Rocky Mountain/Great Plains
NCSS Regional Conference
Denver, Colorado
April 2005
See in g The ms el v es in th e Cu r r ic u lu m
Dr. Tim Fry
Education Department
Washburn University
Topeka, Kansas 66621
tim.fry@washburn.edu
www.washburn.edu/faculty/tfry
Preface:
We live in a diverse world and an increasingly
diverse society in the United States. This
diverse society includes a number of young
people who experience some degree of
alienation in our classrooms and schools.
Through the application of multicultural
education concepts, we can strive to create
more inclusive classrooms and schools in
which our students can see themselves in the
curriculum.
Good social studies is
multicultural and
multicultural concepts make
for good social studies!
Multicultural Concepts
•
•
•
•
Culture
Cultural Pluralism
Diversity is Valued
Oneness is not sameness & balancing difference
with commonalities
• Multiple Perspectives
• Visibility
• Awareness of Stereotypes
What is Culture?
• Idealized definition:
• The way our ancestors
speak through us.
Culture-Working Definition
• Learned traditions, loyalties,
beliefs, customs that guide
behavior of a group of people.
We are all multicultural!
• Members of many groups that have cultural
aspects
• Gender, social class, regional, ethnicity,
religious,…..
• Race??White, Black, ???
• Dynamic--our loyalties change over time
• Complex--groups overlap
Cultural Elements
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Values and beliefs
Customs and traditions
Language/communication patterns
Diet and food preparation
Dress and/or body decoration
Religious practices
Family structure
View of time may vary
Recreation-athletic games
CULTURE PROFILE: To which group(s) do you belong?
1.Language --English only; Spanish; Chinese; Vietnamese; Bilingual; Others________________
2. Ethnicity/National Origin-people in class with at least one ancestor from the areas:
Native American--Tribes/Nations ________________
Latin American--Countries/Regions: Mexico ; Cuba; El Salvador; Panama; South American Country, ________________
Euro-American--Countries/Regions: Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales); Ireland; Germany, France, Italy, Scandinavia;
Others ____________
African American--Countries/Regions ______________
Asian American--Countries _____________
Arab American/ Middle East--Countries ___________
3. Religion
Christianity
Major Branches-- Catholic; Orthodox; Mormon; Protestant
Protestant Denominations: Baptist,Congregational;
Disciples of Christ (Christian Church); Episcopal (Anglican)
Friends (Quaker), Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian
Other denominations __________________
Islam (Muslims)
Branches of Islam: Shiite; Sunni
Judaism (Jewish);
Hindu;
Buddhist (including Confucianism, Taoism)
Other religions______________________
4. Musical Preference: Country-Western, Rock, Jazz, Rap, R & Blues, Latin, Tejano, Religious, Hip-Hop,Bluegrass
5. Clothes: Casual, formal, uniform, ethnic
6. Food: Fast food, traditional diet, ethnic
7. Drinks: soft drinks, coffee, tea, milk, alcohol
8. Athletics: Golf, Football, Soccer, Basketball,
Baseball, Gymnastics
9. Housing: Apartment, Single family dwelling, dorm
10. Living location: City/urban, rural, small town
11. Politics: Democrat, Republican, independent
12. Transportation: Bicycle, walk, auto, bus, subway
Culture Census
Sex/Gender
Total people in class= _______
Female _____; _ ____%/class
Language at home
English only _____; _____%/class
Chinese _____; _ ____ %/class
Male_____; _____%/class
Spanish _____; _ ____%/class
Vietnamese_____; _ ____%/class
Others___________________________________________; _____%/class
Bilingual _____; _ ____%/class
Ethnicity/National Origin-people in class with at least one ancestor
from the areas:
Native American _____; _ ____%/class
Tribes/Nations Represented_____________________________
Latin American_____; _ ____%/class
Countries/Regions R epresented (y/n or nu mber)
Mexico ___
Cuba___
El Salva dor ___
Panama ___
South America ___
Others __________________________________
Euro-American_____; _ ____%/class
Countries/Regions R epresented (y/n or nu mber)
Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales) ___
Ir eland _ __
Germany _ __
Others ____________________________________
African American _____; _ ____%/class
Countries/Regions R epresented _________________________
Asian American _____; _ ____%/class
Countries R epresented_________________________________
Arab American or Middle East _____; _ ____%/class
Countries R epresented________________________________
Languages in Our Room
Number of Students
12
10
8
6
Series1
4
2
0
English
Spanish
Vietnamese
Language
Chinese
Cultural Pluralism
•
•
•
•
•
•
Multiple identities and loyalties in a nation
Not a melting pot
Opposite of Assimilation
1890-1910 population doubled
“PIGS”-- “WASPS”
Not a deficit or deprived--different
Diversity Has Value
• Paradigm shift from deficit, more than tolerance,
to view it as a strength
• Music analogy-unison/harmony;
• “same song”---Our song is about equality, civil
rights & social justice included in our founding
documents!!
