Teaching Tolerance,
Redefined
Cindy Hendrix
Dr. Thomas McCambridge
Rationale: Why is “tolerance”
alone insufficient?
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Ever-increasing diversity of schools and
society
No longer as many common social and
cultural norms
Majority of teachers are white, female,
and middle class
Majority of students are non-white,
often lower SES
Role of Culture
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Culture effects not only how people
learn, but also how new information is
interpreted
Culturally responsive teaching
represents a first step toward
addressing diversity
Culture and Schools
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Increasing diversity of schools and
society requires a better understanding
of the role of culture
“Cultural Mismatches” often lead to
misunderstandings (taking turns, etc)
Culture and Schools
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(cont’d)
Cultural mismatch between teachers
and students detract from learning
Other conflicts in schools arise from
such mismatches
Tolerance alone does not eliminate such
misunderstandings
Teaching for “unity and diversity”
Background
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Early in the 20th century, a primary goal
of schools was to assimilate recent
immigrants
Conflicts between ideals of American
society and realities of life in urban
areas
1960s ethnic revitalization movement
Unity and Diversity
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Proposed by James Banks
Need to move beyond accepting and
celebrating differences
Rather than emphasize assimilation,
recognize that students belong to many
ethnic, social, and cultural groups
Unity and Diversity
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(cont’d)
We are all citizens of local, state,
national, and global communities
2002 Bellagio international conference
on citizenship education: students in all
nations need to be prepared to function
within, as well as across, national
borders
Unity and Diversity
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(cont’d)
People need to participate in civic life
and feel that their voices are heard and
their needs addressed
Otherwise, special interest groups
dominate
Civic participation should consider local,
state, national, and international good
Purpose of Education
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One goal of education should be to "help
students become thoughtful, caring, and
reflective citizens in a multicultural world
society"
"Students need to understand how life in
their cultural communities and nations
influences other nations and the cogent
influence that international events have on
their daily lives"
- James Banks (2001)
Character Education
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Character education should be woven
throughout educational process with the
goal of preparing students for a global
world
Prospective teachers need to develop a
broader understanding of the role of
culture in education and society
Implications for Teacher
Educators
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Teacher educators may need to learn
more about the role of culture in
teaching and learning
Part of this will require an examination
of the role of culture, ethnicity, and
gender in their own lives
Implications for Teacher
Educators (cont’d)
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Consideration of the difference between
the role of culture in the life of teachereducator and that of students in preservice teachers
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For pre-service teachers who are not White
and middle class, their perspective may be
very different
Implications for Teacher
Educators (cont’d)
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Re-examination of educational
philosophies
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In Other Peoples Children, Lisa Delpit
recounts differences in attitudes towards
discipline and pedagogy between white
teacher-educators and students (or
teachers) of color
Implications for Teacher
Educators (cont’d)
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Teacher educators need to consider the
role of cultural perspectives in learning
in addition to brain-based research
Teacher education programs may
inadvertently create “child-deficit”
assumptions in pre-service teachers
Implications for Pre-service
Teachers
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Examine role of culture, ethnicity, and
gender in their own lives
For white, female, middle class teachers
this includes acknowledging cultural
benefits they have benefited from
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Many pre-service teachers have monocultural upbringings
Implications for Pre-service
Teachers (cont’d)
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Middle-class values are the dominant
perspective in pre-service teachers
Even teachers from working-class
backgrounds identify themselves as
middle class – seen as necessary to
achieve academic and social success
Implications for Pre-service
Teachers (cont’d)
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Pre-service teachers may need to
reconcile personal beliefs with belief
systems students bring to school
Conclusion
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Purpose of education should be to
prepare students for citizenship in our
democracy as well as in global society
A participatory democracy in which all
citizens have access is one way to build
a lasting peace