1. Cheyenne Ferree-Knapp
Multicultural Education: Final Project
Mauricio Pino
November 01 2015
Throughout the duration of the semester, we have discussed a variety of issues
that impact educators and students alike. From gender to standardized testing,
inequality and stereotyping, there is much more that impacts the field of education than
simply the content taught within the classroom. For my research project, I decided to
focus on the achievement gaps and inequality (in terms of performance) that plague
education. Upon entering Luis’ classroom in Escuela Alemania for our first observations,
I was surprised to notice the differences in performance and experience levels of the
students within his classroom. Some students appeared to be more enthusiastic and
responded quickly and accurately to the questions asked by myself and their teachers.
The same students appeared to pick up on the content with ease, and thus, were able
to recognize and apply the content that they had learned to new material. On the other
hand, those students that struggled more than others had resisted speaking aloud and
participating in the classroom activities. I could not determine if personality differences
had played a major role in the achievement level and participation of the students, but I
do believe it is a factor that should be considered when noting the performance
inequality and achievement gaps that exist within the classroom.
There are many factors that contribute to persisting educational achievement
gaps. The home life of a student plays a major role in his or her achievement and
performance level. If a student lives in an unstable or insecure environment, the impact
of that instability will carry over into the classroom. Students with broken families and
poor living conditions will tend to demonstrate lower achievement levels and poor
performance when compared to their peers that have a more secure and stable living
situation. The parental situation itself can shape the student’s behavior and
performance inside the classroom; a student with supportive parents that seek to
become involved in their child’s education will be more likely to excel than those
students with parents that express disinterest or an inability to involve themselves.
Access to resources inside and outside of the classroom is another contributing factor to
the existing achievement gaps. Availability of resources such as books and internet
access, in addition to the quality of those resources, will determine how a student is to
learn and study the presented content.
Achievement gaps and persistent performance inequality are crucial topics in the
field of education; their existence shapes the classroom and impacts the effectivity of
teaching. The achievement gaps and performance disparities do not merely impact the
students and teachers within the school, but rather society as a whole. Education has a
notable impact on an individual level, but what many fail to note is that education
shapes young minds and determines what kind of impact an individual will make on the

2. society. In order to improve a country socially and economically in a rapidly developing
world, inequality and class barriers must be reduced. The reduction of such prevalent
social issues begins with educational reforms and the thorough analysis of educational
inequality and achievement gaps. The effects of massive inequality can be felt by all; if
we have the opportunity to not only advance our society, but to improve the quality of
life and access to equal opportunity, why have we not done so? Simply put, the
controversy of the current issues in education and socio-economic class barriers make
it incredibly difficult to achieve necessary reforms. These obstacles are feeding back
into the cycle that preserves achievement gaps and performance inequality, as well as
socio-economic inequalities that lie both inside and outside of the classroom.
There are evident inequalities between private schools and schools within the
public sector. One of my first observations upon entering Escuela Alemania was the
quality of the facilities. Many desks sat unused in poor condition along with stacks of
broken chairs; inside the classroom, the quality of equipment and furniture were not
much better. In both Carolina and Luis’ classrooms, unused desks and chairs sat
toward the back of the room in an uncomfortable setup. Occupied desks were arranged
in rows of three to group students together, making it difficult for the students to enter
and exit their seats to move about the room. Classrooms had small fans to circulate air
on humid days and leaks in the ceiling posed a constant distraction on rainy days. The
first day Rebecca and I went to observe Luis’ sixth grade class, I was shocked to see
water continuously dripping onto a desk through a leak in the ceiling above. Luis had to
stop the class and remove the desk to place a trashcan underneath that would collect
the running water. Although no student had been sitting there at the moment, I
wondered if a student was usually seated in that spot.
The weather conditions together with faulty infrastructure had resulted in the
absence of over half of the students within the class. Parents of students (especially of
low-income households) will not send their children to school in these conditions for the
fear of falling ill. Student attendance affects their peers; we were unable begin a new
lesson because over half of the class was absent and the school does not allow these
class to move on to new material when half of the students are absent. This means that
two hours were wasted; two hours were spent on reviews when they could have been
used to introduce new materials that could have been connected with previously
covered content. While students in public school sectors are forced to submit to these
conditions, private schools with better facilities for higher-income families are able to
maintain better attendance rates. Therefore, schools in the private sector can focus
more class time on presenting new materials and applying what is learned which results
in growing disparities between the public and private sectors.
Luis explained in a later meeting that he has spoken with the principal on multiple
occasions to fix the structural issues of the classroom, yet his efforts have had no effect
and the problems remain unresolved. The problem is not aesthetics, it is a matter of
providing students with the comfortable and secure environment that will facilitate

