You're right, Debora, I can't say I know anyone old enough to relate stories of slavery. And that's great that your neighbor can relate stories like that. But that wouldn't be in school, that's at home. I love stories that my kids learn from families of a variety of backgrounds, including their own family:

My kids hear how my father in law tried to buy tickets to a movie in the '50s and was told they didn't serve their type, and he took his money elsewhere. My inlaws just left, and caused no trouble.

With an elementary school education, he became a finisher and then a contractor, and with mentoring from his boss, learned to buy and manage rental properties.

So did skin color matter at one point? Yes, and now we've progressed to the point where a man with a limited education but willing to work hard got very far in life--he could buy the movie theatre if he wanted to. To me, that's something we learned at home, not something I want a teacher to present with some odd sympathy or perspective.

I am often asked why our family lives in Oakland and our daughter attends Oakland Public Schools when she could be learning more in a "better," suburban school district. What I know as sure as I know my daughter is that what she learned from Pops, our next door neighbor Chanel's grandfather about being the grandson of slaves outpaces anything she could learn in school.

Learning about saving money after working all day for his master, then working at night to get enough money to win the freedom of his wife and children in the South - having to carry a letter of permission from his master to travel, then coming back with a free wife and children while earning enough money to buy his own freedom - no one on this list can tell me that diversity in abstraction, personal knowledge or personal experience as given to both Chanel and Blythe by Pops is not one of the most valuable, important, loving, and thought-provoking gifts my daughter will be given in her lifetime.

So when we talk about the color of the person's skin does not matter, I beg to differ. I do not know how any white person, other than a former slave owner can pass on that level of personal testimony. Diversity is important.

From USDE's "“Helping Your Child Become a Responsible Citizen”:

From an early age, children need to see parents and other adults practicing the manners that they expect children to use.

"Remember that children do not learn the values that make up strong character simply by being told about them. They learn by seeing the people around them act on and uphold those values in their daily lives. In our daily lives, we can show our children that we respect others."

And from SPEAK UP! Responding to Everyday Bigotry:

"Like the workplace, school becomes the first or only place where some students, teachers, counselors, principals and others encounter a diverse and varied society. That presents opportunities for enlightenment -- and potential for misunderstanding. Schools become a place to learn not just geometry and grammar but also community building and social interaction."

I can answer this simply:

Diversity teaches tolerance. If you're not exposed to individuals different than you, how will you ever learn to tolerate and accept them? Answer, you can't! The earlier children are exposed to different kinds of people (races, religion, abilities, etc), the more they will be able to accept those people as equals.

Diversity is very important for all children. : )

Your question is really a philosophical one.

To start with: Should all quality education be provided in a diverse environment? Should all predominantly-minority (usually urban) schools deliver the same high-quality instruction delivered by predominantly-majority (usually suburban) schools? Certainly. Would that it were so.

In the real world, how will a minority child in a predominantly-majority, high-quality school fare? Candidly, there - even today - may well be social difficulties. (I always marvel at how the courageous children who integrated Southern schools in the face of riot police and a state governor survived and succeeded in that hostile environment ... Happily, we have progressed some from those days!)

You will need to be a supportive parent. You may consider ensuring that your child experiences more diverse, inclusive environments in her hobbies, her church, her sports, etc. Do I firmly believe that a quality education comes first? Absolutely. It's the key to success in our world. If your choice is between a good school and a bad one, choose the good one and work out everything else.

Hi raughammer,
I'm not sure if you are referring to my comments when you say the theme should be some sort of insult. I hope not, but my apologies if this is how I came across. I do my best to avoid labels and to stick to observable behaviors. But, it is often hard to express contrary views in writing in a positive and clear way.

Simply put, I believe that we should honor and accept differences, I believe we should strive to find our common ground so that we can all live in this world safely, productively and happily. I never want my children to feel ashamed of their heritage, their family, their gifts their challenges. I hope that they can be accepted for who they are when they attend school and community functions. I hope they accept and respect others - even those that are different.

Should others choose to think differently than me, I believe it is their right to do so. In fact, diversity of thought is part of the entire mix.

Will I condone or embrace behavior that hurts or excludes other? No. But, I will not pass judgment and label the person causing harm as "racist, homophobic, redneck, whack job". It's precisely that kind of labeling and stereotyping that I try to avoid.

Again, I am sorry that you feel insulted by this discussion. I did not intend to bully anybody - I only tried to provide my point of view in a clear and respectful way so that we could have a diaglogue about this subject.

Hey everybody,

I really wanted to read about this subject and to perhaps learn a thing or two from this online community.
But, wow, I shudder to think of the attitudes and social ideas you folks have and want to push on our children.

It appears that the theme of this thread should be: "Celebrate diversity or you’re a racist, homophobic, redneck, whack job." (Or some other insult)

I have read about 10 or 11 pages of this thread and the word "bully" seems to come up a lot. But from "over here" most of those who are throwing the term about willy nilly need to go look in the mirror for a grade A example of one.

No, it really does not matter.
The color of your skin or where you are from does not matter a hill of beans. Character does matter... not skin color.

Diversity does not matter as long as you live your entire life in your home and never venture outside. Most campus college students will share that a significant portion of the college learning experience is obtained outside of the classroom. Diversity itself is an educational tool.

When we exist in our own world, most tend to expect no require everyone to reflect personal appearance, desires, culture, etc. Tolerance levels are not as high when people do not speak, act or dress to our personal acceptable standards. Education is never sound without diversity.

When I define "celebrating diversity" I think of it as the intersection of our unique gifts and differences, intersecting with shared attributes, desires and values to help us all find common ground so that we can live and thrive together.

So - is it about differences? Yes. It's about how we are all unique and bring something special to the world. Generally speaking, this is a wonderful thing!

buckaroo,

I too think we are arguing semantics. You can celebrate "diversity" and differences while acknowledging shared ethics and beliefs. I don't see why it has to be an all or nothing enterprise. I think anyone who has ever gone to a cultural festival, be it in German and Polish Milwaukee or Hispanic and Indian Tucson, realizes that there are diverse aspects of the regions (you don't have to keep using the word different as if it's a negative, diverse also connotes variety, and different opinions aren't necessarily negative ones....)so it's all in how you look at it. I don't think it's bad to have a class that focuses on diversity and as far as different opinions, what is debate class? What does philosophy teach? Divergent opinions (Plato vs. Aristotle)....our western civilization is based on Greek thought and priniciples. I think diversity is nothing new.....just packaged differently for different times.

sformo,
I think we are just having problems with semantics. When I hear the term "celebrate diversity" it literally means celebrate what makes us different. When in reallity, I think you are meaning that with diversity in our population (we come in all shapes, sizes, colors, religions, etc. ) we should look at all that makes us the same.

As far as curriculum, others had mentioned diversity training, which implied a specific class. I was just curious what it entailed. I too think that mine get quite an exposure to other cultures through their history, social science and language classes as well.

Michellea,

Thank you for your insightful posts on family. You "get" it. It being, it's about the kids, not OUR politics.

If you remove families? Do children leave their families at the school house door? This is a preposterous comment. Families are a big part of the school environment, especially via volunteer activities, helping out at school and not least of all our input into the schools, districts and state boards. I don't want my son to feel like he can't talk about his family at school, and no other student should feel that way either. And since someone mentioned bullying....let's be specific instead of broad and"feel good" pronouncements. Suppose there are kids at school who bully a child BECAUSE of his family,like a gay parent. Should the school not address the type of bullying, and the motivating factor (i.e. gay parent)? I think it has to, because kids are smart and they know when adults are sweeping things under the rug because it's "uncomfortable".

Bucakaroo,

I disagree, diversity shows us that appearances are deceiving and that when you look hard and long, we have much in common. No, we are not exactly the same, religion is an obvious example of differences, but there are many similarities in religious beliefs as well. Just because humans look different, speak different languages, have different customs, does not mean we are not all human. I'm not proposing anything different in curriculum, I'm just responding to the knee jerk reactions to people on here to the word "diversity". I think the schools are actually doing a pretty good job of teaching via history, language etc.

I do see your point and have no problem with kids speaking about their home life to their classmates. I guess I just don't think at a public school, acceptance of all lifestyles should be "taught" as it may cross the lines of religious freedom. This does not mean that children shoulnd't be taught to be respectful of their classmates and their families.

I think feeling respected includes feeling free and safe to speak about weekend events, family traditions, siblings, parents, extended family. It's so hard to seperate our families from who we are.

I can't imagine being a little 7 year old that is ashamed to talk about her caregivers. It's an awful lot to ask our kids to censor themselves about their families. It's also hard to talk about holidays, vacations and traditions w/o including some reference to family.

Family dynamics play a huge part of who we are and how we interact with others. In my community I know of one child that is being raised by his grandfather (his grandmother recently died and his mother lives out of state). I know another that is being raised by friends - he had been raised by grandparents that passed away. I have a neighbor that is a single mom (widow) who has 2 foster kids in addition to her two sons. There are a few blended families, single parents, adopted kids etc. My son has two classmates that have two moms.

In each of these cases, I believe the kids should feel safe about their situations. They should be free to speak about their weekends, family traditions. They should be proud to bring their caregivers to school events.

Whether we condone the choices that parents make, children deserve to feel accepted and part of the community. If they have to stay in the closest because they are different they cannot be on equal footing.

I think at school it is important to teach kids to respect each other. Period. I don't think family dynamics need to come into play at school.

If you remove families?
A child has no control over who their family is.
It is imperative that ALL children feel accepted, and ALL families welcome at school events.

michellea,
I love your answer. I can definately see numbers 1 and 2 being taught at school. Number 3 as well, IF you remove FAMILIES from the mix as I think this might cause problems with those that disagree with some family dynamics.

Number 4 doesn't seem to be something you would teach the children, it sounds more like what the school administration should be doing. Not sure if my kids needs to learn that his friends mom works full time so needs to meet with teachers in the evening. Perhaps I'm just not seeing this from a kids perspective.
As far as number 5, sharing customs and traditions, I think this does make school interesting for children. This is fine as long as good ol' American culture is also celebrated (i.e., the Pledge, flag raising...)

Learning about other cultures via geography and a foreign language is one way to acknowledge and embrace diversity. There are other ways that schools can create a culture of acceptance and support. Here are some ideas that I have seen:
1. Teach kids about disabilities - visible and invisible
2. Create policies that preclude bullying, teasing and other behaviors
3. Accept families and children for who they are. Allow them to feel included in events and activities, even it they may look, act or sound different.
4. Accommodate differences whenever possible. If parents have different working schedules, trouble understanding English, difficulty understanding new customs, give them a hand.
5. Let others share their traditions, customs and perspectives. There is no one way to live our lives. Perhaps by learning about our neighbors, we might learn a bit about ourselves.

I'm sure there are more - but why wouldn't we want every child to feel included, safe, part of the community?

I do think we should understand what makes us different as well as what we have in common. Just like a sports team - no one person has it, knows it or can do it all. When we can understand and celebrate what makes each of us unique, we can use these gifts and differences to work together, learn together, build a community looking to common goals.

To ignore what makes us different, ignores our unique gifts.

sforsmo,
As I stated in earlier posts, the "celebration" of diversity concentrates on what makes us all different. The melting pot of the American culture is what makes us the same.

What exactly do you propose be taught in a "diversity" class? Perhaps I'm just misunderstanding? I learned a lot about other cultures in schools through my history and science classes. Perhaps what you are suggesting is the same?

buckaroo,
The heading for this discussion includes "as part of curriculum where diversity is celebrated not ignored" and in that sense does not focus on the ethnic make up of a school. Just because a child goes to a school where the ethnic make up predominantly reflects their own, does not mean they should not learn about other cultures. So, I think you're missing the boat here by talking about the ethnic make up of the school. And as far as the ethnicity of the local community, we don't live in a bubble and when your children (if they so choose) go to college or leave the comforts of their hometown or community, this realization will be a fact of life.

dvine0722,
Just because a school is not diverse ethnically, does not mean it is racist, ignorant, closed-minded, or sees nothing wrong with discrimination. It might merely reflect the ethnicity of the local community.

Diversity is important..

How are we going to teach are children that we are all equal if one race is being favored over another.. This is not just a African-American vs. Caucasian view because they are not the only races in America... How can we learn about other traditions and celebrate them if we don't acknowledge and accept them.

We stereotype other races and have this preconceived notion of what they are like before we even get to know them and that is why there is a fear of allowing our children to go to other neighborhoods to go to school, meet friends, hangout, go to the store and shop.

Suomi,
I would definately object to busing my child. If I move into a community, I expect to be able to send my child to the local school. Folks often base their home buying decision on local schools. You can look at all the requests on GS for info on schools by people looking to relocate. If, after making all the decisions, being told your child is to be bused to another school would not be taken lightly.

Try integrating communities first. If you manage that, then schools will automatically be integrated. Schools have enough to worry about.

how about if we just had what matters. Consider 30 per graduate rate in Lansing Mi School dist. USA once was number 1 in education for the whole world. Now we are # 4 or is it #5. China number one what are the types of jobs as an adult that the average professional would apply for. Just think if that person could not do math , read, and barley write. To get a janitorial job today u need ur high school complete. What does that consist of. We we get honest yes i want to know that you have a good attitude but before that you must past the pre-employment test and fill out an application properly to even get the interview where they might ask can you get along with Johnny. U see if you cannot read, write or do math you can provide for you or your family. Folks I deal with people everyday who cannot provide for their families because they didn't learn do math , reading and writing. It's called not having a diploma. This is not rocket science think for yourself don't let someone else think for you.

As an educator, I find diversity to be extremely important. A diverse classroom may not give higher grades, but it helps in other ways. It prepares children to work and live in an ever increasing multicultural society. It makes children open-minded. It actually does teach because children learn about other people's cultures, and what better way to learn than by a person of that specific culture in the classroom?

Diversity is necessary for all classrooms, especially ones that are all white or all Black.

As well, I believe in integration and the busing system. However, I believe that white children should be bused into Black communities and not the other way around for a change. I also think it would be better to build schools on town lines.
If this cannot be reached than create a penpal system between dominantly Black schools and dominantly White schools.

