Raven IngenitoTeacher as Curriculum Designer & ImplementerEssay: Analytical View on Creating a Multicultural Curriculum which Promotes Literacy and Critical Thinking

"Education is a social process; education is growth; education is not a preparation for life but is life itself." --Dewey, 1897

Personal Perspective/RationaleWhen I reflect on my education in the public school system of New York City, I

am reminded of the rare occasions where I saw my Puerto Rican heritage reflected in

classroom lessons. (The exceptional opportunities where my culture had been discussed

and presented in lessons were because the teachers were of Puerto Rican descent.) I am

convinced that the lost golden opportunities for teachers to connect with students (98% of

whom were Puerto Rican) resulted in negative and meaningless experiences. According

to Nieto (1999), these educators failed to build on their students’ lives in the service of

their learning” (p. 8). Dewey, the educational philosopher, also believed that the

background of each child and group must be reflected when teachers plan learning

experiences, and that educators should value the cultures of the students, families, and

communities, something these teachers unsuccessfully did. They also failed to make

modifications in their curriculum or pedagogy in order to meet the needs of the students

they served (Nieto, 1999).

Perhaps, these teachers had good intentions but only had a cursory understanding

of culturally relevant pedagogy. According to Irvine (2009), many well-meaning

educators are afraid to take teaching beyond this understanding largely because they

believe the following myths:

• Only teachers of color can be culturally relevant.

• Culturally relevant pedagogy is not appropriate for white students.

• Caring teachers of diverse students have no classroom management skills.

• The purpose of culturally relevant pedagogy is to help diverse students “feel

good” about themselves.

• Culturally relevant teachers attend to learning styles by addressing African

American male students’ need for kinesthetic activities or by allowing Asian

American students to work alone (para. 9)

I believe that, if teachers taught from a culturally relevant pedagogy, they would

in turn, maximize student learning and help close the increasing achievement gaps among

students from those racial and ethnic groups that are experiencing massive failure in the

nation’s schools. A culturally responsive education takes into consideration students’

cultures and learning styles. According to Nieto (1999), all students, regardless of their

ethnic group, “need to feel connected with their schools” and be provided a platform

where their stories can be shared, inform others, and be informed by another’s’

experiences (p. 188). Dewey also shared a similar sentiment.

Nieto (1999) enlightened that despite that, most teachers now in the classroom

and in teacher education programs of both inner-city and suburban schools are likely to

have “students from diverse ethnic, cultural, and racial groups in their classrooms during

their careers,” classroom lessons have practically nothing to do with the child’s reality

and as a result, the child feels disconnected and unable to fully participate (p. ix). For

this reason, it is vital that a student constructs a personal understanding of the lessons

being presented. When the information is relevant, they will never forget it. It will also

help them gain a deeper and more meaningful understanding of cultures (their own and

that of others), and the world.

Teacher’s Role/Responsibility

In the educational system, this responsibility falls upon the teachers. Teachers’

decisions produce and control the cultural images that children experience in the

classroom (Macmillan & Kirker, 2012). Teachers must take the initiative in

acknowledging the importance of culture to the identity of the child and how culture

affects the way they think and learn. It is the role of the educator to empower their

students with this vital knowledge. When a teacher is aware of the continued need to

focus on multicultural acceptance and of the values of cross-cultural understanding,

positive educational changes can result by bringing elements of multiculturalism into

every program one presents, no matter what the topic.

According to Irvine (2009), culturally relevant teaching “requires the teacher to

possess a thorough knowledge of the content and employ multiple representations of

knowledge that use students’ lived experiences to connect new knowledge to home,

community, and global settings” (The March To the Mailbox section, para. 7).

Irvine (2009) explained that, this means teachers need to

find pertinent examples in students’ experience; they need to compare and

contrast new concepts with concepts students already know; they need to bridge

the gap between the known (students’ personal cultural knowledge) and the

unknown (materials and concepts to be mastered) (The March To the Mailbox

section, para. 8).

Larson (2011) underscored several components to cultural competency:

awareness of one’s own cultural values and viewpoint

personal attitude toward cultural differences

knowledge about other cultures and other points of view

awareness of cross-cultural dynamics

ability to adapt interactions on the basis of diversity between cultures

(p. 27).

Inquiry Question/ Purpose/ Theory

In my efforts to make today’s society more equitable, I present fostering a

multicultural community within a reading program by way of introducing multicultural

picture books to the classroom. The essential inquiry question is as follows: How do I

teach reading and critical thinking with multicultural literature? Fuhler (2000), author

of Teaching Reading with Multicultural Books Kids Love imparted that, culturally

sensitive classrooms can become “building blocks in the creation of an ever-growing,

world-wise multicultural community” (p. vii).

