Written by Margaret Nelson
Teacher diversity has become an important issue in recent years, especially as student bodies have become more diverse. It's hard to pinpoint a definition of teacher diversity, but the former Secretary of Education Richard Riley summarized it by saying that ''our teachers should look like America.' ' According to the Drexel University School of Education, Public Schools became Majority-Minority in 2014, meaning that for the first time, African American, Latin American, and Asian students outnumbered white students. Organizations like the U.S. Census Bureau predict that this diversity will only increase.
Despite this growth in diversity among students, educator diversity has lagged. According to the most recent data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics, during the 2017-2018 school year:
Experts have debated the reasons for this shortage, but many have determined that educational inequality and college costs have discouraged students of color from pursuing a career in education. Particularly notable are the low rates of academic achievement among students of color, largely the result of this inequality. The Center of American Progress reported that:
Even when students of color graduate from high school and enter college, they are not guaranteed to graduate. In fact, The Center of American Progress also stated that only 40.5 percent of Black students and 46.8 percent of Latin American students completed college within six years. High school diplomas and college degrees are mandatory for most teaching positions, so if students cannot complete their education, this presents a significant barrier to entering the education field.
The cost of college is also a barrier to teacher diversity. Even if students of color have the opportunity to go to college, the high cost of their education combined with the low pay of teachers means that many turn down a career in education. In 2020, the average salary for elementary and secondary school teachers (not including special education and career/technical education) was $60,940 and $62,870, respectively. Meanwhile, during the 2019-2020 school year, the average total cost of attendance at public four-year universities was $25,500 for students living on campus. Between the high cost of college and the low teacher salary, many students look for more lucrative jobs to make it easier to pay back student loans.
There are many reasons why teacher diversity does not match the diversity of the student population in the United States. However, because of this increase in student diversity, educators must be equipped to meet their needs.
Now that we have discussed what teacher diversity is, we need to discuss why it is essential and worth the effort to increase diversity. After all, many school administrators are already overworked, underpaid, and under-resourced. For such administrators, it can be challenging to change the status quo and how things are done, especially if there's no support available. And these obstacles do not consider the financial stresses that many public schools face. If the district does not have enough money, then it can be even harder to recruit teachers and expand diversity among educators.
When confronted with all of these obstacles, one might argue that the process takes too much time and too many resources with very few benefits in return. This could not be further from the truth, though. There are many benefits associated with diversity. Specifically, researchers have determined that educator diversity leads to improvements in learning, enhanced behaviors and attitudes, and students' real-world experiences.
There have been many studies that illustrate the improvements in learning for students of color when they have a teacher of the same race and ethnicity, and this is especially true in schools with high rates of poverty and large populations of at-risk students. While there are many reasons for this, there are three big ones: students of color benefit from seeing racial role models, higher expectations for students of color, and viewing student behaviors and attitudes through their own cultural context.
Researchers have seen that students of color benefit from seeing adults who look like them at school, especially when these adults are authority figures. A few researchers have further elaborated on this idea, theorizing that role models who demonstrate success might help them to see the possibilities for themselves.
Other researchers have said that teachers of color tend to have higher academic and behavioral expectations for their students. It is theorized that compared to white students, students of color might be more sensitive to educator assumptions about their abilities. Pessimistic beliefs about student behavior and performance can become a self-fulfilling prophecy, so by increasing expectations, educators allow students to rise to the occasion and expand their abilities.
Lastly, diverse educators might be better able to view student behavior and attitudes through the lens of their own cultural backgrounds. It has been well-documented that Black students often receive harsher discipline than other students, even when controlling for other factors, such as the severity of the offense. This phenomenon can negatively affect the perceptions of students of color, which can solidify negative stereotypes.
In addition to these improvements in learning, having diverse educators improves student behavior and attitudes. While there are a wide variety of ways that diverse educators improve student behavior and attitudes, the main ways this diversity impacts students include increasing empathy and open-mindedness, learning how to better navigate conversations about race and culture, and gaining a more nuanced view of the world.
One of the biggest strengths of educator diversity is that it helps students to develop a sense of empathy towards others. However, students often are not exposed to diversity at home; they are often only exposed to people who think, look and act like them. Part of this has to do with the tendency to seek out information that reinforces existing beliefs. And with tools like the internet and social media, it is even easier for people to develop echo chambers, which makes it even harder to process new perspectives. With the rise in the popularity of social media, some studies have explored its impact on the ability of users to encounter different ideas. In fact, one study showed that even though there are differences in how each social media algorithm operates, they tend to reinforce the beliefs of users by providing posts similar to ones they have already interacted with.
Aside from social media, our biases as human beings often reinforce our echo chambers as well. According to two studies, children as young as six to nine months old might exhibit racial bias. These studies noted that even young children can show a preference for their own race over people of other races. Notably, one of the causes of this phenomenon might be a lack of exposure to people of other races, and it is thought that this bias could fuel racism and racial bias later in life. Because this bias has been observed in young children, it is even more important that students have the opportunity to interact with diverse groups of people.
Because of the strength of these echo chambers and our hard-wired biases, students need to have opportunities to learn about new perspectives in a safe, supportive environment. By creating personal connections with people of different races and cultures, students are likely to see how their attitudes and actions affect others, which provides opportunities to increase empathy and open-mindedness.
