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I believe that multicultural education is a necessary part of our education system. Our society is so diverse racially, ethnically, economically, etc. I believe that every course should have some component of multicultural education. I believe that multicultural education is simply about educating others about the practices, beliefs, & customs of other cultures/economic classes/gender. These cultures can be chosen from within the classroom or they can be chosen to represent a more global point of view.

For example, my classroom is very homogeneous in regards to race, social class and even background. Most of my seniors have been at the same school since kindergarten, live within five miles of each other and their parents' work at the plants surrounding our school. I constantly battle stereotypes of other races, classes, etc simply because they don't' know. They have never been outside of their bubble. So for me multicultural education is more about educating and giving the correct information on different cultures, social classes, etc through incorporating it into my curriculum. For example, in my math classes I require the students to research different mathematicians from different parts of the world. This allows the students to see the contributions that different cultures have made to the field of mathematics. Furthermore, I believe that these aspects should be infused into the curriculum of every subject.

I see multicultural education as more about opening student's eyes to the world, not just their own cultures or the cultures within the classroom. Every subject can teach multicultural education indirectly by examining the contributions of different culture to the subject being studied. I do not think that anti racism and anti discrimination should be at the center of the curriculum. These are choices that people make. These shouldn't be the primary focus but will be addressed by simply educating the students on the cultures in the world. I don't believe you can teach someone not to be racist. However, I do believe that you can guide and provide the information for each person to make their own informed choice and hopefully they choose a path of tolerance. I do believe that the school in an indirect "hidden" curriculum can handle issues of race and identity. However, I think that job starts with the parents. Schools only see children for so long and the parents have a much greater impact. Teachers need to be educated and informed about other cultures. I think teachers should evaluate themselves and make sure they don't have any subconscious discriminatory habits, such as calling on males more than females, etc (Several studies have been done on this). Teachers should also be sure that they are knowledgeable about other cultures. In addition, training should be provided to give direction on how to infuse the curriculum with opportunities to incorporate multicultural education. There is so much to teach in the Comprehensive Curriculum's that you can t stop for a unit and simply teach on culture. It has to be an ever-present "indirect" goal for the teacher and the school.

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