Due to the absence of a culturally responsive education throughout my childhood

and having witnessed the lack of it in today’s schools, I decided to design my curriculum

on teaching reading and critical thinking through the use of multicultural literature for

grades 4-6. Since, Mora (2011) stressed that, “for our nation to remain a democracy, our

citizens need to be readers and critical thinkers who can access and understand

information and ideas” (p. viii). This curriculum takes the students beyond reading

basics to grasping important reading concepts and exploring independent reading, all the

while immersing students in other cultures. It is my belief that students will benefit from

the engaging reading instruction and also the motivational activities based on much-loved

books. These lessons deliver to the ever-needed demands of multiculturalism and

diversity in the classroom. They also offer the ability to meet the requirements of higher

levels of reading, while combining a social studies viewpoint to fit into limited lesson

periods. My future goal would be to integrate such multicultural books, skills, and/or

strategy building activities into the current curriculum. However, my principal goal is to

plan and present purposeful curriculum. The skills and strategies presented in this

curriculum include: presenting introductory lessons, comprehension strategies using

fictional books, working with expository text structures, word recognition and vocabulary

building, sparking an interest in poetry, and then pulling it all together (Fuhler, 2000).

Since, reading is a highly active process, it is important to remember that readers

apply a number of skills each time they attempt to make sense of the printed page

(Fuhler, 2000). Although, no skill is used in isolation, it may need to be taught that way

so that learners can add it to their repertoire of reading strategies (Fuhler, 2000). Fuhler

(2000) established that eventually, learned skills would become “so infused into the

whole reading process that students will apply them as needed” (p. xvi). However,

according to Fuhler (2000), the objective is to “build on those skills within the context of

multicultural opportunities to read, knowing that reading will mix and match skills and

strategies in their personal reading as needed” (p. xvi).

Multicultural literature is one of the most effective and influential components of

a multicultural education curriculum and whose underlying intention is to help make

society a more equitable one. Well-crafted multicultural books allow students to make

strong links because they see their faces reflected in some of the illustrations and explore

cultures realistically (Fuhler, 2000). According to Fuhler (2000), these books offer “tales

about a broad range of humanity, including people of color, various religious groups who

have been persecuted for their beliefs, and individuals with intellectual or physical

disabilities” (p. ix). Additional books speak to social class differences and broadening

views of once firmly established gender roles (Fuhler, 2000). Fuhler (2000) emphasized

that quality books authentically portray “the unique lifestyles and heritages of all people

who call themselves Americans today” and center more specifically “on characters

representing non-Western cultures” (p. ix).

As students read the books, they will first glimpse the idea, and then understand

the concept, that people are connected to one another through the common threads of

emotions, needs, and desires (Fuhler, 2000). According to Fuhler (2000), when students

discuss the books at hand, they can become “engaged in capering and contrasting values,

beliefs, and attitudes expressed by people from a variety of cultures” (p. x). Fuhler

(2000) stressed that such social interaction is an “integral part of the reading

comprehension process” (p. x). Fuhler (2000) further expressed that, through talk and

reflection students can “examine how people are the same and how they are different,

both within a culture and outside it, recognizing that different does not connote “less

than” (p. x). And finally, Fuhler (2000) accentuated that, multicultural books also

“provide a framework for change, however, and are inspiring vehicles with which to

teach reading while broaching human understanding” (p. xi).

Furthermore, both, teachers and students must be used as primary resources in the

curriculum in order to make genuine cultural learning a part of the classroom

environment (Erikson, 1997). Nieto (1999) explained that, in this way, students and

teachers can “develop a critical stance about their own and other people’s cultures and

histories” (p. 119). She (1999) continued to describe that, this process also “relieves

students of having to be “cultural experts,” a prime danger in classrooms where teachers

assume that students’ cultural membership automatically makes them capable of teaching

others about their culture, a questionable assumption at best” (p. 119-120).

Curriculum Components

Introductory Lessons: to be used as an introduction to the concept of celebrating

cultures.

