Part 1: Need and justification in educational research for educators to undertake cultural learning.
In part one, the results of studies on preservice teacher education on religious diversity is reviewed. Also reviewed is research on preservice teacher education and ongoing professional development efforts on diversity relating to Muslim students in particular.
Following that the Standards of Effective Instruction rubric (Danielson, 2013) is reviewed with connections to research. This highlights performance indicators that teachers are evaluated on, which mandate specific cultural learning related to student background. It also links the principals of these performance indicators with research that shows relevance and relation to background knowledge that is essential for running themes throughout the exemplary indicators of student confidence, independence, and self initiation in the classroom (Danielson, 2013; Howard, 2016; Marzano, 2004). This is reviewed with connection to child development studies that link the importance of home learning and nurturing to learning habits and mental frameworks in students.
Finally attention is drawn to collective findings of research that examines the experiences of Muslim students in America and other Western countries that overwhelmingly suggest that the cultural background and knowledge of Muslim students has not been drawn upon in the public school setting for the betterment of educational outcomes and social- emotional relationships with teachers and staff, and is more likely to be stigmatized than utilized