Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Multiculturalism in School Curriculm
Over 140 years ago, Lord Acton envisioned an America where each child would be treated equally and there would be no discrimination or major differences in class due to race and culture. Unfortunately, he saw the future incorrectly.
According to Changing America, A Report of the Council of Economic Advisors, "the population of the United States continues to grow increasingly diverse." Hispanics and minority racial groups -- defined as racial and ethnic groups that make up less than 50% of the population and include non-Hispanic blacks, Asians and American Indians have grown faster than the population as a whole. In 1970, these groups together totaled 16% of the population. This percentage grew to 27 in 1998. Continuing on this trend, by 2005 minorities will account for almost half of the U.S. population.
Sadly, however, despite these changing numbers, racial discrimination continues in the United States. According to the American Civil Liberties Union "despite enormous progress, however, the promise of fair and equal treatment for people of color remains frustratingly elusive." In some areas of the country, schools are as segregated and profoundly unequal as they were when the U.S. Supreme Court...
Board of Education decision of 1954. The war on crime and drugs has disproportionately targeted people of color for arrest. Voting districts created to provide fair representation have been undermined by lawmakers and by the courts, and felony disenfranchisement laws have kept hundreds of thousands of minorities from voting. Segregation and discrimination in housing still exists despite redlining laws and a backlash against affirmative action in employment and education is enhancing racist views.
The plight of children both white and especially of color continues. Despite the enormous wealth in the United States, its child poverty rate is among the highest in the developed world. One study that examined child poverty rates in 17 developed countries indicated that the child poverty rate in the United States was the highest among these countries (50% higher than the next highest country).
What can a teacher do to help make an impact on these inequalities? Too often, schools promote diversity by having one or two assemblies a year that represent different cultures. Or, they spend one month -- usually February because of Martin Luther King, Jr. -- on racial issues. What is needed…
Works Cited
American Civil Liberties Union. "Racial Equality." Website visited 6 May 2003. http://www.aclu.org/RacialEquality/RacialEqualityMain.cfm
Changing America: Indicators of Social and Economic Well-Being by Race and Hispanic Origin. (1998) Washington, DC: Council of Economic Advisors for the President's Initiative on Race.
Kull, Steven. (1994). Fighting Poverty in America: A Study of American Public
Attitudes, Washington, DC: Center for Study of Public Attitudes.
The Metropolitan Report In 1996, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company produced a series of reports " to bring the opinions of teachers, students and parents to the attention of educators, policymakers and the American public." The fourth report in the series, the Metropolitan Life Survey of the American Teacher 1996: Students Voice Their Opinions on Learning About Multiculturalism,."..assessed students' opinions and interests in learning about multicultural topics." Lou Harris and Associates conducted
Multicultural Education and Communication Issue The concept of multiculturalism refers to the cultural diversity with a given society. In other word, multiculturalism is a policy that promotes diversity as well as institutionalism at an organizational level such as schools, businesses, cities and nations. However, Gary (1994) defines multicultural education as "any set of processes by which schools work with rather than against oppressed groups." (p 1). Multiculturalism education can be defined
On the other hand, Bennett's model has also inspired me to learn more about cultures other than my own, as well as how to be more culturally sensitive. This helps me in terms of mediating between teachers, students, and parents, many of whom are still burdened by prejudice, even if this is benign and not necessarily known to the individuals involved. I have learned to handle this in a subtle
The fundamentalist White orientation is one often accounted for and met in everyday life, as well as in the education process. We need not refer to extremist and violent groups, but to the uniformed category with which Howard himself identifies for much of his teenage years, up to the college period. Just as he hadn't met a person who wasn't white until then, similarly we may tend to believe that
New York City Multicultural Education Multicultural education Multi-Cultural Education in New York City Aspirations to be an educator, a teacher in the diversity of the New York City Schools must realize that considerations are school-wide focused on setting out and maintaining as well as assessing effective applications in the administering, educating and teaching methods in a multicultural setting. New York City is a place full of diversity and is in fact the home to
No Child Left Behind Act will affect multicultural education. Review current reference material. The No Child Left Behind Act will provide unprecedented changes in the K-12 educational system that will allow all school age children to benefit from the various educational programs available. Children will be provided with a multicultural education that will improve the quality of education overall for children across the country. On January 8, 2002, President Bush enacted the