Preface We live in a diverse world an

Preface: We live in a diverse world an increasingly diverse society in the United States. This diverse society includes a number of young people who experience some degree of alienation in our classrooms and schools. Through the application of multicultural education concepts, we can strive to create more inclusive classrooms and schools in which our students can see themselves in the curriculum.

Multicultural Concepts • • Culture Cultural Pluralism Diversity is Valued Oneness is not sameness & balancing difference with commonalities • Multiple Perspectives • Visibility • Awareness of Stereotypes

What is Culture? • Idealized definition: • The way our ancestors speak through us.

Culture-Working Definition • Learned traditions, loyalties, beliefs, customs that guide behavior of a group of people.

We are all multicultural! • Members of many groups that have cultural aspects • Gender, social class, regional, ethnicity, religious, …. . • Race? ? White, Black, ? ? ? • Dynamic--our loyalties change over time • Complex--groups overlap

Cultural Elements • • • Values and beliefs Customs and traditions Language/communication patterns Diet and food preparation Dress and/or body decoration Religious practices Family structure View of time may vary Recreation-athletic games

CULTURE PROFILE: To which group(s) do you belong? 1. Language --English only; Spanish; Chinese; Vietnamese; Bilingual; Others________ 2. Ethnicity/National Origin-people in class with at least one ancestor from the areas: Native American--Tribes/Nations ________ Latin American--Countries/Regions: Mexico ; Cuba; El Salvador; Panama; South American Country, ________ Euro-American--Countries/Regions: Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales); Ireland; Germany, France, Italy, Scandinavia; Others ______ African American--Countries/Regions _______ Asian American--Countries _______ Arab American/ Middle East--Countries ______ 3. Religion Christianity Major Branches-- Catholic; Orthodox; Mormon; Protestant Denominations: Baptist, Congregational; Disciples of Christ (Christian Church); Episcopal (Anglican) Friends (Quaker), Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian Other denominations _________ Islam (Muslims) Branches of Islam: Shiite; Sunni Judaism (Jewish); Hindu; Buddhist (including Confucianism, Taoism) Other religions___________ 4. Musical Preference: Country-Western, Rock, Jazz, Rap, R & Blues, Latin, Tejano, Religious, Hip-Hop 5. Clothes: Casual, formal, uniform, ethnic 6. Food: Fast food, traditional diet, ethnic 7. Drinks: soft drinks, coffee, tea, milk, alcohol 8. Athletics: Golf, Football, Soccer, Basketball, Baseball, Gymnastics 9. Housing: Apartment, Single family dwelling, dorm 10. Living location: City/urban, rural, small town 11. Politics: Democrat, Republican, independent 12. Transportation: Bicycle, walk, auto, bus, subway

Cultural Pluralism • • • Multiple identities and loyalties in a nation Not a melting pot Opposite of Assimilation 1890 -1910 population doubled “PIGS”-- “WASPS” Not a deficit or deprived--different

Diversity Has Value • Paradigm shift from deficit, more than tolerance, to view it as a strength • Music analogy-unison/harmony; • “same song”---Our song is about equality, civil rights & social justice included in our founding documents!! • Anology from Biology--positive adaptation • Polilitcal Science --Democracy is inefficient but in the long run the best decisions are made when many points of view are listened to

Oneness is not sameness & balancing difference with commonalities • E Pluribus Unum • Balancing Act • Different yes but much more in common

Multiple Perspectives • • Important social studies concept Nine Year Freshman Story Math implications--many ways to solve problems Multiple types of successful algorithms - not just ‘one’ way • Word problem sensitivity- “tides for student who have never seen an ocean? ” • Imbalance “What if Custer’s men had repeating rifles and the kill ratio were higher? ” Same math skills could have been applied with bacteria and antibiotics. ”

Visibility • Posters, Calendars, Bulletin Boards • Add history/SS to math to show the contributions of many cultures • First Person Reports • Many good websites--biographies • The Mac. Tutor History of Mathematics archive http: //www -groups. dcs. st-and. ac. uk/~history/ • Dr. Sarah Greenwald “Incorporating Mathematical Achievements of Women and Minorities into Schools-…Classroom Activity Sheets http: //www. mathsci. appstate. edu/~sjg/ncctm/activities/ • Bejamin Banneker Lesson plan at: http: //teacherlink. ed. usu. edu/tlresources/units/Byrnes-famous/Banneker. html#objectives

Visibility-Printed Curriculum Materials • Zaslavsky, Claudia-- “Mathematical Games and Activities from around the World” 1998 “The Multicultural Math Classroom” 1995 Beatrice Lumpkin and Dorothy Strong “Multicultural Science and Math Connections” 1995 Part 1“From Africa to the Arctic”-- Hindu-Arabic Numerals, Mayan-Aztec Pyramids, Chinese Inventions Part 11 “Lives in Science and Math” The African Calculator--Thomas Fuller

Visibility-Associations • TODOS: Mathematics for ALL http: //www. todos-math. org • Women and Mathematics Education www. wme-usa. org • Benjamin Banneker Association www. bannekermath. org

Awareness of Stereotypes • • • Terrible Thomas Jefferson Quote Banneker’s Twelve Page Letter Jefferson Reply-sort of retraction Stereotype, Prejudice (Bias), Discrimination Cognitive, Affective, Behavior Head, Heart, Hand

Goals of Students Seeing Themselves in the Curriculum Include: • Improving the academic achievement of minority students • Build commitment to American ideals of pluralism and democracy • Eliminating bias in classroom interactions and learning materials • Incorporating minority perspectives into the curriculum • Fostering respect and appreciation for the contributions to society that minorities have made