The importance for teachers

It is very important for teachers to try to understand what cultures their students are coming from. Every culture thinks and acts differently, and so to try to force them to assimilate immediately with our culture is simply asking too much. Understanding what they eat gives an idea of how well-nourished they are. If a student is sleeping in class all the time it doesn't do any good to just get angry and tell them to stay alert; the teacher should find out what the deeper problem is and help the student with it.

A lot of times, cultures are judged by what the media puts out, and people judge each other by what they read or see in the media. A teacher should know what is being said about the culture of their students so that they understand what they are living through in a larger perspective.

Certain cultures are also linked with the Deficit Theory and the Mexican culture is one of them. This is true and false on different levels. True in the fact that the Mexican culture does not place as much emphasis on education. The past generations get through limited schooling before they are forced to work to support the family. It has been this way for many generations and is a difficult pattern to break out of. In today's society, however, it is very possible for Mexican students to succeed. They just have to be given a fair chance. They are every bit as capable as Americans to learn whatever they want. It is important when teaching to not have this barrier in mind thinking that the two cultures are intellectually different. We are all children of God with the potential to accomplish whatever we put our minds to.