Finally, in the book What if All the Kids Are White, the author stated Black kids don't need to be exposed to white people. I completely disagree and I work with Black students! Black children face discrimination almost daily, and they need to have an African centric curriculum and learn about great Black leaders (esp. in math, science, not just Dr. MLK and Rosa Parks). Black children MUST learn their culture and have Black pride. However, a Black children can and should learn European and white mainstream American cultureS too. NOT to assimilate, but to know what else is out there. Black children and white children should be together because when you get to about the 7th grade on both sides of the fence segregation and bullying occurrs if not exposed to kind people of both races as a small child.

I will pray that Gods mercy and grace will be upon you and your family. I will pray that someday you will seek the real truth and not truth that has been frabricated by your personal desires. May the joy and peace that comes in really knowing God be upon you all your days.

Kimoko,

Thank you and God bless you for the inspiring and thoughtful post. And this is my final note as well.

kimoco,

Thanks for this breath of fresh air. This thread was starting to make me nauseous.

It is sad to see so many people afraid of people being different from them.

Since there was at least one post directed to me personally on this thread, I will leave one final note here.
A poster here claims that we can teach kids to be gay, that diversity lessons in school create more gay kids (even claiming some huge spike in gay elementary students, though I have no idea where this notion comes from) and that religious parents have the right to keep their children from hearing that gay kids are just as OK as straight kids. As for the latter, it is possible, in some religious schools. Public schools are not going to try to shove gay kids back into the closet and make them feel like bad people, it is just not going to happen.

All I can say to those who believe these things is to ask you to try to imagine if you or your child was gay.
Imagine your fellow students or teachers treating you like a second class citizen or worse. Imagine your kid being scared to go to school for fear of running into bullies who have threatened to beat them up. (this happens ALL THE TIME) I doubt anyone would argue against discussion about these issues if they had gay teens in school who were going through hell.

How else can gay teens be accepted if no one ever discusses it? Racism, bigotry etc is not going to go away if we pretend there is none.

It would be nice if we lived in a society that had no racism, sexism, homophobia or xenophobia, but we don't. Many many parents teach their kids that others who are different are bad or defective or perverted people. This is simply a fact, and I can tell you all from first hand experience that it is painful and seriously damaging to grow up in that kind of environment from one's own parents and/or in school.

My agenda is to assure ALL kids get a safe place to learn. I simply do not believe that religious people have more rights (keeping any mention of homosexuals out of school) than gay students. Since silence is hurting kids, open discussions are necessary, for the kids' sake.

I will end by saying that while it hurts to read some of the things I have read here, I am OK knowing that times are changing. It is easier to come out today than before in part due to diversity programs and trailblazers like Ellen etc. I believe that it is not a matter of IF gays get full equal protections under the law, just a matter of WHEN.
I guess those who do not agree are free to put their kids in religious schools that teach what the parents believe, and I hope that these parents do not have any gay kids....for their own good.

We have a lot of different opinions being shared here and that’s something that we encourage. However, this discussion has moved beyond a sharing of opinions and into personal arguments, something we discourage, as it takes away from the community as a whole.

Out of respect for other members on this site, we've got to make some room for other voices in this thread.

tavisp31,
Paranoid? Please tavisp31, can you respond without interjecting personality assessments that have no bearing here? It's the internet, just like I teach my child, one should be cautious about how much information is provided. Simple as that. Please try and grasp the concept. Assumed you're lily-white? Where? I made no such illusion. You're the one who posted about not being legally white. Methinks you doth protest too much. It's just a forum, keep that in mind. Not every word is about you personally. In fact, from here on out, I will not post you moniker and then you won't have to feel that I am somehow reacting to you "personally".

sonora - Diversity education makes a point of the skin color or personal choices of people whose accomplishments should stand on their own merit.
Focusing on academics would involve cutting out much of this unnecessary bias and simply trumpeting the achievements of these individuals.

Personally, my idea of a proper education would emphasize the genius and accomplishments of one George Washington Carver rather than his ethnicity. This already seems to be the case when white inventors like Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla are discussed. Why exactly is it that they weren't referred to as white/caucasian inventors in the texts I read?

Is it really appropriate to waste time pointing out the ethnicity, sexuality, or personal choices of every great leader our nation has benefited from? In my opinion, the answer is no.

Bullying is apparently the behavior that many pushing the diversity discussion in the classroom seems to want to quell, and yet this behavior exists in a very large number of species for the purpose of rank and has also existed in schools throughout history. It seems to me that parents teaching respect and teachers demanding respect for all their students without pointing out their differences is the answer.
Would this not be a better way of emphasizing their similarities?

Discussing whether it is normal for Billy and Ed to be a couple is completely irrelevant in this regard. Consequently, the agenda seems rather obvious and offensive to those of us who do not support alternative lifestyles. I can certainly speak for myself in saying that I couldn't care less what two consenting adults do behind closed doors (it is a free country). But pushing these ways on my child is another matter entirely.

Cinderbell - You are absolutely correct.

Both of our boys were spoon-fed several examples of lessons that included an appreciation for homosexual lifestyles during this past school-year, and this has now happened for multiple years in schools our children have attended in Colorado, Arizona, and Florida. This may please folks who want this so-called diversity curriculum to push a specific agenda under the guise of anti-bullying "discussion", but it is forcing us to remove our kids from the public school system.

All I have to say is that private school is expensive, but can certainly be worth every penny.

These "discussions" are against our 1st Amendment rights, as there are religious clauses it contains that protect our ability to raise our own children with OUR values. We send our kids to school not to get indoctrinated based on others' views of alternative lifestyles (or even Christian values), but to learn math, science, english, and history. This is the bottom line, and the public school system will continue to have declining enrollments if they ignore this problem.

Sorry EnglishT. You are absolutely correct. The following "apology" made we feel really warm and fuzzy:

>As for caustic, that's interesting that you see the '>man in the mirror' with that word. How nice.

Please accept my most humble of apologies "dear".

Cinderbell,
Would you favor open discussion about the Bible even if it meant also allowing critical discussion? I don't agree that homosexuality is being "taught" (don't confuse discussion with indoctrination....) over any other "type". I also don't agree that teachers are making judgments about it being "right" or "wrong" but are acknowledging the gay and lesbian community as having the same rights as any other citizen of the United States. The same anxiety over "too much" discussion of Civil Rights, African Americans, and feminisim (to name a few),occurred during my youth. How did we ever survive since at that time those were also issues that some felt were "singled out and overemphasized. And yet we survived. Know why? Because this is America. And we can survive differences and discussions that make us uncomfortable because the alternative is to live in each of our own little bubbles and think everything and everyone is alright. I for one have no problem with studying world religions (no, not JUST the Bible.....) and openly discussing them in class....which means that dialog must also allow any and all opionions. A lot of folks on here have said that teaching children diversity begins at home. And how do you mandate that? As if all children come from cozy, communicative, tolerant households. I for one know that is a myth. I support sex ed even though I also think the main responsibility for teaching my son about sex falls upon myself and my husband. But I can't control the fact that there are parents who teach their kids absolutely zippo about sex. And these kids engage in sex, they get pregnant, they spread disease. If there are parents who don't want the public schools to teach sex ed then they should exercise their "choice" of other types of schooling. I personally have done this with my son's school based on gifted ed. The conservatives in this country wanted "choice" along with vouchers....well guess what....be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.

we can have it if enough parents go to the school board meeting to make a impact on the rules they put into place and make it known that our children are important to us and that we as parents have a vested intrested in what they learn. er can make a difference only if we get up go out and do what we need to do.

To teach diversity as a "whole", ie, that EVERYONE is different, even within the same race, religion, income-class, ect, is one issue. It is another to try and break-down diversity into certain groups. Why is it that the gay/lesbian diversity is the "one" that should specifically be "taught" over any other "type"? How can public schools teach being gay is alright when the Bible says it isn't? Public schools are not to get into "religious" discussions or teachings but how is this to be avoided for those who believe in what the Bible says about gays? Public schools shouldn't even use the phrase of "Do unto others......" or risk in getting "in trouble" for it.

Teaching children to accept others for WHO they are starts at home. Life experience is everything and just because a teacher says they are SUPPOSED to like everyone won't make them feel it if they don't believe it.

Old mom,
I agree that the schools should treat all equally and with respect. If that were indeed the case, I don't think diversity would even be an issue. The fact is the schools are filled with human beings who are capable of practicing the same bias that exists outside the schools. I don't expect perfection, I expect truthfulness. And as I've said before, I don't know how you can teach academics (name your subject and I'll make a list) without acknowledging the contributions of the diversity of human beings involved. It seems to me like this is not even an argument. It seems to me that there is an assumption that this acknowledgment is built into the curriculum, and in a lot of schools it is. So I don't know how one can be against diversity education and then claim they want schools to get back to academics. Learning, discovering and creating is a dynamic human function, it is not static, or just rooted in history. Our schools reflect the society we live in. Gay rights, for example, is a lesson in contemporary civics, it is in the news, it is on our TV's and I can pretty much guarantee that gay people are not going back into the closet again. So how can we pretend that this is not an issue? Much learning does take place at home. And it's a fact now that Home also includes gay people raising children. The schools reflect current events as well as history (in my time in high school, which was the 1970's, this was called Civcs class, and I remember at the time the discussion was about Black/White relations then). The original question, I'd like to point out, was "Diversity -does it matter as long as education is sound?" What is NOT sound about having a discussion about diversity? What is not sound about learning, especially at the high school level, about current events? Do high school students not read papers? In fact, today's high school students have a million times more access to information than my generation ever did. What exactly is NOT sound about diversity? And for those who want to keep politics, sexuality, religion, and every other volatile subject out of the public schools...well, just when do young people get to discuss these things openly? Politics, sexuality, and religion are part of the fabric of America. If you want schools to be fair, then don't ask them to shove these subjects under the rug. Let the teachers facilitate an open, honest discussion among the students. Do we not think that students discuss all of these things anyway? And more?

Tavisp31
I am not being "silly", you seemed to be "digging" for information about my background via your posted insinuations and assumptions. I don't feel obliged to be anymore specific about my background then what is appropriate in responding to your "remarks". I do not have any short term memory loss, but you assume a lot, as is evident by the tone you take with myself and others one here. End of story.

tavisp31,
Can you not see my apology???????????????????????????
I suppose not. Go back and read this time instead of being the way that you are dear.

Good post oldmom.

I'd also like to see all public schools return to a focus on academics, but we can't have everything can we?

EnglishT - Man in the mirror?

Does this excerpt from your previous post not strike you as caustic? *lol*

>Next time you post try
>www.grammar.com
>www.spelling.com
>www.punctuation.com

Perhaps it was a signature, but it certainly can come across as rather condescending. If not, then I would have expected members of the tolerance crowd to be a bit more tolerant ;)

The schools should teach by example....teach the subjects and treat all equally and with respect. If children are treated fairly and equally, than hopefully that is how they will learn to treat all. There is only so much a school can do....much is learned from home anyhow.

oldmom - Unfortunately, more than one of my employers also subjected me to that biased garbage. Employers, like teachers and even parents, should simply be demanding respect among their employees. A pink-slip should be hand-delivered if employees or students are found to have disrespected or harassed others, and then termination/expulsion would presumably be in order. It's really that simple.

There is no time or need to teach values or political beliefs in schools or the workplace; particularly where tax dollars are channeled.

We live in a diverse world and I think it is important for children, no matter what color to learn that differences in skin color, religion, etc. do not make people less important or deserving of respect than them. As a parent, I try to teach this to my son all the time. I do have a concern about the approach that some school systems may take. I worked for a large corporation and had to take a "diversity sensitivity" course. I called it my white bashing course. The instructor would throw out words that we were supposed to write down the first thing that came to our minds. She said "black", I wrote "white". She said beautiful, I wrote "ugly". All answers were shared. Most black people wrote words like ugly, cruel, horrible when "white" was said and beautiful for black. It did make me sad to realize that there must have been some nasty experiences people for people to respond in certain ways. I personally was not the cause of their problems, but the class made me feel like pooh. My point is....that is not the way to teach appreciation of diversity and I don't want my child pulled down just to build others up...nor another child pulled down to build my child up. I hope you see where I am coming from on this!

sforsmo - Don't be silly. I responded primarily to what you posted; that which you've apparently already forgotten. I gleaned very little at all.

As for my assumptions of ethnic exposure (as if it really matters), I was born in the Cuban mecca of the nation (Hialeah, FL) and subsequently lived in a predominantly African American area known as Carol City for another seven years of my childhood. My exposure in these areas led me to believe that people of all colors should be treated equally (not specially).
Treating people as they are inferior via affirmative action, etc, only holds them back and causes more racial strife. This is something our country does not need.

Misinformed? I think not.

This serves as a nice segue into the diversity curriculum that many on this board choose to support. It simply isn't fair for publicly-funded schools to be taking one side or the other of the issue of homosexuality. I do, however, find it incredibly curious that many who support this form of indoctrination are against forcing kids to stand for the pledge of allegiance. This certainly reveals quite a bit.

What we need to be teaching our children is equality, and publicly-funded schools can best achieve this by staying out of politics, sexual orientation, or any of the other subject matter that violates religion clauses of the 1st Amendment, and specifically those rights of parents whose religion does not approve of homosexuality.

If forcing the idea that homosexuality is normal on elementary to junior-high-school kids is not social engineering, then I don't know what is:

dictionary.reference.com/browse/social%20engineering

You can continue to respond condescendingly. My skin is apparently far thicker than yours.

tavisp31,
I sincerely meant no ill will and if it was taken that way then I apologize.
As for caustic, that's interesting that you see the 'man in the mirror' with that word. How nice.
Have a great day.

Ha ha ha that's rich tavisp 31, you think you know anything about me from a forum post? First of all, I am 51 years old and did not grow up with diveristy training in the rather average public school system I went through. You are fairly certain you are from a more enthnically diverse environment then me? If you knew who my parents were you would never make such a completely ill-informed statement. However, I did grow up in a pretty white, middle class suburban existence and their was racism, ignorance and petty religious bigotry enough that when I went to college in a more diverse environment (in a different state, with cultures like Mexicans, Indians, Africans and more), I had my eyes opened to all of the things my public school (particularly high school), had glossed over. So please eat a little crow for me, since you posted with your misinformed assumptions about who I am and where I come from. You just made my argument for me and others here who think there is lots to be done!! Social engineering!! Oh please, chicken little, the sky is NOT falling!

sonora - You cannot teach social studies without teaching diversity? Great! The pathos-laden agenda-driven diversity curriculum that is already laid on so heavily in classes and my sons' textbooks can be done away with as social studies already had it covered. Thank you for making my argument for me.

