(1996). Cross-cultural Learning in Elementary Guidance Activities. Elementary School Guidance & Counseling, v30 n4 p264-74 Apr. Discusses the history of low tolerance for different cultures and general ethnocentrism in schools in the United States. Seeks to determine if story telling and interpretation of a story by first graders in a suburban Chicago public school could stimulate interest in and expression of positive feelings for persons from a cultural background different from their own. Discusses findings. (KW)…
(1996). Extraordinary Aspects of Ordinary People and Everyday Places. Children's Literature. Social Studies and the Young Learner, v8 n3 p18-20,32 Jan-Feb. Presents a geographically based overview of children's literature highlighting the extraordinary experience of ordinary people. Recommended books cover subjects as diverse as the U.S. West and economically developing countries. A special effort has been made to include a multicultural perspective. (MJP)…
(1996). Islam: Stereotypes Still Prevail. Social Education, v60 n2 p107-10 Feb. Explores and criticizes the negative image of Islamic culture often fostered by Western media. Briefly considers the career, contributions, and example of Yusuf Islam (the former Cat Stevens). Includes a list of common misconceptions about Islam followed by corrective information. (MJP)…
(1993). Japanese Nationals in American Schools in the New York Metropolitan Region. This report describes various aspects of interaction between Japanese and Americans in the suburban school systems of the New York metropolitan region. Since the late 1980s the number of children of Japanese nationals attending schools in the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut suburbs surrounding New York City has grown to nearly 5,000. This study discusses the challenges encountered by the Japanese families upon entering area school systems, and offers recommendations to enhance the intercultural contact between Japanese and U.S. nationals. The report is divided into five sections. Section 1 is the "Introduction." Section 2, "Background," contains: (1) "Growth and Change in the Japanese Community in the New York Metropolitan Area"; and (2) "The School System in its Cultural Context." Section 3, "Schooling in America," includes: (1) "Specialized Schools Established by the Japanese Community"; and (2) "Japanese…
(1994). Rethinking Our Classrooms: Teaching for Equity and Justice. This collection includes creative teaching ideas, articles, essays, poems, reproducible handouts, resources, lesson plans, narratives and hands-on examples of ways teachers can promote values of community, justice and equality, while building academic skills. The book is divided into seven parts. Part 1, \Introduction\, includes: (1) \Creating Classrooms for Equity and Social Justice\ (editors); and (2) \Lions\ (Langston Hughes). Part 2, \Points of Departure\, includes a number of readings that exemplify teaching principles outlined in the introduction, including: (1) \Unlearning the Myths that Bind Us\ (Linda Christensen); (2) \10 Quick Ways to Analyze Children's Books\ (Council on Interracial Books for Children); and (3) \Ode to My Socks\ (Pablo Neruda). Part 3, \Rethinking My Clasroom\ includes \core\ articles. At various grade levels and disciplines, teachers offer concrete examples of how a social justice curriculum transformed their classroom practice. Articles include: (1)…
(1996). Culture in School Learning: Revealing the Deep Meaning. This publication presents a process for developing a teaching perspective that embraces the centrality of culture in school learning. The six-part process presented in the book involves objectifying culture, personalizing culture, inquiring about students' cultures and communities, applying knowledge about culture to teaching, formulating theory linking culture and school learning, and transforming professional practice to better meet the needs of students from different cultural and experiential backgrounds. All aspects of the process are interrelated and interdependent. Designed for preservice teachers, the volume is organized to facilitate its use as a textbook. Focus questions at the beginning of each of the eight chapters assist the reader in identifying complex issues to be examined. The discussion in the chapter is not intended to provide complete and final answers to the questions posted, but rather to generate discussion, critical thinking, and further investigation. The…
(1994). Report of the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-First Century, Fourth Session (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, April 13-15, 1994). This session of the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-First Century was preceded by a 2-day working group on the processes of education. The Commission also held an afternoon of hearings that included an in-depth exchange between Canadian educational leaders and the Commission members on a wide range of topics that included multiculturalism, diversity in education, the relationship between formal and non-formal education, and developments in science and the science of learning and their influence on the organization and process of education. The summary of the debates and discussions is a synthesis of all these discussions. The exchanges were organized around three main themes: (1) educational processes and systems; (2) teachers' preparation and roles; and (3) lifelong learning. Given the location of the meeting, and the fact that the majority of participants in the working group came from either Canada or the United States, many issues reflected the situation in…
(1995). Multicultural Music: Lyrics to Familiar Melodies and Authentic Songs. Elementary. This teacher's guide, designed for use with elementary age students, contains units of study about eight countries, their inhabitants, customs, and nationally celebrated events with special emphasis on music and food traditions. Countries represented by the units in this guide include Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, The Netherlands, and Poland. Each unit provides (1) Map and Country Information; (2) Word List/Translations-Definitions; (3) Original Songs; (4) Authentic Songs; (5) Recipes; and (6) Classroom Curriculum Activities. Several units also provide lists of books to read and step by step instructions for art activities, including patterns for teacher use and reproducible student sheets. (MM)…
