Multicultural
Education
ETH305V
notes
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ETH305V MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION
Culture
• A shared system of beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts
• Processes of social and human interaction
• Example: Ndebele tribe. Xhosa
Macro culture
• Embodied by the countries symbols and values
• Shared by all citizens
• Example: Flag and national anthem
Micro / sub culture
• Smaller groups within a larger culture; such as religious, language and sports groups
• They share a belief in certain rules and roles
• Example: Sports team, religion
Micro cultures that influence classroom teaching
• Gender
• Barriers to learning
• Socio-economic class
• Language
• Family structure
Multicultural education
• A multi-disciplinary educational programme the provides multiple learning environments
• A reaction to assimilation and integration where minority groups where engulfed by a dominant
group
• It focuses on incorporating equal recognition of beliefs and values of people from various
cultural groups.
• Multicultural education aims to help learners understand the unique cultural backgrounds of various
groups, develop equal learning opportunities and reduce any form of discrimination and racism.
• Encompasses:
o Race
o Ethnicity
o Religion
o Gender
o Socio-economic class
o Age
o Physical disabilities
Race and racism
• Racism is viewing one’s own race as superior to other races
• People are not naturally racist, but they learn this as a result of the attitudes and behavioral patterns
of their elders.
• Example: Whites thinking they are better than blacks
Discrimination
• The unfair, disadvantageous treatment of individuals and groups.
• Can take many forms such as discrimination on the grounds of language, religion, ethnic grouping
and class
• Example: Not getting a job because of the colour of your skin
Minority groups
• Relates to those groups in society who are in the numerical minority.
• Example: Jewish South Africans form a minority group as opposed to groups who are Zulu
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Dimensions of multicultural education:
• Content integration
o When teachers use examples and content from a variety of cultures and groups to
illustrate key concepts when teaching diverse groups
• Equity pedagogy
o Modifying teaching in order to facilitate the academic achievement of students from
diverse racial, cultural, gender and social-class
o This includes using a variety of teaching styles and approaches to accommodate a wide
range of learning styles within different cultural and ethnic groups
• The knowledge construction process
o Refers to the methods, activities and questions teachers use to help learners understand
how assumptions and perspectives influence the way in which knowledge is constructed
o Teachers help learners to understand how racial, ethnic and social class influences
knowledge
• Prejudice reduction
o By reducing prejudice, teacher helps learners to develop positive attitudes towards
different racial, ethnic and cultural groups
o The objective is to overcome the learner’s current bias and add more positive attitudes
• An empowering School culture
o This involves restructuring the culture and organization of the school so that learners from
diverse groups can experience equality
o This is a collaborative process that involves all members of the school staff
Ethnic group and ethnocentrism
• An ethnic group is the distinct social group within a larger society
• Ethnocentrism is the tendency to view one’s own cultural group ad its social standards as superior
Multicultural society/community
• It is the heterogeneous, diverse nature of societies and communities
Stereotypes
• When we create mental categories in order to place people, items or events in conceptually
specified groups. It is how we describe people
• It can amount to overgeneralization of a person or a group
• Example: Lower income people are uneducated
Prejudice
• The judgement or opinion of a person or thing prior to examination of the facts
• It is how we feel about people
• Sources: Social inequalities, frustration and aggression, social dominance, institutions
Assimilation (6)
• Members of the minority groups in society must conform to and adopt the values, norms and
language of the majority and dominant social group
• It is opposed to the principles of multicultural education
• It does not celebrate diversity
• It ignores the needs of the learners from diverse social groups
Socio-economic class
• An individual’s economic and social position in society in relation to other, based on their income,
education and occupation
• Categorized into three levels; high, middle and low
• Example: The average working class citizen would fall into the middle category, while an
unemployed person who has no shelter and minimal food would fall into the low class
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Empowerment (4)
• A process, which enables learners to access aspects of the dominant culture
Examples:
The history of discrimination in SA
The various social groups that where disadvantaged and did not enjoy educational equality
The need to empower all the languages spoken in SA
• To broaden their understanding of themselves and the world in which they live
Diversity (The need for multicultural education in SA) (4)
• South Africa is culturally divers and the different viewpoints within any one ethnic or race group
need to be accommodated
• It is shown by the number of languages spoken, the racial, ethnic and social class mix
• Diversity constitutes any kind of variety in human kind
Xenophobia
• A hatred or fear of foreigners which results in an increase tension and violence towards immigrants
SOCIALIZATION MODELS
Teachers can measure their approach to education by 2 models:
• Assimilation models:
A process whereby minority groups are assimilated into a group with a more dynamic culture
o Assimilation
The acceptance of a minority group by a majority population in which the minority group
takes over the values and norms of the dominant culture.
o Amalgamation
To create and develop an entirely new, unique and distinctive culture
o Open society
This is where ethnicity, faith, language or any other bias on which groups are formed, are
rejected. The interest of the individual is given priority
• Culturally pluralistic models:
A society with a diversity of cultural, ethnic and religious difference
o Structural pluralism
Also called the “salad bowl” and accepts the idea that cultural pluralism is part of modern
society, but advocates separate development
o Modified cultural pluralism
Acknowledges cultural diversity but favors greater interaction between the different groups
o Dynamic cultural pluralism
Acknowledges the importance of a group as well as the individual’s identity. Individuals
should have the right to free association
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