Record- For Tch and Lrn 339 our final assignment had us create a flyer about an English

Language Learner population in Washington State and then write a reflection about what we
aimed to do with that flyer. For this assignment, I focused on native Spanish speakers
specifically from Mexico as this group at the time made up about 60% of the English Language
Learner population within Washington State. In this assignment we focused on cultural aspects
and things that we as educators need to be aware of and can do to make our teaching inclusive
and accommodating for this cultural group. Specifically, a few of my ideas were to show
different perspectives whenever possible so that unique viewpoints are in our classroom, using
lots of visuals and hands on activities, reading diverse books that have Spanish words included
and being flexible with due dates. One thing noted on the flyer is how close knit families often
are and how family comes before anything else so that is why having flexible due dates is
important so that you can work with families if they need to go out of town, have an
emergency or any other life event. In my reflection for this assignment, For Tch and Lrn 420 we
wrote an inclusive philosophy statement to guide all of our teaching and highlight what we as
future educators found important and crucial in that role. In this statement, I emphasized the
importance of modeling inclusion and compassion to my students and to make including
diverse books and other materials into the classroom so that students can be exposed to all
types of people who may be different than them, including stories of ELL students.
Reflect- Looking back at my 339 final, I would want to add to a few things I could do to make all
students feel at home in my classroom and to include students’ culture. One idea would be to
ask a parent to come in and read a story to the class in their native language while I then read
the same book in English. This would be a fun activity where students could learn about
another culture and language that their classmate is a part of. Fostering relationships with
parents and caregivers ultimately benefits the student as I as an educator can learn more about
their home life and values within their family. With my Inclusive Philosophy statement, I want
to add more to it and continue to do so as I grow as an educator. Currently I would want to add
how important it is for students to share their identity with the class and have that be
celebrated through all about me projects and even just simple questions and by giving students
opportunities to share throughout the day.
Analyze- While revisiting my 390 final I wish I had found a way to include another cultural group
that isn’t as prevalent in Washington so I could educate myself on more specifics to be better
prepared to teach all students who enter my future classroom. After reading my Inclusive
Philosophy statement I wish I had included more information specific to ELL students.
Specifically, I could have talked more about cultural diversity instead of just diversity in general
which is much broader. Based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Students cannot focus in the
classroom if they do not feel secure or have their basic needs yet. Safety is the second need
that people need met before they can focus on anything else which includes how they feel at
home and if they feel safe in their environment. The third need is Love and Belonging which
encompasses feeling part of the group and welcome in that given space. If I have ELL students
who feel out of place in my classroom then I am automatically setting them up with a
disadvantage compared to other students as they won’t fully be able to reach the last two
needs of Esteem and Self-Actualization.
Act- Moving forward, it is crucial that I continue to get to know my ELL students, their cultures
and families so that I can best serve them in my classroom. In order to be inclusive of everyone
in my classroom I need to know everyone including their culture and backgrounds so that I can
teach each student to the best of my ability.