More handpicked essays just for you.
Concepts of equality and diversity
Principles of equality and diversity
Principles of equality and diversity
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Introduction When a lot of people, especially white people, hear the word 'Afrocentricity,' they feel threatened, nervous, or both. Well, they shouldn't. The over-representation of black children in official school exclusion data has invoked anxiety from black parents, their communities and has spawned media and academic reflection. Afrocentric education is a way to smoothly enhance the teaching of African American children and as a mode of centering children in their own historical experiences. Since the primary mode of instruction and the basic design of curriculum are Eurocentric, we have never been in possibility of losing the concentration of white children. An Afrocentric curriculum has to be perfected before a common multicultural curriculum can be outfitted. If there is no organic presentation of scope and sequence information about the African American, then there can be no multicultural project since most Americans, including African Americans, are miserably uninformed of the African American experience. We can afford to continue to advance the idea that African Americans who demand that an Afrocentric curriculum be infused into the general curriculum. It is the path of resourceful not just for African Americans but for all of the children of this society who are counting upon us to transmit to them the proper tools for living in this global village. Afrocentricity is not a limited view. The Afrocentric view seeks no valorization of African-centeredness above any other perspective on fact. It is human-centered in the sense that no one should be divested of his or her heritage or background. Normally, the only people asked to do so are those who do not hold physical or psychological power. Ethnocentric views valorize th...
... middle of paper ...
...s as a major factor in the under achievement and disaffection of black pupils. A further refinement of the integrationist model emerged as cultural pluralism - an essential part of a pluralistic model of society. The key feature of pluralism is that groups are not ranked hierarchically within society but are relatively equal in power, or at least no one group is so powerful that it can dominate the others. The nature of Afro centric approach to education present diverse components that are valued and esteemed to support harmonious coexistence and overall development. Works Cited Amy Otis–Wilborn, Darrell Terrell, Catherine Hnat, Linda L. Lemmen, and Malvice Jefferson. A Multicultural Curriculum for Middle Schoolers: The Perspective of the Harlem Renaissance (Featured in the December 1999 issue of MultiCultural Review) http://thechalkboard.com/NewUse/Harlem.html
Cater, the author of the book Keepin’ It Real: School Success Beyond Black And White, became interested as of why minority students were faced with white society challenges in school systems? In her book, Keepin’ It Real: School Success Beyond Black And White, she offers an insightful look at the educational attainment in low-income urban communities. Carter suggest that these students are embraced the dominant opportunity ideology, they acknowledge the dominant cultural to obtain status and goods. However, they use their own cultural to gain status in their own communities. She conducted a research to study the importance of cultural authenticity for minority, such as African American and Latino, students. She examines how cultural authenticity influences minority students’ relationship with the values they believe are privileged in schools. Cultural authenticity reflects on the beliefs and values of everyday society. Carter questioned, why do so many African American and Latino students perform worse than their Asians and White peers in class and on exams? And why might African Americans and Latino students are less engaged in
The most important aspect for a teacher to understand is that every student that comes through their door has their own experiences, history, and point of view. Mis-Education of the Negro is about how the euro-centrism-based learning has, in one way or another, crippled the African-American community and their pursuit for an equal opportunity in our society. Written by Carter Godwin Woodson in 1933, this African-American studies book is written so that everyone can understand what society has done and what they can do to correct their wrongs.
Tatum’s book “Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?” (1997) analyses the development of racial identity and the influence of racism in American’s culture. She emphasizes the Black-White interactions by comparing the terminology in which racism perceived based on David Wellman’s definition of racism. Tatum also believes racism is not one person in particular but is a cultural situation in which ethnicity assigns some groups significantly privileged compared to others. She illustrates how engaging children in terms of interracial understanding will empower them to respond to racial stereotypes and systems of discrimination.
