Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Now in its Third Edition , this classic text continues to define what multicultural education means in all kinds of settings. As in previous editions, Patty Ramsey guides teachers in helping our children make sense of their complex world by becoming curious, critical, and compassionate learners.

Focusing on current research and practical applications for the classroom, the Third Edition features:

Suggestions for incorporating a multicultural perspective in all day-to-day interactions with children--from making up classroom rules to choosing materials. Deeper explorations of the connections among all aspects of social justice work, including multicultural and environmental concerns. Reflections on assumptions underlying developmental theories and educational practices. The addition of activities to challenge children's assumptions on: Racial Bias, Social Class and Consumerism, Perspectives on Cultures and the Natural World, Gender and Sexual Orientation, and Abilities and Disabilities. An updated appendix of "Suggested Books for Children."

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Foreword (p. xi)
• Preface (p. xv)
• Acknowledgments (p. xvii)
• Part I Multicultural Schools and Classrooms
• 1 Growing Up in a World of Contradictions and Injustices: A Multicultural Response (p. 3)
• Purpose, Trends, and Scope of Multicultural Education (p. 6)
• Multicultural Goals for Children (p. 10)
• Families and Schools Working Together (p. 12)
• How Do We Talk About Multicultural Issues? (p. 13)
• 2 We Are All Learning (p. 16)
• How Adults Can Identify and Challenge Their Assumptions (p. 19)
• How Children Learn About Their Worlds (p. 26)
• 3 Creating Caring and Critical Communities (p. 43)
• Creating Caring and Critical Communities Among Adults (p. 45)
• Creating Caring and Critical Classroom Communities (p. 53)
• Part II Contexts of Learning
• 4 The Context of Race (p. 69)
• Reflections on Race (p. 69)
• Growing Up in a Racially Divided Society (p. 69)
• Children's Responses to Race (p. 77)
• How to Learn What Children Know, Think, and Feel About Race (p. 84)
• Activities to Challenge Racial Bias (p. 85)
• 5 The Economic Context: Social Class and Consumerism (p. 87)
• Reflections on Social Class (p. 87)
• Socioeconomic Divisions in the United States (p. 88)
• Growing Up Poor (p. 89)
• Children's Awareness and Feelings About Social Class Differences (p. 94)
• Reflections on Consumerism (p. 96)
• Living in a Consumerist Society (p. 97)
• Children's Understanding of Consumerism (p. 98)
• How to Learn What Children Know, Think, and Feel About Social Class and Consumerism (p. 100)
• Activities to Challenge Assumptions About Social Class and Consumerism (p. 101)
• 6 The Context of Culture (p. 104)
• Reflections on Cultural Influences (p. 104)
• Reflections Relating to the Natural Environment (p. 106)
• Cultural Influences on Children's Development (p. 109)
• Cultural and Linguistic Discontinuity (p. 110)
• Children's Understanding of Culture (p. 114)
• How to Learn What Children Know, Think, and Feel About Culture (p. 116)
• Children's Understanding of the Natural Environment (p. 117)
• How to Learn What Children Know, Think, and Feel About the Natural Environment (p. 120)
• Activities to Challenge Assumptions and Broaden Perspectives About Cultures and the Natural World (p. 120)
• 7 The Context of Gender and Sexual Orientation (p. 125)
• Reflections on Gender Identification and Roles (p. 125)
• Growing Up in a Gendered World (p. 126)
• Children's Responses to Gender Differences (p. 128)
• Reflections on Sexual Orientation (p. 131)
• Growing Up in a Heterosexist World (p. 133)
• Dilemmas of Gay and Lesbian Parents (p. 134)
• Children's Understanding of Sexual Orientation (p. 135)
• How to Learn What Children Know, Think, and Feel About Gender and Sexual Orientation (p. 136)
• Activities to Challenge Children's Assumptions About Gender and Sexual Orientation (p. 138)
• 8 The Context of Abilities and Disabilities (p. 141)
• Reflections on Abilities and Disabilities (p. 141)
• Growing Up in an "Abled" World (p. 142)
• Social Integration of Children with Disabilities (p. 145)
• Children's Knowledge and Feelings Related to Abilities and Disabilities (p. 148)
• How to Learn What Children Know, Think, and Feel About Abilities and Disabilities (p. 150)
• Activities to Challenge Children's Assumptions About Abilities and Disabilities (p. 151)
• Part III A Vision of the Future
• 9 A Day at Wilson Street School (p. 157)
• Appendix Suggested Books for Children (p. 169)
• References (p. 181)
• Index (p. 201)
• About the Author (p. 217)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Targeting parents and teachers, Ramsey discusses how young children understand and interpret issues of diversity. After providing an overview, the first section discusses different contexts of learning: racial, economic, consumer orientation, gender, sexual orientation, and disability. This second edition was expanded from the first (CH, Jun'87) to include a focus on parents, consumerism, and environmental issues, going beyond other texts, such as Perry and Fraser's 1993 edited work Freedom's Plow: Teaching in the Multicultural Classroom. Each chapter contains real life examples from either the classroom or home that assist the reader in seeing the connection between how a child understands a situation, and how the teacher or parent can assist the child in interpreting that understanding. One chapter that deals with the physical environment discusses how to use photographs, television, and books to shape a child's understanding. Numerous suggestions for improving communication are provided, and questions are raised that will help teachers and parents in conversations with children. The book concludes with a story illustrating the major points made in earlier chapters and a description of what could be accomplished if a true partnership existed among schools, families, and communities. The appendix provides age appropriate reading recommendations for each topic. Upper-division undergraduates and above; general readers and practitioners. P. A. Cordeiro; University of San Diego

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Patricia G. Ramsey is Professor of Psychology and Education and Director of Gorse Child Study Center at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts