1 Multicultural Education Dr. Tonja L. Root Department of Early Childhood and Reading Education Valdosta State University Valdosta, GA 31698

2 Causes of Prejudice in Children l Natural tendency to evaluate & categorize people l Natural tendency to adopt the attitude of respected adults & other children l Relationship between personal identity & need for group membership

3 The Statistics l By % of children in school will be nonwhite. l By % will be nonwhite.

4 Multicultural Education Goals l To develop more positive attitudes toward different cultural, racial, & ethnic groups l To reduce prejudice: Must address cognitive, affective, and behavioral domains

5 Related Goal: Critical Thinking l Open-mindedness l Flexibility l Respect for other viewpoints

6 Phase 1: Bombardment of Experiences l Students participate in variety of ethnic experiences: exposure to diversity. l Teacher reads aloud books focusing on children from diverse American cultures.

7 Phase 1: Bombardment of Experiences (cont.) l Experiences: guest speakers, field trips, events for children, ethnic music l Shared book experience (page 253)

8 Phase 2: Focusing through Guided & Individual Reading 1 Students decide on cultural group. 2 Teacher divides class into learning teams. 3 Teacher assigns 1-2 books/ team.

9 Phase 2: Focusing through Guided & Individual Reading (cont.) 4 Each reads silently & individually. 5 Each conferences with teacher periodically to monitor comprehension.

10 Phase 2: Focusing through Guided & Individual Reading + 6 When team finishes a book, teacher conducts reading conferences with that team: Stage 1: View the character from outside. (Describe character.) Stage 2: Compare oneself to the character. (List comparisons.)

11 Phase 2: Focusing through Guided & Individual Reading + Stage 3: Identify with the character. (How are lives are similar?) Stage 4: Develop empathy. (Respond to hypothetical situations.)

12 Phase 3: Point of View l Achieve goals: 1 to facilitate a deeper understanding of point of view 2 to discuss the concepts explicitly

13 Phase 3: Point of View (cont.) 3 to move students from their own points of view to viewing life from the perspectives of people different from them- selves (4 activities, p ) l Provide meaning of “point of view” & relate it back to char- acters in books read (Phase 2)

14 Phase 4: Creating a Character through Language Experience 1 Ask questions to help students imagine their own characters, visualize settings, & view world from characters’ perspectives. (Questions, p. 259) 2 Compile portfolio of character data sheets (p. 260) ; drawings of character, family, friends; etc.

15 Phase 4: Creating a Character through Language Experience + 3 Students meet in teams of characters’ cultural group to introduce them so that all team members & imagine each as a real person. 4 Students dictate their stories (LEA) & do process writing.

16 Phase 4: Creating a Character through Language Experience + l Students share with class- mates; compile stories into book; & present them to parents, other students, & teachers.

17 Extension: The Multicultural Community 1 Students decide which characters might live in same community (including a variety of cultural groups). 2 Arranged in community groups, students discuss & visualize community: setting, name, relationships, interactions.

18 Extension: The Multicultural Community (cont.) 3 Students create group stories (LEA), revise, edit, & share. 4 Teacher conducts debriefing sessions in groups & with class. (questions, p )

19 Sequence Flexibility Sequencing of the phases leads students in a gradual manner from viewing character from an external point of view to developing empathy & viewing world from character’s perspective.

20 Sequence Flexibility (cont.) This sequence need not be followed in a lockstep manner. Students should grasp the concept of “point of view.”

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