3. learning. Altogether, the needs of the teacher are being heard, but they are not being
acted upon. Funding is a major contributing factor as the school does not have sufficient
funds left over to repair structural damages. If maintaining and repairing the existing
structural issues of the school is not the priority, what is? Where is the money going?
Moreover, is the money being allocated to where it needs to be?
The resources for the teachers and the students are also very limited, and
generally speaking, those resources provided by the public sector are not the best
quality. Luis explained that students are provided with books; however, Luis opts not to
use them because the books tend to pose more of a distraction than a learning tool.
Students become distracted by the pictures and the lessons presented in the books are
neither well-organized nor effective. Luis and Carolina both create their own lesson
plans and a more effective structure in order to form new content around the interests
and capacities of the students. However, because teacher’s resources are limited, going
about their lessons becomes much more difficult and time-consuming. How can we
expect teachers to succeed in educating their students when they are provided with low-
quality resources and less opportunities? Moreover, how can we expect public school
students to compete with private schools, let alone yield similar results, when they are
not provided with the opportunities nor the resources to learn effectively?
Though I have only visited one school here in Chile, I know that the issues
surrounding school funding is not unique to this school nor this country. Public schools
receive state funding that is later cut or increased based on publicized standardized-test
scores. Many public schools have funding cut based on said findings and as a result,
those schools are forced to cut corners to their facilities with less. Though there is little
that can be done immediately, these public schools need to reevaluate their spending
and compare where the money goes with where the money should be going. In cutting
unnecessary costs and reforming the allocation of federal funds based on standardized
test scores, we could see funding applied where it needs to be. As a result, students
can be provided with the comfortable and secure environment that should be provided
by the school along with the resources and opportunities that will enhance their
learning.
My investigations along with the content discussed within this course have
brought my attention to two controversial issues in education that work together in
sustaining this educational inequality; the privatization of education and standardized
testing. Standardized testing is currently acting as a form of advertising for private
schools and the publication of the results of said tests reinforces socio-economic class
barriers. Those schools that receive better results are being rewarded while schools that
yield poor performance are punished. It is important to note that poor results are often a
direct reflection of a lack of resources and funding allocated to those schools. As private
schools located in areas stricken by poverty struggle to keep up with the competition
and meet test standards, private schools that have access to better quality resources
will continue to be rewarded, thus improving their test results and increasing the gap.

4. Standardized testing in itself is flawed as it measures the student’s ability to retain
information, memorize dates and facts and regurgitate content that has been rehearsed
to prepare for the test. This information may not necessarily serve students in
developing employability, independence and preparation for the future. Simultaneously,
we are devaluing certain skills such as creativity and non-conventional ways thinking
that should be appreciated. Students and their schools are being labeled and these
labels will always produce the same end results: strengthened socio-economic class
barriers and the realization of self-fulfilling prophecies.
In addition, the focus placed on English in the private and public sectors is
distinct in itself. Since 2002, educational institutions in Chile have been required to
teach English from grades 5 -12 for a minimum of 3 hours per week in an attempt to
insert Chile into a rapidly expanding and increasingly competitive world economy.
Learning English would facilitate communication and increase the employability of
Chileans in a globalized world; however, this recent mandate has increased the gaps
between the private and public sectors. While public schools are meeting the basic
required hours for EFL instruction (English as a Foreign Language), private schools are
going above and beyond those requirements and moreover, using this increased focus
as a selling point to increase enrollment. Private schools generally dedicate more hours
every week to EFL comprehension and begin English instruction as early as
Kindergarten, even Pre-K. The increased attention given to EFL will further increase
standardized test score differences because English has recently been added to the
standardized test known as SIMCE which expands preexisting achievement gaps and
inequalities as a result. It is not only the test results and preparation, but the importance
placed on EFL inside of the classroom that contributes to achievement gaps in English
comprehension. English comprehension is not as stressed as Math or Science in many
public schools and the fact that EFL takes a backseat to other subjects translates to the
students. For example, Luis’s English class was suspended for a day in order to have
students attend a meeting to prepare for other SIMCE subjects. This communicates to
the students that the class is “only English” and that the priority should be preparation
for the SIMCE. This is class time lost that will hurt the students in the long run. Due to
previous days of vacation, the suspended class would mean that students have not
practiced their English in nearly a week and thus lost valuable class time in favor of test
preparation. Here is where an important question arises: If EFL comprehension is not
treated as equally important in relation to other subjects of study, how can we expect
students to treat it as a priority and focus their energy on EFL comprehension?
In regards to solving the problem, I cannot propose a single, concrete solution.
So many factors play a part in the development and maintenance of achievement gaps
and performance levels that it would be impossible to propose one single and effective
solution. However, based on my observations, research and input from pre-service
teachers, I have proposed solutions that when implemented together could help to
lessen academic disparities and the impact that these gaps have on students, teachers,
and society as a whole. Some of the contributing factors will remain outside of the

