(Disclaimer: Video contains racial slurs and cursing. Although it makes light of the situation by using humor, this video is used only to supplement some of our discussions about not wanting to offend people/inadvertently offending people.)
"In surveys among young adults, 60% believe the federal government ought to make sure that public schools are integrated, while the same percentage of black respondents do not merely favor integrated education but believe that it is 'absolutely essential' that the population of a school be racially diverse." (Kozol, p. 233)
Originally, when I read this, I had an internal argument about the meaning behind this statement. After all, what good does it do to force integrated schools if they never truly integrate? Especially considering physical integration is much different from mental integration. How do we benefit from integration if we maintain our separate cliques? However, when we discussed this in class, I was reminded about what this means in terms of material resources and how the physical integration can benefit those who didn't have the material resources available. I appreciated this perspective being mentioned since I'd forgotten to think about it in those terms. But, other than that, how do students benefit from schools that are physically integrated but not mentally integrated? If we found a way to incorporate a mental integration, would that not benefit us more by providing more than just material resources and the other benefits one might think of? Would we not learn more in particular subjects with the inclusion of people from different backgrounds and cultures sharing their perspectives? Of course, I suppose physical integration can be seen as a step towards mental integration...
But, I can't help feeling that people use the benefit of material resources as an excuse to justify why the current integration status "works," as though they are satisfied that this sort of integration is the complete answer. Since they can think of a benefit, then it must be working, right? As opposed to thinking about how they can improve on this benefit so that other benefits can be brought out by simply adding or changing a few components. Why have we, as a society, allowed ourselves to become so accultured to being satisfied with any "victory," no matter how small? Truth be told, I'm not satisfied with this. I think more can be done, and I think it is reasonable to expect that more be done to better integrate our schools and that it is unacceptable to think we have succeeded just because we were "given" one minor "victory" when it comes to promoting equity in schools.
So, building off the suggestions England poses on pg. 9, I did more research on incorporating multicultural education into the schools. The articles I found expand on research by James Banks which identifies five dimensions of multicultural education: content integration, the knowledge construction process, prejudice reduction, an equity pedagogy, and an empowering school culture and social structure (Banks, 1995a). (One of his research articles can be found here.) The first article, Kentucky Education Reform: Towards the Practice of Multiculturalism in Teaching, provides information about the multicultural curriculum development in Kentucky; the link is to a summary of the article which also contains a link to the full article examining ways to better integrate the schools. I thought the figures given (especially on pps. 10-16) provided good examples of considerations in multiple contexts for a multicultural curriculum. Fig. 9 on pg. 15, for example illustrates some examples of how to avoid the "hidden curriculum" as we discussed with our Anyon readings. Parental involvement is addressed in Fig. 8, pg 14. One of the things I liked best about this reform was that it tried to focus on all areas of involvement -- parents, community, and school integration, and integration at all levels (not just in the classroom, but also in the lunchrooms and hallways, etc.)
I also found this article interesting because it addresses issues to be considered while emphasizing the importance of multicultural education and critical thinking by both teachers and students. I liked that the article listed suggestions and used both theory and practice as a framework to their suggestions. Sometimes, I think researchers forget about the practice part and focus too much on theory -- the practice part shows how the theory can be applied more successfully. (This is what I think was a big problem with NCLB implementation -- the program was not implemented using honest practice. They discussed how it was successful in Texas, but it was only "successful" on paper because of dishonesty -- schools changing answers to test scores, etc. This "beta" application was flawed, and the dishonesty continues to be a serious detriment to our educational system.)
(The really bad reference to Highlander in the title aside...) Looking at these articles I realize even more now that I will always be one of those people who will never accept that there is just one right answer when it comes to education reform -- especially when it encompasses and affects so many people. While both articles presented information I liked, I also saw some suggestions that could be improved on and thought that combining aspects of the two along with some other theories would be more beneficial than choosing one over another. This example helps to explain why I do not think one particular philosophy is the "cure" -- we need to better integrate philosophies just like we need to better integrate our schools. (Of course, this sort of linear thinking is deeply-rooted into our educational system as well, and is one of the aspects of current curricula that multicultural education hopes to address.)
"You think the only people who are people... Are the people who look and think like you... But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger... You'll learn things you never knew you never knew"("Colors of the Wind" by Vanessa Williams from Pocahontas)
"Free your mind... and the rest will follow... Be colorblind... Don't be so shallow..." ("Free Your Mind" by En Vogue)
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