The document discusses multicultural education and its role in the classroom. It focuses on using music and social justice issues to promote discussions about discrimination and injustice. Students gain an awareness of these issues in different cultures and question their own assumptions. The framework for lessons draws connections across subjects and cultures to investigate historical and social contexts of music. Power and empowerment are also discussed, with the goal of empowering students and shifting power to groups facing injustice in order to promote positive change.

1. Multicultural Education How does it function in the classroom?

2. The purpose of a multicultural curriculum is to help students gain an awareness of injustice in the world towards different ethnic, socio-economic, and sexually oriented groups. Gaining a local awareness of injustice in the community.

3. Social Justice in the Curriculum A social justice centered unit in the subject classroom addresses ongoing struggles in the world in a non-threatening way. Music is a wonderful medium through which to address issues of social justice because it contains literature that both directly and indirectly addresses social justice/injustice. Beautiful music exists in every culture, even in those that have been persecuted in the past. Learning music from a range of cultures leads to discussions about the culture, history, and social injustices that inspired the music. Meaningful discussions reveal the assumptions and beliefs that students possess about particular cultures. As educators, we need to ask “Wh y do we think this, When did we start thinking like this, What do we think about …” to encourage our students to think through and question their beliefs.

4. Multiculturalism in the Music Class Large Units Continuity Relevance Reflection Cross subjects Draw connections Repertoire The framework for lessons and units The jumping off point for questions and discussions When studying a song or piece investigate: Mood of piece(as exhibited by lyrics and/or music Reason someone would write this music Composer’s background Historical background of piece Composer’s inspiration for writing the piece

5. Don’t’s of a Multicultural Curriculum Singing songs from the Apartheid Movement without going into discussions about the actual movement. Questions like “Where does discrimination still exist today?” need to be asked so that students see the relevance of th past in the present. Doing a “Bl ack History Month” unit in a predominantly white middle-class school in the name of social justice. Writing research reports on influential African Americans isn’t “multicultural”. This has no relevance to students UNLESS you make the unit more about discrimination here and now (not limited to race) and THEN go back and trace its history across various cultures and minority groups.

6. Power Much of the discussion about Multicultural Education revolves around “Power”: What is it, Who has it, and Who needs to have it? What is it’s role in shaping the future?

7. Gutstein Students gain power when they respond to problems and challenges and become committed to overcoming them. Students have the power to make a change in the world. Having power for Gutstein is a positive attribute that is necessary to do good and make changes to better the world.

8. Sleeter Power needs to be shifted from the current holders to the constituent base of people being unfairly treated in education. Power needs to be in the hands of the people being wronged in order for any changes to occur

9. Empowerment Purposes: To educate students about injustices so that they will be motivated to promote a change. This education includes “Re ading the World ” , understanding the “so ciopolitical, cultural-historical conditions of one’s life, community, society, and world ” (24). A heightened awareness of the conditions in the world leads to student participation in social movements.

10. Problems with Empowerment For Sleeter: Empowerment is often associated with individual advancement. A mo vement cannot be successful with the power of only one person. Key word for a social movement is “ne tworking.” Collaboration needs to take place with students, parents, educators, and community people. Social movements aim to empower the constituent base: parents and children of color, low economic backgrounds, children with disabilities, who are gay/lesbian, their parents, and girls. Power holders are in the educational establishment: administrators, teachers, professors, and members of the community who support the policies that multicultural education wishes to change.