In today's society the need exists for development of a multicultural literature curriculum for students in kindergarten. The developed curriculum will involve using ten stories about grandparents, each of which is written from a multicultural perspective. So that the curriculum lessons may be properly designed and the research effort placed within the context of existing theory and research, this chapter of the thesis offers a review of the multicultural education literature.
The presented review first defines multicultural education and presents a brief overview of its conceptual foundation and general goals and objectives. This overview is followed by an examination and discussion of empirical studies looking at the effects of multicultural education on minorities and other at-risk student groups. The review then examines literature-based learning as it specifically relates to the use of multicultural education materials (books, texts, stories) and techniques. The literature-based, multicultural curriculum thesis project is then discussed in the specific context of this research.
Multicultural Education: Definition and Objectives
America is a pluralistic society which is to say that it contains many diverse ethnic groups and culture. According to Porter (1994), for most of American history, America was perceived as a "melting pot," whose different peoples had joined to form a "new" culture. The purpose, therefore, of the educational system was not only to teach the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic but also to contribute to this melting pot process by socializing and acculturating immigrant children to the American language, mores, customs, and culture.
However, this view of inculcating the dominant culture in children has increasingly fallen into disfavor because it has been perceived as stripping different ethnic groups of their cultures and identities (Fry, 1994). Today, the educational thrust is ...