The Importance Of Multicultural Education

794 Words4 Pages

Diversity, or multicultural education, should be a collaborative effort among educators, children, and families in order for students to learn about their own culture and those of people who are different from them. Preschool programs need to reflect, acknowledge, and celebrate diversity and their curriculums should utilize children’s funds of knowledge to help children connect their world with their learning environment. When teachers fail to understand the importance of acknowledging and celebrating diversity, it is up to the administrators to enlighten them about how children develop their self-identities by helping students to learn acceptance of themselves and others. Training sessions can be given demonstrating ways in which teachers can learn how to prompt children to express their thoughts and ideas about differences through planned conversations, pictures, questions, or books. And, teachers can be shown how to display items that show diverse cultures, languages, and traditions; males and females in nontraditional roles; or “differently-abled children and adults demonstrating strengths and abilities” (WGBH, 2014, par. 1). Early childhood educators must learn how to give children the appropriate language to respectfully talk about differences. When teachers come to understand the importance of celebrating diversity, they will be better able to help their students recognize and reject bias against race, language, culture, gender, and abilities (WGBH, 2014).
Article

Open Document