Multicultural Education

I think the group presenting this topic did a very nice job. I liked that they linked it to literature. Literature is already fairly multicultural in that it tells stories and every story is of someone different. I liked the idea they set up to basically have a debate going on in class over the hottest topics in schools right now. Are gender and sexuality important enough to deserve discussion in school? Is important to learn about religions that are different from our own? Should we be learning about them inside of schools? Is it important to have a multicultural education. I believe the answer to them all is yes.

I think that is the only area in which the debate idea may have failed. I think many people believe that these are important issues because they are aspects of who we are as individuals, one of the most important things we learn in school, but I think that people are touchy on them. I think that is why more people gravitated towards neutral and pro rather than con. We all believe these topics are important but we are not sure they are worth risking our jobs over. At least not at first anyway. I think that this is a sad fact.

Students should be learning about the world around them, and the world around them isn't all white, middle class suburbia. Or for that matter it most certainly isn't the white straight male front that men of the Skakespeare's time and after displayed. This is a world that is diverse and open to all walks of life. Our students should understand all of them. So they understand themselves, and others they will interact with. I wish there was a way to do it without getting someone upset but there probably isn't. Lets face it. Despite how much open our world is now than it use to be, there are still many who are close minded and care nothing about people who are different for them. We are going to have to fight them eventually.