Cultural Diversity Research Paper

Raised in Southern California

Life experiences help shape one’s views of race, culture and issues of diversity. Culture can be both internal and external. In Culture, Identity, and Learning, “Culture consists of the values, traditions, worldview, and social and political relationships created, shared, and transformed by a group of people bound together…” (p 171). Living in California, there have been different elements that have influenced my cultural upbringing, such as, my family’s traditions, values, norms and beliefs. In my reflection of my personal history, I will describe my family background, what my positionality is, and my exposure to other cultures unlike my own. Furthermore, I will describe myself as a learner and how it may affect

At the age of two, my family moved to sunny Southern California to the city of Oceanside. My family was the traditional dad and mom, and I have a younger brother too. I am a caucasian, English speaking heterosexual female, who is considered to be middle class. I grew up going to the beach and going on family camping trips to Reds Meadow every summer. I would definitely be stereotyped as the typical white girl from California. About Terminology (2008) suggests, “White people, as the majority in the U.S. society, seldom think of themselves as ethnic; they tend to reserve this term for other, more easily identifiable groups” (p 36). In viewing my culture, I can relate to this quote. My culture is not as prominent as others in my city, and I feel that it lacks in ethnicity and

From my geographic location to the education and life experiences I have been so fortunate to have. My culture is a mix of a lot of dimensions. Living in a culturally enriched area I can see how multicultural education is just as important as a core curriculum education for our future students. Ogbu states, “multicultural education fosters pride in minority cultures, helps minority students develop new insights into their culture, reduces prejudice and stereotyping, and promotes intercultural understandings” (p 6). As a future teachers, I am excited to learn what cultural influences my students will bring into our