Pen Pals
An example of how prejudice reduction can be implemented in a
classroom is by creating a pen pal system with another
school. These students could learn of each others'
backgrounds and get the chance to learn about their
characters. At some point in this process perhaps the
"sister" classrooms could meet at a field trip where
the students could see first hand how that people from
different walks of life are important and should be
respected.
When we were discussing the 5 dimensions of multicultural education for the very first time, a good idea, regarding prejudice reduction was shared. The idea is to have pen pals with another school that has a different cultural mixture, is more diverse, or simply comes from a different environment. These pen pals could be within the same general area. For example, a school in Bethalto could pair up with a school in Cahokia, or they could be from a different state entirely. Another example would be a school in Chicago could pair up with a school in Dallas, Texas. Students would write back and forth, develop a relationship with their pen pal, and in the process, learn about the different cultures and lifestyles. The teachers could try their best to pair students up that have some similarities. If the pen pal schools were located close to each other, it would be rewarding for the students to get together on a field trip, so the students could finally meet their pen pal, face to face. I think this would help students to see that just because someone looks different, talks different, or simply lives in a different city than them, they really have a lot in common. In the process of making a new friend, students will also be learning about different cultures.
This activity could be applied to a middle school English classroom. Often times, teachers have difficulty moving past only using diverse literature and authors. This activity is a way for students to get more personal experiences dealing with diversity. Writing to a pen pal would not only correspond with any language arts/literature curriculum, but I believe that the students would truly enjoy it. The teacher could monitor their involvement with their pen pals by having them keep a journal each week stating something new they learned about their pen pal, their pen pals' school, or their pen pals' community.
I could try to pair these activities with multicultural books or have the students read books about a certain culture and then try to make contact with students in that culture through a pen pal service. I could monitor this by having students compare and contrast their pen pals' lives to discussions about literature or with any stereotypes that the world may have about a particular culture.
A quick Google search gave me several educational pen pal services, as well as, online pen pal services. Online pen pals would be a way to add age-appropriate technology to a literature/language arts based curriculum.
There are so many ways to explore diversity and multicultural education with this idea, which also promotes the idea of prejudice. According to James A. Banks in his book, An Introduction to Multicultural Education, "Involving students in vicarious experiences and in cooperative learning activities with students of other racial groups will also help them to develop more positive racial attitudes and behaviors"(p 16). Pen pal activities are one way to promote Banks' ideas of prejudice reduction.
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