From the beginning of my academic career, I have been immersed in diversity. The preschool, grade school, and high school I attended was lucky enough to have many languages spoken, religions practiced, and a wide range of abilities in academics. But my acceptance for diversity started way before my schooling experience. My parents are two different religions, my father is Jewish and my mother is Catholic. I was raised Catholic, but half of my family is Jewish. Now, some people may say I'm really lucky because I am able to celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah, but it is a lot more than that. I consider myself extremely lucky because I was able to learn about both religions, which not everyone is able to do without taking a course. I never thought about how luck I was growing up in such a diverse setting until I attended college. When I attended college, people were shocked by all the different religions and cultures at my school. People had no idea what it would be like going to class with someone who was a different race. My friend graduated from high school, and everyone who graduated with her was Caucasian. At my high school, 40% of the student body checked something besides Caucasian on the standardized tests.
Having such a diverse background makes me who I am, and I wouldn't change it for the world. I am proud of my background, and feel a lot more accepting of others. When I teach, I hope to teach my students just that. My major is Special Education, so I am hoping to get a job teaching higher to medium function children with Autism. I want to make sure all of my students are happy and confident with themselves. I know its difficult for some students in the Special Education department to have a high self-esteem, because they may be picked on by their peers. Knowing this, I want to embrace differences as a whole in my classroom. The decorations in my room will be pictures of kids of all differences, not just the color of their skin. I want pictures of children with glasses, different hair color, short, tall, in wheel chairs, etc. If I can't find posters that reflect the differences in people, especially people at our school I will make a collage of pictures of students in our class. That way the students see that they are accepted into the classroom. Once my students feel confident with themselves, there positive energy will bounce off of others, forming positive vibes. I will also use personal stories to help relate a concept to my students, this way they can put a concept and a story together. I strongly believe that the children of today, are tomorrows future; and in order to change the way people think we need to start with children.
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