For your information, I am legally NOT white by the standards employed to separate citizens of the United States into "classes", and I'm fairly certain that I grew up in a far more "ethnically diverse" environment than you can ever dream of. However, I know plenty of folks who did not (blacks from Bermuda, whites from the U.P., Cubans, etc.), and none of them are bigoted in spite of their not having received your precious diversity (brainwashing) curriculum. I wonder why that is?

It's funny that you divine so much from my post and yet I am the one who has trouble with "reading comprehension". Your posts have advocated the agenda-rich diversity curriculum that this board has pertained to, and it further indirectly impugned the prior curriculum of our schools that wisely chose to not focus on ethnicity, sexual orientation, or anything else that is totally irrelevant. Social studies never focused on any of this, as anyone can be born black/white or choose to live some sort of alternative lifestyle. What kind of accomplishment is that? A proper education focuses on teaching about and fostering accomplishment (not agendas).

It's funny how many in our society now seem to label those who prefer being color-blind and character-driven as bigots. In my so-called narrow-view, those pushing the special treatment of any ethnic group, sexual orientation, etc. are the real bigots, as they are not truly focused on character and merit.

You cannot fight racism with more racism, ignorance with more ignorance, or a bias against certain forms of behavior with bias advocating that form of behavior. Those soliciting this kind of social engineering are the real bigots of modern society.

It is very inportant to help build character with ones self and to be able to deal with life with out judging looking at a person's heart not what they are made up of being ablle to look pass the flesh and getting to know a person from their heart the good that they have in them besides being different in someones else eyesight.

(for some reason the site posts under 2 names for me)
This is from Sonora to tavisp31,
You seem unable to grasp the concept that you cannot teach, math, science, history or social studies (just what DOES the social in studies mean pray tell?) without teaching diversity. The world has never been the supreme domain of white, straight, male humans. All of the subjects you mentioned exist because of the contributions of Greeks, Muslims, women, homosexuals, Africans, Christians, Jews, agnostics, atheists, Deists.....oh if you can't grasp this simple fact then it's you who need some re-education. I never mentioned any personal ideology in my post, but you seem to have a real axe to grind! Funny how you describe my remarks as "personal" when there is not one single word in it that tells you anything about my personal beliefs. Was reading comprehension not one of your strong points in school?

tavisp31
You seem unable to grasp the concept that you cannot teach, math, science, history or social studies (just what DOES the social in studies mean pray tell?) without teaching diversity. The world has never been the supreme domain of white, straight, male humans. All of the subjects you mentioned exist because of the contributions of Greeks, Muslims, women, homosexuals, Africans, Christians, Jews, agnostics, atheists, Deists.....oh if you can't grasp this simple fact then it's you who need some re-education. I never mentioned any personal ideology in my post, but you seem to have a real axe to grind! Funny how you describe my remarks as "personal" when there is not one single word in it that tells you anything about my personal beliefs. Was reading comprehension not one of your strong points in school?

kimoco - As is often the case, I disagree entirely.
Children can indeed be taught any form of behavior including sexuality.

Your assertion to the contrary may be based on research conducted sans control groups or the consideration of multiple conditions as carried out by a biased gay researcher named LeVay. However, there really is nothing else to thwart the notion that the increased homosexual programming on television and early exposure of homosexual relationships to children by teachers in school are not causing the disturbing spike in perceived homosexuality among elementary-school-aged children. Kids learn by example, and the example we are giving them is one than can eventually lead to genocide.

In my opinion, racism, homosexuality, and the penchant for abusing homosexuals are all learned behaviors. Your stance is also nothing more than an opinion, and neither of our opinions have any place being taught in school. Kids will naturally get along with everyone (within reason) unless they are taught to hate by their parents. I don't trust teachers to guide the morals of my children anymore than I trust the government with the social programs they continually screw up. This is apparently where we differ most, and the schools need not touch this political football either.

keecejr - Excellent post!

Parents should continue to be entrusted to "explain the differences between people". This is not the job of a teacher my already inflated taxes are paying for. Those of us who hold down jobs are sick and tired of paying to have children brainwashed. Let's stick to what has worked throughout the years - ACADEMICS.

Thanks for the link kimoco. I'll check it out.

Perhaps a better question would be, what would the opposite of teaching diversity be? Avoiding diversity....acting like it doesn't exist or have a bearing on our present society? What would be the preference instead of diversity....singularity? Which singular opinion, historical perspective, artistic expression, and scientific inquiry should we hold up as singular? In America we have always been a diverse society....it just took the powers that be a long time to recognize that fact.

Okay lets try it one more time. The education system in schools today are not giving our kids a sound education. So lets focus on the 3 R's first. Again I don't care how well I get along with my neighbor if I cannot do the 3 R's how well will I support my family. The truth is in many school district a sound education is not being provided. It is not the schools responsibility to teach diversity get along yes but truly that should come from home. As parents that is something we can and should spread among ourselves in our community. How about stepping up where you live organize or help organize community events so you can know your neighbor and create diversity. Do your part as parents.

keecejr,
Diversity is really about teaching people not to be arrogant, which is impossible. You are missing the point.
Next time you post try
www.grammar.com
www.spelling.com
www.punctuation.com

GranAunt....
RIGHT ON! very well said....

Grandaunt==I wish there was an award we could give you for that post. I for one read the entire thing, and appreciate the help explaining the necessity of diversity as well as other types of education that might not be the basic three Rs and pointing out the HUGE number of bigoted (or worse) incidents that happen today despite so many claiming to not be bigots. I tried to do this earlier in this thread with links to examples of kids who suffered horribly, but I don't think anyone read them based on the comments.

I also think that part of diversity training is to show how much we have in common, not only what is different. That is how we educate kids on how to live around and show respect to others, by pointing out the similarities, not only differences.

And thank you for pointing out the responsibility of the parents. I think there are still many out there who literally think 'johnny can't do wrong' and any problem is due to someone else, teacher or other student.

I know that many parents either do not have the time or inclination to help with homework or even know what their kids are learning in school. That is as sad as those parents who teach their children bigotry at home, and you and I both know there are a lot of them out there.

You're right diversity is a distraction in the classroom, so are birthday parties, winter / Christmas parties, parents visits, field trips, assemblies, guest speakers, visits from the zoo, and fundraising events.

However, I do not see anywhere in this blog that people are saying that the distraction for these other things are so great that we need to get rid of them to concentrate on other learning.

GrandAunt,
I wanted to say that I appreciate your perspective, and I agree with much of what you say about a lack of parental involvement today, but personally I think we'd be alot better off emphasizing how much more we all have in common with our fellow human beings, and demonstrate respect for all, than to teach about our differences.

Let me give a simple example. I am fortunate to have had parents that didn't bring me up as a bigot. Where I live now is a rather stereotypical anglosaxon suburban middle-class area, and my son, frankly, didn't see too many minorities in his daily experiences growing up. It was a reaction I'll never forget when we went on vacation, with a college friend of mine who lived near NY. She happens to be African American, but her house was about twice the size of ours. My son, who was about 9 at the time, was in awe of everything, but he didn't say, "Mom, your friend is black" he said, "Mom, did you see she has the same blender in her kitchen as we do??" My friend and I laughed heartily, and said, "Well, we're both the same age, and started furnishing our houses at the same time, and if it still works, there's no sense replacing it!"

My son, I'm sure, learned more from actions than any words, because he saw that I have a diverse set of friends. I'm pleased to say that my son now has a very good friend who is Muslim, and overall he seems to have developed an attitude to look at people as individuals. It didn't come from what some teacher told him in school, it came from home.

P.S. On the topic of religion in schools, you might want to read this recent discussion: community.greatschools.net/q-and-a/200400/What-would-you-do-if-a-teacher-tries-to-teach-religion-to-your-child-in-a-public-school?cpage=2#comment_202853

I'd like to address the two issues that seem to me to be the core of this discussion: first, is diversity training necessary and beneficial to students in preparing them for their adulthood; and second, what about all the other subjects that are essential to education but which are not being learned. (I know this is long, and I beg your pardon, in advance, for that.)

On the first issue of diversity education, the discussion thus far has revolved around what happens, or may happen, within the classroom when diversity education is taught. Some feel that diversity education in schools has little or no value to prepare students for the real-world life they will lead. I'd like to speak to that.

I am recently retired from a career as a human rights investigator for the state in which I live. Throughout the country, those who do my job are responsible to investigate discrimination complaints based on gender, race, religion/creed, disability, age, marital status, and, in my state, sexual orientation. These cases involve denial of equal treatment in employment, housing, credit, public accommodation (i.e. all sorts of retail establishments), and even education. Most, if not all, states have such a human rights agency, as do many cities, as well as the Federal government. Combined, these agencies get tens to hundreds of thousands of such complaints every year. The backlog is tremendous. And this does not include the thousands of cases that are taken to various courts instead -- for those who can afford to do so.

Nonetheless, redress is almost impossible for the victim to get because of this backlog of cases. Although many of these cases are proven, for many others, the evidence is insufficient to prosecute, though it may be clear to the investigator that discrimination did occur. For those cases in which the complainant wins, generally the most that can be obtained is the monetary damage lost. Most laws don't provide for any punishment (i.e. punitive damages), and emotional harm is even more difficult to prove, although the emotional impact on the victim is almost inevitable.

The discriminatory or alleged discriminatory events that precipitate these charges frequently destroy jobs, sometimes careers, and sometimes even lives and marriages -- not only for the victim, but sometimes also for the perpetrator. Unlike most other lawbreakers, perpetrators of discrimination are frequently clueless on just what they did wrong. They are victims too -- of their own ignorance.

If anyone out there truly believes that parents and families throughout the country are aware enough, informed enough, consider the topic of diversity important enough, and then, on top of that, have time enough, to educate their children sufficiently on the subject of diversity, I can only ask, then: "Where did all these complaints come from?"

Whether we like it or not, this country, more than any other on the planet, is a "melting pot." We have been blessed by our core belief that we should open our doors to, value, and foster freedom of expression to talent from all cultures, all creeds, both genders, all sexual orientations, all abilities, and all age groups. But that blessing implies that there is going to be a learning curve in being able to understand, and deal with, persons who belong to groups different from our own.

In many of the countries from which our ancestors came, education was a privilege of the rich. When our country began universal public education, such policy was still an oddity in our world. But wisely, we determined that the education of ALL children ultimately benefited ALL of society, and not just the particular child who was being educated. We realized that the most productive member of society was the adult who, as a child, was taught the "three R's".

And over time, we also realized that in order to expose a child to possibilities that his or her parents never dreamt of, we should also include Art, Music and Science. Like the Ancient Greeks and Romans, we understood that a sound mind was at its best advantage in a sound body, and so we included Physical Education. And we also realized that a good citizen should have some idea of how the democratic system works, and so we taught Civics. We wanted our children, and the adults they would become, to have a sense of how our country evolved, and so we taught European and American History. And of course, how would they have a sense of what produced that history, without knowing the Geography that formed much of it.

When one considers all these subjects that I'm sure we have all often heard called "unnecessary", we could ask the question: "Why don't parents -- most of whom can read and write, who have the freedom to take their children to museums and concerts (or at least keep their TV's tuned to educational TV stations), whose children, instinctively, know how to play on their own without a P/E teacher or coach, and who, if they cannot afford to be world travelers, at least have public libraries at their disposal (from which they can learn not only Geography, but virtually every other subject taught in school) -- teach their children all these things at home and save society a "flying fortune" in school taxes?

Perhaps it's because we know that universal public education is the most efficient and effective way to convey those most important elements of knowledge that have been shown to be essential to good citizenship and productive adulthood. So I guess we must ask ourselves: Is a child's learning about the existence of, the history and formation of, and the value of, the various groups that are part of our society and our world, helpful in their becoming persons who are productive adults and good citizens? My experience tells me that it's worth every bit of the time, effort and money to do so.

Too often, parents do NOT teach this appreciation of the different groups in our society. Parents are considered fortunate and successful if they can even teach brothers and sisters to appreciate each other's differences. Moreover, if parents themselves have never been taught this material in any complete and organized manner, from what source will they have acquired the knowledge to teach it to their children?

Our country's history is replete with examples of the failure of the home as an educator of diversity. Lack of racial awareness bred slavery and the massacres of Native Americans and Jim Crow laws that existed as recently as 45 years ago. Lack of cultural awareness has bred attacks on newly arrived immigrant groups, and even does so today. Lack of religious awareness led to signs in 20th Century American shop-front windows that "No J__s or dogs allowed", even as we condemned Hitler for slaughtering 2/3 of Europe's Jewish population. Lack of sexual orientation awareness produced the Stonewall riots in 1969 and the Gay Rights movement that has followed since and that continues still.

But whether taught or not, when the children graduate, they're expected to know and understand diversity to survive in business. If not their jobs, then their promotability certainly depends on it. How well they get along with customers depends on it. (I recall a store owner lamenting to me, and questioning me, why an older African American female customer was angered when he referred to her as a woman, while a younger White female customer would have been upset with him if he didn't.) When one lives in a pluralistic society such as ours, life can be a mine field, and success can turn on what we know or don't know about each other. Is diversity education unnecessary? I believe it's just part of a larger lesson on what makes a good citizen.

Now on the other topic, I also do completely agree that children these days often are not being sufficiently educated in the more traditional subjects. I have a few theories and opinions as to why this is so. Looking to my own experience, when I started the first grade, my father, who was an immigrant with a 6th grade education, and my mother with a 9th grade education, had already taught me, in addition to my prayers, how to recite the alphabet, how to read and write, some geography, some history, some mythology and some music appreciation. I'm guessing that this is unusual. We were poor by anyone's standards, but my father loved to read -- and especially to me. My mother, for most of my childhood, was a stay-at-home Mom. Both of them not just believed in, but paid daily homage to, the value of education. I remember my Mom re-making me a coat out of an old one, because we couldn't afford a new one -- but somehow they paid for an encyclopedia in the house. Thanks to them, that spending choice was just fine by me.