Comprehension Strategies in Fiction: Reading comprehension is the complex

process of determining meaning from the written word and is the fundamental

goal of reading instruction and is considered the “heart and soul” of reading

(Fuhler, 2000). Fuhler (2000) explained that, “for reading comprehension to

occur, there must be three key ingredients: the readers with their unique

background knowledge, the print, and the environment in which reading actually

takes place” (p. 17). Comprehension instruction involves the teacher actively

assisting, defining, modeling, explaining, and guiding students’ efforts to

construct meaning from the text (Fuhler, 2000). Facilitating reading

comprehension is actually giving readers the appropriate tools to use as they dig

for meaning within an author’s words, modeling how the various tools work is a

demonstration of when to use them (Fuhler, 2000). Facilitating the comprehension

process includes teaching students to develop metacognitive awareness, which aw

alerts them when understanding is faltering and it’s time to select the appropriate

tools to apply to remedy the situation (Fuhler, 2000). The lessons contain skills

that are actively taught, modeled, and practiced under the teacher’s guidance.

Since, research suggests that students learn best in this manner (Fuhler, 2000).

Working with Expository Text Structures: Students cannot escape expository text

—fact-filled content-area textbooks. They are filled with expository text coupled

with explanatory charts, tables, pictures, diagrams, bold-faced type, and

vocabulary unique to the subject. According to Fuhler (2000), expository text,

however, can be more confusing to unravel because the information may be

“presented via a number of formats, including description, problem and solution,

question and answer, comparison and contrast, cause and effect, a time-order

sequence, or the listing of particular attributes” (p. 73). Research underscores the

fact that understanding how expository text is structured will help readers

comprehend it. Fuhler (2000) provided that, by “modeling various strategies to

decode the text and providing time for invaluable practice of those strategies,

teachers will be giving students practical tools to use for the rest of their lives” (p.

73). One tool is the graphic organizer, which is a map or graph that summarizes

the information to be learned and can show relationships between ideas being

studied as well. This visual presentation of information aids learners in

integrating new knowledge with the old and understand comparison and contrast

(Fuhler, 2000). In order to cement the knowledge, students should do something

with the knowledge they are acquiring (Fuhler, 2000). In addition to group or

class discussions, they can write about what they have just learned, create a

riveting display on a topic, or give a speech to the class using information recently

gathered (Fuhler, 2000).

Word Recognition and Vocabulary-Building Strategies: Fuhler (2000) explained

that, readers take words to eventually “build a vast storehouse of personal

vocabulary” and that this process begins when children are just infants and

“continues through the emergent reader stage and burgeons through the years

leading to adulthood” (p. 103). Strategies for unraveling the meaning of more and

more difficult combinations of letters are developed along the way (Fuhler, 2000).

In understanding the process of word recognition, readers learn two aspects of

words as they become adept in this area: word recognition and understanding a

word’s meaning (Fuhler, 2000). According to researchers, these two are learned

simultaneously. Word recognition refers to sight words, those words that a

student can recognize immediately, then pronounce, and read out loud (Fuhler,

2000). Where as, understanding a word’s meaning covers those words that

readers can understand and use appropriately (Fuhler, 2000). The third aspect,

known as word analysis, involves teaching students how to break words into

meaningful parts to ferret out the meaning of a new word and deals with phonics,

using letter sound relationships to sound out a word or structural analysis, where

larger meaningful bits of words are decoded (Fuhler, 2000). These three segments

of vocabulary development work collectively to create meaning as students

explore reading and writing (Fuhler, 2000). Research has clearly established a

strong relationship between vocabulary and reading comprehension, therefore, the

more words a reader knows, the better he or she will be able to understand what is

being read (Fuhler, 2000). Fuhler (2000) confirmed that, words are best learned

in a rich language environment where students “see language in action, use

quality models for their writing, and have the opportunity to engage in both

extensive and intensive reading” (p. 103). This can be facilitated in a classroom

where wide reading is encouraged; are taught how to use context to decipher word

meanings and then are given the opportunity to use those skills regularly; and

have access to aids such as the dictionary or a knowledgeable person, and if they

receive periodic instruction on word identification strategies (Fuhler, 2000).

Because there is no one best way to teach new words, trying a variety of means to

keep words at the forefront of daily activities is crucial (Fuhler, 2000). After all,

the key to building vocabulary and fine-tuning word recognition is to integrate old

knowledge with the new in an ever-expanding process of word knowledge

(Fuhler, 2000).

Sparking an Interest in Poetry: Poetry comes in a variety of ways and offers a

number of benefits. Poems may hold music for some, creates vivid images,

touches emotions, and the few critical words may portray things in quite a

different way than we are accustomed to viewing them (Fuhler, 2000). Making

poetry a part of classroom life is valuable and may appeal to students. Fuhler

(2000) suggested incorporating poetry breaks to “recharge the learning

atmosphere in your classroom,” “giving the freedom to play with words in the

way in which their favorite poets play, mixing and matching the sounds to please

the ear and the mind,” and “letting learners dabble in words that can traipse

tantalizingly over the tongue, some sensible, others pure nonsense” (p. 131).