In addition, students who receive support during these conversations become more comfortable having them later in life. Diverse educators are often in a unique position to have conversations about culture and race because they can draw on their own experiences. Having educators who are comfortable talking about race and culture provide students with a role model for how to navigate these conversations. They can see for themselves that these conversations do not have to be difficult, awkward, or scary. By practicing these conversations in school, students will develop the capacity to have these conversations and navigate these topics later in life.
Lastly, by exposing the students to multiple viewpoints, educators are helping them to appreciate the nuances in various situations. For example, if students only learned about slavery from a white perspective, they would likely view it differently than if they learned about it from the perspective of white people and Black people. By exposing them to multiple viewpoints, one not only helps them to appreciate the nuances but increase their critical thinking skills.
All of these effects are intertwined with one another. If educators present a variety of viewpoints and backgrounds in their lessons, then this provides opportunities for their students to gain a more nuanced view of life. The more the students can appreciate these nuances, the more likely they are to be open-minded to new ideas, which leads to increased empathy.
Students who have diverse educators are often more equipped to enter diverse workplaces. One study noted that the United States is struggling to prepare its citizens for an increasingly global workforce. Among other skills and competencies, the study noted that some of the most useful abilities for a globalized workforce are cross-cultural awareness, open-mindedness, and sensitivity towards others. These skills in particular will help students to interact with others who are different from them, process new ideas in a healthy way, and view the world through a more nuanced lens. By increasing open-mindedness, students are able to appreciate the perspectives of other people, both from other students and teachers. The more that they can listen and fully appreciate other peoples' perspectives, the easier it will be for them to learn about other cultures, which, in turn, will increase their sensitivity.
To adequately prepare students for a globalized workforce, they need to be exposed to diversity at a young age and be equipped with the tools and support necessary to navigate new ideas. Having diverse educators can help students to learn how to interact with others, challenge their biases, and confidently navigate new beliefs and situations.
Meeting the needs of a diverse classroom can be difficult, even for the most experienced and well-intentioned teacher. Fortunately, there are many strategies that can help. Some of the following strategies can help:
| Strategy | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Learn More About Students | Figure out their cultures, pastimes, and other unique characteristics. The more information an educator can gather, the easier it will be to determine their needs. |
| Speak with Students on a Regular Basis | This can occur in a variety of formal or informal ways. For example, schedule regular private visits to check in and see how the students are doing. Frequent informal check-ins are also an option. Either way, this will allow students the opportunity to provide feedback on what is going well in the classroom and what needs to be improved. By providing these communication opportunities, they can see that their thoughts matter. |
| Create a Culture of Respect | As a teacher, one's actions determine the culture within the classroom. By demonstrating respect, educators become role models for their students. One way to foster respect is by having conversations about culture. To facilitate such discussions, consider having the students research their cultural backgrounds and present them. This will help the students learn more about their own histories, foster pride, and expose students to new ideas. |
| Learn About the Cultures of Students | To be as inclusive as possible, it is important to understand the nuances of each culture and apply them to both the lesson plans and the classroom. For example, instead of the traditional lecture style of teaching, consider adopting a more collaborative approach. Adapting the lesson plans and classroom approaches will help the students to better absorb the information. |
| Add Multiple Perspectives to Lesson Plans | To truly foster diversity, educators need to add additional perspectives whenever possible. For example, if you are a history teacher, add perspectives of people outside of the U.S. and Europe. If you are an English teacher, consider assigning books written in other countries, not just the U.S. Another easy way to add multiple perspectives is to discuss current events within the context of the lessons. Techniques like these will keep the classroom inclusive and help the students to consider the nuances of a situation, which fosters critical thinking skills. |
| Create Independent Learning Opportunities | Students can often learn valuable lessons on their own. Teachers can foster these moments by moderating respectful discussions and assigning projects to diverse groups of students. Group work is especially beneficial because students can pool their knowledge and perspectives together to achieve a common goal. Perfecting this skill now will benefit them greatly once they enter the globalized workforce. |
At a micro-level, educators have a lot of power to create safe, inclusive environments for students of all backgrounds. With the right strategies, they can show students that their thoughts, ideas, and cultures matter, and they can also teach students how to navigate new thoughts and ideas.
Though many school districts struggle with educator diversity, one notable exception is in Boston Public Schools and we can use this as an example. As of 2016, 37 percent of their teachers are people of color. In addition, one-quarter of their new hires in the 2015-2016 school year were Black. There were a few reasons why educator diversity increased. First, Boston itself is a diverse city. As of 2020, only about half (52.1 percent) of its population is considered white. Almost a quarter (24.2 percent) of residents identify as Black; less than 0.5 percent identify as American Indian/Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander; 19.5 percent identify as Hispanic or Latino, and 7.2 percent identify as two or more races. As a result, the school district has a diverse population from which to recruit new educators.
In addition, Boston Public Schools introduced a new program to increase teacher diversity called Boston Public School High School to Teacher Program. This program aims to locate high school students with the potential to be excellent educators. Once accepted, the students receive mentors and college-level courses. Once they graduate high school, the program pays for half of their college tuition, and after they finish college, they are provided with teaching jobs. The vast majority (87 percent) of program participants are either Latin American or Black.
Programs like these offer evidence that targeted initiatives can benefit diversity and that it's critically important to do so. Embracing diversity in our nation's classrooms can improve learning, improve behavior and make a positive impact in students' real-world lives.
Diverse teachers are teachers who mirror the diversity of their students. In addition, they use special strategies to promote inclusion within the classroom, regardless of students' backgrounds.
Having diverse educators can help students to learn how to interact with others, challenge their biases, and confidently navigate new beliefs and situations.