Cultural Competence Assignment: You are to complete the following activity in order to enhance your level of cultural competence, knowledge and skills. You are to watch the movie Stand and Deliver and follow the specific guidelines for this assignment as described in the syllabus. This assignment should be a minimum of three to five typed-pages in length. This is a major assignment.
Answer the following questions:
a). Summarize the movie
The movie describes the efforts of Jaime Escalante as he engaged with students from James A. Garfield High School. Jaime was a mathematics teacher at the school located in East Los Angeles. Most of the students were Hispanic and experienced economic disadvantages. Escalante wanted to change the institution’s culture by helping the minorities excel in calculus. Despite the odds, Escalante helped the students to pass their calculus exam.
b). Describe the demographic characteristics of the characters and the community in the movie.
The high school was mostly composed of students from the Hispanic culture. The students were impoverished since they came from a disadvantaged background.
c). How is the context and the setting similar and different to your current educational placement?
The context is different to my current educational placement since the students in the latter setting come from different backgrounds.
d). Apply the concepts of standardized testing discussed in the text to the movie.
Standardized testing should be performed to ensure fairness across educational programs. All students needed access to similar resources and facilities.
e). Compare and contrast standardized testing issues described in the movie to those issues faced by the children at your institution.
The standardized testing issues described in the movie are similar to issues faced at my institution since they both evaluate the capabilities of learners.
f). How was the movie similar and different to your elementary or high school?
The movie was similar to my high school since it reflected the efforts that students demonstrated to pass examinations and excel.
2. After you complete the section above then select one of the major characters in the movie and;
a). Describe the character
Jaime Escalante is one of the main protagonists in the film and serves as the mathematics teacher for the Hispanic students.
b). Apply the following theories to him/her:
1. Piaget
Piaget’s theory applies to Jaime since he acquired his knowledge based on his educational experience.
2. Vygotsky
Community and social development played a significant role in Jaime’s skills.
3. Bruner
Jaime gained his competencies through active learning processes.
4. Erikson
Sociocultural factors contributed to Jaime’s success as a teacher.
5. Marcia
The identity status theory enabled Escalante to interact productively with his Hispanic students.
6. Diversity concepts and theories (i.e., Cross or Helms)
7. After you complete the section above, answer the following questions:
a). Read and reflect on your answers, what did you learn in terms of multicultural education from this activity?
I learned that multicultural education is an interesting concept that enriches the learning experience. Students from different backgrounds benefit from multicultural education.
b). Explain how this activity relates to the text?
The activity relates to the text since it highlights the processes that multicultural students undergo while trying to benefit from educational interventions.
c). Explain what you did or did not gain from this assignment?
The assignment enabled me to gain perspective regarding the importance of multicultural education settings.