Although, there are numerous ways of approaching this topic, the best ways a

teacher can spark students interest in poetry is simply by sharing their favorites

and modeling their enjoyment, filling the classroom with poetry literature, and

creating a platform where anyone is allowed to share their favorites (Fuhler,

2000).

Pulling It All Together: Despite the simple fact that, there is never enough time in a

classroom day to accomplish everything they would like to do and still leave room for

the joy of learning, a teacher must juggle schedules with an eye to quality learning

and a deep understanding of subject matter (Fuhler, 2000). Fuhler (2000) suggested

one way to meet those challenges inherent in creating and maintaining a positive,

productive classroom environment is to “integrate subjects when it makes good

learning sense” (p. 149). She (2000) further proposed teaching across the curriculum,

practicing newly taught reading skills in science, social studies, math, art, music, and/

or P. E (p. 149). For she (2000) explained that, life outside the classroom has never

“required problem-solving responses to events that occur in boxlike isolation

throughout a day” (p. 149). In any case, she shared that life inside the classroom

must “mirror real-life demands” (p. 149). According to Fuhler (2000), a sensible

teacher will also etch out time for reflections and “emulate what day-to day life

requires, allowing students to practice necessary skills inside the classroom” (p. 149).

The lessons take a reading skill and put it to work with multicultural materials that

will enrich learning in numerous ways across subject matter (Fuhler, 2000).

However, it is up to the teacher to make learning exciting and foster understanding.

Using Storytelling to Foster Critical Discourse

“Education would be much more effective if its purpose was to ensure that by the time they leave school every boy and girl should know how much they do not know, and be imbued with a lifelong desire to know it.” ~William Haley

Although stories are an intrinsic part of our society and culture, the storytelling

history is quite ancient and was an integral part of every culture as a means for

entertaining, educating, besides preserving the culture. Before man learned to write, he

had to rely on his memory to learn anything, which meant he also had to be a good

listener (U.k., 2013). A good storyteller was always respected and could easily find an

audience, eager to devour every exciting bit of information in their stories (U.k., 2013).

These stories were also shared with others in far away lands, when people traveled,

therefore, the stories traveled with them (U.k., 2013). Once they returned home, they

brought with them exciting new tales of their travels (U.k., 2013)

The history of storytelling reveals that the stories came by way of myths, legends

of all kinds, fairy tales, trickster stories, fables, ghost tales, hero stories, and epic

adventures, these stories were told, retold (U.k. 2013). These stories, which were passed

down by generations, reflect the wisdom and knowledge of early people (U.k., 2013).

These stories often consisted of explanations of important but often confusing events and

disasters in nature at those early times (U.k., 2013).

There are a variety of benefits of storytelling. First, it allows one to present ideas

and thoughts in a pleasurable way, helps in bringing people together, making them part of

intimate shared experience (U.k., 2013). It also institutes a positive attitude towards

stories and books, encouraging and motivating students to read on their own, after

experiencing a positive session of storytelling (U.k., 2013). When students open the doors

to the world of literature, it helps them to develop sequencing skills, oral language

development and expanding language skills, as well as, helps to increase attention spans

and stimulates creativity and imagination among the listeners (U.k., 2013). Furthermore,

U.k. (2013) explained that, the rich and varied language patterns presented to the listener

in a satisfying format, “gives the opportunity for people of all ages to interact on a

personal level” (para. 4).

Despite these benefits, teachers face the challenge that new technologies have

presented. According to U.k. (2013), “written and televised media has largely exceeded

this method of communicating” (para. 6). This means that as educators, we need to

include more literature that raises awareness of the social issues into our curricula, since

we know that good literature builds understanding. Steiner (2001) highlighted that a

book is different from current events portrayed in the media because “it tells the story

from inside the culture, sometimes from the perspective of a character very much like

ourselves” (p. xiv). Therefore, it is more critical then ever before to begin teaching our

students about all peoples in this world (Steiner, 2001). According to Steiner (2001), we

must take the time to “evaluate our future through a global lens, rather than the

perspective of our own comfort and pleasure” (p. xiv).

Since, multicultural literature also exposes learners to the actions of others in

parallel cultures, this curriculum enables learners to better understand their own actions

and the actions of others. In this case, storytelling is used to promote critical discourse.