My brother and sister went to public school. If any of us was reprimanded by a teacher, there was little point in telling my parents, because the punishment would be worse than anything the teacher could do. On one occasion, when my brother was fool enough to brag to Mom that he got the best of a teacher, Mom took him to school the next day to make him apologize. He was in HIGH SCHOOL! By contrast, my niece, a 5th grade teacher, walks a tight rope at school lest SHE be reprimanded by an annoyed parent, or worse, that the complaint might go to the principal first.

I went to parochial school. We had one class and one teacher for each grade. We started in the first grade with 83, yes I said, 83 children in the classroom. (I remember the number because I helped my Mom prepare my birthday "goody" baskets.) The one teacher maintained discipline without any help. She wasn't mean -- she was a doll, in fact. The biggest reason why she didn't have a problem controlling us was because she told us to behave, and we were used to doing what we were told because that's what we did at home. If she lost 5 minutes a day of teaching time to discipline problems, it was a lot.

When I came home one day in the 5th grade and told my Mother we were going to be taught Dancing one class per week, my Mother thought it was a good idea, because she realized that such enrichment classes produced better-rounded and more confident adults. She didn't ask why the school was wasting good teaching time. In another year, they brought in a Speech teacher for everyone. The news got the same reaction from my Mom.

When I brought home hours of homework EVERY night, and dinner was sometimes delayed while I worked on, or my mother helped me with, getting through all of it, I NEVER heard my Mother say a word of complaint about it. She was just glad I was learning so much. And when I had to memorize data, while she cooked dinner, she had the book balanced on top of the bread box while she heard my lessons.

My Father, who worked 6 days per week and generally didn't get home from work before we went to bed, only had Sunday with his children, but boy, did he make the most of it! After church, WE were his recreation. Not because he had to, but because he thrived on it. He wasn't big on sports, but it was he who taught me how to ride a bike, and later, how to drive (until his nerves gave out.)

Do I know how lucky I was? You bet I do. But I can also tell you that everyone who graduated from my schools, and all of my brother's and sister's friends from public schools, were educated.

Can all parents today do what parents had time for years ago? Many cannot. Maybe we need to ask why politicians of both parties who give lip service to family values have created a society in which both parents have to work just to pay the rent or mortgage. I didn't grow up a hundred years ago. I'm not even Social Security age. But in less than half a century, this aspect of daily life has changed THAT MUCH!

And even though there might not be the same opportunity to do as much today, could parents do more? When I was in school, a parent's idea of helping to educate their child meant spending whatever time was required in actually going over their school work so as to reinforce what the child learned during the day. If the child didn't learn it in school, they learned it at home as the parent helped with the homework. Frequently, today, we see much more time spent telling the teachers and school officials how to do THEIR job but much less time reviewing homework until it is learned. Parental input is fine and proper and necessary, but as much as we may balk at the idea, and even though educators are paid for by the parents, they are not there to serve the parents. They're hired to serve the students, and the society in which those students will need to function. Parents will help teachers tremendously if they do as much as they are able to aide in what should be that jointly shared goal.

Further, if the parents themselves haven't mastered their children's grammar book, or spelling book, or the other skills their children's teacher is trying to teach, why even expect the children to care about such things that are all part of being an educated adult?

Our children's teachers and principals can't tell us this, because if they did, the school board (whose members want to be re-elected) would have their heads for being so straightforward. But consider -- is more time lost to diversity education, or is more time lost to the teachers' having to go over the same work repeatedly that wasn't reinforced with the homework assignment, or having to issue the same directive repeatedly to a child who doesn't have the slightest idea that when a responsible adult tells them to do something, or not do something, they should listen -- the FIRST time?

I'd be interested in taking a poll among all the parents out there. Presuming that YOUR child is among those who arrive at school prepared, respectful, and obedient, and that YOU are the parent who is, indeed, "smarter than a 5th grader", why not ask your child how many of their classmates DON'T fall into YOUR family's category of coming to school prepared and well-behaved? Or better yet, ask them to keep track of how many times a day their teacher has to interrupt a lesson to re-teach what already should have been learned, or to correct a student's behavior. In many cases, it might prove to be a lesson in family education diversity.

And finally, if anyone's still reading, here's another related topic that's might generate some discussion: Should diversity education include comparative religious beliefs? Religious beliefs separate humankind probably more than any other issue. Religious and related philosophical beliefs are responsible for the establishment of at least five of our original thirteen colonies. If schools are permitted to teach ancient religions as part of History lessons on ancient cultures, why not teach current religious beliefs that impact modern cultures and that the student is actually likely to encounter? Wouldn't it be helpful in reducing hostilities if we learned about each other's beliefs, not as faith, but respectfully as philosophical theory? (We can presume that the parents are taking care of the religious aspects of that training at home.)

Amen to that Tell this to the educator and legislators get it together or you will loose more students from the public schools. Parents are fed up and are doing something about. Every year public schools funds are being cut. School are closing and being sold. Educators get it together. How smart do you think you are. Have you ever heard the phase if it does work change it so that it does.

As we all can see this is all the more reason diversity is a distraction and does not produce sound education. We still are not dealing with ways to teach our children focus on what they need to now in order to get job and take care of themselves as adults. They may know how to get along with their neighbor but can they get and keep a job that will provide for them and their families.

The point of teaching diversity is not to teach kids to figure out who they are (gay or straight) but to make sure they understand the differences in people, including gays, so they will grow up to treat others with respect.

Even if they have no interest in becoming friends with someone who is a different race, faith or orientation, and even if they disagree or don't particularly like them, they will have to live with them in the real world.

I provided links to sources to help everyone research this more closely, I however cannot force anyone to read them, nor do I think I can force anyone to change their mind. My only agenda in this thread and in real life is to promote facts, not rumors, assumptions etc. and help assure kids are safe so they get a good education.

And one fact is, this is being discussed in more and more schools across the nation. The reason is because teachers did not police the kids and prevent bullying or were allowed to participate in it themselves and studies showed the kids were suffering.

This is all about protecting kids and teaching them how to deal with the world that is full of all sorts of people. And, I think assuring that teachers have a no-tolerance policy in the school, regardless of their personal opinions!

Schools are to teach academics and for many years now, teachers have had more and more added to their plate. I don't believe it would do a service to bring this topic up for discussion in schools. Children have enough distraction as it is, without start questioning themselves so early in life as to "which preference" they like. They will grow up to know exactly WHO without being taught.

Straight people know they are straight without being told so. I do think that for many children, they experiment with others to know early enough on, if they "like" boys or girls more.

If children are "confused" on this issue, they will grow and learn that other people feel the same. To me, it is simply called growing into adulthood.

Bullying of anyone should not be tolerated and that alone, is what schools should be focusing on-besides academics, of course.

We have parent who over the last 50 years that have entrusted the school to teach our children how to read write and do math. We don't need them to teach us culture directly we get that everyday at work and at play. This is about parents that have trust our schools to much. and have been disappointed because they are not doing what school was intended to do. Many parent are teaching repect , courtesy and integrity to their child and no longer is the school system. I don't go to work to make friends on purpsose that doesn't take care of my family. I go to work to do my job with the education and training that I have learned over the year from birth until now. If anything our schools system has coped out on its responsibility by trying to please every parent which has some issuse in there personal for not taking responiblity for raising there own kids with solid core life and spiritual values by which evern our laws have been created from

This is not the thread for nature vs nurture, but I can say that learning about different cultures etc. should always be a part of education in my opinion.

Most kids will end up working with and maybe even living with (in college dorms) people of different backgrounds and races and orientations etc.

Teaching diversity is not why kids graduate without proper skills. I think that is a cop out. How could any parent let their kid get through high school without knowing how to read, much less the school graduating them!

Diversity discussions are the reason for that problem! They talk about this once or twice in a year for goodness sake.

You are not what you are you are what you choose to be. However the queston is should diversity be taught in schools . The answer of course it should not be. Why can't we keep focused on what the school should be teaching our children. Again in lansing school district we a 30 pecent graduate rate from high school. Kids comming out of school and barely write there own names and can't read to get the good job. Stay focused on the real probllems let stop creating artificial problems that distract the purspose of school.

--It is not the place for schools to teach our children sexual orientation.--

Of course not! As one cannot teach someone their sexual orientation anyway. They are what they are, as you know yourself child of ra.

--Because a child is curious about a same sex does not mean they are gay, but if the school starts preaching gay in school, we can be sure that these kids will suddenly become confused.--

I have not seen one piece of data supporting this. Again, one cannot convert someone who is straight into being gay. They may be confused that all families are not the same at first, but once they understand the facts, vs stereotypes they are not confused.

I strongly agree that a no-tolerance policy on ALL bullying needs to happen. The thing is, it is NOT happening today. If you read my earlier post you can see examples of what this does to kids.

No one is suggesting we (shoved down their throats) sexual orientation (God I hate that phrase). The point is to make sure kids with gay parents and gay kids are not mistreated and told they are bad, and the only way to assure that is make sure all kids know the reality that there are gays in the world. As one kid in the film I link to below said; "big whoop"

By the way, I do not think it is appropriate for a lesbian teacher to constantly bring up her orientation any more than I think it is appropriate for a teacher to constantly deride gays in the classroom.

I watched a film on PBS the other day called 'It's Elementary" which showed real teachers and students (elementary and middle school) approaching this subject.

Check out some of the kids comments in the clips on this link.
groundspark.org/films/elementary/ie_clips.html

I know I was surprised about what these kids knew and thought they knew. And I did not see any kids traumatized by the learning experience.

I did see at least one kid who I bet was gay appear very surprised and relieved however....especially when she learned some famous people who are gay. One African American girl was surprised that there are gay black people. LOL

If you can see the entire film, you can get the chance to be a fly on the wall in a classroom when this discussion happens, it was very interesting and inspiring for me to see, and I think would help many parents deal with this issue that they are uncomfortable with.

A teacher in my daughter's former school was an outspoken Lesbian, openly married to another woman. She discussed this with the children in her classes. My daughter was one of them.

I cannot begin to tell you how many weeks of distraction this caused both for my daughter, and for the parents, including myself who is openly bisexual (and yes, my husband is fully aware). I am AGAINST bringing this into schools.

It is not the place for schools to teach our children sexual orientation.

Children get picked on and beat up daily for various reasons, and being gay while one of them, is not one in elementary around here.

In elementary school kids are still learning who they are - they're exploring each other and barely have begun to show an interest in each other. And often, this entails a curiosity about both genders. Because a child is curious about a same sex does not mean they are gay, but if the school starts preaching gay in school, we can be sure that these kids will suddenly become confused.

I was 20 when I realized I was bi... It took lots of experimentation before I could say outright to anyone, including myself, "I AM BISEXUAL". and it was tumultuous. I don't want that burden to be on children of a young age who have barely hit puberty. They've got enough going on.

Teach them respect and leave it at that. Form a policy that forces teachers to conform to laws and leave it at that. Really a zero-tolerance bullying policy needs to be enforced no matter what the bullying is about, because it's not as it is and it has little to do with gay around here.

I am not religious. I am on both sides of this issue (as you can see) but I don't think my children need to have sexual orientation shoved down their throats. It's something we all figure out on our own at some point or another.

Diversity is very improtant b/c we live in a country where everyone migrate to. Also, they need to learn to socialize with all kinds of kids, so that when they grow up they know how to work with them.

I was not aware that schools were teaching "happy feel-good pathos from teachers for more than 80% of the school day"

cinderbell, your point is interesting, and I understand what you are asking. The thing is, teachers need to follow the law just like everyone else. If they don't want to do so, I guess they need a new job, ya know?

tavisp31--you should try reading the links that were asked for before accusing me of lying.

On Kimoco's point citing the Human Rights Watch, for the record, it is NOT a gay organization. It is an international human rights organization that monitors the treatment of many groups. You may be confusing it with Human Rights Campaign, which IS a national, gay rights organization. Both websites are accessible to verify this.

kimoco,

You state that some teachers are telling students that being gay is wrong because that is what they believe.....my question is: How well do you think these same teachers will be able to teach just the opposite if it is something they don't believe? If they are forced to start teaching this is right, I would imagine the sarcasm they would use to get their true feelings across.....how would that help? I would think that would send a worse message than what they already had.

Well said healthy11 and I'm sorry your child had to go through that.

Teachers said the same thing about our two boys, both of whom are allegedly suffering from ADHD. Teachers feel compelled to tell the parents this about their children as they sometimes interrupt the class and make it difficult to teach the rest (this was indeed our problem). In the case of our children, it really came down to diet more than anything else.

I also apologize that the word diversity has come to represent sexual orientation to this extent. I'm sure this thread was meant to be a bit more broad than that ;)

kimoco - What right do I think I am losing with this legislation? I thought I had summarized it rather well. Here it is in a nutshell...

How about the right to have my child attend school and learn 3rd-grade math before 5th grade instead of getting happy feel-good pathos from teachers for more than 80% of the school day? How about my child not getting saturated in the values of others when they are there to learn math, science, history, and all those other things that will help them continue to make our country great?

If this conversation was intended to be strictly about matters of sexual orientation, I wish the original question had been asked in a more direct way.

I think every one of us can point to people we know or issues we are passionate about, where someone has been insulted/assulted for their appearance/views/or just someone's perception about them. That does not make it right, nor does it mean a separate law should be passed to ensure teachers say "it's okay to be/do (whatever.)"

My son happens to have a learning disability. He's been called "stupid" and "lazy" and an "underachiever" by TEACHERS as well as by some peers, some of whom took pride in physically bullying him on the playground. In truth, he's got an IQ that is in the 99.9%. It was through my efforts that he's learned he's NOT stupid, he just learns differently. I agree that schools should provide for the safety of ALL children, but I think it's up to families to provide the love, knowledge, support, and teaching to their children that lets kids know they're "okay" just the way they are.

kimoco - Not a gay organization? Are you kidding me?

Human Rights Watch has ALWAYS marketed themselves as a gay advocacy group. I think you know better yourself.

