What is Inclusivity and Diversity?

A background statement 

My first interviewee is a retired male educator who had worked for more than 30 years in the field. The individual had worked in the field of teaching elementary and middle-aged grades. The individual, Mr. Freeman taught several schools including the Muybridge Community School and the Lincoln elementary school before retiring. He has won various awards and recognitions throughout his career. Most of the students he had been teaching are from humble backgrounds, and most of them are African Americans. He has managed to understand and work in this community because he is an individual who has been trained how to work in all cultures, his personality also makes him one best teacher to have worked in this community. Additionally, the teacher had a good salary, and about 10% of it was dedicated to feeding some of the students in the elementary class. 

My second interviewee was a female program manager, Ms. Jackson. She has been working in this field for more than ten years. She managers a diversity program in a company that issues visas in the department of Immigrations. She is a woman who has been serving people from many cultural backgrounds. She has worked with whites, Asians, Spaniards, and even Africans. The course is very critical as it incorporates people who are also rude, and others are disabled. It is, therefore, a unique job position that requires the woman to be open-minded. Ms. Jackson says that she found it difficult in the first few years, but after some time, she adapted, and she enjoys working in the field. She also said that she was on the verge of becoming a senior program manager and supervisor in the department. It appeared that she enjoys working in that field. 

A description of how the interviewees characterize the current state of inclusivity and diversity in their settings. 

My first interviewee noted that his job was all-inclusive in terms of cultural and gender diversity. For instance, he was white, and he was working in an African American setting. In such a setting most of the teachers posted are of the same race, but in the setting it was easy to observe that there were several white teachers in the school. Additionally, there were female and male educators in the two schools. Finally, some of the educators were as young as 25 years. He, therefore, found the setting to be all-inclusive and it was giving a chance to everybody who was qualified for the position. 

The second interviewee talked of her workplace not being all-inclusive. She spoke of most of the people who have higher positions being males. The setting was not representing a conducive environment for all women. However, the lower positions such as the position of accountants, secretaries, and clerks were widely dominated by women. She also noted that most of the young people in this setting were also giver lower positions. Finally, she observes that most people are whites. The ratio of whites to other racial backgrounds was not as expected. She believes that everyone should be given an equal chance in the setting to make it easier for the department to achieve its goals and visions. She also mentioned something about harassment in the offices when she was first employed. She talks of male managers abusing women sexually so that they can maintain or rise in positions. She, however, notes that the latter has reduced and there are few cases of abuse in the departments. 

A description of strategies the interviewees use for creating inclusive environments. 

My first interviewee always worked in schools that taught male and female students. In such cases, there are possibilities of leaving out one gender and concentrating on another more. When asking questions he tried to include all students and gave each of them a chance of sharing their ideas. Some of the students from poor backgrounds would also feel depreciated when certain topics were introduced in class. To create an all-inclusive environment, he would try to bring general questions and those that would improve their creativity. In-class activities, he would try to ensure that all of them were composed of all genders and all students. That is why he would sometimes use his earnings to give all of them an equal chance. 

My second interviewee noted that from her training she was trained on how to treat all people who came to her desk equally. Furthermore, she would try to treat all people below her in the department equally without any discrimination. She was a woman, and she would be sometimes tempted to favor women, she avoided it fully. In terms of cultural diversity, she talked of being on check every time. She tried to treat everyone equally. She would also respect and show veneration to everyone who older or younger than she was. 

A description of strategies the interviewees use for demonstrating respect toward and valuing students or clients from diverse backgrounds. 

My first interviewee mentioned the use of personal interactions and being open-minded while dealing with people from diverse backgrounds. Doing that made it possible for him to learn how to respect all students. My second interviewee talked of being able to research values of people from other cultural backgrounds and religions. For instance, when dealing with Muslim men it was important to avoid looking at them directly in the eyes. Secondly, she talked about being able to avoid the issues of forcing her opinions or belief upon others. She would try to create a rapport and ensure that she maintains the topic throughout the process of delivering services. 

An analysis of how well the interviewees are creating inclusive environments for all students. Which respondent do you believe is more proficient at this skill? 

The two respondents appeared to be well positioned to combat or issues that relate to cultural diversity. I find both of them being able to work in different setting because of the strategies that they have displayed. The educator was, however, more inclined to working an all-inclusive environment not only because of the strategies presented but also the experience he has in the field. 

Conclusions or big ideas you drew about inclusivity and diversity from your interviews. 

One idea that I have learned is the essence of creating personal interactions with all the people I find in the workplace. This allows me to learn how to listen and understand their views. Secondly, this is an idea of being open-minded. It is imperative to only concentrate on your job rather on the personality of an individual. 

An application of these big ideas if you were in the technical field 

I hold personal religious underpinnings, and I know that I will work in an individual with different religious beleifs someday. In such a case, I will try first to do research that is related to the individual’s religious preferences (Gebert et al., 2014). From there I will try to always speak or communicate with my client’s using a language that makes them feel appreciated at all times (Martin, 2014). This involves using their language if I can speak it or doing all I can to understand what they talk even if they use a language that differs from mine. I would try to be open-minded so that I can grasp the key points from their beliefs, their expression and what they speak. 

References 

Gebert, D., Boerner, S., Kearney, E., King Jr, J. E., Zhang, K., & Song, L. J. (2014). Expressing religious identities in the workplace: Analyzing a neglected diversity dimension.  human relations ,  67 (5), 543-563. 

Martin, G. C. (2014). The effects of cultural diversity in the workplace.  Journal of Diversity Management (JDM) ,  9 (2), 89-92.