(855) 4-ESSAYS

Type a new keyword(s) and press Enter to search

Curriculum And Instruction


            Multiculturalism: E Pluribus Plures.
             Diane Ravitch talks about how multiculturalism is and could be effecting our classrooms. She first talks about how for many years the classroom has had a very one sided view of history. "The textbooks concentrated on presidents, wars, national politics and issues of the state." She then went on to explain how that view has slowly been changing since the 1960's. "In contrast to the idea of the melting pot, which promised to erase ethnic and group differences, children now learn that variety is the spice of life." .
             Particularism.
             Particularists believe that an ethnocentric curriculum should be developed to boost the esteem and academic achievements of students. This could have positive effects because children may have a greater interest in a specific subject because they can identify with it culturally. However, it may also be negative because it may teach children that they are born with a specific set of "cultural genes". For example, if people of Japanese heritage were known only for their contributions to science, students may feel that that is all that they can offer to the world. .
             The particularists also feel that we should not consider ourselves one American culture unless we are of European decent. This gives students a feeling that we must always be identified with only one group. .
             Ethnomathmatics.
             The article gives an example of this thinking in mathematics. It suggests that we teach children of correct ancestral descent about the Mayan system of mathematics because they were the first to develop the concept of zero. It is believed that this would help the children to feel connected to math. However, how far do you go? It would not be right to teach these children only ancient concepts of math. How would we establish where to draw the line?.
             The Effects of Particularism.
             .
             The author argues that if such a concept were to be completely incorporated into the classroom, we would be left with only argument after argument.


Essays Related to Curriculum And Instruction


Got a writing question? Ask our professional writer!
Submit My Question