I agree that this is hateful, but a teacher cannot be present for every comment in order to prevent it anymore than the police can be at your home before someone fires a weapon at you or does horrible things to your family. They aren't psychics.

I would exact a form of punishment you would be sure to disapprove of if I found that my kids were calling people "fag", as the New Testament does not condone this type of behavior anymore than I do.

Again, this is the job of the parents to teach their kids right from wrong, not teachers using tax dollars of the masses.

You surely aren't standing up for my right to raise my children as I see fit, but I am fighting for yours and those of your ideology. No teacher should ever take a position on this (in favor of or against homosexuality), and you still haven't provided evidence of any such occurrence. It must be quite rare; too rare in fact to justify legislation that tramples on the rights of others whom you may not agree with completely.

Again, the mythical teacher(s) you are referring to do not appear to be rallying against the sexuality of the kids they teach in public school, and this tact is even discouraged in Christian school being that it only pushes people away (which is most unwise).

I find it hard to believe that you still haven't caught onto the fact that I'm pushing for the right of gays and everyone else to get a proper education free of politics and sexual preference. Isn't this what you truly want?

What right are those who think being gay is wrong feel they are losing? I mean, seems to me the only one losing any rights here are the gays kids being harassed.

I also provided more info for background. I am sure that most parents who do not have gay kids are not aware of this as much as they could be.

Hope it helps.

From Human Rights Watch (not a gay organization)

www.hrw.org/reports/2001/uslgbt/
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth of school age in the United States often suffer daily harassment, abuse, and violence at the hands of their peers. These students spend an inordinate amount of energy figuring out how to get to and from school safely, avoiding the hallways when other students are present in order to escape slurs and shoves, cutting gym classes to escape being beaten up—in short, attempting to become invisible.

Much more at link

I agree that this is hateful, but a teacher cannot be present for every comment in order to prevent it anymore than the police can be at your home before someone fires a weapon at you or does horrible things to your family. They aren't psychics.

I would exact a form of punishment you would be sure to disapprove of if I found that my kids were calling people "fag", as the New Testament does not condone this type of behavior anymore than I do.

Again, this is the job of the parents to teach their kids right from wrong, not teachers using tax dollars of the masses.

You surely aren't standing up for my right to raise my children as I see fit, but I am fighting for yours and those of your ideology. No teacher should ever take a position on this (in favor of or against homosexuality), and you still haven't provided evidence of any such occurrence. It must be quite rare; too rare in fact to justify legislation that tramples on the rights of others whom you may not agree with completely.

Again, the mythical teacher(s) you are referring to do not appear to be rallying against the sexuality of the kids they teach in public school, and this tact is even discouraged in Christian school being that it only pushes people away (which is most unwise).

I find it hard to believe that you still haven't caught onto the fact that I'm pushing for the right of gays and everyone else to get a proper education free of politics and sexual preference. Isn't this what you truly want?

tavisp31--to a gay teen there is no difference. If they are gay and told that being gay is bad, they logically think there is something wrong with them and they do not deserve respect and this causes all sorts of problems. Including their being cheated out of a good education.

Also, we are not all the same religion, so it is infringing on the gay student's rights when teachers or kids are allowed to tell them they are bad because their particular religion says so.
here is an example of a student who went through hell...
-----"I can't remember a day at school when I wasn't called a faggot or gay," recalled the student, Robby. Since the third grade Robby has been the target of taunts, bullying and anti-gay name-calling on a regular basis.
The years of harassment finally culminated in Robby being attacked by a group of boys in the school locker room after gym class last fall. The boys knocked Robby to the ground and kicked him in the stomach, head and sides while screaming "fag" and "queer" at him. ...."We talked to the school about this harassment for years. We wanted to know that the adults in charge cared enough to make sure that our son was safe and secure at school," said Robby's mother Tracy. "I'm happy about the policy changes in the district and hope that addressing this will help protect my son and other students in the area."

kimoco- That's the thing. Most parents are NOT teaching kids that gays are bad. Rather, parents like me teach that "homosexuality" is bad. In my opinion, any reasonable person roughly follows the old Christian adage of "Love the sinner, hate the sin". In terms of Christianity, all of us are sinners, gay or otherwise. That being the case, it is imperative to me that my children treat everyone (including gays) with respect.

I'm still waiting on some evidence of public school teachers not being immediately fired for teaching students that being gay is wrong. However, I can attest that they AREN'T being fired for teaching our kids that homosexuality is perfectly normal as this has become the defacto environment.

It is obvious that everyone will not agree on this.

Kids will have their own opinions, their parents will tell them gays are bad at home, all that is true. But if the kids or teachers say these things in public school, it is wrong in my opinion.

It would be nice if a teacher was fired for this kind of behavior, but there are many who think gays are bad, and see nothing wrong with teachers doing this to students, and some are school boards.

All I can say is my only agenda is to protect students. It seems that more educators are realizing the damage being done to some students and the rules are changing to assure all students are free to learn one district, one city, one state at a time....

I can definitely empathize with that argument, as a teacher telling my 11-year-old boy that two guys being in a relationship is alright kind of rocks his world as well. Can you not understand how this would affect HIS ability to concentrate and learn given the fact that this line of thinking is consistent with his parents, traditional parenting, many years of evolution, and the physiology of boys and girls?

This is why having teachers disseminate information approving OR discouraging homosexuality is wrong. This is NOT what teachers are there to do, and it is wasting alot of time that could be spent on proper arithmetic.

kimoco,

Part of the problem you want to "battle" won't do much good much good in trying to fight this within schools. Even if teachers teach that being gay is alright, students/children still have their own minds and will decide for themselves what is "right and wrong" in this scenario. Parents will still have the greater influence on topics such as this over educators. To me, this type of teaching is trying to brain-wash others into believing what you believe. If there are people bullying gays, those people should face the same consequences as if they bullied someone else for whatever reason.....no matter what the "excuse" for the bullying is, it is never right.

I will say, that any teacher who states to any students that being gay is wrong or treats them awful, they should be fired.....but that is a much different problem than "teaching" the right and wrong of "gays or straights".

Unfortunately the situation that Debora's kid experienced is not so rare. Thus I work to help protect these kids and ALL kids in school. They are there to learn, and if they are in a hostile environment, they cannot learn.

I will also admit, I believe that many people change their mind on that when they learn someone they love is gay. Though some parents will reject and throw out their kids if they come out, many do not. Today many raise their LGBT kids to understand they are normal, and just as good as anyone else and deserve equal treatment and protections.

Debora - Teachers indeed need to prevent this type of harm. It's a shame that this happens, but I also disagree with the prescribed solution. Teaching kids that being gay is normal, physiologically sensible, or not ultimately conducive to genocide also harms children whose parents believe it is wrong for a variety of semitic or intellectual reasons. Those parents should also be teaching their kids to show respect to all. It sounds like this may not be happening in some cases.

Everyone deserves to be shown respect, and it's sad that this did not happen in the school of your child.

Everyone,
Some of the posts in this thread are getting caught by the word filter, which is why you may not see them post right away. Please wait a couple minutes if you do not see your post. Thanks!

kimoco- Any teacher that attempts to further an opinion on this (one way or the other) should be fired on the spot.

However, I submit that any 10-year-old that thinks they are gay has been affected by nurture (not nature) and this can probably be demonstrated by a dramatic increase in number of elementary to junior-high-school-aged kids who suddenly think they are gay. Perhaps that is a discussion for another time and board.

In any case, I agree completely that children in public schools should not have to hear from teachers that their perceived sexual preference is right or wrong.

Okay, I am the birth mom of a daughter. We are a two mom family. My daughter refers to us as her parents because there are some children at school who have come us to her and said that her family is wrong, she shouldn't be alive and that all of us belong in hell when we die.

I am not asking you to like me, or accept me. I am asking that the law protect my daughter at school from hateful comments. The children and parents who make these comments are taking away my daughter's right to concentrate on her education at school.

I, my partner or my daughter are not going up to any children at school and saying, you must accept us - you must like us - I am saying that the hateful words are not okay.

When my daughter had a bladder infection at her school in first grade, she was in pain, had leaked urine and asked the secretary to call her mom. The secretary replied, I already called your mom. To which my daughter replied, please call my other mom. The secretary told her that a person can only have one mom. This is not legally correct. In the State of California you can have two parents - either parent can be either gender. My daughter asked the secretary to look at the white emergency card. The secretary then repeated, you can only have one mom.

When I arrived at school to pick up my daughter and take her to the doctor, I found her in the music room with a sympathetic teacher who said she had watched my daughter sitting on the floor of the office (she didn't want the chair to smell like urine) for nearly 1/2 hour crying - eventually she was allowed to take my daughter to another room because the secretary didn't want to deal with my daughter any longer.

That is when we started using the word parents instead of moms. That is when I knew that I needed to go to the pricipal and the district office and finally, that is when I knew that school and district rules were not enough to protect my daughter and that a law was necessary.

oops, for some reason it did not post my quote.

I quoted:

Your rights end where mine begin and vice-versa.

This applies to all students too.

That is exactly my point!

The ones suffering here are not your straight kids, but the gay kids who are being told they are deviant and bad people.

This is the job of the parents, not a school funded by the tax-dollars of parents who disagree with thrusting a particular ideology on our kids. Kids can and should be taught to "show respect" to EVERYONE, but not by singling out certain groups. Technically, all of this is the responsibility of the parent, and I will fight tooth and nail to not allow public schools to further either one of our philosophies in public school using our tax dollars. Again, schools are for teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic (nothing else).

Your rights end where mine begin and vice-versa.

cinderbell- laws against discrimination of students based on any characteristic are created because some teachers allow and participate in telling kids they are not OK, or allow them to be harmed.

Learning appropriate socialization is part of getting an education, in my opinion and that of many school districts.

I mean, kids are going to have to work with and be around all sorts of people when they grow up, we might as well teach them that all deserve respect.

I think I have made my points clear, I agree that all students should be protected, and I believe they are not all being protected.

I know many don't like their kids being taught gay is OK, but I think it is the only way to protect these kids.

Telling kids they are not OK, is just not OK with me.

Thanks

Maybe I have missed something(which is a possibilty) but why is it right for teachers to start telling gay students that it is alright? They don't teach "straight" that concept.....or is this teaching supposed to help stop teachers telling gay students it is wrong or bullying them?

IMO, schools are to teach academics first, in which there is hardly enough time in the day for this, and everything else comes after-if there is time.

I never called you a liar, and yet my response was pulled. How interesting that you can parse over all valid points made by all parents and continue to push what your "opinion", and yet my response was censored/reported *lol*. I used no profanities whatsoever, but merely pointed out your repetitive dismissal of others' counter-points. I guess freedom of speech only counts when our opinions are in alignment.

The bottom line is that teaching that homosexuality is just as moral as heterosexuality in schools may seem like an anti-bullying measure to you, but it's brainwashing using tax dollars to the rest of us. This would be perceived as an "agenda" by most, and it's pathetic.

Report this post as well if you wish.

kimoco,
You are missing the point. Can't the law be written such that bullying, by teachers or students, is not allowed for ALL students for ANY reason. Then having to keep updating the law to add more reasons would be unnecessary.

Having the law and implementing the law are two different things. Many laws are overlooked by schools.

I am glad your kids have attended schools that have a no tolerance policy to bullying.

I can assure you however that not all schools and not all teachers are kind to gay students. And that many drop out or worse due to feeling so bad due to the treatment they get.

I do not appreciate being called a liar, and have no idea what John Edwards has to do with this.

I do know that this is a hot subject. And I can only say that I promise to help kids not go through what I did and what some still go though in school today.
That is my 'agenda'. And I will continue to fight for these kids.

Thanks

No offense Kimoco, but you've can't just make up stories ala John Edwards when the true facts don't support your argument.

Teachers are not teaching that being gay is wrong. In fact, they are teaching very young kids that it is exactly the same as being straight long before they even know what gay is. I have seen this time and again in every school our kids have been in for the last several years, and have verified the same with many of my friends around the nation.

Indeed, the majority of the country would NOT say it's alright to physically or psychologically harm a child for any reason, whether it is related to weight, ethnicity, or anything else. I believe backaroo already pointed this out, and you conveniently parsed over it and continued to push your gay agenda.

As Child_of_Ra pointed out, we are already diverse. Wedon't need to keep providing red herrings to justify teaching a gay agenda to our kids. Teaching kids to show respect to everyone is not the same as embracing choices that are now being thrust upon them by adults at younger ages with every passing year.

The bottom line is that our kids don't need to be taught ideals with our tax dollars. They are there for reading,writing, and arithmetic, and not to accept your point of view. Bullying and discrimination were already frowned upon, and your agenda is becoming more transparent with every response.

No offense buckaroo, but I do not believe my lifestyle is any different than others of my age and position in life.

And there are teachers out there that are telling gay kids, or kids with gay parents that they are not OK.
How can anyone tolerate that?

kimoco,
Don't schools already have rules saying that it is not ok to hurt ANY kid at school physically or psychologically?

I think the rules regarding bullying should apply to ALL the kids for whatever reason (race, religion, weight, # of pimples, etc.).

I don't think the schools should be teaching lifestyles. Schools struggle as it is just teaching academics.

Chile of Ra---what bill are you referring to exactly? And what do you mean by teaching the 'rest'?

If it is the one in California, actually, all it did was include orientation as well as disability to the existing laws protecting students based on race, sex and religion.

Also, I think many would be surprised to learn what their elementary kids think being gay means.

Has anyone seen the film 'It's Elementary'? It was recently on PBS's show POV. It is an excellent documentary of actual elementary and middle school kids talking in class about what gay means, meeting kids with gay parents etc.

I know many do not like this, but schools are trying to get kids to understand the differences between them, and what they mean, not just stereotypes. They also need to teach them that it is NOT OK to call others names, hurt them, or discriminate against them in the classroom (by a teacher).

While many might disagree, I think the majority of the country, when pressed, would NOT say it is OK to hurt LGBT kids in school physically or psychologically. And that is still happening in schools today. It has to stop. Kids are suffering. Some even kill themselves or run away when parents reject them.

Imagine growing up as a girl liking boys and being told you are deviant, perverted and not equal to everyone else?