Richards, H., V., Brown, A., F., Forde, T., B. (2006). Addressing diversity in schools: culturally responsive pedagogy. Retreived March 30th 2014from http://www.nccrest.org/Briefs/Diversity_Brief.pdf
It must be noted that for the purpose of avoiding redundancy, the author has chosen to use the terms African-American and black synonymously to reference the culture, which...
The aspect of African-American Studies is key to the lives of African-Americans and those involved with the welfare of the race. African-American Studies is the systematic and critical study of the multidimensional aspects of Black thought and practice in their current and historical unfolding (Karenga, 21). African-American Studies exposes students to the experiences of African-American people and others of African descent. It allows the promotion and sharing of the African-American culture. However, the concept of African-American Studies, like many other studies that focus on a specific group, gender, and/or creed, poses problems. Therefore, African-American Studies must overcome the obstacles in order to improve the state of being for African-Americans.
Rosenfeld counters this “geography of blame” by sharing his personal experiences within the Harlem community. After spending time with students outside of school, he discovers firsthand that the children are neither without culture nor disadvantaged. Teachers’ common “credos” regarding students (i.e., uncaring or uninvolved parents, lack of interest in learning, lazy and unclean, etc.) are based on unfounded myths used “to reduce them all to a common definition” of what it means to be a black marginalized member of society (Rosenfeld, 1971, p. 50). Therefore, if schools were agents of cultural transmission functioning to produce the larger societal expectations, a deficit, reductionist approach would likely succeed in keeping people academically and (eventually) economically disadvantaged.
This source will equip the argument for utilizing diversity as an educational apparatus that supports student development and learning. The showcase of the impact of diverse student engagement will definitely be useful for providing a strong reasoning for showcasing how the experience of students in the US schooling system shapes the educational experiences of diversified student groups. Dixson, A., & Rousseau, C. (2005). And we are still not saved: critical race theory in education ten years later.... ...
“An array of knowledges, skills, abilities and contacts possessed and used by Communities of Color to survive and resist racism and other forms of oppression” encompasses the main idea of Community Cultural Wealth. It is vital to understand that students will step foot into the classroom with a variety of cultures zipped up in their backpacks, and it is our job as educators to make sure that equality is instilled/taught in our classrooms. The second a student feels a sense of discrimination, whether from ourselves or their fellow classmate(s), is when the safe and comforting environment of the classroom begins to diminish. Here I will discuss just how important it is to see the differences amongst students as an advantage
Education has always been valued in the African American community. During slavery freed slaves and those held captive, organized to educate themselves. After emancipation the value of education became even more important to ex-slaves, as it was their emblem of freedom and a means to full participation in American Society (Newby & Tyack, 1971). During this time many schools for African Americans were both founded and maintained by African Americans. African Americans continued to provide education throughout their own communities well into the 1930’s (Green, McIntosh, Cook-Morales, & Robinson-Zanartu, 2005). The atmosphere of these schools resembled a family. The teachers along with principals extended the role of parenting and shaped student learning and discipline (Siddle-Walker, cited in Morris, 1999). African American Schools were embedded within the community and were viewed as good.
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.
Manning, L.M. & Barruth, L.G. (2009). Multicultural education of children and adolescents (5th edition). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Racism and ethnicity continue to affect the sector of education in most parts of the world. More often, it influences adults and children’s experiences in education at all levels and in various ways. These include professional employment, academic performance, parental involvement, social interactions, assessment issues, and curriculum development. Certainly, the terms racism and ethnicity identify as problematic and arise socially. Therefore, many people fail to recognize that racism is a perception about the color of the skin and traditions of a particular group of people. Racism and ethnicity exist in quite blatant and subtle forms. As such, racism and ethnicity usually lead to negative consequences for the group that does not belong to the dominant culture. The contemporary racism originated from various avenues, one of it being the society norms and upbringing. Indeed, as children grow, they exclusively rely on their parents or guardians to learn new things. Moreover, part of the upbringing involves teaching the children things about the society and the
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.
Manning, L. & Baruth. L. (2009). Multicultural education of children and adolescents (5th Ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon.