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Intercultural communication
Intercultural communication
The major dimensions of multicultural education
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Multicultural Social Studies
More now than ever before in the educational history of our nation has multicultural education become important. Due to the ever increasing diversity in our nation, the global economy, and the mobility of our work force, diversity in the classroom is affecting our classrooms. With such a diverse student population teachers must understand that each student will bring his own background knowledge and experience into the learning environment. The task that is presented to teachers is to prepare the students to understand and interact with all the different cultures that are present or that the student may come into contact with, while at the same time teach them content which does not offend a student’s cultural identity.
Why is multicultural education important? “Curriculum Standards for Social Studies (NCSS,1994b) endorses the belief that students should be helped to construct a pluralist perspective based on diversity. This perspective respects differences of opinion and preference, race, religion, gender, class, ethnicity, and culture in general.” (Hass & Sunal, 2011, p. 304) With the ever increasing diversity found within this country, and the interdependency between different cultures on a world-wide platform it is important for our students to not only accept these differences, but to also understand the differences. Dr. Geneva Gay states:
Multicultural education can ease these tensions by teaching skills in cross-
cultural communication, interpersonal relations, perspective taking, con-
textual analysis, understanding alternative points of view and frames of
reference, and analyzing how cultural conditions affect values, attitudes,
beliefs, preferences, expectations, and behaviors.
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Gay, G. P. (1994). A Synthesis of Scholorship in Muticultural Education. Retrieved May 5, 2012,
from North Central Regional Educational Laboratory:
http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/educatrs/leadrshp/le0gay.htm
Hass, M. E., & Sunal, C. S. (2011). Social Studies for the Elementary and Middle Grades.
Boston: Pearson.
Kostelink, M., Whiren, A., Soderman, A. S., & Gregory, K. (2002). Guiding children's social
development: Theory to practice. Albany, NY: Thomson Delmar.
Robles de Melendez, W. (2010). Teaching Young Children in Multicultural Classrooms: Issues, Concepts, and Strategies (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Just because other perspectives are incorporated in the classroom, this doesn’t mean that everyone will become more understanding and appreciative of other cultures. When multicultural practices have rigorous standards, allow the advancement of social communications with other cultures, and allow the advancement social justice concepts both inside and outside of the classroom, this is when students will become more appreciative of other cultures (Ladson-Billings, 1995, p.162).
A multicultural perspective is an understanding of the similarities and differences across culture, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, and more. In short, it is a perspective that encapsulates an open-minded and yet holistic view of other individuals that limits (and hopefully eliminates) one’s own biases in their perception of others. The majority of students come from diverse backgrounds (culturally, ethnically, economically, etc.), and thus it is important to not only bring awareness of the dominant culture’s presence, but also make room for other cultures that are less dominant. With the constant stream of subliminal messages being sent to children, it is important to empower students who do not see their identities in popular culture. Even if children see their identities represented, it is often times a stereotypical representation which can perpetuate a negative sense of self. Additionally, a multicultural perspective is not only for children who are not part of the dominant culture. It is also essential for students
Multicultural Education in the United States made its debut beginning with the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s. Its intent was to become part of the cultural mainstream. The Civil Rights Movement brought to light the apparent concerns of discrimination, intimidation and inequality. During this period, pressure was placed on the Federal Government to examine their roles in the perseverance of inequalities when it came to Multicultural Education (Russell, Robert, The History of Multicultural Education, 2011). It can be compared to “Affirmative Action” where whites were asked to leave behind their own point of view and gain knowledge of the traditions of Multicultural groups (Taylor, Samuel. The Challenge of 'Multiculturalism' In How Americans View the Past and the Future, 2011).
The world is made up of many different types of people, each one having his or her cultural background. Over the years, the United States has become increasingly populated with cultural diversity. This influx has prompted school administrators to recognize the need to incorporate multicultural programs into their school environment including classroom settings, school wide activities, and curriculum as it becomes more evident that the benefits of teaching cultural diversity within the school setting will positively influence our communities, and ultimately the entire nation’s future. The purpose of this paper is to share the pros and cons of multicultural education in the classroom. Additionally, I will express my views compared to those in the reading requirements for this assignment, as well as, new knowledge obtained through the research. Finally, I will share situations where I was challenged introducing a multicultural issue during a class.
In the city of Columbia, South Carolina there is limited multicultural centers that are available to the public. Therefore, in the place of multicultural centers Columbia and surrounding cities have annual festivals in which many visitors and tourists from other cities and states visit to join the festivities. Columbia promotes the Greek Festival annually, North Myrtle Beach has the Irish Italian Festival, Charleston sponsors the Maritime Heritage Festival, Greenville’s Edisto Indian Cultural Festival and Spartanburg has their annual International Festival to name a few. The multicultural festival in which this essay will expound on is Spartanburg’s International Annual Festival with artifacts and an analysis of cultures.
Perhaps the most meaningful way to come to grips with the rather expansive scope of approaches and practices that make up the notion of “multicultural education” is to consider some of the various reasons that educators incorporate those approaches into their classrooms. While we will save the most important motivation—increasing instructional effectiveness—for last, here we will briefly review some of other the reasons that teachers incorporate multicultural education into their
Multicultural education is a process of comprehensive school reform and basic education for all students. It challenges and rejects racism and other forms of discrimination in schools and society and accepts and affirms pluralism (ethnic, racial, linguistic, religious, economic, and gender, among others) that students, their communities, and teachers reflect (Nieto, 2000).
Diversity in classrooms can open student’s minds to all the world has to offer. At times diversity and understanding of culture, deviant experiences and perspectives can be difficult to fulfill, but with appropriate strategies and resources, it can lead students to gain a high level of respect for those unlike them, preferably from a judgmental and prejudiced view. Diversity has a broad range of spectrums. Students from all across the continent; students from political refugees, indigenous Americans, and immigrants bring their cultural and linguistic skills to American classrooms. Students not only bring their cultural and linguistic skills, but they bring their ethnicity, talents, and skills.
The cultural diversity in society, which is reflected in schools, is forcing schools not to solely rely on content-centered curriculum, but to also incorporate student-centered lesson plans based on critique and inquiry. This requires multicultural education to a dominant part of the school system, not just an extra course or unit. Further, it demands that learning itself no longer be seen as obtaining knowledge but rather, education be seen as creating knowledge. Multicultural education should be seen as affirming the diversity of students and communities, promoting the multicultural ideas of the United States, and building the knowledge and behaviors needed for students to be a positive and contributing member of society and the global community as a whole.
The world is currently undergoing a cultural change, and we live in an increasingly diverse society. This change is not only affect the people in the community but also affect the way education is viewed. Teaching diversity in the classroom and focusing multicultural activities in the programs can help improve positive social behavior in children. There is no question that the education must be prepared to embrace the diversity and to teach an increasingly diverse population of young children.
The concepts included in providing a more diverse, multicultural education are requiring teachers to review their own issues and prejudices while expanding their knowledge of the many cultures that make up the classroom. These efforts help the educator recognize the various individual and cultural differences of each student, as well as gain an understanding on how these differences impact the learning process. The purpose of this paper is to reflect upon individual and cultural difference research and why diverse students struggle to succeed in school. Furthermore, I will share some instructional approaches I could implement in the classroom to accommodate diverse students. Finally, I will discuss the responsibility of educators in addressing the issue of how our o...
According to David O. McKay (2013), multicultural education is constructed to prepare pupils for citizenship in a democratic society by facilitating them to take into account the needs of all individuals; it shed light on how issues of language, ethnicity, culture, religion race, abilities/disabilities, and gender are entwined with educational content and processes. A multicultural curriculum is needed to accommodate for diverse learning and teaching styles of facilitators and pupils and to expose biases, stereotypes, and policies that can restrict achievement. What is more, a multicultural curriculum is also needed to help pupils, faculty, and staff become advocates for multicultural awareness, to ensure that content is fair, accurate, and inclusive, and to prepare pupils for diverse workplaces and multicultural environments. In writing this paper, the author will describe key issues of culturally diverse students, recommend a curriculum approach to address the issues, and discuss the challenges and benefits expected. In addition, she will describe three key issues of male and female students recommend a curriculum approach to address the issues, and discuss the challenges and benefits expected. In closing, she will describe three key issues of students with disabilities, who are mainstreamed, recommend a curriculum approach to address the issues, and discuss the challenges and benefits expected.
According to Bennett (2015), “Multicultural Education is a complex approach to teaching and learning that includes the movement toward equity in schools and classrooms, the transformation of the curriculum, the process of becoming multicultural competent, and the commitment to address societal injustice” (p. 2). Teaching and learning in a multicultural system is designed around collaborative decision making, respect for all parties, and nurturing a cultural diverse society. Multicultural education recognizes and integrates cultural characteristics into the learning environment.
Social Studies education is a subject in today’s schools that is undervalued. The study of social studies in schools help young people develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions as citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent world (Seefeldt, Castle, & Falconer, 2010). When participating in social studies class children are learning so much about who they are, where they came from, how to succeed in the world, and more. Most of what we teach daily includes an aspect of social studies. But, since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 de-emphasis or nonexistence of elementary social studies is the national focus because of high stakes testing (Sunal, & Sunal, 2008). Social studies