5. teacher’s control (i.e. home environment and family situation), but what teachers can do
is provide a safe and comfortable environment to facilitate learning. The classroom
should be set up in a way that allows students to feel comfortable expressing their
thoughts openly and asking questions for clarity.
It was brought to my attention during an observation in Luis’ sixth grade class at
Escuela Alemania that students arriving from other schools will have different levels of
experience than their new classmates. Some students who had less experience had
recently transferred and therefore, experienced difficulties adjusting to the new setup
and information that they may not have learned in their previous school. Other students
may simply be falling behind and experience difficulties with the subject at hand. This is
the importance of communication between the students and teachers in order to offer
the much needed support that will help them to succeed. Everyone struggles in one
area or another, for this, I feel that self-evaluations in the classroom would be very
beneficial. The teacher can watch the student’s performance, but helping the students
to assess their own performance can help them become more aware of their academic
strengths and weaknesses, and furthermore, address the cause of these difficulties. In
doing so, the teacher can see where the students experience the most difficulties and
by identifying the cause, teachers can review and clarify any sources of confusion.
These reviews are essential as education builds upon itself. In doing so, students that
have successfully grasped the topic at hand can practice applying what they have
learned, while other students can be caught up if need be.
In regards to English comprehension, I believe that there are certain points that
should be considered. Though there is a persisting gaps in the availability of
opportunities and resources between private and public sectors, public schools and the
teachers can use the resources provided to the best of their abilities. There are certain
practices that can be taught in the classroom to facilitate English comprehension that
require no resources whatsoever, such as mnemonic devices and songs that reinforce
useful vocabulary and grammar that can be practiced inside and outside of the
classroom. Teachers can be creative and note new activities that will not only be fun,
but effective. For example, my German professor had reviewed vocabulary and an
important history lesson by taking his class on a tour around the college campus. Not
only were his efforts effective, they required no resources. In addition, visual inputs from
a tour such as this would allow students to pair new vocabulary and incoming auditory
information with a unique (and memorable) experience that will help students to recall
that information later on. This innovation method had successfully facilitated recall and
comprehension through a process of dual-coding. Though we do not have the capacity
to remember everything, what we do remember is what is memorable. This seems
obvious, but what makes something memorable is a unique experience paired and the
emotion that had been evoked from it. We can use this knowledge to our advantage in
order to help students learn and recall presented information by making lessons (rather
than lectures) into a unique and memorable experience.

6. One-on-one tutoring could also be incredible helpful. Many teachers do not have
the time to focus on each student individually, especially when classrooms like that of
Luis hold more than 30 students. The students that struggle should not be left behind
simply because the teacher is unable to work exclusively with students to address and
overcome their individual weaknesses. Nonetheless, teachers cannot be expected to
sacrifice such time to attend to every individual need outside of the classroom. For this
reason, I propose a program that will allot one-on-one assistance with pre-service
teachers or university students to provide at-risk students that are falling behind with the
assistance and clarification that they need. Incentive can be provided for older students
to reach out, assist struggling students on a one-on-one basis and even act as a role
model for success to those struggling students. University students and pre-service
teachers could utilize this tutoring for field experience or observation hours to put toward
their degree which would also allow those students to stand out on their resume for their
volunteer efforts. High school students that demonstrate a command for certain subjects
could also earn volunteer hours, receive money or financial credits for the next step in
their education which would also encourage students to continue their education. A
successful tutoring program would result in a mutual benefit of the school, the tutors and
the students that they teach. Tutors may also be able to explain concepts in a different
manner that is easier for students to understand. Sometimes the source of confusion
can lie with the explanation itself and perhaps a different approach from another
perspective is what a student may need. There is clearly potential here for a mutual
benefit that I strongly believe should be explored.
The standard curriculum and standard procedures are limiting teacher flexibility
which hurts not only the teacher’s performance but the students as well. If we allow
teachers more flexibility, they can implement new, non-conventional methods of
teaching that may be more effective and efficient than existing practices, but without the
flexibility to implement new ideas, how could we ever know? There should be certain
standards in every classroom to ensure that certain criteria are met by all; however, the
teachers need to be able to model their class and content around the needs of the
students. If the teacher is able to create a student-centered curriculum, then it is
possible to teach the students in a way that pertains to the students’ interests, sparking
curiosity that will inspire students to question actively and learn on their own. Good
teachers can teach information in the classroom, but great teachers will spark curiosity
within their students, providing them with the drive to continue learning and challenging
themselves outside of the classroom.
Throughout my investigations and experiences assisting in EFL courses in Chile,
I have learned about many controversial topics that linger in the field of education. What
I have learned has opened my mind to consider different perspectives and take into
account the current issues that face education on a global scale and probable solutions
to resolve them. Every school, teacher and student body is different which makes it
difficult to predict the exact results the implementation of these proposals will have on
achievement gaps and academic inequalities. However, if implemented correctly, I feel

7. that these changes will have a positive impact on the school and the reduction of
achievement gaps within the classroom and the effects that follow.
Teaching at Escuela Alemania has allowed me to see into the educational
system of another country first hand and as a result, reflect on our own educational
system to consider how culture itself plays a part in education. Consulting with pre-
service teachers has also allowed me to consider potential new directions for the field of
education by sharing and reflecting on our experiences. Overall, when education is
approached from a multicultural perspective, we can approach the problems that plague
education in a different manner and develop probable solutions that will positively
impact not only students and teachers, but society as a whole.