Multicultural Education

Pinoy Teach Concepts | Conceptual Framework | Multicultural Education

Multicultural Education places cultural diversity at the center of teaching. It realizes the importance of teaching students about themselves and the diversity that exists around them.Our world is drastically changing. In the United States, the ethnic make up of the student population is becoming more diverse. Twenty years from now, students of color are projected to make up nearly 50% of the nation’s student body. Already students of color comprise the majority in Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., New York, San Francisco, and Seattle.

Academic institutions cannot afford to ignore the need for multicultural education. But the reality is that schools do not or, if at all, superficially teach the lessons of multiculturalism and diversity. According to leading multicultural scholar, Dr. James Banks, there are four stages to multicultural curriculum reform: the contributions, ethnic additive, transformative, and social actions approach. The goal is to advance to the transformative and social actions approach.

Contributions Approach

Focuses on discrete heroes, holidays and cultural elements
“Foods, Festival, and Folk dancing”
Examples: Lunar New Year, Black History Month, Columbus Day, King Kamehameha Day
Results in students having a superficial and stereotypical understanding of ethnic and cultural groups

Ethnic Additive Approach

Ethnic content is added without changing the mainstream or Eurocentric structure of the curriculum
Ethnic content is viewed from a Eurocentric perspective.
Examples: Adding Native American content into a Unit called “Westward Movement” which privileges the Eurocentric and pioneer perspective
Results in ethnic content being unauthentic and an "afterthought"

Transformative Approach

Restructures the curriculum to allow concepts, issues, and events to be viewed from diverse ethnic and cultural perspectives
Content is organized around big universal ideas.
Examples: Creating a unit called “Encounter between Two Worlds” which equally
validates the viewpoints and experiences of the “discoverer” and indigenous people i.e. James Cook & Native Hawaiians; Christopher Columbus & Taino Native Americans
Results in showing diversity and unity among people

Social Actions Approach

Actions and decisions are made related to the concepts, issues, and problems that are being studied to make the world a better place
Ultimate form of putting theory into practice
Examples: Writing letters to the editor, service learning projects, campaigning
for change
Results in empowering students to be social agents of change