including
but not limited to budget restrictions and travel arrangements. Participants can choose to arrive 1 day
before the start of the course and/or leave one day after the end of it in order to enjoy a deeper cultural
immersion in Italy. Upon specific request we may organize longer versions of this course.
Day 1
- Participants arrival
- Individual orientation and information about the venue and the city
- Networking activities
- Guided visit in Bologna
- Welcome dinner
Day 2
- Course introduction
- Teambuilding exercises
- Needs and expectations evaluation
- Diversity in the classroom: the education challenges of a diverse and rapidly changing society
- Sharing experiences and challenges in working in diverse and multicultural schools
Day 3
- Morning wrap-up
- Developing intercultural competence as a teacher
- Stereotypes and prejudices at school: how to stop the vicious cycle
- Cultural activities in Bologna and traditional Italian aperitif
Day 4
- Morning wrap-up
- How to foster students’ tolerance and intercultural awareness
- Resources for a successful tolerant and open-minded classroom
- Guided visit in Florence (optional)
Day 5
- Morning wrap-up
- The extra benefit of using non-formal education methods to foster open-mindedness and empathy
- Practicing, designing and delivering non-formal activities and tools
- Cooperating with NGOS and the local community to strengthenpupilstolerance
Day 6
- Morning wrap-up
- Activities for the classroom: concrete ways to fight stereotypes and prejudices and fostering tolerance in
the classroom
- How to create welcoming and inclusive school environment for all diversities
- Dinner in traditional Italian restaurant
Day 7
- Space for discussion of future cooperation and planning follow up activities
- Course roundup and final evaluation
- Validation of learning outcomes and certification ceremony
- Additional training session tailored to specific needs (optional)
- Cultural activities or additional guided visit in another major Italian city (optional)
- Participants departure

METHODOLOGY
We tailor the working methods based upon participants’ needs, attitudes and professional profiles in order
to ensure high productivity, effectiveness and transferability into practice.
The standard methodology is highly practical and participative with hands-on approach that comprises real-
job examples, case studies examination and simulations. We embrace collaboratively working methods that
foster mutual learning and cooperation among participants. Our focus is on learning in an interactive and
international environment knowledge applicable to the real contexts and/or in the classroom. The
pedagogical methods that we use are based upon experiential training, group and peer activities, learning-
by-doing and best practices’ exchange. They include visits with local schools and institutions allowing the
participants to better understand the local education system as well as exchange ideas and contacts.
Morning Wrap-up and brief daily evaluations are foreseen to ensure quality of education and to adapt the
learning programme to participants' needs better tailoring the education.
We organize optional social, networking and cultural activities in order to give participants the opportunity
to know Italy as well as to exchange best-practice and establish professional cooperation and links.
We organize optional social, networking and cultural activities in order to give participants the opportunity
to know Italy as well as to exchange best-practice and establish professional cooperation and links.
The training and staff team is multinational thus giving a full European dimension to the course.