I have a pet peeve with how the words 'culture' and 'diversity' are used in our society. I have noticed that these words are often used as euphemisms for race and ethnicity. For example, a Pakistani child is referred to as a 'diverse' child or a school that has only Black children of low socioeconomic status is described as a 'diverse' school. I wish someone would explain to me how a child is 'diverse'. And a school that has only dark-skinned children with limited means is about as diverse as a school with only light-skinned children who are all wealthy. Not diverse at all. Diversity means difference and if you are going to use the word, please use it correctly. A diverse school is one that has large percentages of several races and socioeconomic statuses. If you look in the classroom of a diverse school, you will see kids of all different skin colors and sizes, with different clothing choices and hairdos. A diverse school is one in which children are learning so much from each other because they are from different backgrounds and have different worldviews and, therefore, bring different perspectives and opinions to classroom discussions.
Now, I think that it is important to point out that when I talk about diversity, I'm not just talking about race. Race, and to a certain extent ethnicity, are arguably the most visible and therefore the most widely discussed parts of diversity in our society. But this is not the only important part about someone. This is where culture comes in. There is collective culture and personal culture (to be discussed in another blogpost at another time) and they are both important in understanding others. We at CCK choose to take a much broader view of diversity and culture. This includes, but is not limited to: gender, ability level, religion, sexual orientation, country of origin, family make-up, language, age, and education. This is by no means an exhaustive list. While there are many ways in which we as humans are similar, we also have a lot of differences, which can and should be celebrated. I highly encourage my readers to comment on this post and to add their own perspectives about diversity and culture. What does diversity mean to you? What does culture mean? Do you think a particular part of one's culture is more important than another? If so, which ones and why? As long as they are respectful, I always accept and encourage dissenting opinions. Part of the CCK philosophy is to encourage children to welcome perspectives that differ from their own. In some ways, this is much harder for adults to do, but I hope to model some of that here. So please join the discussion!
8 Comments
Carol
1/7/2016 06:27:32 am
Dr. Sweeney,
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Dr. Sweeney
1/8/2016 08:39:26 am
Carol-so what are your thoughts about those students and how their teachers and other school staff can support them? How can this be modeled in the schools? Should it be more explicitly taught? What impressions did you get from the students about this?
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Julie
1/7/2016 08:15:36 am
To me diversity means that no one culture/group is the default one, with everyone else trying to fit in, or to be merely allowed to be present, but rather everyone is on equal footing, in terms of bringing their own values to the table. People may be afraid of diversity because it requires leaving the comfort of one's own assumptions and behaviors, but the exchange of ideas and communication that happen in a diverse group are, in my opinion, well worth it.
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Dr. Sweeney
1/8/2016 08:43:32 am
Julie- I couldn't agree more. Have you observed a place where this has happened?
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Julie
1/8/2016 10:03:04 am
I have been in situations where everyone in the group is from various places around the world, communicating in English and aware of American culture, but with no one native to it, and so it becomes a neutral common ground, rather than the default.
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Dr. Sweeney
1/8/2016 10:32:45 am
It would be interesting to see how we can recreate that feel of equity in American society where there is an existing dominant group. I don't have the answer, but I think it's an important conversation to have!
Sharon
1/11/2016 09:07:29 am
This is a very thought provoking topic. Yes, Diversity is a word that is frequently used interchangeable with race. As a result, we have lost the essence of the word. When I think of diversity, I think of one's experience, background, culture, views/values, spirituality, family, and social economics, along with life’s adventure. Our children learn so much more about the world and themselves when they are exposed regularly to a diverse (ethnically, spirituality, socioeconomic and gender) population. This exposure should takes place within a school setting but due to a host of things, a significant number of children are not experiencing such exposure. Are we stunting their growth? Yes. It is my opinion that the lack of exposures impacts their character growth, understanding the world in which they live in and most of all developing sense of empathy and compassion for other unlike themselves. Diversity encompasses of all that for me.
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Dr. Sweeney
1/11/2016 09:24:58 am
I agree Sharon! What are your thoughts on the next steps? Is there a way to remedy this? Where might parents and educators need guidance in this area?
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AuthorDr. Sweeney is a licensed school psychologist and cultural competence expert. Here are her musings on life in a multicultural world. Archives
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