Immigration Unit

This week, we examine the topic of ethics, justice and rights by focusing on the immigration debate in the United States. We will do this by researching immigration statistics, learning about the history of immigrants in the US, debating the question of illegal immigration, and finding out more about ourselves and our cultural identity in [...]

Coming of Age Rituals

This week we are exploring one final aspect of identity: coming of age rituals.  There’s probably no more important transition in an individuals life that that from childhood to adulthood.  We know this is very true in American culture, as students graduate, go to a prom and then either join the military, go to work, [...]

Promises: Children’s Perspective

Promises is an award winning documentary that explores the issues that divide Israelis and Palestinians – land, history and religion.  It is the story of seven children before their teenage years, who all live within 15-20 minutes from one another – but have completely different perspectives and experiences.  As a reality-based ‘point of view’ documentary, [...]

A Class Divided

Jane Elliott’s famous blue eye/brown eye experiment with her 3rd grade class in the late 1960′s is one of the most powerful teaching tools in classrooms today.  So much has been written concerning Ms. Elliott’s activity that it has become the model for discussions on diversity, identity, culture and anti-racism education ever since.  Frontline produced [...]

RAFTS: Diversity & Unity

From time to time in the class, we will use the RAFTS strategy to explore different themes and topics in Multicultural Studies.  RAFTS stands for Role, Audience, Format and Topic.  As a writing tool, it can be a powerful organizer.  RAFTS also help students visualize themselves in the topics they are learning.  For the first [...]

Privilege & the Invisible Knapsack

We begin examining readings in Multicultural Studies by looking at the concepts of culture, race and diversity in the first week of the second semester.  The two readings we examined on Friday, January 29th reflected how institutional racism can confer privilege on some and disadvantages on others.  The first was Constructing Race, Creating White Privilege [...]

PRI’s Global Hits (World Music)

PRI (Public Radio International) broadcasts a world news program everyday at 7PM.  Towards the end of the show, the hosts take about 5-10 minutes to provide a story on a band or musician from somewhere in the world, and then play their music.  It is definitely worth checking out online, or if you would like [...]

Multicultural Studies Syllabus

Welcome!  Because I believe in the professionalism of teaching, I have for years given students detailed syllabuses in the beginning of the course to reach a couple of specific objectives.  First, I want to introduce the course.  It’s important to know what you are getting into.  Second, I want to give students an idea of [...]

Howard Zinn (1922-2010)

Howard Zinn, historian who challenged status quo, dies at 87 By Mark Feeney and Bryan Marquard, Globe Staff Howard Zinn, the Boston University historian and political activist who was an early opponent of US involvement in Vietnam and whose books, such as “A People’s History of the United States,” inspired young and old to rethink [...]

Race: The Power of an Illusion

What is ‘race’? What is ‘culture’?  These are basic questions central to the identity of many Americans and citizens of the world.  This powerful PBS documentary examines the scientific reality concerning race – that there is no genetic basis for race.  It also explores the development of the concept of race in America.  Finally, it [...]

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