United States’ classrooms are quickly becoming some of the most diverse and culturally varied classrooms in the world. Though much of society is fragmented by economic, political, technological, and cultural divides, teachers are at the forefront of social change and social unity, shaping the perceptions, values, and abilities of the next generation.
The changing U.S. classroom means that teachers need an education that trains them to think deeply about the philosophy and psychology of education, community, and social inequality. They need support and formation that may go beyond the scope of a teacher preparation program.
Let’s explore how classrooms are changing and some of the reasons why educators need high-quality master’s degrees in education.
The United States’ Classrooms Are Microcosms of Our Future Society
Schools and education generally remain one of the few unifying, common systems in our complex world.
Every child is educated in a learning environment of some kind, and the overwhelming majority are educated in our nation’s public schools. As of the 2019-2020 school year, our public school system educates close to 90% of students in the country.
There are many cultures and languages at work in our cities and communities, yet it is easy for children to stay siloed within their familiar ecosystems. Maybe one child’s whole neighborhood speaks Spanish or Arabic. For another child, perhaps they have only engaged with children from their same socio-economic background.
The classrooms of a local public school become the primary place where children from many families and backgrounds first encounter each other and begin to learn what it means to respect each other, work together, treat others with justice, and honor cultural differences.
Our classrooms are global classrooms, where students and teachers work to be aware of their responsibility to humanity and in society.
Future Teachers Need an Education for Our Times
If the role of a teacher is to shape and guide the next generation in the classroom, our teachers need to have context and insight beyond just the courses required to earn a teaching certification. This explains why close to 60% of America’s teachers have their master’s degree.
Here’s a look at some of the areas where future teachers need the insight and expertise that comes with a high-quality, future-focused master’s degree.
Diversity and Inclusion
Did you know that almost half of all residents in the United States’ five largest cities are speaking another language at home? The Center for Immigration Studies also states, “in California, 44 percent of school-age (5-17) children speak a foreign language at home.”
Diversity does not just mean a diversity of language or race, it also encompasses diversity of ability and learning style. Today’s classrooms contain children with dyslexia, ADHD, sensory processing disorders, autism spectrum disorders, and much more.
Social inequities related to disability, social class, race and ethnicity, language, gender, national origin, and sexual orientation are often perpetuated in schools. Historically, to maintain privileges among the dominant cultural group, schools and school systems were organized to track, segregate, and exclude based on socially constructed norms. While we have made much progress as a society, there is still enormous work to be done to eliminate inequities and raise children who are oriented toward social justice.
Today, teachers need to be able to address and understand these inequities and systems in order to serve their diverse classrooms effectively. Often this work must start within teacher themself as they work to explore and uncover their own assumptions and biases based on social and economic background.
Positive Engagement within the Family, School, and Community
It is not enough for a teacher to be able to manage a classroom and teach reading, writing, or arithmetic. Today’s teachers need skills and insights to manage relationships with families and communities as well. Since so much of a child’s life is impacted by their family and culture of origin, teachers need to be able to see the child in the full web of their relationships and work within that network to support the child’s social, emotional, and learning needs.
When future teachers are educated on positive behavioral interventions and supports and functional behavior analysis), they understand that all behavior has communicative intent and is open to cultural interpretation. From there, they can develop ways to respond to behaviors that are reflective, proactive and supportive towards students’ growth.
Master’s degree courses in education can teach a prospective teacher to understand family systems and family life stages, transition challenges, the importance of collaborative parent-professional relationships, parent advocacy, and development of cooperative intervention program.
How Do We Prepare Teachers to Shape the Culture of Schools?
All schools are deeply formative places that shape the values, awareness, and worldview of the children that pass through their halls.
This formation happens primarily in the classroom, where their teachers offer them an education and an example of what it means to be an adult and a citizen. It is up to teachers to act with maturity, kindness, passion, and authority. It is also up to teachers to create equitable and socially conscious environments in their classrooms and across the campus.
Because they play such an important role in forming the next generation of students, teachers need a high quality, up-to-date master’s in education as they prepare to step into the classroom.
Learn more about the teachers of the next generation and the skills they need to succeed in our full resource. Download the guide today!
