You are on page 1of 4

How does a large urban system initiate

planning and procedures tor a major


instructional emphasis such as multicultural
education? This writer spells out some ot
the steps needed to make the enterprise
successful.

A System Approaches
Multicultural Education
FERN KELLY 1

ERIODICALLY. throughout vember of 1968 and State Frameworks in


the past 30 years, there have been several various subject areas provided a basis for
continuing efforts within the San Francisco more flexible educational patterns, (e) New
Unified School District to bring about viable developments in instructional technology had
change in the instructional program. Part made multimedia approaches to learning
of the impetus for such efforts has come tasks possible.
from the varied cultural groups which make The program initiated in 1969 differed
up the student body of the City, necessitating markedly from prior efforts. This plan was
many adjustments if teaching and learning based on the philosophy that changing the
are to continue to be effective. How to im curriculum (now better described as "edu
plement the needed change has not been cational program") meant changing learner/
known in sufficient degree since even the teacher/environment patterns of interaction.
educational components needed due to a The plan was to be developed around three
rapidly changing world were not known. constructs: (a) A systems approach to change
In March 1969 a program was designed based on an assessment of teacher needs as
which, it was hoped, would bring about determined by teachers, (b) A simple scheme
desired change by meeting a set of conditions for determining teacher needs and for im
and needs: (a) In the late sixties new de plementing the desired change through
mands in regard to the education of young utilizing Curriculum Task Forces, Summer
sters living in urban areas indicated the need Production Workshops, and Structured In-
for a complete reexamination of educational service Operations, (c) A built-in self-renewal
programs, (b) Students, teachers, and com concept, that of the cycle/recycle principle,
munity groups became insistent about being which would allow for constant assessment
involved in needed educational revision, (c) and revision of educational programs.
Curriculum bulletins and courses of study in The plan worked; it was incorporated
the schools of San Francisco had last been * Fern Kelly. Supervisor. District In-Service
revised during 1961-1964. (d) Senate Bill 1, Education. San Francisco Unified School Dis
passed by the California Legislature in No trict. California

December 1974 183


into Summer Production Workshops in 1969, pare teachers and other professional school
1970, and 1971. As materials were devel service personnel to understand and effec
oped in various areas of instructional empha tively relate to the history, culture, and
sis and each of them in an area of need as current problems of these students and their
seen by teachers, it was discovered that ap environment. For purposes of this article a
proximately one third of these were in the school shall be considered to have a sub
area then referred to as "ethnic." Thus, the stantial population of students of diverse
in-service sessions by means of which the ethnic backgrounds when 25 percent or more
products were introduced widely throughout of all the students in the school are of diverse
the District were concerned with channeling ethnic backgrounds."
new information of a diversified nature about It has become increasingly clear that a
cultural groupings. Blacks were first, then revised educational program which is rele
Chinese, Japanese and Filipino, Latino and vant in current context must include not only
Samoan, American Indian and Korean. Each the multicultural component out of which
group had its own concerns and needs. could develop ideas germane to cultural
pluralism but several other components as
A Pervasive Emphasis well: Communications, Health Education,
Environmental Education, Career Education,
But how to implement? How to inte and Intergroup and Bilingual Education. The
grate all this new information about the past term "intergroup" has been coined to cover
history of all these groups, their experience what was first called "ethnic," then "multi
in the United States, and their particular cultural," in order to include what legislation
language needs into a cohesive educational in California refers to as "the role and con
program? The students in San Francisco's tribution of women."
schools are distributed racially as follows: All of the pressures for change have
resulted in demands from the community
Spanish speaking/surname 11,131
and from school administrative staff for in-
(14.3%)
service in the area of what has been in the
Other White 21,000 (26.9% ) past called "management training." The
Black 23,794 (30.5% )
available model from the business commu
Chinese 12,315 (15.8% )
nity serves as a point of departure. In the
Japanese 1,304 (1.7% )
educational model the whole process of learn
Korean 394 (.5% )
ing (cognitive, affective, and psychomotor)
American Indian 266 (.3% )
must be taken into account along with the
Filipino 5,715 (7.3% )
current available bureaucratic structure of
Other nonwhite 2,103 (2.7% )
the school system, the available facilities and
Total 78,023
equipment, and the psychological precon
In 1973 the California State Depart ceptions of those in places where fiscal/
ment of Education sent out a manual administrative/facilities decisions are made.
called "Guidelines: School Staff Preparation In-service operations provide the pivotal
in the History, Culture, and Current Prob point for changing the educational program
lems of Racial and Ethnic Minorities." The of a school system if it is understood that
Department of Intergroup Relations has pro involvement of those who provide the learn
vided consultants and institutes for the pur ing opportunities is the beginning thrust. In
pose of implementing these new sections of San Francisco a model (Figure 1) has been
the Education Code (13345-13349) called developed which illustrates the steps neces
Article 3.3 which stipulates that "On and sary for integrating information about the
after July 1, 1974, each school with a sub "history, culture, and educational problems"
stantial population of students of diverse of minority students into the educational
ethnic backgrounds shall provide an in- process. This model can be used for inte
service preparation program designed to pre grating any component into a system if the