• Analogy from Biology--positive adaptation
• Political Science --Democracy is inefficient but in
the long run the best decisions are made when
many points of view are listened to
Oneness is not sameness &
balancing difference with
commonalities
• E Pluribus Unum
• Balancing Act
• Different yes but much more in
common
Multiple Perspectives
•
•
•
•
•
•
Important social studies concept
Not just one story
“Don’t believe anything I tell you”
Elian
Anglo centric
Imbalance “What if Custer’s men had repeating rifles and
the kill ratio were higher?” Same math skills could have
been applied with bacteria and antibiotics.”
• “Settled--Won”
• Nine Year Freshman Story
• Singer Quote
Visibility
• Posters, Calendars, Bulletin Boards
• Add history/SS to math to show the contributions
of many cultures
• First Person Reports
• Many good websites--biographies
• The MacTutor History of Mathematics archive
http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/
• Dr. Sarah Greenwald “Incorporating Mathematical Achievements of
Women and Minorities into Schools-…Classroom Activity Sheets
http://www.mathsci.appstate.edu/~sjg/ncctm/activities/
• Benjamin Banneker Lesson plan at:
http://teacherlink.ed.usu.edu/tlresources/units/Byrnes-famous/Banneker.html#objectives
Visibility- Curriculum Materials
• REACH Center http://www.reachctr.org/
• Southern Poverty Law Center
http://www.splcenter.org/index.jsp
• Cobblestone--recent issue on contribution of
women in the civil war
• VOICES Herstory: A collection of stories about
women in history
http://www.nokomisfoundation.org/herstory.htm
Visibility Quote
• ‘“We, the people.’ It is a very eloquent beginning.
But when that document was completed on the
seventeenth of September 1787, I was not
included in that ‘We, the people.’ I felt somehow
that George Washington and Alexander Hamilton
just left me out by mistake. But through the
process of amendment, interpretation, and court
decision, I have finally been included in ‘We the
people.’” Barbara Jordan, House of Representatives, 1974
Brown Foundation for Educational Equity, Excellence and Research
•http://brownvboard Brown Quarterly, other resources-- videos
•National Park Service Brown vs. Board of Education National Historic Site
• www.nps.gov/brvb
•curriculum materials, videos & CD’s, Ranger visits,
•Video: A Case for Equality: Reading, Writing, and Resistance (elem-middle)
•Video :Dialog (high school) phone:(785) 354-4273
Visibility--Music
• John McCutcheon
– “Travelin’ in the Wilderness”
– “Cross that Line”
•
•
•Other Suggested Resources
“Simple Justice” by Richard Kluger both book (1975) and movie (video)
“Brown V. Board Of Education, A Brief History with Documents”, (1998)
by Waldo E. Martin Jr.
Black, White & Brown video by KTWU (PBS)website: ktwu.washburn.edu
Fry,“The Struggle Against ‘Separate But Equal’—Teaching About Brown v.
Topeka,” Southern Social Studies Journal, Vol.30 (1) Fall 2004
Visibility-Associations
• TODOS: Mathematics for ALL
http://www.todos-math.org
• Benjamin Banneker Association
www.bannekermath.org
• NAME
Awareness of Stereotypes
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Stereotype, Prejudice (Bias), Discrimination
Cognitive, Affective, Behavior
Head, Heart, Hand
Jane Elliot’s “Eye of the Storm”
Terrible Thomas Jefferson Quote
Banneker’s Twelve Page Letter
Jefferson Reply-sort of retraction
Detect stereotypes in materials
Goals of Students Seeing Themselves in
the Curriculum Include:
• Improving the academic achievement of minority
students
• Build commitment to American ideals of pluralism
and democracy
• Eliminating bias in classroom interactions and
learning materials
• Incorporating minority perspectives into the
curriculum
• Fostering respect and appreciation for the
contributions to society that minorities have made