Week 2 Paper

Running head: CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM
Creating True Multiculturalism in a New Curriculum

Maria Moussa
The University of North Texas
CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM IN A NEW CURRICULUM
Curriculum reform is essential in all aspects in order to maintain relevance to the

rapidly changing world of education. 21st century learning involves digging deeper
through the use of the Internet, foreign language, and multicultural literacy to develop a
true appreciation and understanding of multiculturalism in order to establish and cultivate
relevant global perspectives. Traditional multicultural education includes learning about a
cultures food, fashion, and holiday traditions; however, moving past that and reshaping
the curriculum in order to teach culture can and should be done to foster multicultural
understanding and appreciation in our students.
In order to improve multicultural perspectives, the new curriculum implemented
should exercise multiple uses of the Internet. In todays world Internet access is
something that is readily accessed by the majority, and schools can utilize the benefits of
the Internet without spending extra money. According to Alenuma-Nimoh (2016), the
Internet allows people an interactive space where they can experience culture.
Classrooms can use the Internet to interview people from other cultures or countries via
video conferencing, take virtual tours of different countries, or maintain communication
with a pen pal through the use of individual or classroom email accounts (Meyer &
Rhoades, 2006). In a new multicultural curriculum, teachers can use the Internet to
compare instruction or content to other countries around the world. While studying data
for example, a math class could research different methods of displaying data from
different countries and compare and contrast the benefits of the different methods found.
Use of the Internet in todays 21st century classroom is crucial. With proper training
teachers can effectively and purposefully utilize the Internet while guiding students to
develop a global perspective.
Including foreign language in the curriculum is another way that we can immerse
students in culture. Typically, students are required to learn a foreign language at the
secondary level; however, implementing learning a foreign language at the primary level
can allow students the opportunity to learn a language and study different countries that
regularly speak the language. A push for multiculturalism and curriculum reform requires
schools and districts to step outside the box and try something new. Learning even basic
foreign language skills at the primary level can be taught weekly through the addition of
a foreign language specials class. As students continue to move through education,
ensuring that students continue to study language at the middle and high school levels is
essential. Foreign language teachers are able to cultivate students desire to learn and
guide students research on regions and countries that study the given language
(Jabbarifar, 2011).
In order to give students the opportunity to develop multicultural appreciation,
curriculum and instruction must provide authentic forms of multicultural literacy. When
reforming the curriculum, literature that emphasizes an entire cultures varying needs,
diverse problems, and unique experiences is imperative. Literature should be chosen from
several authors and should allow students the opportunity to construct their own meaning.
According to Banks (1991), the knowledge construction process is important to students
learning in multicultural education. Rather than reading a traditional story that highlights
only one popular aspect of a culture, students should be exposed to several books and
stories that shed light on the many aspects of a given culture.
Curriculum reform with the specific focus of improving multicultural and global
perspectives directly relates to our course readings and discussions that have taken place
over the past two weeks. Allowing students the opportunity to immerse themselves in a
culture gives them the opportunity to make connections and develop a deeper
understanding of the Habits of Mind. Habits that students and teachers can apply when
digging deeper into multiculturalism include thinking flexibly: being able to change
perspectives, creating, imagining, and innovating: thinking about how things can be done
differently, and responding with wonderment and awe: being captivated by the worlds
beauty (Costa & Kallick, 2000). According to Jacobs (2010), embracing the Habits of
Mind as educational outcomes requires some curriculum mind shifts in thinking as we
move from what we are presently doing toward a more 21st century form of education
(p. 223). Mind shift number two focuses on moving away from transmitting meaning to
constructing meaning. With this mind shift, students can interact with others to create
their own meaning of their new experiences. Teachers move away from students
acquiring their meaning or interpretations and move towards having students construct
their own meaning through social interactions (Jacobs, 2010).
The issue with current multicultural education in traditional school settings is that
it takes one aspect of a given culture and portrays it as the norm for all who come from
that country. Students should be given learning opportunities to develop a deeper
understanding of cultures around the world. In order to allow this to happen, curriculum
reform is necessary. Teachers should expose their students to true authentic forms of
culture through varying literature, foreign language and use of the Internet. By allowing
these open-ended opportunities to happen in our classrooms, students can begin to
construct their own meaning and develop a deeper appreciation of culture.
References
Alenuma-Nimoh, S. (2016). Reexamining the concept multicultural education:
Recommendations for moving beyond "eating the other multiculturalism."
Journal of Intercultural Disciplines, 15, 128-146. Retrieved from
https://libproxy.library.unt.edu/login?
url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1817092175?accountid=7113
Banks, J. A. (1991). Multicultural literacy and curriculum reform. The Education Digest,
57(4), 10-13. Retrieved from https://libproxy.library.unt.edu/login?
Costa, A., & Kallick, B. (2000). Habits of mind: A developmental series. Book I:
Discovering and exploring habits of mind. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Jabbarifar, T. (2011). The importance of self-efficacy and foreign language learning in the
21st century. Journal of International Education Research, 7(4), 117. Retrieved
from https://libproxy.library.unt.edu/login?
Jacobs, H. H. (2010). Curriculum 21: Essential education for a changing
world. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Meyer, C. F., & Rhoades. E. K. (2006) Multiculturalism: Beyond food, festival, folklore,
and fashion. Kappa Delta Pi. 42(2), 82-87.

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Running head: CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM

Creating True Multiculturalism in a New Curriculum

CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM IN A NEW CURRICULUM

Curriculum reform is essential in all aspects in order to maintain relevance to the

CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM IN A NEW CURRICULUM

CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM IN A NEW CURRICULUM

CREATING TRUE MULTICULTURALISM IN A NEW CURRICULUM

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