I have a hard time believing that most people would agree to go through such a thing willingly. Today, thousands of kids are being told just those things, either at home or at school. I cannot stand by and let another generation suffer. I won't. I know people will object on religious grounds, but we are talking about public schools, not church.

Gay has become a part of life. Why do we need to "teach" it in school now? We don't teach the hetero life. Just teach respect & compassion, yes? It doesn't mean the anti needs to be friends with pro... but people just need to have respect for the another person's right to choose how they want to live and then let them live it. This goes for both adults and children in person and online.

We're already diverse. Now we just need to teach the kids to respect it. Teaching them it's okay to be gay or it's okay to be straight, or it's okay to be a Mexican or white, or Islamic, Jewish or atheist (etc, etc) is what it should be about if a bill about true diversity is being passed. But it's not what this is about... This bill is about teachers being able to say "it's okay to be gay" and leaving the rest out.

The school is not the place to teach social ideals. These things should be taught at home. The US has some of the worst schools among top Free world countries. Why because we as a society as a whole are spending state tax dollars on things the schools should have no involvement with at all. Get back to reading and writing and doing math. We should teach kids about fair play honesty and truth at home so when they go to school they practice it.

I do not mean to tell anyone anything about what specifically happens in their communities. How would I know?

I am however dedicated to fighting to assure all kids are treated equally, including those who are gay or transgender.

If that means teaching kids that the world includes gays and transgender people, (as well as Evangelical, Jewish, Black or whatever) and all people deserve to be treated equally, then I am all for it!

Thanks for the discussion.

kimoco - I never asked you to care about my religious beliefs, nor would I ever push them on others. That being said, I expect the same from those with deviant beliefs or those sympathetic to what most would have considered perverse as little as twenty years ago. Live and let live, but don't push alternative lifestyles on my children. And yes, our schools are doing that all over the country. I can personally vouch for Colorado, Florida, and Arizona. Is it any wonder why so many parents want vouchers?

Kids are no longer, by and large ,unsafe due to the color of their skin with very few exceptions (South-Central Los Angeles perhaps). The same can be said of sexuality. In fact, there suddenly were about 4 different children in our 6th-graders class who said they thought they were gay. Funny how those numbers continue to rise with all the gay shows on television and programming from teachers. It's also interesting that they are bold enough to come forward with this information if they are so "scared" (tongue firmly implanted in cheek).

Nobody ever said that teaching respect is brainwashing. This is your attempt at marginalizing that fact that the LGBT curriculum is not just about respect, but furthering their agenda. What I did say was that the LGBT curriculum currently forced on our children IS BRAINWASHING. For example, homosexual couples were often used in classroom examples for simple 8th-grade math lessons during the past school year. The same can be said for this school's former band instructor who decided to illustrate how well instruments can compliment each other by citing "two men walking hand-in-hand". When my son said "that's weird", he responded that "it's not weird it's just different". The instructor who essentially told our children and one of our neighbor's children that it's alright to switch genders is named. Sadly, he was not the first or second teacher to push these ideas on our kids. For legal reasons, I would not announce this if I didn't believe I had the ammunition to back it up.

Don't sit here and tell me what has happened in the school my children attend. One can remain blissfully ignorant in their ivory towers to their heart's content, but it doesn't change what is happening in our schools.

Again, true diversity lies in being color-blind and respectful of others. Let's not rob our children of the innocence they were born with.

keecejr - It's nice to see someone thinking logically on this board.

Any parent who has seen the contents of modern textbooks and heard the results of the question "what did you learn today" from the mouths of their children knows that far too much time is spent on this emotional nonsense.

The truth is that achieving diversity will only happen when we decide to be colorblind, which is exactly what our children are by default (unless we teach them otherwise). Going back to the basics by focusing on reading, writing, and arithmetic is the way to go. Until we do this, we'll continue to produce incapable and overemotional kids who live in their mothers' basements until they are 40.

GrandAunt--I wish you were my aunt growing up! Nice post!

tavisp31--here's the thing. I do not care about, nor am I trying to prevent you personally from following Leviticus, (though I for one would miss lobster) I am simply fighting for the kids to be safe, and have an equal opportunity at an education.

I disagree that teaching students to respect each other is brainwashing, but believe it is imperative to keep all students safe and prepare them for life.

I do not think that addressing diversity in schools is responsible for any grades dropping, and I do not think that they are on a national level. I do know that gay teens still face discrimination in the classrooms in some places, and know that this robs them of an equal education. Not to mention the psychological damage it does to them.

Kids need more than just reading and math, they need to learn to socialize and get along in a world where they are certain to face many different types of people, who have different cultures, religions, etc. Including many they will not agree with.

This must be a part of educating our kids.

As for Colorado, I understand your disapproval, but I am glad that as of this month ALL citizens can live and work there free from discrimination. Frankly, I just do not understand why anyone would want to discriminate against their fellow human beings.

Diversity is getting way to much attention. Grades are dropping every year with students. Teachers are not teaching the basics anymore reading writing and math. If teachers would focus on these issues rather than diversity we would have high grades among student and for sure more kids graduating. Get your focus on what will make our kids productive.

roxarana - Funny you should say that. I also noted that there are towns that are practically all black, and yet you failed to cite that as a problem. Does the emperor have no clothes today?

Humans tend to flock towards those who are most like them, and this is NOT unhealthy. What we should be concerned with is racist agendas that imply the superiority of one race or another, and this occasionally happens in both black and white neighborhoods. If you had grown up in an area like Opa Locka, then perhaps you would understand.

Diversity in schools is a good idea. Actul student diversity may not be practical in some areas where there is an overwhelming number of one racial or ethnic group. But diversity can be included in the curriculum to ensure that those students don't think that theirs is the only (important) culture. Early experiences in diversity helps reduce some of the intimidation and fear that exists later on in life when people are exposed to 'different' groups for the first time.

From the answers I read, most contributors supported the idea of diversity, except when the issue involved sexual orientation. On that topic, some people have formed some very strong opinions against diversity. I'd like to make a couple of points. First, sexual orientation is NOT just about whom one chooses as a sexual partner. I'm sure that for most of you who are straight, you would not consider yourself straight only when with a partner, and then neuter all the rest of the time. Sexual orientation is who a person is right to their very core, just as their gender identity (male or female) is part of the essence of who they are. Second, most people who consider themselves gay knew they were gay (if not by a specific word, then by feeling) when they were very small children. It's not something they decided to BE later on. It IS something they decided to act upon later on, rather than deny their very essence. Unfortunately, some people have succumbed to the bullying they've encountered growing up, and keep trying to be something they're not. I can think of one person who married 4 times trying to convince herself that she is straight, only to figure out in the long run that she's not. She's now been with her female partner for over 20 years. Third, and probably most important, most gay people are born to straight parents. (I know of 4 gay siblings from the same family -- only one was straight.) I say this is the most important point because without the love and support of parents who at least try to have an open mind on the subject, a gay child will have terrible feelings of inadequacy and unlovableness to overcome, which can lead to addictions, promiscuity, and or suicide. The reason diversity is important in schools is because school and the home are where a child formulates their self image. If the reflection back to him or her is full of hate or despair, then this is all the child will see in themselves. The reflection should always be love ---- and then more love ---- no matter who or what they are. Their teaching should always be the golden rule. And parents may have to recognize that, just as in their Father's house, there must also be many mansions in their own house.

Diversity is something everyone wants to say they want but when it comes to being around people that are different either socially, economically, or racially the behavior does not reflect the verbage. I did not grow up in a diverse area, but my husband did. It is very important to him and me that our kids not only understand and respect others but appreciate what they have and want to help others. My kids do not see color or money. When they tell me about situations at school I often do not have a clue what the child looks like. THAT IS INVALUABLE! That perspective is what employers want, what God values, and what will make them successful in life. They have learned to judge people not by their status or color but by their actions. No one can have the same perspective when they live around people exactly like them. It is comfortable to live like that but what an injustice you do to your kids by not letting them fall in love with the richness of diversity. It is a gift every parent should share with their children.

I checked in during the day/breaks/lunch and it is wonderful to see the amount of discussion this topic has generated.

I've been thinking about what it is each family desires, which is a quality education for their children. Intolerance and harassment is a barrier to learning - especially, if that harassment impacts the safety of the student. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect but not every child knows how to because their parents lack the skills themselves. In many schools, there are character-building programs out there that address the desired traits of compassion, honesty, integrity, respect and responsibility. Recognizing that the one thing we have in common is that we are all human is key to the success of these programs.

Once the kids master these skills, they can be functioning members of their school community.
AND they would have something to take home and teach their parents.

usa1st, one way to fix your email notifications is if you click on the right side where it says "My dashboard" (under My Snapshot) and then you'll find a place where it says "Manage" on the left side of your dashboard...There's a place for "email notifications" and you can turn them all off if you desire.

You can also go to the top of any discussion thread that you don't want to "watch" anymore (like this one) and click on the "unwatch" words next to the glasses icon, which appears above the title of the discussion.

MagnetMom--thanks for the insight on textbooks. As I mentioned earlier I wish people would respect each other so laws and efforts to balance textbooks would just 'happen', but I don't think that is realistic.

At this point it seems to me that legislation in CA and elsewhere is including LGBT and disabled kids in non-discrimination laws that already protect religious, race and sex against discrimination.

My feeling is that it is necessary to 'err' on the side of protecting kids.

I generally try hard to stay on topic, but regarding the anon who says it's too costly to print numerous editions, perhaps you spoke to a customer service representative who gave you bad information, but you're wrong.

My husband has been in textbook publishing for over 20 years, and I can safely attest that so many textbook versions are created it would make your head spin. Texas in particular purchases a new textbook for each student every year, so they are a market to be catered to. They have health books created with a chapter on sex education and reproductive health, and often the same book is created with that chapter lacking (and further chapters renumbered).

To bring it back to the original question in terms of textbooks, for years states have mandated diversity in textbooks. Every picture with kids holding a microscope is planned and bodies are counted (how many boys/girls/men/women, and what color, old/young, you name it). Often the "perfect" photo is forgone for one that is more diverse or that has a woman in the nontraditional role. While I wish things were not so mechanical, every group has their lobby group in the states' capitals--conservatives, liberals, every religion/race/etc.

If you feel strongly about teaching your children only your values, public school is definitely NOT for you.

The subject of diversity, especially in context of homosexuality often leads to passionate opinions.

I think it is safe to say that a forum such as this is an opportunity to state one's point of view and to be heard. Hopefully, these statements can remain courteous and respectful. After all, if it is one's intent to be heard, using language that passes judgment will most likely push those with differing opinions further away.

I would suggest that it is more productive to describe how certain issues "make you feel" or "impact you", rather than placing qualitative labels on them.

People are much more likely to open their ears to a statement such as, "a homo sexual lifestyle does not fit in with my personal and theological values" rather than something like "Homo's are disgusting sinners and should be damned to hell".

I think that the overall intent of this thread is to offer differing opinions and perspectives. A member's opinions will be better heard and considered if presented in a way that preserves the dignity of all readers.

All white-towns? That there is a problem.

usa1st, you can also turn off the immediate notifications from arriving in your email inbox by clicking the "Don't want to receive any more notifications for this question? Turn off email updates for this question" link, which is located at the bottom of the emails you're getting.

I believe you can change your preference on that on your dashboard USA1st.

tjlove,
I have received so many e-mails saying that someone answered my question. Those responses were not really to my entry and I don't want to receive an e-mail every time someone blogs. Please let people know where to answer so that my inbox does not continue to fill up with alerts.

I read your post and just to give you an update. I contacted the publisher of my sons Science book sent home and yes they will be changing all books that they distribute to all states..which means the textbooks you used to have will change as soon as your school decides to buy new ones. They say it is to costly to make two seperate sets of textbooks. So yes it will be in Texas soon!!!

I am so glad I live in Texas not California. However, i am very concerned because the books that are used all over the US come from California and Texas. I don't think the school is a place to promote sexual preference. It does not matter how many people vote to ban that bill because the supreme court (6 individuals) over rule the decisions of citizens. That is why you now have gay marriage after it was voted against in California. The people spoke but were silenced by a few dictators in black robes. I have taught my kids right and wrong but I have also taught them that no matter how much they dislike a persons choices that they should respect them. I don't believe in belittling people for choosing a specific lifestyle so I also expect them to respect my choices. Homosexuality is a choice of who you have sex with not who you are as a person. Sex should be left out of school curriculums. What is next, pornography for students who are sex addicts? If the schools would do their jobs and prepare children for college than we would not have the problems we have. My children are half hispanic and half black. My son has Arab, black, white, asian and hispanic friends. The reason they all get along is not because of diversity, what makes them different from each other but because of what they do all have in common.

Hi Debora,
I'm not trying to hide the gay and lesbian part of this discussion. I did notice, however, that the discussion had started to turn away from diversity in schools and towards bathroom safety. Which is why I suggested that that part of the conversation move to another thread.

"They will lie through there teeth to get there disgusting way of life pushed on our children".


Above is quote from your last post referring to their life style as "DISGUSTING" Clearly a judgmental word.

I agree, I would prefer to discuss the issue with my kids first as a parent but unfortunately, there appears to be hate mongering parents out there who will enlist their kids in KKK clan and who call homosexuality "DISGUSTING". This is no different from the wealthy mother who tells her daughter not to associate with less privileged kids 'cos they are poor and will steal or that poor people are losers.

This obviously results in gay bashing and even attacks on gays - remember that poor college kid who was beaten to death 'cos he was gay?


Because parents can't all be relied on to introduce these issues to their kids without introducing their prejudices, schools need to do it.

It is about judging when you call me and all gays disgusting. And schoolsagenda, you have a right to fight for your views, but I think you already lost this battle. There is no way a law will be passed that allows gays to be discriminated against in our schools.

If you do not want your children to learn to respect all others, maybe public school is not for you?

"They will lie through there teeth to get there disgusting way of life pushed on our children".


Above is quote from your last post referring to their life style as "DISGUSTING" Clearly a judgmental word.

I agree, I would prefer to discuss the issue with my kids first as a parent but unfortunately, there appears to be hate mongering parents out there who will enlist their kids in KKK clan and who call homosexuality "DISGUSTING". This is no different from the wealthy mother who tells her daughter not to associate with less privileged kids 'cos they are poor and will steal or that poor people are losers.

This obviously results in gay bashing and even attacks on gays - remember that poor college kid who was beaten to death 'cos he was gay?


Because parents can't all be relied on to introduce these issues to their kids without introducing their prejudices, schools need to do it.

It's not about judging it's about PUBLIC SCHOOLS TEACHING MY SON WHAT IT WRONG AND WHAT IS RIGHT....MY JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOT THERE'S

While i think we want to protect the innocence of our kids, we also want them to be tolerant and NOT call non criminal lifestyles disgusting simply because it is not their lifestyle. Afterall, yes, bible says homosexuality is a sin but same as a white lie or an evil thought or NOT forgiving anyone who sins against you. So who are you to judge others life style disgusting?

tavisp31--I simply do not believe that any school is teaching kids that are not gender conforming (in your preferred manner) that they should change their sex.

This is the kind of scare tactics that people use to stop efforts to protect gay and transgender students.

I understand many are uncomfortable, or think gays are sinners, but the fact is your children WILL be exposed to all sorts of people in life, including LGBT people. They might even be gay, I can tell you it is horrible to grow up with parents who thought I was a bad person.

We are not going back in the closet to make it easier for others and destroy our lives in the process. It is not fair, and we are not masochists.

Teaching kids to respect those who are different is an important part of their education. The problem here is not the schools attempts to do this, the problem is the parents who want to do the opposite at home and the teachers who obviously are disgusted with their gay students. I speak from first hand knowledge, so please people, don't tell me I am making this up.

And finally, I do not have an 'alternative' lifestyle. I am just like all of you.

I pray that some day gay kids will be accepted and laws will not be needed to protect them, but in the meantime I will continue lobbying to protect them the best I can.

Trust me...schools were pushing alternative lifestyles to children long before this bill was presented.

I also have to laugh at the ridiculous argument about this bill's ability empower teachers to prevent bullying. It can't, it won't, and it need not. Bullying has always been a problem in schools, but kids weren't always babied by foolish parents more concerned with the self esteem than the achievement, self-sufficiency, and morals of their respective children.

What we need to focus on is teaching our children respect, self-reliance, and the importance of work-ethic. Tolerance is a very degrading term to minorities, as I'd frankly be quite livid if I people of other demographics were being taught to "tolerate" my skin color.

The diversity and affirmative action programs that many on this board seem to covet separate us when we really need unity, and this can only happen if our curriculum treats each child equally. This diversity nonsense fails horribly in this regard.

Diversity should always be celebrated? Nice red-herring!

I've met well-educated and color-blind folks from the Upper-Peninsula of Michigan who were raised in all-white towns, and others from the inner-city who seldom saw whites during their youth. Not seeing people of other demographics during childhood need not make one a bigot, and I'm sick and tired of this foolish notion being regurgitated.

This whole business of focusing on so-called diversity has replaced the academic focus our schools used to have, and it's now going as far as pushing alternative lifestyles for our children who have now noticed a direct correlation between sexually-confused and the curriculum that is forcing LGBT curriculum on them as early as possible (particularly during sex-ed classes). Our tax dollars are clearly hard at work as usual.

We need to stop focusing on social-engineering and instead help our children COMPETE with talent that is now being imported from deserving places like India and Pakistan for engineering and medical positions thanks to the ineptitude of our increasingly over-funded and underachieving schools.
Competition breeds success.

Schools spent far too much time teaching our boys that girls who like sports may be better off becoming boys, and that boys who are sensitive should consider the inverse.
Perhaps these schools could produce intelligent young-adults prepared to compete in the real world and raise a proper family if they only did their jobs. Then again, this would require the backing of strong, responsible, and selfless parents.

Diversity should always be celebrated. I think there may be a problem when all your or your children's friends are of one race or even sexual gender( in the older grades). Even if you teach that homosexuality is forbidden in your home because of religion or just personal opinion, celebrating diversity will only build tolerance and awareness in your child. The better your child is informed, the more he/she understands and the better we all can get along.

Without diversity - of teachers, students, curriculum, creed, race, cultures, socioeconomic ........how can education be sound? I though sound education prepares one to be a useful member of society. What society would the kids be released into that does not need diverse views and opinions?

kimoco,
I'm with you. ALL students deserve respect. If this bill enables schools to go after bullies that pick on ANYONE for being different, then more power to you for getting it through.

Kudos to you for dispelling myths that are running rampant on the web. I but could not seem to find any correlation of thses myths to the source in the actual text of the bill.

IF someone HAS read the bill and finds differently, then by all means post the exact text here.

tjlove diversity is the point of this - of the discussion including transgender and gay / straight families. What we see at our school is that there is diversity that is impossible to ignore - skin color, head scarves, other languanges - then there is the diversity which is not only easy to ignore, but easy to bully because it is a quiet diversity and that is of children, at least in elementary school, who may be gay, but who just appear to be sensitive or just don't fit in, or girls who are tough.

And, while you may want this blog to be a kinder, gentler blog, the truth of diversity is much more rough and crusty.

At our school, those students whom I believe to be gay and lesbian, are told to toughen up, become more mainstream. But you wouldn't tell my hispanic daughter to not dress so brazilian or to eat meat because being vegetarian will get you made fun of. Diversity is about gay and lesbians as well as all of the other items mentioned in this blog.

I think a lot of good points are being made here and it's really nice to hear from all different perspectives.
But I would like to take this opportunity to bring the discussion back to the original question, which is, how important is diversity if your child is getting a sound education?

There is a thread that was going a while back about bathroom safety, perhaps we could move that part of this conversation there in an effort to keep this one on track.
community.greatschools.net/groups/11534/discussion/165525

Happy posting!

DOES it mean no more prom king and queen? Absolutely not.

Does it mean shared bathrooms and lockers?
Absolutely not.

Thank you for reading the bill. It is long, and it does prevent teachers from discriminating or humiliating gay students, but the rumors about bathrooms and teachers not being able to say mommy or daddy are simply false.

I am saddened that there are people who think gay students do not deserve respect, but it is not a surprise. I have felt and seen painful discrimination first hand, and can tell you it hurts like heck.

This bill simply changed the statute to include all children in existing non-discrimination laws along with religion and race. How can that be bad?

Debora,
Have you BEEN in a mens/boys bathroom? They DO have "areas without doors" that would be of concern.
And even in womens/girls bathroom stalls have fairly large gaps in the doors. I think most folks would frown on having to share bathrooms in their current configuration. There ARE some single occupancy bathrooms that are for both, but only for one at a time.
However, I looked at the VERY LONG bill and don't see where shared bathrooms would be a result.
I saw a lot of good in the bill, but wish it wasn't so long and convaluted. The link points to a lot of changes to the educational code, so I guess one has to read the ENTIRE code to get context. I wish this bill had been broken up into pieces to meke it easier to understand all the consequences.

DOES it mean no more prom king and queen? Does it mean shared bathrooms and lockers? It would be nice to hear the REAL consequences instead of extremes from both sides.

schoolsagenda, I must be missing the point. Do the bathrooms at your kids' school not have doors? Are you nervous about what they might see? Do you think that a transgender person would try to "convert" your child? If you have a child with two moms or two dads in a class with your child will that matter? If so, how?

I guess I am missing the point.

At my daughter's school there are a dozen or more two mom families. They actually contribute the most volunteer work hour for hour than almost every other family at the school.

Please explain

lamangie, I agree with you it is about parenting, not race. What we see is that a lot of children of color don't have consistent parenting. At our school the PTA funds about $250,000 per year (gasping is okay - I did it a lot when my daughter was in Kindergarten) and we are using a fair portion, more than in the past to close the gap, because there is a gap between white children and others. It is not about capacity to learn, but about expectation and the realization that many children may not have parental support at home.

I will say this - if more families of color move to the suburbs outside Oakland, we would consider a move as well, but so far it is not the case and 75% white is not what I want for my daughter.

I love your answer!!!! You have been one of the only ones who have stuck with the original question. Diversity is more important to us than to the children. Children will play with any child and have no hang up until the ADULTS but in their opinions about who to play with and who not to play with. Let these children make the decision and we support what they choose as long as it doesn't hurt them.

I feel the response was a little biased. I am black. I feel the reason I didn't do well the first semester of college was because the playing ground in High school was not even. I was not given the same opportunities as the suburban children, but it didn't stop me from trying. I now have a 10 year and she goes to school in the suburbs. Anyway she has cousins who don't attend the same school nor are they in the same area and she has the advantage over some of the older children. Her math curriculum and reading curriculum are far more advanced than the other children. I personally don't believe in Affirmative Action, but I do believe in equal opportunities for all. The set group of children that are late in one school I believe it has nothing to do with color, but with PARENTING!

For those who live in California I suggest you read the bill the person mentions below. It does not prevent teachers from saying mom or dad. It protects all students, not only gay kids....some who kill themselves due to bullying that teachers often allow.
I helped lobby to get this passed and yes, I am gay, I promise it has not harmed anyone.
info.sen.ca.gov/pub/07-08/bill/sen/sb_0751-0800/sb_777_bill_20071012_chaptered.html

I'm from Flint, Mi and this is a huge problem

To Lisadell I ask what area do you live in I assume you are in Jacksonville but Jax is huge what ward or section is this going on. I am considering a move and am learning about the area from forums like this. Thanks

We live in Oakland CA. Our neighborhood is diverse in race, religion, culture, language, family make-up and socio-economic status. Our kids play well together. When I had a child, this is what I had hoped for which is why we moved to an urban environment.

That said, we are having a really rough time at school, because there is a standard for school behavior which says school starts at 8:30 am. Nearly everyone is at school on time. The school district defines tardy as more than 1/2 hour late. My daughter has begun to notice that the children of color are the students who are late, and those with the most difficult time in school.

We have had the discussion of different values, coming from farther distances, etc., but ultimately, my daughter is having a difficult time accepting not following the rules. "Everyone knows the rules - we go over them at the beginning of every school year - everyone knows how long it takes to get from where they live to school - everyone needs to respect the rules" is my daughter's statement.

I can't say that I disagree with her.

I will say, it is one of the best parenting decisions I made to live in an urban environment, even with some of the distractions. We have a zoo, museum, space and science center - my child is white/hispanic and her best neighborhood friend is black. I see them playing, building forts, working out their problems, wearing each other's clothes, walking their dogs - and I think - It just doesn't get any better than this.

Diversity to me means division. I migrated here in the 70's and diversity in schools was virtually non existent. Everyone had to do the same work and follow the same rules. Diversity has made it so that certain groups of kids get special treatment which leads to ill feelings between students. People should celebrate their diverse backgrounds at home not at school. Schools should be there to educate. Stick to the basics and teach our kids reading, writing, math, science and history. The reason minorities have problems in school today is that the schools don't expect them to perform to the standard of non-minorities. They get to collge where the playing field is more even and they tend to fail because they are not used to the high standards.

"Newjerseymum", to answer you I will reiterate my original statement: Diversity as a natural situation is fine. Forced diversity or artificial diversity is just that - forced and artificial.

I think some people are confusing the absence of 'diversity' with prejudice and hatred and all things that no one likes. Again, to me the bottom line is that parents and home life should set the child on the path to either success and peace in life, or to a life of strife and failure. Just because I have a closer view of people does not guarantee that I will like them or their practices.

Love or liking and acceptance comes from the heart, and not from legislation or mandatory rules. The purpose of schooling, to me, is to teach the unbiased facts and practical skills to prepare us mainly for the 'job world' - i.e., how to support our needs, legally and with success. Moral behavior is the responsibility of the families. If a child doesn't get it at home, he will have a real hard time in all of life.

I like what "EmilysMa" says: School should be where people go to learn HOW to think, not WHAT to think.

"What Jesus did" came from His heart, and not from any of the rules or teachings of men. He chose His disciples, and only 12. Those who followed Him, did so from their hearts and not because they were forced.

PS:For many years I had a friend from Uganda whom I love dearly - a wonderfully unique and fun person to know. She loves America, and I loved her home stories.

Don't talk to me about 'diversity'! Our society is already diverse, the kids don't need it forced on them. If we live in a diverse school district, then my daughter will meet all sorts of children. If not, we have extra-curricular activities where she will make friends will all sorts of children who have similar interests.

I think schools, for the most part, need to butt out of our lives, and just teach the fundamentals instead of trying to STANDARDIZE every child's thinking. Political correctness would have us believe that everybody's ideas and ways of doing things are all okay and equally valuable, but it is not true. Some ways of doing things are useful, some are not. Some ideas are better than others. We have to have open minds, look for the best in everything, and praise excellence.

School should be where people go to learn HOW to think, not WHAT to think.

Frankly, I don't support minorities hanging onto their "heritage" or "culture". The whole idea that people from different backgrounds have to 'preserve' their ways of doing things is just another wedge driven between groups of people. Hey! Practice that stuff at home all you want! The 'american culture' is about bringing all of our talents and ideas together into a dynamic, powerful, strong country--not a country full of wimps who are afraid to express an opinion in case one person out of a crowd just might get their panties in a wad!

When people come to this country or grow up in this country, they step into a belief system--a culture--and they are either part of it or they choose to live alongside of it. The 'american culture' should not be a landscape of separate groups trying to live together. It is at its best when it incorporates everyone doing their best, and giving respect to one another. That's what we should be teaching our children.

Every person is different and wonderfully unique whether they "celebrate their diversity" or not.

My heart goes out to you. Prejudice of any kind is hard to deal with especially for children. I find the best way to handle these is to stand up for your children. Be informed, be very involved. If you can't do it yourself, find advocacy groups that will. The internet is a good resource for this.

However, as parents, lets not make excuses for our kids (not suggesting you are). If there are problems, how much responsibility does my kid bear and how can I adress this with him/her.

I find the system is less likely to "bully" families and kids they know will not accept it.

Uniforms definitely work for some families and kids; I personally prefer them, no issues of who is weaaring hip clothes.