In providing this platform to students, I am helping students render meaning of their

world. As a culturally relevant teacher, I am creating learning opportunities in which

students’ voices emerge and knowledge and meaning are constructed from the students’

perspectives, and at the same moment, helping learners make sense of new concepts and

ideas.

According to Anderson & Weil (2000), authors of Perspectives in Critical

Thinking: Essays by Teachers in Theory and Practice, there still exists a “pervasive

misconception of critical thinking as something devoid of cultural and historical

contexts” (p. 60). For this reason, I felt compelled to Fuhlers’ (2000) goal of using

multicultural literature to study and compare viewpoints of cultures. Anderson & Weil

(2000) shared that, in teaching critical thinking, teachers must enable students to “see

beyond the world views that distort their perception and impede their ability to reason

clearly” (p. 60). They explained that, this should come by way of empowering the mind

to “analyze, digest, and rule its own knowledge, to achieve fair-mindedness and critical

exactness,” with the goal being, understanding (p. 60). It is when a student challenges

the histories and assumptions of a people, can they begin to ‘know thyself’ (Anderson &

Weil, 2000). Therefore, knowing thyself and knowing the other are interdependent

(Anderson & Weil, 2000).

Since, as Anderson & Weil (2000) explained, critical discourse and any activity

that predicates interpretive acts “depend largely on the thinker’s tie to a given knowledge

base and belief system and on the linguistic features associated with the belief system,” it

is important that both, material and nonmaterial elements of the students’ homes be

present in the classroom (p. 61). Anderson & Weil (2000) imparted that, if not, students

are forced to “negotiate the discrepancies between home life and that which is found in

the classroom” (p. 61). Anderson & Weil (2000) further explained that these students, in

turn will repress their life experiences and “accept the words and ideas of texts and

professors as authoritative and tend to see their lives in terms of the texts, never

considering the possibilities of seeing the texts in terms of their lives” (p. 62). A teacher

implementing a culturally responsive education must take the presence of this chasm into

consideration.

According to Anderson & Weil (2000), the model must “engage the life

experience of the students” and must “enable students to scrutinize their experiences or

what constitutes their assumptions” (p. 63). It is important to remember that these

experiences are not merely meant to be simply validated, but to inform and be informed

by, other experiences (Anderson & Weil, 2000). Anderson & Weil (2000) shared that an

individual’s stories, “tell them the most about themselves” and become an important

device individuals use to “interpret to each other their experiences” (p. 63). Additionally,

Anderson & Weil (2000) revealed that, a student’s stories about discrimination and

alienation could not only “provide her a powerful critical tool for engaging tests and

ideas, but could, in the process, expose the forces which inculcate failure and alienation

—the same forces that keep her experience outside the classroom” (p. 66).

Besides, according to Anderson & Weil (2000), the power of personal knowledge

in the classroom and how that knowledge can help us make connections with ideas in

books, can “help us know why we may not understand ideas the way a teacher does, or

can help us see why a teacher cannot understand the students” (p. 68). Students may use

their own stories as an essential ingredient for critical reflection and insight and in

comparing them to another may gain a better understanding of their own and that of the

other (Anderson & Weil, 2000).

Students may also gain a sense of empowerment by engaging their life

experiences (Anderson & Weil, 2000). Anderson & Weil (2000) informed us that,

students might discover that texts are “alive, filled with interpretations based on certain

assumptions, and that they could actively engage to the texts” (p. 70). Storytelling

becomes a mean for critical inquiry, not just about the texts, but also at the same time

about the students’ relationship to them (Anderson & Weil, 2000). Student’s language

usage will also expose one to their world and the type of knowledge they possess about

the world (Anderson & Weil, 2000). Furthermore, they may become aware of how often

they use an interlanguage, a language somewhere between their own and that which is

acceptable in the academy (Anderson & Weil, 2000). This may make them more mindful

of their attempts to mediate different kinds of discourse (Anderson & Weil, 2000).

Students may also realize that they all have different stories. Students may not

readily identify with others stories, however, they may become better informed of their

own position. Anderson & Weil (2000) stressed that, if students are to “scrutinize their

stories so that their stories might inform, and be informed by, other experiences found in

texts, teachers must be careful not to let difference, or otherness, be transformed into

sameness” (p. 72). Anderson & Weil (2000) informed us that, assimilation could happen

in two directions: “the assimilation of the text to the reader’s subjectivity and the

assimilation of the reader to the text’s subjectivity” (p. 72). According to Anderson &

Weil (2000), storytelling and the discussions that follow storytelling will “expose such

tendencies when they occur, and it is here the teacher must work, recognizing the

potential of chasms between home life and school life to foster assimilating tendencies, to

illuminate conflict and difference rather than dissolve them” (p. 72). Nevertheless,

Anderson & Weil (2000) highlighted that discussions that ensue the storytelling event

should be “problem-exposing in nature, not problem-solving” (p. 72).

