Showing papers in "Multicultural Education in 2003"

Building Authentic Intergroup Dialogue on Campus: Living a Commitment to Shared Governance and Career Path Development through the Full Inclusion of All Members of the University Community.

Abstract: The University of Maryland’s Intergroup Dialogue and Leadership Program (IDLP) is coordinated by the Office of Human Relations Programs (OHRP), an arm of the Office of the President. Because of this organizational location, OHRP has campus-wide scope which has been foundational to its ability to adapt the Intergroup Dialogue Program (IDP) component of its IDLP from a student-focused initiative toward meeting the needs that staff at all levels on campus have expressed for intergroup dialogue. In responding to this expressed need over the last three years, OHRP has piloted a Black/Latina/o or “Group-Specific” Intergroup Dialogue for housekeeping staff at the university, as well as a Women of Color Story Circle Intergroup Dialogue for administrative assistants on campus.

A Multicultural Education Instructor's Reflective Self-Analysis: Facing the Challenge of Teaching and Learning.

Abstract: Elavie Ndura is an assistant professor of multicultural education in the Department of Educational Specialties of the College of Education at the University of Nevada, Reno. Multicultural education courses pose individual challenges to both students and instructors. Such courses, by their nature, raise powerful and unavoidable questions about issues of sexism, racism, social inequality, and linguistic as well as religious diversity, which tend to be uncomfortable topics for students and teachers to discuss. As Ahlquist (1992) indicates, “whether unconscious or conscious, intentional or unintentional, prospective teachers find it difficult to accept that whites have benefited economically, socially and psychologically from institutional and interactional racism, and males have benefited from sexism” (p. 89). Such attitudes can create tension between students and instructors and among students themselves in multicultural education courses, as demonstrated in the article by GutierrezGomez (2002). This tension may raise resistance, which is a major obstacle to learning and achieving desired change. The journey towards effectively helping students become aware of their biases, stereotypes, prejudices, and privileges must begin with multicultural education instructors themselves. They must explore their own cultural preconceptions and ideologies through careful and truthful reflective self-analysis in order to be able to manage and constructively interpret theirs and their students’ shared societal and classroom lived experiences. Teaching multicultural education is much more than dispensing content and knowledge. It is about building relationships (Nieto, 1999), and do so in a classroom environment that fosters mutual recognition and validation. This article looks closely at the challenges of teaching a graduate multicultural education seminar from an instructor’s personal perspective. First, I discuss my cultural identity and my rationale for teaching multicultural education. Second, I explain my philosophy of multicultural education. Third, I outline the objectives of the course. Fourth, I discuss the teaching challenges I encounter in teaching the course, from the perspective of a faculty of color on a predominantly White campus. I conclude with some recommendations for learners and teachers of multicultural education.

Differing Sexualities in Singular Classrooms.

Abstract: R ecently while waiting for the bus in a small, quiet neighborhood in San Francisco, where I currently reside, a young woman strolled by me on her way to fetch two children from a nearby elementary school. We quickly exchanged glances as she headed down the hill whistling and enjoying the afternoon sunshine. It was one of those rare early spring days when most people call in sick, dust the mothballs off their favorite pair of shorts that have been in refuge all winter, and simply decide to take a casual walk to an unknown destination. Minutes later and still waiting for the bus, the same young woman staggered by arm-in-arm with book bags, lunch boxes, and colorful artwork scribbled and signed by Picasso enthusiasts. The children, a young girl and boy each no more than 5 years-old, were rather entranced with their images and engaged in sharing their day at school. As the young woman opened the sliding door to a minivan and instructed the children to pile in, the young boy unexpectedly, yet quite clamorously, shouted to the young girl, “You’re gay.” The young woman, tangled in straps of book bags, stopped dead in her tracks as if she had just spotted a deer. Her one-word response was an elongated “w. . .h. . .a . . . t.?” The young boy, now shy and intimidated, muttered, “You’re gay,” as if he knew a lecture or scolding was in order. Still outside the van, the young woman, completely flabbergasted, calmly drilled him with questions. Where did you learn that word? And, what does it mean to be gay? To which, the blonde-haired boy replied with confidence, “it means you’re nasty.” My bus arrived and I went on with my day thinking about the young boy’s remark, you’re nasty. Although it made me angry, I was not surprised at his comment. After all, even children in elementary school are not sheltered from the isms that exist in our society. I was, however, pleased to overhear that while the young woman closed the door to the minivan, she acknowledged the young boy’s comment and began to share the meaning of being gay with her two, young, naive passengers. Regardless of how diverse and multicultural a city may be, such as San Francisco, there’s always a handful of teachers and administrators who unconsciously, and in some instances consciously, choose to ignore derogatory comments that students toss around classrooms, hallways, and playgrounds. The question that the young woman above should ask herself is why aren’t students, faculty, teachers, and staff appropriately addressing epithets in our schools? There is limited research available that fully examines the unmet needs of gay and lesbian students in school coupled with educators’ attitudes towards this topic. Available research is consistent with Uribe and Harbeck’s (1991) conclusion that the educational system in the United States is blindfolded and mute on the subject of homosexuality. Iasenza (1989) concurs and writes that education is a socialization process that imparts the values of the dominant Differing Sexualities in Singular Classrooms

Story and Healing in Action: New Methods for Fostering Heart-to-Heart Dialogue about Race.

Abstract: A growing awareness of the reverberating effects of trauma both individually and socially coupled with the pressing need to avert more violence in whatever form, is forcing many to seek solutions in heretofore unusual partnerships. We believe we are creating a new, interdisciplinary approach to multicultural awareness which addresses the intergenerational trauma of ethnic genocide, racism, homophobia, sexism, and other biases which are based on a social devaluation and oppression of others work. 3

Expanding Appreciation for "Others" among European-American Pre-Teacher Populations.

Abstract: During the four and one-half years that I have taught social foundations and multicultural education for aspiring teachers and special education teachers at the Western Illinois University-Quad Cities campus, the class has evolved from being a hodge-podge of required content that maintained little student accountability and provided questionable attitude-changing experiences to a class where a significant majority of students express positive expansion in knowledge, understanding, tolerance, and appreciation of cultural diversity as evidenced by survey results. The improvement of the class followed much soul searching, sleepless nights, risk taking, failures, tenacity, continuous reading, and research. The Western Illinois UniversityQuad Cities campus is located in an urban area with surrounding suburbs, and many of the students travel long distances from small town and rural communities. Although the urban area is ethnically diverse, the teacher education program is comprised of a predominantly European-American student population. My classes usually include one AfricanAmerican at the most, perhaps two or three Mexican-Americans, with the remaining students of European-American background. I find that when first entering the multicultural education classroom, many Quad City students who are already overloaded, working part-time, parenting, and who may exhibit poor timemanagement skills, view the sixteenweek, three-hour course as just another hoop to jump through in order to obtain a teaching certificate. By the end of the course, anonymous survey results along with student comments indicate that a significant majority of students’ understandings and attitudes regarding ethnic and cultural diversity issues have expanded and improved.