EDU 6315 

Urban Environments and Multicultural Education

1) This is a take-home exam worth 25% of the course grade. It is due in class at 6:30 p.m. on 6 April. Questions will be provided two weeks in advance (i.e., posted on the EDU 6315 course website and handed out in class as well).

2) You must answer one of the two questions in section I and one of the two questions in section II. Please write legibly.

3) You may write in English or in Spanish for either question,; please do not mix languages in a specific answer.

4) The exam is open-book and open-notes, but it is not a collaborative exercise.

Question 1. In her Internet-based article, "The Scope of Multicultural Education," Mary Stone Hanley states,

"Essentially, multicultural education is about social change through education. It requires deep and critical thinking, imagination, and commitment to another tomorrow, inclusive of the wealth of all of our stories and peoples. It is another aspect of the continuous human journey toward justice and pushes us toward the fulfillment of the promises of democracy. It gives us new questions to ask and directions to follow to uncover human possibilities in the new millennium."

Discuss this statement in the light of the readings, lectures, videos, and other materials in this course and in the light of your own experiences.

Question 2. In his Internet-based article, "Challenges for Multicultural Education in Japan," Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu states,

"Japan has never been as homogeneous as she appeared or wanted to be, and is undeniably becoming a society composed of people of multinational origins. . . . The growing diversification of Japanese society has a major impact on education at every level. The appearance of large numbers of children in schools whose mother tongue is not Japanese and who have other cultural orientations besides mainstream Japanese culture is a growing phenomenon. The teaching of immigrant and minority children or foreign students is a contested site in which there is a struggle about their role and future in the society."

Discuss this statement in the light of the readings, lectures, videos, and other materials in this course and in the light of your own experiences.

(continued over)

Question 1. In her Internet-based paper, "A Model of Best Practice at Loreto Day School, Sealdah, Calcutta ," Dr. Tansy Jessop reported about research that sought to construct a model of best practice based on the realities of a particular school. This model proposed five characteristics which are key to best practice in a school, namely:

· a shared vision;
· the exercise of freedom and responsibility;
· a balance between change and stability;
· a sense of wonder;
· meaningful and challenging goals.

 

Discuss this statement in the light of the readings, lectures, videos, and other materials in this course and in the light of your own experiences.

Question 2. In his book on City Schools and the American Dream, Pedro Noguera concludes,

"We can make significant improvements in the quality of public education available to poor children in urban areas. We have the resources, the know-how, and the models to do this. What is lacking is the will and conviction to make it happen" (p. 157).

Discuss this statement in the light of the readings, lectures, videos, and other materials in this course and in the light of your own experiences.