What is Multicultural Education?
 

The study of multicultural perspectives examines culturally significant characteristics (such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, class, and ability) of individuals and groups within the United States, and emphasizes the intersections among these and the resulting variations in status and power.  Awareness and understanding of cultures, including one’s own, enable students to value the experiences and contributions of different groups in the United States, understand the connections between social structures and inequality, and communicate and interact effectively to build a just and compassionate world.  (Edgewood College Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, 2008)

 

 

Paul Gorski's summary of common characteristics in multicultural education definitions:

(1) Multicultural education is a political movement advocating social justice for all students. Education is political and there is no avoiding that notion.
(2) Social justice is an institutional matter and can only be achieved through reform of institutions.
(3) Critical analysis of systems of power and privilege is a central feature of multicultural education
(4) The goal of multicultural education is the elimination of racism, classism, sexism and other inequities.
(5) Multicultural education is good education for all students – not just something for students representing a certain demographic.
 

 

Multicultural Education is at least three things: a) An idea or concept, b) an education reform movement, c) a process (Banks and Banks, 1993). The definition of multiculturalism extends beyond ethnicity and includes gender, socioeconomic status, religion, exceptionalities, and other qualities as well. Multicultural education embraces the idea that students should have an equal opportunity to learn in school regardless of their gender, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, religion, physical or mental ability, or other cultural characteristics.”

Boutte, G. (1999). Multicultural Education: Raising Consciousness, 1, 15-16.

 

 

“Multicultural Education has been defined and numerous ways by various groups and individuals. Some definitions reflect perspectives of specific disciplines, such as education, anthropology, sociology, and psychology. Others represent the views of accrediting agencies and professional organizations concerning what teachers need to teach and what students need to learn. A third type of definition consists of statements developed and adopted by practitioners within schools at district, county, and state levels. As a result, teachers routinely are confronted by a kaleidoscope of different views that describe multicultural education as everything from “educational practice”  (Pacheco,1977) to “interdisciplinary process” (California State Department of Education, 1979).”Hernández, H. (1989).

Multicultural Education: A teacher’s guide to Content and Process, 1, 4.

 

 

“Some discuss multicultural education as a shift in curriculum, perhaps as simple as adding new and diverse materials and perspectives to be more inclusive of traditionally underrepresented groups. Others talk about classroom climate issues or teaching styles that serve certain groups while presenting barriers for others. Still others focus on institutional and systemic issues such as tracking, standardized testing, or funding discrepancies. Some go farther still, insisting on education change as part of a larger societal transformation in which we more closely explore and criticize the oppressive foundations of society and how education serves to maintain the status quo -- foundations such as white supremacy, capitalism, global socioeconomic situations, and exploitation.”

Covert, B., & Gorski, P. (1996;2000). Defining Multicultural Education. EdChange Multicultural Pavilion. Retrieved September 11, 2007, from http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/define_old.html

“Multicultural Education is an idea which has reached its time. Carrying the legacy of the 1960's and 1970's, a period of profound social change when the people of the United States were forced to reexamine their cultural heritage, multicultural education has emerged in the 1990's to address the educational needs of a society that continues to struggle with the realization that it is not monocultural, but is an amalgamation of many cultures. Much of the overt and covert national conflict about race, ethnicity, social class, and gender in the U. S. has been based in the mythology of a superior culture into which all others must be assimilated. The imbalance of power between the dominant culture and subjugated cultures has created centuries of aggression, antagonism, and resistance. Fortunately, the concept that cultural differences enrich, rather than diminish, our society is increasingly acknowledged. It is the suppression of cultures that weakens the society. The ongoing discourse and practice of multicultural education is an effort of mine to possibilities of plurality through education”

Hanley, M. S. (1999). The Scope of Multicultural Education. New Horizons for Learning. Retrieved September 11, 2007, from http://www.newhorizons.org/strategies/multicultural/hanley.htm

“Multicultural education helps students to understand and appreciate cultural differences and similarities and to recognize the accomplishments of diverse ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic groups.”

Ladson-Billings, G. (1994). Educating for Diversity: What We Can Learn from Multicultural Education Research. ASCD for the Success of Each Learner. 51(8). Retrieved September 11, 2007, from http://www.ascd.ord