(1996). Racial Equality and the Local Management of Schools. Warwick Papers on Education Policy No. 8. How the trend toward school-based management since the 1988 Education Reform Act has affected racial educational equality in England and Wales was studied through an examination of the policies and practices of a British Local Education Authority (LEA), identified as Woodshire. A review of the policies, practices, and events in the Woodshire district was supplemented by in-depth study of four Woodshire secondary schools. The Woodshire LEA is a nonmetropolitan county in England that experienced a severe cut in its educational budget during the study period. There is a relatively low number of ethnic minorities in Woodshire, but the largest of the ethnic minority groups is Pakistani. Interviews with members of the governing bodies of the four targeted schools, document reviews, and observations in the district have provided detailed empirical evidence that racial equality has not benefited from the move to local management of schools. In fact, racial equality has been disadvantaged…
(1998). Our Schools: Frontline for the 21st Century. What Our Schools Must Become. Essays in Education. This book contains a series of essays in education intended for those who teach or plan to teach, and for parents of children in schools. The book argues that educators need to focus on the seminal thinking which developed in the 1940s and 1950s and utilize the insights developed then to focus on critical areas that the teaching profession faces today. Following a brief foreword, the first essay, "The Self–In Living and Learning," addresses the development of self concept and the importance of a positive self concept. The second essay, "Basic Needs of Successful Learners," examines the common needs of all learners, including adults, teachers, and the individual. The third essay, "Humanistic Values in Education," delineates necessary structure, attitudinal changes, and changes in content. The fourth essay, "Cross Cultural: Education for Diversity," advocates cross cultural education as a way to acknowledge those things we have in common. The…
(1994). Fulfilling the Promise of Brown. On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the "Brown v Board of Education" decision, it is appropriate to review it as the spark for a new definition of equality in American life. The Brown case was the first significant step in the modern civil rights movement, and, as such, defined the structure and legal reasoning for the push by women, Hispanics, the disabled, and other disenfranchised Americans for equal treatment under the law. The Brown decision was a crowbar for change, and we are all the better for it. As we affirm what has come since Brown, we must acknowledge that which remains to be done. We are beginning to recognize that low expectations and watered-down curricula are depriving children of what they might learn. Real progress will depend, not on the courts alone, but on the political and community leadership that will bring people together. Diversity without insistence on excellence and high standards will weaken the educational system and deprive all… [PDF]
(1990). Exploring Native American Symbolism. This paper described the events and results of a workshop on Native American symbolism presented to educators and held in Kansas City, Missouri. The presenter maintained that some of the most crucial problems facing U.S. educators and students are caused by racial misunderstandings, and that the universality of artistic expression can be a vehicle for cross-cultural and multi-cultural dialogue. It was stressed that the exploration of Native-American imagery should be part of any art curriculum. However, it was argued, when Native-American art is studied, the past is usually emphasized. Romantic misconceptions of Indians as non-technical, stone-age artisans dominate the literature, thereby reinforcing the tendency to dismiss the evolving, contemporary Native-American culture. The workshop offered participants the opportunity to express their feelings via Native-American symbolism. Participants first viewed an intertribal powwow videotape; the powwow was presented as an aesthetic…
(1984). A Multicultural/Bilingual Mainstreaming Day Care Program for Young Children with Mild to Moderate Disabilities. Based on the experiences and design of a model demonstration program, the guide describes basic considerations in developing services for mildly and moderately developmentally handicapped young children in a mainstreamed, multicultural/bilingual day care setting. Un Bien Comienzo (UBC), a program developed to respond to the needs of Spanish speaking parents with young, developmentally delayed children, is part of Rosemount Center (Washington, D.C.), a bilingual, multicultural day care center for children 6 weeks to 5 years of age. Both assessment and intervention services are bilingual. Intervention by specialists is provided on-site at the day care center when parents cannot leave work to take their children for treatment. Chapter 1 of the manual discusses initial steps in program development, including such topics as needs assessment, funding, setting program goals, and recruitment and advertising. The second chapter describes UBC assessment and intervention procedures, while…
(1979). Language and Literacy: An Overview of Policies and Programs in Five OECD Member Countries. This paper describes the results of a study conducted by the Center for Educational Research and Innovation regarding language policies and programs in five countries which belong to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development: Canada, France, Spain, the United Kingdom, and West Germany. Part I explains the study's focus on language diversity and how it is addressed within the educational systems of the countries studied. It is assumed that the role ascribed to language is a key one to a better understanding of the position of various cultural groups in a society. The study methodology and content are described. (A set of simultaneous case studies were taken, each developed according to a common frame of reference.) Part II discusses the distinctions drawn between each country for the purpose of analysis: historical and ecological considerations; geographical boundedness versus dispersal; time the special population has been within the national boundaries; government… [PDF]
(1981). Bridging the Gap: Post Conference Report, 1981. This report presents the proceedings of a conference on the integration of multicultural and nonsexist approaches into the home economics and industrial arts programs of elementary and secondary schools. The report contains keynote addresses, overviews of each Conference session, and many of the materials made available to conference participants. Topics discussed include strategies for developing multicultural and nonsexist programs for integration into home economics and industrial arts; educational approaches to preparing students for success in multicultural and nonsexist work environments; staff training; outreach programs to attract nontraditional students (defined as those who belong to minority groups, those who work in nontraditional occupations, or those who are disabled) to industrial arts and home economics programs; classroom support systems for nontraditional students; and instructional materials development. (MJL)…