Introduction
As educators, we have the privilege of having a classroom composed of such rich diversity. Our children come into the classrooms from various walks of life, family dynamics, religions, languages, ethnic groups, and value systems. As educators, we can use their attributes to include or exclude students while creating a community within our four walls. It all begins with the teacher. “All students bring themselves into the classroom. It is the responsibility of the teacher to bring in a broader perspective on the world, and to create a classroom climate where students engage in critique of both text and their own perspectives.” (Singer & Smith,
2003, p. 22) This idea brings forth a new perspective of education—multicultural education.
Multicultural education is a way of thinking. It is the belief that all should be respected regardless of their differences. Differences include race, language, customs, religion, age, economic class, gender, or physical or mental abilities. The curriculum contains multiple cultural perspectives and promotes social justice. Its goals are to 1) be responsive and relevant to the need of all students, 2) help students become multicultural literate, and 3) help students develop skills to effectively and respectfully interact with people from all diverse backgrounds.
“Multicultural literacy is a state of being knowledgeable and respectful of the history, traditions, and values of persons of diverse backgrounds.” (D’Andrea, 1995)
Multicultural education creates a climate that welcomes diversity in the classroom and challenges stereotypes and overgeneralizations. It allows students to make informed and sound decisions in a culturally diverse society in an interdependent world. “Students who are taught to appreciate their own heritage learn to understand the heritage of others in the process.” (Bieger,
1995, p. 308)

Proposal
One non-threatening approach to multicultural education is through literature. Students respond greater emotional engagement when they find themselves in the book. (Singer & Smith,
2003) Literature contains universal human problems, feelings, and experiences. “What cannot be taught through the facts may be taught through the heart.” (Bieger, 1995, p. 309) Literature allows to children to enter into the world of others’ lives and feelings of characters.
“Multicultural literature introduces opportunities for seeing the word through other people’s eyes. As they engage in literature with diverse perspectives, these readers will find both unfamiliar and universal situations.” (Singer & Smith, 2003, p. 17)
Reading is an avenue to realize personal cultural values and beliefs. Once that is done, students begin to appreciate others’ heritages and histories. (Bieger, 1995) There is an interaction between the reader’s personal experiences and the text that creates meaning. (Singer
& Smith, 2003) “Students who find their own life experiences mirrored in books receive affirmation of themselves and their culture.” (Bieger, 1995, p. 309). This proves that their culture is worth learning about and sharing with others
In order to approach multicultural education through literature, a teacher must be purposeful in the selection of texts. “Seek out books that elicit empathy and engagement on the part of the reader with children from varied cultural backgrounds and different parts of the world.” (Singer & Smith, 2003, p. 17) Texts should present groups in variety of roles and situations that most people encounter and reflects many cultures, themes, and views. (Bieger,
1995) The teacher selects texts that are as complete and accurate as possible. Texts that contain stereotypes or overgeneralizations should be avoided.

Historical texts need to present from the point of view of the people concerned. A variety of biographies by different authors is recommended as well. It can be powerful to compare and contrast authors’ perspectives. Myths, legends, and folktales reflect value and beliefs from around the world can be a great springboard into multicultural education. (Bieger, 1995)
Committee
Principal: Will be the facilitator of multicultural education within the school. Provides professional development opportunities of expanding literature use the classroom. Will be there to offer information on school policy and rules as they affect our decisions in planning, purchasing of materials, and instruction. The principal is also the school representative at Parent
Club meetings
Librarian staff: Will be there to assist teachers in selecting materials within the local library, neighboring schools, and district library services. Will take teachers’ recommendations into consideration when ordering new materials for student and teacher use. Will be purposeful in selecting texts that allow for multicultural characteristics as discussed above
Teachers: Will be the planner, instructor, and facilitator of multicultural literature
Reading Coach: Will offer expertise in reading instruction as well as multicultural literature that helps students develop reading skills and master grade level reading and literature standards.
Reading coach assists leading teacher (me) in researching possible sources for reasonably priced multicultural literature as well as available resources locally and on the internet. Also helps research available funds and grants to help build our professional, classroom, and school libraries with rich, multicultural literature.

