I. The Challenge of Defining "Multicultural Education"
by Paul C. Gorski
edited and updated on April 14, 2010
Since its earliest conceptualizations in the 1960s, multicultural education has evolved both in
theory and in practice. Some discuss multicultural education as a change in curriculum, perhaps
by adding new and diverse materials and perspectives to be more inclusive of traditionally
underrepresented groups. Others talk about different teaching styles. Still others insist on
education change as part of a larger societal transformation.
Despite these differing conceptualizations, several shared ideals provide a basis for the
understanding of multicultural education. These ideals are all about transformation:
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Every student must have an equal opportunity to achieve her or his full potential.
Every student must be prepared to competently participate in an increasingly intercultural
society.
Teachers must be prepared to effectively facilitate learning for every individual student, no
matter how culturally similar or different from her- or himself.
Schools must be active participants in ending oppression of all types, first by ending
oppression within their own walls, then by producing socially and critically active and aware
students.
Education must become more fully student-centered and inclusive of the voices and
experiences of the students.
Educators, activists, and others must take a more active role in re-examining all
educational practices and how they affect the learning of all students: assessment
methods, pedagogies, educational materials and textbooks, and so on.
While it is important to develop a deeper understanding of the various models of multicultural
education, I feel it is equally important that I provide my own working definition.
II. A Working Definition of Multicultural Education
Multicultural education is a progressive approach for transforming education that responds to
discriminatory policies and practices in education. It is grounded in ideals of social justice,
education equity, critical pedagogy, and a dedication to provide educational experiences in which
all students reach their full potentials as learners and as socially aware and active beings, locally,
nationally, and globally. Multicultural education acknowledges that schools have an essential role
in laying the foundation for the transformation of society and the elimination of injustice.
The goal of multicultural education is to create social change through three kinds of
transformation:
1. the transformation of self;
2. the transformation of schools;
3. the transformation of society.
1. The Transformation of Self
As an educator, I have a responsibility to examine how my view of society influences my teaching
and the educational experiences of my students. I have a responsibility to examine how I
understand the people and events around me. Only when I realize how my own perceptions are
developed in relation to my life experiences I will begin to understand the world and effectively
manage my relationships with the people around me. I also have a responsibility to eliminate my
prejudices, examining who is (and is not) being reached by my teaching, and re-learning how my
identity affects their learning experiences. I must be in a constant process of self-examination and
transformation in order to be an effective multicultural educator.
2. The Transformation of Schools
Multicultural education calls for a critical examination of all aspects of the school world. Aspects of
multicultural school transformation include the following:
A. Student-Centered Pedagogy
o The experiences of students must be central in the classroom, making learning
active, interactive, relevant, and engaging.
o Traditional teaching approaches and pedagogical models must be deconstructed to
examine how they contribute to institutional systems of oppression.
o All aspects of teaching and learning in schools must be re-focused on the students
themselves instead of standardized tests and grades.
o Critical thinking, learning skills, and social awareness should be considered as
important as facts and figures.
o Pedagogy must give all students the opportunity to reach their potential as learners.
B. Multicultural Curriculum
o All subjects must be presented from diverse perspectives.
o "Inclusive curriculum" also means including the voices of the students in the
classroom and their different nationalities, cultures, and experiences.
o Concepts such as "national canons" must be substituted by a more global focus on
intercultural points of view.
C. Inclusive Educational Media and Materials
o Educational materials should be inclusive of diverse voices and perspectives.
o Students must be encouraged to think critically about materials and media.
D. Supportive Climate in School and Classroom
o Teachers must be better prepared to create a positive classroom climate
for all students.
o School cultures must be examined to determine how they might be supporting
oppressive or discriminatory societal conditions.
o Administrative hierarchies in schools must be examined to assess whether they
produce positive teaching environments for all teachers.
E. Continual Evaluation and Assessment
o Educators must continue to examine the emphasis on standardized test scores and
develop more just alternatives for measuring student "achievement," "ability," or
"potential."
o Continuing evaluation must be used to measure the success of new and existing
programmes meant to give more opportunities to underrepresented ethic, religious
and cultural groups in schools.
3. The Transformation of Society
The main goal of multicultural education is to contribute to the transformation of society and to
the application and maintenance of social justice and equity. The transformation of schools
necessarily transforms a society that pays too much attention to educational attainment, degrees,
and grades. It is this competitive, market-centric hegemony underlying the dominant mentality of
the Western cultures that multicultural education aims to challenge, expose, and critique.
Educators, educational theorists, researchers, activists, and everyone else must continue to
practice and apply multicultural teaching and learning principles both inside and out of the
classroom.
In a sense, multicultural education uses the transformation of self and school as a metaphor and
point of departure for the transformation of society. Social justice, openness to other cultures and
equity in schools can, and should, mean social justice and equity in society. Only then the purpose
of multicultural education will be fully achieved.