Diversity Initiatives in Higher Education: Teaching Multicultural Education Online

Multicultural Education, Spring 2006 by Limburg, Florina, Clark, Christine

It never occurred to me that I was assessing what "effort to do well in school" looked like through the eyes of the colonizer-rewarding white and "model minority" Asian students for allegiance to the colonizer, and penalizing African American and Latina/o students for their resistance to him.

While I do believe in a system where one must put forth effort prerequisite to winning rewards, I am, perhaps, now more than ever, conscious of the tragic flaws inherent in assuming that the world truly is a meritocracy (Delpit, 1995; Kincheloe, 2004). The privileges of whiteness create a system where most whites have little reason to be angry about race and ethnic discrimination, which, in and of itself, creates a counter-dominant emotional orientation that leads to a behavioral one. Thus, whiteness as a system makes it easier for people who lay claim to the culture of power to win rewards and, therefore, to ease through what would be trying situations for especially racial Others (Pappas, 1995).

It is patently unfair for people to have to work twice as hard for half the recognition. Yet, in most industries a glass ceiling still exists for women and minorities. With this consciousness of whiteness, I can now begin to actively resist recreating privileged racial stratifications within my classroom.

Delpit (1995) argues that dualisms which promote one culture as having higher worth than others are fallacious. Kincheloe (2004) reminds us that the most interesting social questions are messy and multifaceted. This then is the place that teachers must work from in their interface with students-a place not of dualities, but of mess and multifacetedness-if we are to produce truly high caliber students who, both regardless of race and because of it, are critically conscious and vocationally prepared.

In order for teachers to be able to do this, they must: (1) build knowledge bases by taking it upon themselves to learn more about the history and culture of peoples of color; (2) talk about their struggles and experiences with people different from themselves; and (3) evaluate how well their values and beliefs align with their behaviors.

It is through the application of this knowledge-reflection-action cycle of praxis to the manifestations of whiteness in our personal and professional lives that the impact of white supremacy in the classroom can be mitigated and, ultimately, eradicated. Maxwell notes that "without knowledge about my own worldview and a commitment to challenge my own biases, I could, in fact, reinforce viewpoints that are intolerant and insensitive in the courses I teach" (Lea & Helfand, 2004, p. 159). Reflecting on our knowledge about whiteness without accompanying action is simply hot air, the recognition of whiteness needs to be followed with thoughtful action to resist it (Hasbrook, 2002).

Incorporating alternative curricular approaches: cooperative learning and student control of "classroom talk."

Borrowing from Paulo Freire, Christensen describes the customary approach to instruction in the U.S. as a "banking" one-an approach where the teacher stands in the front of the classroom as an authority separated from her or his students, and makes "deposits" of knowledge in their empty heads (Freire, 1980; Lea & Helfand, 2004). Students leave the classroom with their heads-their "bank accounts"-filled with the information their teachers have predetermined is most important for them to know to be successful in the world the way it is currently set up.