This is a very interesting discussion for me this week as I am no longer in the classroom but serve students and coaches in a different way in my new role in the administration. Not that this role is void of the challenges of presenting equal and equitable opportunities for students of all backgrounds in regard to gender, culture, and learning needs. Finding equability in compliance with Title IX in athletics is key not only to keep our programs open but to help them flourish. Title IX in athletics is to ensure equal opportunities regarding women and girls (Athletics, 2020). We are now in a gender identification situation regarding what students identify as and what seasons they may compete in. Biological males identifying as girls competing nationally in girls’ basketball, volleyball, wrestling, and track. Our national and state associations have not set precedence on handling these issues and have allowed the competitions for the most part. Do we run into ethical issues if we make them compete in their biological division? Are we liable for litigations on both sides if we don’t? As we continue in our society striving for acceptance of all, what happens when student-athletes begin to do this for competitive advantage and scholarship opportunities at the next level.
In my current capacity, I try to make athletics accessible to all students male and female, cultural diversity, and special needs. By promoting athletics in all divisions to all students I feel my current district is serving the needs of all students. Do coaches need to be adaptable to meet the needs of these diverse groups of students? Yes. Are all coaches’ teachers in my district? No. Do our non-teacher coaches as well as teaching coaches need training and development to handle the situations presented with our student population with special needs? Yes. I am developing professional development opportunities for our coaches to be successful with student-athletes of all learning abilities. As a district however I am receiving pushback from allowing non-teacher coaches to be privy to students with IEP’s and 504’s. We are currently in discussion with our district attorney about what information can be passed to non-district coaches. I feel like this is pertinent information for our coaches to best serve all students within our athletic programs.
In my 19 years in the classroom, I had several groups of students that fit all of the categories listed in our discussion question. As I mentioned in my introduction, Bennett High School has a large minority population. Hispanic students who speak English as a second language make up the majority of that population. I have had to figure out how to teach students who are unable to ask me questions in English or have a reading level of third grade and under in the English language. Over the years, I have acquired several resources to help my students understand the content and readings. In agriculture, we talk about agricultural issues. I would have a few assignments that students would have to read articles about said issues. For these types of activities, I found a resource that changes the original article into different reading levels, which makes it more digestible for students who may not understand English as well as native English-speaking students. NewsELA is an outstanding resource for teachers to do just that. I recommend the site to all teachers to differentiate current event readings for all students. I have always valued having students with diverse backgrounds in class because I enjoy learning about their culture and being able to incorporate their backgrounds within class content. Broadening the scope for all learners within the classroom. This goes back to our last DF, I wrote about ensuring relationships between students and helping to build culture in the classroom. I have always said that a safe classroom environment is a classroom that students learn in. It is important to be cognizant of students’ cultural backgrounds in and out of the classroom and to plan lessons that incorporate diversity and culture (The Importance of Diversity in the Classroom, n.d.).
References:
Athletics. (2020, January 16). Retrieved September 16, 2020, from https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/frontpage/pro-students/issues/sex-issue04.html
The importance of diversity in the classroom. (n.d.). Retrieved September 16, 2020, from https://drexel.edu/soe/resources/student-teaching/advice/importance-of-cultural-diversity-in-classroom/
Comments