I agree with the author of “Multiculturalism in School Curriculum,” in that multicultural education is more than teaching black history during Black History Month or women’s history during Women’s History Month. The author, Adam Waxler, states, “I provide students with information from a variety of perspectives and from a variety of races and genders….for many of my [curriculum] units.”¹ I believe that multicultural education can and should be incorporated into the curriculum on a consistent basis in a variety of ways.

In “Toward a Centrist Curriculum: Two Kinds of Multiculturalism in Elementary School,” E. D. Hirsch, Jr. states, “The schools of a modern nation are the chief institutions through which children become members of a wider national community.”² Without a multicultural education in which students learn about various cultures and perspectives and gain respect and tolerance for others, students may not “…become adults who cooperate and sustain one another…” in society. Hirsch also believes that students must learn “…a common school-based culture...” and live a dual existence. I do not believe that students should have to abandon their culture when they enter a school to assume a school culture. However, if students do not obtain the ability to communicate in the “common” language and other aspects of the “common” culture, will the students have the same economic opportunities and successes?

The school curriculum and its policies can be used as a means of social control. By consistently incorporating multiculturalism into the curriculum, educators have the ability to teach students tolerance and respect for others. Requiring students to learn the “common” language can also be viewed as social control.


¹ Waxler, A. (n.d.). Multiculturalism in school curriculum. Retrieved May 22, 2009, from http://www.eslteachersboard.com/cgi-bin/articles/index.pl?page=2;read=1621.

²Hirsch , E. D. (1992). Toward a centrist curriculum: Two kinds of multiculturalism in elementary school. Retrieved May 22, 2009, from http://coreknowledge.org/CK/about/articles/centrst.htm.