Students’ Perceptions Regarding Culturally Sensitive Classrooms: A Case Study of Delhi Schools

Abstract

India is known for its unity in diversity motto. Delhi classrooms are mirror of this diversity. The researcher being in the capacity of teacher educators got regular feedback from trainee teachers regarding the classroom environment of secondary schools of Delhi. During those feedback sessions and submitted reports on reflections, there were frequent entries on cultural alienation and cultural clashes. These entries forced the researcher to study the status of cultural sensitivity in secondary classrooms of Delhi. The study endeavours to put forward the perceptions of students regarding their own cultural identity, their peers’ cultural identity and shared experiences of any cultural alienation, bullying or clash in their classrooms. The study also put into light, students’ expectations from their teachers in creating culturally sensitive classrooms. It was a descriptive study. Expost-facto survey design was chosen for the study-sensitive classrooms. The sample consists of 445 students in 12(5 public and 7 private) schools of Delhi. The self-prepared questionnaire for students called The Cultural Sensitivity Questionnaire for Students (CSQS) with CVR 0.68 was used as the tool. The study concluded that, cultural alienation, bullying and clashes come out to be the result of ignorance towards each other’s culture.