After all, it is my desire that storytelling will empower and engage students, while

providing, in turn, a context for strong sense critical thinking for students and myself

alike. I hope that our shared reality and our relationship to it, is made more evident and

less threatening.

Lastly, Nieto (1999) validated that, when a critical perspective is used, students

can “become instruments of their own learning and use what they learn in productive and

critical ways; their knowledge can be used to explore the reasons for certain conditions in

their lives and to design strategies for changing them” (p. 120). She further elaborated

that; critical pedagogy helps to “expand teachers’ perspectives regarding their students’

knowledge and intellectual capabilities” (p. 120). According to Nieto (1999), a critical,

empowering pedagogy can have a powerful influence on learning because when students

“approach their education as active agents, they begin to understand that they have a role

to play in the world” (p. 120).

Assessments/Rubrics

Throughout the lessons in my curriculum unit, I demonstrate various modes of

assessing students’ understanding and mastery of subject matter. These include assessing

by way of: classroom and individual observations; note taking and maintaining anecdotal

records with a focus on student interest, involvement in the activity, and cooperation with

classmates; inquiry/questioning; reviewing student’s written work; having students retell

and share information to the whole class or in small groups; scheduling mini-conferences

with individual students; reusing lessons across other subjects; providing rubrics and

checklists for student reference and evaluation; and student-developed rubrics with

teacher guidance.

According to Fuhler (2000), rubrics are a valuable tool because they “enable students

to see the relationship between quality and the processes they must complete to develop a

product that meets quality criteria” (p. 175). This assessment tool lists the tasks of the

performance to be evaluated, and the specific criteria used to evaluate each task, making

the teacher’s expectations clear. In addition, it describes the gradations of quality (levels)

for each task of the performance to be evaluated, and assigns a point value to each

gradation of quality, showing the student how to meet the instructor’s expectations.

Rubrics also help students evaluate the quality of their own work, identify the specific

elements an instructor uses to differentiate between the qualities ofperformances,

improves the consistency and objectivity (standardization) of grading, and reduces the

time it takes to grade if there are similarities among comments made to students

regarding flaws or excellence in a performance.

Differentiation for Various Learner Needs and Learning

In keeping with the standards of culturally responsive classrooms, the lessons

presented in my curriculum incorporate lessons responsive to student diversity.  The

classroom I envision would be a community that enables students to make connections

between home and school. It would be a classroom where families and their academic

contributions are welcomed. I have selected lessons and activities that are conducive to

the students’ academic and cultural needs.

My classroom would use various methods of teaching and instruction.  Instruction

could be cross-curricular, maintaining a connection between Language Arts and another

content area.  Instruction would also be detailed and students would be provided with a

comfortable atmosphere to discuss and ask questions.  Scaffolding would often be used to

provide students with enough support to reach academic goals that are currently out of

their reach.  I would model activities in order to demonstrate the expectations for the

students.  Visuals, verbal instruction, and kinesthetic activities are incorporated in the

lesson to meet the needs of all learners.

I would provide students with various tools and hands-on materials to utilize

during the lessons.  Students would cooperatively work in groups to discuss and reflect

on their experiences.  Cooperative groups would provide support and allow students to

learn from each other.  Students will often use journal writing and open-ended activities. 

These types of activities will enhance student’s critical thinking abilities; promote

reflection, along with cultural expression.

It is equally important to adapt each lesson to best fit my students. Quality

teaching encourages the exploration of different ways of thinking about issues,

recognizes multiple answers, fosters creative insights in students, and is built upon the

flexibility to match individual learners with the most appropriate strategy (Fuhler, 2000).

Appropriate Use of Technology

Throughout the curriculum unit presented, I demonstrate various uses of

technology. These include the use of projectors, video and audiotape recorders,

computers, and introducing DVD or VHS recordings. Other uses of technology, which

can be substituted, are the use of SMART Boards (if available) and other technological

gadgets which one may see fit.

I would prefer to limit some of the technology being used in this curriculum unit

because I “worry that technology diminishes socialization opportunities” (Rifkin, 2000).

