In my role as an educator, my classroom will be a place where student dignity is valued. Every student has the right to an environment that is safe, supportive, and inclusive, one that encourages intellectual curiosity and allows them to reach their full academic potential through a variety of instructional strategies and learning styles. Acknowledging the growing diversity in the classroom, whether it is in terms of ability, gender, race, or background, gives educators and students the chance to develop fully into more perceptive and fulfilled individuals. Through an inclusive education, students will develop into more capable critical thinkers, compassionate citizens, and activists for a better tomorrow.
As teachers, we must model what inclusive behaviour looks like. We have to practice language that is non-discriminatory and behaviours that check are subconscious biases when we are in and outside of the classroom so that those behaviours themselves become subconscious. But we also have to be understanding that sometimes people make mistakes and if we want to change that behaviour, to be effective, our actions should come from a place of compassion. If we demonstrate how to be inclusive, then it will be easier for others to follow.