multicultural teaching and learning with the internet by paul gorski university of maryland, college...
TRANSCRIPT
Multicultural Teaching and Learning with the Internet
by Paul Gorski
University of Maryland, College Park
June 1, 2001
Goals
Develop a deeper understanding of the Digital Divide its relation to multicultural education
Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the Internet as an educational medium
Develop strategies for locating, assessing, and using contributive Internet resources
Locate intersections between the Internet and multicultural teaching philosophies
Part One:Introduction(s)
Who are you? Name Institution Primary interest in educational technology
Who am I? Conceptualizing Multicultural Education
Conceptualizing Multicultural Education: Working Definition
Multicultural education is a progressive approach for transforming education that holistically critiques and addresses its current shortcomings, failings, and discriminatory practices. It is grounded in ideals of social justice, education equity, and a dedication to facilitating educational experiences in which all students reach their full potential as learners and as socially aware and active beings, locally, nationally, and globally. Multicultural education acknowledges that schools are essential to laying the foundation for the transformation of society and the elimination of oppression and injustice.
Multicultural Education: Three Levels of Transformation
Transformation of self (What am I contributing to the inequities, consciously or unconsciously?)
Transformation of schools and schooling (Pedagogy, curriculum, classroom climate, counseling practices, testing, etc.)
Transformation of society
Part Two:The Digital Divide
What is the Digital Divide? Inequities in access to technology (physical
and pedagogical) A divide across race, class, first language,
disability, sex/gender, region, and other factors
The newest divide between the have’s and have-not’s
Digital Divide:Three Primary Strands
1. Access to the technology Home access to computers and Internet service School and classroom access to computers and
Internet service
2. Access to progressive pedagogy
3. Access to cultural capital
Digital Divide:At Issue
3 Strands of the Divide
1. Access to technology
2. Access to pedagogy
3. Access to cultural capital
The Big Whoop
The same groups on the losing end of all three strands have been and continue to be disenfranchised by education in every other way.
Digital Divide Data:Class
While only 39 percent of classrooms in schools with high concentrations of poverty (based on 71 percent student eligibility for free or reduced-price lunches) had Internet access in 1999, 74 percent of classrooms in schools with lower concentrations of poverty had Internet access by that time.
Digital Divide Data:Region
By January 2000, of the 242 million Internet users worldwide, 120 million are from the United States and Canada, while only 2.1 million are from Africa, 1.9 million from the Middle East, and 8 million from South America.
Digital Divide Data:Education
By 2000, only 4 percent of adults with only an elementary school education used the Internet, compared with 74.5 percent of those with at least a four-year college degree.
Digital Divide Data:Race
While about 70 percent of teachers in schools in which racial minorities comprise less than 20 percent of the student body report having Internet access in their classrooms, only 51 percent of teachers whose schools have 50 percent or more minority enrollments have that luxury.
Digital Divide Data:Sex/Gender
Though the disparity in Internet usage between men and women had largely disappeared by 2000, women are still more likely to use it recreationally to pursue hobbies and personal interests related to travel, health, and cooking, while men use it largely for professional or economic endeavors like on-line investing.
Digital Divide Data:Disability
By 2000, people with physical disabilities were less than half as likely to have computer access at home as people without physical disabilities; 23.9 and 51.7 percent, respectively.
Digital Divide Data:First Language
By 2000, 49.6 percent of the worldwide Internet users were first-language speakers of English despite the fact that they make up only 5.3 percent of the world's total population.
Digital Divide Data:References
CommerceNet. (2000). Worldwide internet population [online]. http://www.commerce.net/research/stats/wwwstats.html
Cyber Dialogue. (1999). The American Internet User Survey [online]. http://www.cyberdialogue.com/free_data/index.html
Global Reach. (2000). Global internet statistics (by language) [online]. http://www.glreach.com/globstats/index.php3
Kaye, H.S. (2000). Computer and internet use among people with disabilities. San Francisco, CA: National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
National Center for Educational Statistics (2000a). Internet access in U.S. public schools and classrooms, 1994-1999. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Education.
National Center for Educational Statistics (2000b). Teacher use of computers and the Internet in schools. Washington, D. C.: United States Department of Education.
National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) (2000). Falling through the net: Defining the digital divide. Washington, D.C.: NTIA.
Smerdon, B., Cronen, S., Lanahan, L., Anderson, J., Iannottie, N., and Angeles, J. (2001). Teachers’ tools for the 21st century: A report on teachers’ use of technology. Washington, D.C.: National Center for Education Statistics.
Digital Divide:Access to Progressive Pedagogy
RaceDuring 1999, teachers in schools with low racial minority populations were more likely to use computers for inquiry-focused or interactive tasks like creating instructional materials, communicating with colleagues, or instructing students.
GenderWomen are still more likely to use it recreationally to pursue hobbies and personal interests related to travel, health, and cooking, while men use it largely to further professional endeavors like on-line investing.
Digital Divide:Access to Cultural Capital
Socio-cultural and socio-historical barriers to building technology infrastructure in Native American communities:
1. Distrust of new technologies
2. Distrust of federal assistance
3. Federal policy that fails to take the needs of Native Americans seriously
Digital Divide:Access to Cultural Capital
The Pew Internet Project found a related distrust among Black Internet users. Seventy-two percent of Black people are very concerned about businesses and other people obtaining their personal information, compared with 57 percent of White Internet users.
Digital Divide:Solutions?
Group One: Access to computers and the Internet at home and school.
Group Two: Access to progressive pedagogy.
Group Three: Access to cultural capital (pushing through the socio-cultural divide).
Digital Divide Solutions:Some Ideas
Rethink the implications of the heavy reliance on computer technology in education
University/Public School partnerships Intensive teacher training Put money into training and up-keep instead of
more and more equipment Team teachers with technology experts to bridge
some lack of knowledge in both groups
Part Three:Internet as Educational Medium
OpportunitiesGlobal compendiumExpansion of resource base Intercultural interactionFacilitation of dialogue and social
action
Part Three:Internet as Educational Medium
ChallengesLearning curve InstabilityFading educational/commercial linesDiminishing face-to-face interactionLimited “inclusion”
Part Four:Multiculturality of the Internet
3 Principles of Multicultural Education
1. Inclusive teaching and learning
2. Interactive teaching and learning
3. Collaborative teaching and learning
Multiculturality of the InternetInclusive teaching and learning
Levels of “inclusion” (rep. versus critical) “Other” voices
Excerpts from Slave Narratives Native American Documents Project
Student Voices Multicultural Graffiti Voices of Women
Multiculturality of the Internet:Interactive teaching and learning
Redefining “interactive” First person sources
Eye Witness: A North Korean Remembers Sidney Finkel’s Page
Interaction with peers DiversityWeb Discussion Forums Multicultural Pavilion Discussion Forums
Multiculturality of the Internet:Collaborative teaching and learning
Collaboration among educators DiversityWeb Leader’s Guide PedagoNet
Collaborative Projects Multicultural Song Index Multicultural Passport
Part Five:Digging through the Dirt
2 Strategies
1. Engines and indexes that have started digging About.com Looksmart
2. Organizations you know PBS National Geographic Society
Assessment of My Use of Educational Web Sites
Do all of my students have equitable access to the technology needed to complete the task?
Does the resource encourage critical thinking?
Will using the Internet contribute to the learning process in relation to the given topic?
Part Seven:Discussion
Unanswered questions. New questions. What I can do. Tools and resources.