Rosenberg (2013) shared that technology can “become a crutch hindering creative

problem solving and cognitive development” (para.1). Another argument against

technology in the classroom is that they don't compare to classroom discussions where

students have the opportunity to ask questions and hear the opinions of their peers and

teachers (Rosenberg, 2013). There is a level of interaction through an active classroom

discussion that you simply can't replicate on a computer screen (Rosenberg, 2013).

Benefits of Using Multicultural Literature

Multicultural books offer countless benefits to a students’ education. According

to Fuhler (2000), multicultural books offer ever-widening, mind-broadening ripples of

understanding that will “travel beyond the classroom and into life, transforming into a

respect for other cultures” while teaching reading strategies” (p. vii). Fuhler (2000)

further shared that picture books, “quickly capture a reader’s attention, are visually

appealing, and can crack open the door to multicultural understanding with relative ease”

(p. vii). It also offers teachers “the opportunity to be inventive, to develop sound and

unique lessons that reach specific learners in a particular classroom” and substantiates

“each teacher’s own expertise, intuition, and child-generated wisdom about what works

best when teaching reading” (p. ix). Furthermore, Fuhler (2000) shared that an infusion

of multicultural picture books is a “proactive move to celebrate knowledgeable teachers

as critical thinkers and all children as consumers of fine reading materials” (p. ix). Fuhler

(2000) continued to impart that, this applies both in reading and when teaching across the

curriculum to reinforce learning in other subjects” (p. ix). Fuhler (2000) explained that,

these “judiciously selected books can take readers through the reading curriculum and

across other subjects on a journey of many discoveries” (p. vii). Picture books should be

an integral part of a reading program because they are beautifully crafted and the fine

artwork is an education in itself (Fuhler, 2000). According to Fuhler (2000), they provide

“an opportunity for students to learn about artistic styles and see how an artist can extend

a story through the illustrations, and spurring learners to try some of the artistic media

themselves” (p. ix).

The following criteria are helpful in making wise multicultural literature

selections:

Does the book use quality language and illustrations? Do the words and

illustrations work together to tell the story?

Is there diversity and a wide range of representation in the portrayal of a

parallel (minority) cultural group, including a broad spectrum of occupations,

educational background, living conditions, and lifestyles?

Is there a lack of stereotyping and an inclusion of more positive images of the

culture?

Do the illustrations show distinctive yet varied characteristics of a group?

Is there an avoidance of derogatory terms for a particular racial groups as well

as an avoidance of inappropriate use of dialect? Are the characters and their

behavior presented in a nonjudgmental manner?

Does the book’s perspective seem to truly reflect s particular culture’s

experiences?

Are racial pride and positive self-image apparent in the story?

Does the book include authentic, culturally specific values?

Does the book help develop a reader’s appreciation for our ever-changing,

pluralistic society?

Does the book present different perspectives and additional information about

the depicted culture?

(Fuhler, 2000, p. xv)

When creating a multicultural lesson plan, tailored to a focus book, the plan

should include the following categories:

The culture being focused on

Necessary materials for teaching the lesson

Motivators for the students

Suggestions for teaching the lesson

Evaluation questions and suggestions

Possible extensions

Recommended titles

(Fuhler, 2000)

According to Fuhler (2000), the following elements contribute to successful

reading programs:

Exposure to literature of all kinds should include a wide variety of experiences

with printed material.

One experience of great importance is well practiced, frequent reading aloud by

teachers, parents, or other caretakers.

There must also be opportunities to talk about those books that children hear or

read independently.

Finally, the reading experience should be extended through involvement in

authentic, engaging activities that strengthen response to what is read.

The lessons should focus on one particular reading skill or strategy. However, in

the process other reading skills naturally will be reinforced. It is good teaching

practice to focus students on the lesson ahead as an aid to comprehension.

The skill of predicting what will come next and then listening carefully to confirm

or revise that prediction is an additional strategy to build comprehension. (p. xv)

Things to Keep in Mind

And while it is important to make all parents aware of the tremendous advantages

their children might enjoy if they were to participate in (literacy) experiences, the truth is

that not all children will have the benefit of early literacy activities (Nieto, 1999). As

Nieto (1999) emphasized, “this is no reason to give up on their potential, however, as if

the first 5 years of their lives were devoid of any experiences that might benefit their

learning” (p. 7) Nieto (1999) further reminded us that, this just means that teachers need

to “build on what the children do have, rather than lament about what they do not have”

(p. 7). These learners should not be penalized or considered incapable of learning since,

all students have had some experiences that can help them learn (Nieto, 1999). This is

why a direct relation should exist between teachers’ practices and the climate they create

for leaning with that of the students’ identities, previous knowledge, and experiences

(Nieto, 1999).

