Culture for Educators

— Offered by the College of Education and Health Professions —

Earn professional development hours through the Culture and Language in Schools series offered by the College of Education and Health Professions. A National Professional Development grant through the Office of English Acquisition at the U. S. Department of Education will cover the cost of the three 6-hour courses designed to educate school administrators, teachers and staff on the impact of multiculturalism in the school environment, learning and interpersonal communication.

These courses contain self-paced activities for professional development hours. The instructor will assess all work submitted for the course in a timely manner, and individual feedback will be provided. Rubrics are provided to help you self-assess your work. You will receive a certificate of completion from Global Campus after your work has been assessed if you complete the course at a proficient level.

Online / Instructor Led (all courses)

Complete up to three courses of your choice between December 1, 2022 and March 31, 2023.

Registration will be closed December 15 through January 3rd for winter break.

Last day to register:
March 15, 2023

Technology Requirements

Course Access Information

Accessing Your Course

The process to finalize your enrollment into a class is not automated. Within 24 business hours you will receive an email with further information about how to access and begin your class. Please note that access to begin your class will be delayed if you register for a class on a weekend, a holiday, at the start of a U of A academic semester, when the U of A is closed for inclement weather, or when the U of A is closed for approx. 2 weeks over winter break.

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Recommended Book (not included)

Expand Your Borders: Discover Ten Cultural Clusters
by David Livermore

ISBN-10: 0989781704
ISBN-13: 9780989781701

The book will be used for all three classes.

This course provides techniques to identify diverse cultures and cultural practices in school populations, assess the impacts of culture on learning and communication between school and home, and provide a school environment that is welcoming to different cultures. You will explore stereotypes, biases and conflict styles in different cultures, and their effects on learning.

• Understand and apply knowledge about cultural values and beliefs in the context of teaching and learning.
• Apply knowledge about the effects of racism, stereotyping and discrimination to teaching and learning.
• Discuss how current cultural conflicts and home events can impact ELL's learning.

This course focuses on building an awareness of the effects that their students' cultures, existing stereotypes, discrimination, and classroom environment have on their ELL students.

• Demonstrate cross-cultural competency by identifying specific aspects of different cultures and how they impact academic progress.
• List different stereotypes that exist in your school community and how they impact ELLs.
• List attributes of an effective classroom/school environment and assess the effectiveness of existing classroom environments in your school.

This course explores how to bridge home and school cultural norms for English Learners. You will learn how to apply acquired knowledge about these differing norms, as well as achieve a deeper understanding of how the interrelationship between language and culture can be used to enhance home/school communication.

• Learn how to create a school and classroom environment that is welcoming to students from different cultures.
• Learn cultural differences between home and school and reflect on how to deal with these in a manner that honors the English Learner's school and home cultural needs.
• Demonstrate the ability to understand and apply knowledge about family engagement for multicultural parents and families to enhance English Learner's academic achievement.