Counselor: Provide guidance instruction that promotes the development of skills to effectively and respectfully interact with people from all diverse backgrounds. Will offer expertise from a relational, psychological, and family dynamic standpoint.
Parents: Ideally parents from various ethnic, religious, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds will join the committee. They will be able to communicate what they feel should be addressed in the classroom as well as contribute with their children the vast knowledge and experiences they have to enhance reading and literature instruction.
Timeline
The committee will meet for half-day in-service in August to get the process started. The committee will continue to meet once a month throughout the school year. As the author of this policy, I would continue to research possible sources for reasonably priced multicultural literature, available resources locally, on websites, from our English Acquisition Department and local libraries and district library services. I would also do research to find funds or possible grants to have build our professional, classroom, and school libraries with rich, multicultural literature.
August:
 ½ day: Principal, librarian staff, reading coach and I will meet. The committee decides on possible dates for a teacher in-service on the topic of multicultural information and determines resources available within the school. The committee will also discuss goals and invite parents to join the committee.
 ½ day: Principal, librarian staff, reading coach and I will meet. We will plan the first teacher in-service and gather resources from local libraries, neighboring schools, district library services, and English Language Acquisition Department.

September
 ½ Day: Teacher’s in-service. Describe what multicultural education, its importance, and how it can be approached through literature. Provide sample texts and websites to give teachers’ examples of appropriate literature. Give teachers time to find texts within their own libraries that could be used and share with the other teachers.
*Each month we will review the progress of using multicultural literature in the classroom and newly found resources. Teachers will receive updates of our findings during their Professional
Learning Times (PLCS) times on the first and third Wednesdays. Teachers can also share texts, lessons, and strategies they have used that have proven to be effective. The summary of these findings will be shared by the principal with the Parent Club during their monthly meetings.
In June, the committee will reflect on the progress of the in-services, PLCs, and parent club discussions.
The committee will look further into multicultural education through mathematics the following year, as well as taking it to the next step—social action. Mathematics would focus on incorporating everyday-life concepts, such as economics, employment, and consumer habits of various ethnic groups.
Outcomes
There are vast positive outcomes of this policy. Developing a multicultural curriculum from the teachers, principal, reading coach, and library staff’s point of view is a great way to obtain a variety of perspectives as well as those of parents and students. When all the school staff is on board, the school will be a diverse community.
Teachers and students looking inward and developing a perspective consciousness will reduce prejudices and then take them to the next step of embracing multicultural topics with an

open and welcoming attitude and mind. Students will feel that their cultures are valued which in turn will change their self-image, motivation, and lower their level of anxiety which breeds a positive learning environment. No one will feel isolated but included but will become multicultural literate.
All this will be evident within the first few months in the classrooms through attitude, behavior, student-teacher/student-student/colleague-colleague interactions, and dialogue in our classrooms and throughout the school. Students will embrace the diverse literature without any negativity but with a desire to learn more with sense of respect. Our ultimate goal is to see the fruits of it throughout our entire lives.
Unfortunately, there are potential barriers in implementing this policy. Teachers, parents or students may not feel comfortable studying or discussing diversity issues, such as religion, sexual orientation, and ethnic groups that are portrayed as violent or terrorist nature. Teachers may not to become involved because realizing personal identities can create a level of uncomfortableness. Also, teachers may not have the appropriate perspective of texts or ethnic groups and that will be displayed through their attitude, speech, and/or body language.
Resources are also an issue. With budgets being tight across school districts, there is limited money to purchase texts. Some ethnic groups may not have books that represent their group in a positive manner or from their point of view or it may not be written or translated into
English.
Conclusion
As you can see, this literacy-based approach can be easily implemented into each of our classrooms. The teacher is the starting point for change. With an open mind and some culturally-relevant texts, we can embrace all children and diverse aspects in a non-threatening

way.

Bieger, E. (1995). Promoting multicultural education through a literature-based approach.
Reading Teacher , 49 (4), 308.
D'Andrea, M. (1995). Using computer technology to promote multicultural awareness among elementary school-age students. Elementary School Guidance & Counseling , 30 (1), 45.
Singer, J. Y., & Smith, S. A. (2003). The Potential of Multicultural Literature: Changing
Understanding of Self and Others. Multicultural Perspectives , 5 (2), 17-23.