Journal+for+Reflection

Mary, Tasha, and Billy

1. We all came from high schools where the majority of the students were white. Coming to college was a culture shock for all of us because for the first time we have experienced diversity, social justice, and equality. We've experienced diversity since coming to college by being surrounded by people from all different backgrounds and culture. Before being exposed to such diversity, we all agreed we were pretty naive to how cultures differ. When it comes to social justice, college has taught us to be more open minded. While being college students we have become more socially aware of these ideas and concepts. Equality comes hand in hand with the concept of social justice. While we have experienced equality as college students, our eyes have also been opened to the forms of discrimination which are still prominent in today's society. Going back to the idea of us being naive before coming to school, I was never fully aware that student's still today don't receive an equal education because they live in poverty or because of their race.

2. We think multicultural education should be integrated into the school curriculum and environment because it give students the opportunity to learn more about one another and interacting on an equal basis in the schools. In addition, it will provide a well-rounded and balanced curriculum for students if they work hard at bringing different perspectives to presentations and discussions. Technology can be used as a strategy for connecting direct exposure to diversity resulting in more cultural awareness. The technology will especially allow the students to explore other groups and perspectives on the Internet and other social networking sites.

3. The role that multicultural education will play in our own teaching is the fact that students will be more aware and knowledgeable about other students' cultures and beliefs. They will go to college and enter the real world prepared. They will not be naive like we all admitted we were when we entered college. Even if classrooms are made up of solely one race, incorporating multicultural education into our classrooms will allow students to be more open minded and it will build their knowledge and perspectives of the real world. Multicultural education is an important tool for students to gain cultural mindfulness of the world around them.