As an educator, I will be committed to honoring the students, involving parents as

valued member of the literacy team, promoting literacy, the importance of linking all

children to books, languages, and cultures, honor home languages and cultures, thus

promoting bilingual and multilingual literacy in this multicultural nation, and global

understanding through reading (Larson, 2011).

Furthermore, Irvine (2009) stressed that, teachers need to be aware about the

widespread myth that teachers who “care about a culturally relevant classroom are not the

ones who care about rigor” (The March To the Mailbox section, para. 10). She continued

to highlight that, in reality, culturally relevant pedagogy is perfectly “aligned with high

standards in the content areas” (The March To the Mailbox section, para. 10). This, I

demonstrated when providing a list of standard-based multicultural literature lesson plans

which meet many of the Common Core State Standards. I provided strong supports by

approaching effective instruction through a cultural lens.

Reflection

Nieto (1999) believed that the reflections of teachers “can have a profound impact

on educational theory and practice” (p. xix). For this reason, I understand how pertinent

my reflection on these lessons can be. As a reflective teacher, I will examine my actions,

instructional goals, methods and materials in reference to their students’ cultural

experiences and preferred learning environments. These inquiries will aid in the creation

of fair assessments of students, in my daily teaching practices, strategies, techniques and

theories. As a culturally relevant teacher, I will probe the school, community and home

environments searching for insights into diverse students’ abilities, preferences and

motivations. This type of reflection will assist in confronting my misunderstandings,

prejudices and beliefs about race that impede the development of caring classroom

climates, positive relationships with my students and families, and ultimately my

students’ academic success. After all, Nieto (1999) is convinced that unless and until

teachers “undergo a personal transformation, little will change in our schools” (p. xx).

Conclusion/My Role as a Culturally Relevant Teacher

As a forthcoming teacher, I understand the critical need to fill my classroom with

books that reflect real faces from different cultures and expose my students to a wide

variety of cultures and experiences as an everyday occurrence. I believe that every

learner deserves to be honored today as a growing number of diverse beliefs and

traditional values have increasingly become a part of the standard classroom curriculum

and are represented in our communities. I will strive to affirm and welcome every learner

as a member of the classroom community. In this process, learning to read from

appealing multicultural literature is one logical way to help every student develop a

positive self-image while strengthening personal cultural pride. By using appropriate

reading strategies sensibly matched to wonderful literature, which reflects all cultures, I

can help children begin to learn what it means to respect diversity. Using such a

curriculum offers trivial and daily opportunities for youth to practice the skills that will

prepare them to meet the future challenges of living in our global society. After all, as

Nieto (1999) highlighted multicultural education “fosters the public good and the

overarching goals of the commonwealth” (p. x).

My role as a culturally relevant educator will eventually require me to re-envision

my role in schools (Irvine, 2009). According to Irvine (2009), culturally relevant

teachers are “systemic reformers, members of caring communities, reflective

practitioners and researchers, pedagogical content specialists and antiracist educators”

(Educated Guesses section, para. 6). Irvine (2009) emphasized that, I will be required to

“lead, not simply respond to, the call for whole school reform” (Educated Guesses

section, para. 7). Perhaps, this will mean that I will serve as an educator or mentor of

other teachers…

Finally, despite its challenges, as a culturally relevant teacher, I will assist

students to change the society, not simply to exist or survive in it. I believe I can help

create a great impact on social consciousness by incorporating multicultural literature

into the curriculum. I will use books as a catalyst of change. Since, books have influence

on our way of thinking, I believe in exposing students to books that can expose injustice,

but also teach them about the wonder of other cultures. Such literature builds critical

thinking and the most effective means for initiating such change is dialogue at the

grassroots level in our classrooms and communities (Steiner, 2001). As world citizens,

one way to achieve this is by actively challenging illiteracy and the withholding of

literacy (Steiner, 2001). For Dewey thought that, teachers do not “teach just subject

matter but also how to live in society” (p. 4). In addition, Garhart Mooney (2000)

disclosed that Dewey believed that teachers do not just “teach individual children, but

also shape the society” (p. 4).

According to Garhart Mooney (2000), Dewey believed teachers must “trust their

knowledge and experience and, using both, provide appropriate activities to nurture

inquiry and dispositions for learning in the children they work with” (p. 4-5). That is

what I hoped I accomplished in my presentation of the following curriculum: Teaching

Reading and Critical Thinking by Using Multicultural Literature.