184 Educational Leadership


production workshops which produce the study tool, is handled by the Environmental
changed (reorganized) materials are then Science/Metric Center. Bilingual Education
phased into in-service operations which make is preparing sets of materials designed to
it possible for school staff and decision- meet the instructional needs of learners
making administrators to become aware of coming from other language backgrounds,
the change. and Career Education materials for use K-12
Integrated Education in this frame is are being prepared in current summer pro
denned as "an educational program which duction workshops.
takes into account the skills level of each Constraints against a rapid and effec
student as seen against the cultural and tive integration of an educational program
sometimes other language background and leading to cultural pluralism are, of course,
special physical requirements of the learner." the existence of traditional bureaucratic areas
This type of educational program would both in the schools and in the administrative
require, therefore, not only the integration of setup. Once ways of operating and of teach
newly organized components as indicated ing are departmentalized it is very difficult
above but also the easy retrieval of skills to break out of the traditional structure.
sequenced materials, including new modes Revisionism on a periodic or recurrent sched
of learning and production (Communica ule is a basic need in human affairs. This
tions ) in the area of multimedia. In San is no less true in education (Piaget's concept
Francisco this last named function is being of assimilation/accommodation) than in
effectively handled at our Creative Environ other areas of human activity. The in-service
ment Center in that the staff helps teachers/ model now in operation in San Francisco has
students to put together new arrangements provided a procedure for integrating the
of educational data using multimedia ap learning means underlying cultural pluralism
proaches. Study of the environment, includ as well as other needed components into the
ing math both traditional and metric as a educational program of the City. Q

Level Activity For By


Level S
Integrated education Meshing Interfacing the knowledge and Students Resource teachers in Staff
Development
sequenced program for the individual child Total district
Level 4
Implementing the curriculum Students Teachers
through the program of in a. To achieve specific objectives of the Staff Students
struction multicultural program Teacher aides
b. To explore and develop other curriculum
models

Level 3
Building Curriculum models Integrate m aterials for each ethnic group: Staff Teachers in Staff Develop
a Into regular Social Studies, English- Students ment activities
and any other appropriate regular Community Consultants and teacher
course or curriculum area groups
b. Into all cocurricular activities spon Directors of departments in
sored by the school subject matter areas

Level 2
Acquiring information and School staff Resource teachers
for each ethnic group. Community Instructional support serv
a. Books and printed materials ices
D- Audiovisuals Office of Community Rela
c. Community resource personnel tions
d. Community environmental resources In-service/ consultants

Level 1
Gam knowledge of and feeling for each Resource teachers Office of Community Rela
Administrators tions
tions, and resources a History and ethnic experience Community In-service /consultants
b. Environmental impact on persons Paraprofessionals
c. Expectation of the school School site staff
e. Non-school resources for education of
children

Figure 1. Levels of Activity in Multicultural Education

186 Educational Leadership


Copyright 1974 by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development. All rights reserved.

You might also like