I have personally experienced a great level of prejudice treatment and racisml. From both the students and the staff. My twin boys have been racially bullied for 2 1/2 years at this school. They used to go to authorities with these problems, until it would end up turned around and my boys would be the ones punished! There is even a teacher, whom over and over again would comment on my sons clothing and ridicule him in front of other students! We don't have alot of money, as I am a disabled, divorced mother of 3 minor boys. My kids didn't want me to address this to the school in fear it would make it worse. We have never been a racist family, infact my pastor is a black man. My kids had a number of friends that were of different ethnic backgrounds. After so long at this school, they have eventually became more and more racist. This has come about after a long period of mistreatment from staff and black students. My boys were called skater fags on a daily basis, on top of being told they had no business playing basketball because they're white boys!
Their grades have dropped from being honor students eleswhere, to failing with straight 'E's! at this school.
Finally one lunch hour, my son was being harrassed by 'the black' lunch table, and he stood up in anger and made the 'hitler' hand motion, Which I don't condone, and ofcourse he was hauled off to the office. Any way, I do believe he should have maybe a suspension of some sort, but they went to extremes and suspended him for 10 days, and then advised me that he was expelled for the remaining year and next year as well. And to top that Officer Gage had me take him to the Mundy Township Police Station to charge him and fingerprint, picture, he was charged a felony!!!
Nothing happened to the other students!!!!! I feel like little ol' me against the whole community. I removed my children from the school and enrolled them into Acadamy. I pleased to say they'll be in uniforms and finally rid of the ufair treatment! I also would like to mention at least 5 other students that are my sons' friends also failed the 8th grade and also will be attnding!!
Thank You, Ms. Lisa DeLashmit Dell
Reverse racism against whites is true.

Redfrog, You are clearly a thoughtful person. Love your responses.

GinnyLee, can you briefly state your position on diversity. I get the sense you are not for it. While I don't necessarily agree with you, I think it points to exactly what we are writing about here. Opinions posted are from diverse folks and we are not all in agreement but we are listening and accomodating our different views. Who knows, this African who went to an English boarding school with a childhood Norwegian best friend just might learn something from you - a female caucasian.

Anyone see Gangs of NewYork and anyone remember the recent Paris riots? I think that these extreme instances of clashes in cultures and religions can be avoided if our kids are taught about diversity of cultures, race, religions and family structures.
Even with religion and family structures, how is it acceptable for high school kids to set a classmate's shik turban on fire and the guilty kids not receive a lesson on respecting the others' religion? If they were taught respect for others' religions, perhaps they'd not have done that or even the desecration of synagogues and other sacred religious objects. Gay bashing, racial attacks etc all stem from fear and ignorance.
As for celebration of religious holidays, celebrate them all; it does wonders to a child's self confidence to know that his "festival of lights" (diwali) will be talked about. He comes forward in class to talk about it same as christmas or a muslim holiday. Would that truly hurt our kids?

I am a christian and often wonder, "what would Jesus do" Not encourage diversity? I don't think so. Bible tells us his disciples were quite varied. With tolerance and respect of our diversities, we can be a much better nation. Why not teach them young?

These online debates generally get steered in a number of directions. Differences of opinion ensue and only time will tell whether people want to explore them or dismiss them.

This string of conversation is taking a turn that is getting off subject, to me.
I'll just say that I have been educated at every level in America, and diversity was never 'taught', never 'celebrated', never an 'issue', and was never a 'problem'. I consider myself privileged to live in America, and have benefited greatly by all of our Holidays, celebrations, and school traditions. I hope that I will always see these same blessings passed on to all of the children who follow, and any newcomers will receive the same benefits.

I thought I'd come back after giving the word "tradition" some thought.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradition
www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tradition

The loss of tradition is something to mourn, isn't it? I can only imagine the sorrow that was felt by Native American children put in boarding schools and not allowed to speak their own language or sing their own songs. That's more than a holiday lost - it's a culture.

I am by no means trying to diminish the pain that some feel over their loss but merely putting it into perspective. Who's to say that some traditions are more important than others? So, I agree that it is painful to experience such a loss. I only hope you will understand that this is a loss experienced by others to a greater degree.

And the word privilege is a very good one. "It is a special advantage or immunity or benefit not enjoyed by all."

Rights, on the other hand, come with responsibility - to each other. And that involves acknowledging and hopefully, respecting our differences so that we may get to the place where we can start connecting based on what we have in common.

GinnyLee, you have some great points.

It's interesting to read the responses so far. For Americans, it begs the question of, "What does it mean to be American?" Consider the history of the nation, the multi-national, multi-racial people that built it, and how little that fact is acknowledged within most public school curriculum. Up until "celebrating diversity" came into play, the history of diverse peoples has been absent and makes anyone NOT of European descent invisible.

Melting pot? It takes a fire to melt, doesn't it? Assimilation and eradication of races and cultures is far from the benign blending that most people would like to believe. Trial by fire, maybe, is what we're about. This country is constantly ablaze with the issue of diversity. The historically silent majority is finally balancing out the power structure so that they have a voice.

Losing a holiday? Try walking into a classroom where students think your people are extinct and a distant part of history.

I don't know what the history books in other countries teach and what the education systems there are really like but it would be interesting to get that viewpoint.

Many interesting things said here.... Being politically correct is not sincere... it's kinda forced.... so that doesn't work... people are pretty smart... they can see sincerity a mile away....
if people don't like one another or feel superior to others then they can at the very LEAST have common courtesy... it doesn't hurt to be polite to another person.....
as for being forced to celebrate( engage ) in things Christmas, here is a little history on opposing hymns:
"But as early as 1906, the Committee on Elementary Schools in New York City urged that Christmas hymns be banned from the classroom, after a boycott by more than 20,000 Jewish students. In 1946, the Rabbinical Assembly of America declared that calling on Jewish children to sing Christmas carols was "an infringement on their rights as Americans." "Adam Cohen, Editorial Observer, New York Times, December 4, 2005

People have the right to participate or not participate in others religious affairs.
I have yet to see any of my Sikh, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu or Agnostic friends show anger at Christmas.
It's basically a Christian Nation, so go back to calling the "Winter Break" Christmas, that's what it is and rightfully so.
Bottom line, you can't force "Diversity" when there is no sincerity......

Diversity is very important. that is a skill they will need when entering into the real world when they get out on their own they will have to know how to deal with different aspects of their lives which is made up of diversity. It's a way of teaching all how to get along with one another even though your not of the same ethnic background or the same color ect. we have it at Pecan Springs and each child have their own learning expererince with being diverse. It is a part of education on a personal , social level of gaining knowledge of ones self and how welll they can handle not being in their own comfort zone.

"Buckaroo", again you've brought another good point. If all of those new and innovative 'holidays' are celebrated in school, it would be an annual vacation - all year long.

Also, I think that acceptance and being taught not to 'hate' for any reason belongs to the parents (or parent).

"Diversity" seems to mean the opposite of "Melting Pot", which America is proud of being. This means, "to absorb (groups of different cultures) into the main cultural body." Not that each and every difference should stand out and demand it's own choices.

The main question asked was if diversity mattered as long as education is sound. There is a backbone answer for this. The backbone- before the importance of diversity is even discussed- is that education cannot be sound in any way without diversity. It must be diverse in core academics- reading, writing, history, math, science, etc.. It must be diverse in honoring other races and nationalities. It must be diverse in honoring the differences of gender. It must be diverse in honoring students' different levels of income in the home. It must be diverse in honoring that students come from different experiences. And it must be diverse in honoring the individual student's personality, learning capabilities, and learning styles. If a school's education does not honor at least these areas of diversity, then it has a poor structure/backbone for education, and does not allow for students' thinking to be broadened because it does not give it a strong base from which to work. The adults have to be educated in these areas, too, in order for the kids to grow and be well-rounded individuals. No school is perfect, but trying will make a very large difference in a child's life. Park Avenue has a good start (Des Moines, Iowa), and Perkins (Des Moines) is also trying hard, as well as Callanan Middle (Des Moines). Also, Sugar Mill (Sugar Land, Texas) has a start, and Sugar Land Middle School gives it a very fervent attempt. But is any school perfect in these areas? I haven't seen any yet, with my 4 children. Our country's history left schools a LOT to have to work on, but with willing teachers, parents and administrators, I think we can get close!

RobinCallas,
I guess teacher's don't get those days off then? :)

By the way, our country's PC dictionary lists:

Spring Break = Easter Holiday
Winter Break = Christmas Holiday

And remember when President's day was actually Lincoln's Birthday and Washington's birthday? What happened there?

Diversity is more than cultural differences- it's also about the family dynamics- single parents, gay parents, grandparents raising our children. We as a community have a responsibility to our community to educate ourselves on what a "Family" consists of. This is the time to teach ourselves and our children that not everyone celebrates Father's Day because not everyone has a father. The hatred in the world comes from not tolerating or accepting those of us who are different from what you believe to be true or right. Let's read about and ASK about diversity so we can learn and not be afraid. We all know people raising children in non-traditional families and whether or not you approve (who are you to judge?) consider how the child feels coming from that family. Our traditional marriage divorce rate stays at a steady 50% so we need to be sensitive to children being raised by single parents or grandparents, aunts and uncles willing to help with the burden. read books to your children about diversity and people being "different" from us so they learn the world is made up of many formulas and that's what works. Todd Parr has a wonderfully simple book called "It's Okay to be Different".

Concerning different people have different holidays. If we start addressing this issue when children are young maybe they will teach us how to deal with it. If they see others as equals, maybe we grown ups and GROW Up and accept all of our difference. Maybe it's time to adapt programs that allow a certain number of "open holidays" to be used for each different american (or all people who live in NV and qualify for the school system) should find a "middle ground". Keep the "truly all american holidays" like Thanksgiving, Winter Break, New Years/New Years Day, President's Day, Days of for Teachers Educational or Annual Meetings, Spring Break, Memorial Day, 4th of July for year-round, and Labor Day. Other specific holidays for various american in observation of religions days for all-and if Channaka, Xmas, or do not fall into days taking standardly - then each child should have equal number of days off for "personal days-like any american receives at work" or "use personal as religious or ethnic celebrations" and be an equal number of days per child.

Open minds, open hearts, and compromise. That what how "democratic nation (meaning not a government controlled society - but specifically a "democrat's society"). Could I be any more specific - trying to help us ALL GET ALONG and stop arguing and setting bad examples for our children. Open hearts-open minds = reasonable compromise.

Somewhere around 15 or 20 years we stopped celebrating equality and instead started "celebrating diversity". Whatever happened to Martin Luther King's call to judge a man by the quality of his character rather than the color of his skin?

"Buckaroo", I love your horse picture and I like your perception -"To choose a school based on it's ethnicity, either way, would be contrary to this belief." And, "Thus, they do not "celebrate diversity" (the phrase that I just hate), they actually celebrate what makes them the same."
You have said in a sentence or two, exactly what I meant in my rather lengthy answer.

Diversity is a good thing. All students should learn the skin, family's economic situation, or if child speaks another language that all are created equal. I like Diversity as diversity leads to unity of all students!

Robin

Diversity as a natural situation is fine. Forced diversity or artificial diversity is just that - forced and artificial. Historically, in America the people of a particular country or race have preferred to have their own 'community'. Others pass through, eat, visit, and do business with them, and this is natural. I think diversity in the schools is forced, confusing, and creates more problems - like the big controversy (now) over the celebration of traditional American holidays. We used to love to have our programs at school when I was growing up, and now it's an argument at best. Learning about other countries was part of our curriculum, and we learned of many peoples with no problem. If the new and 'diverse' people want to do something different, they should. But don't intrude and change our basic joys and former privileges, just because you don't like them or are 'offended'.

The short answer: Education is sound when it prepares our children for the world they will be living in as adults.

Before answering your question, I went ahead and read all the other responses so that my answer would not repeat what others have already said. Great responses, by the way!

I have been dealing with an unpleasant situation that has caused me to revisit/rethink/reframe the diversity question in my own mind. Even googling the word, I found a variety of definitions for "diversity". In part, it's knowledge of differences -- whatever they may be. Then you get into what those differences might be - race, culture, ethnicity, lifestyle, class, etc. There's not enough time to really get into the meat of this topic so don't consider this my last response. :)

Excerpt from Mary Pipher's "Reviving Ophelia": Racial issues are difficult for Americans to discuss. We have so few examples of good discussions about ethnic differences that even to acknowledge them makes most of us feel guilty. So differences tend to be ignored and feelings about them become shameful, individual secrets."

Socialization is one factor that can be a barrier to learning. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialization
"To make fit for living in society" is something that parents, teachers, and the community have to collaborate on. Some people say kids should learn "this" at home and "that" at school. Learning happens inside and outside the classroom/home. What the focus of that learning should be is always evolving, I think.

Let me do some more thinking on this.

Diversity of race, creed and socio economic is extremely important.

We want our children to get the best education and to prepare them for the world they will someday go out into. More and more, that world is becoming more diverse; corporations are hiring more diverse employees and even asking that those they do business with diversify. With multinationals representing the largest % of employers, clearly, employees will be from all over the world and must all be able to do business cross-borders. I'd want my daughters' education to prepare them for this so they can suceed and thrive in this environment .

Plus, how sad would it be if we were not taught from a diverse curriculum. How would I an African from Africa have learnt about Shakespeare, Van Gough, Chinua Achebe, Andy Warhol, Yeats........... It would have been such a limited education. I'd never have been able to survive law school at the London School of Economics or become a diversity ambassador for a Fortune 10 company in the USA or as an Episcopalian, marr y a catholic and contribute to that catholic parish or even continue to have old dear friends of the Muslim faith. Yes, diversity is really important not just 'cos of affirmative action but also it makes us more tolerant and more "educated" useful members of society. I am able to empathize with the plight of those not so well off and recognize that there is much work to be done in my new home country -USA for the not so fortunate. I am also able to teach my suburban children that a world exists outside of suburbia where kids are dying and it is our collective responsibility to learn about them and how we can help.

Diversity DOES MATTER

Education is in crisis because of political correctness, the fair of lawsuits, the ACLU. But we really have to fear are the products of a poor educational system.. children who'll reach adulthood without the tools to survive. During this time educators have to stand up and say to hell with political correctness. If I want to mention Christmas, it's okay. Likewise, for other holidays and other faiths.

But holidays are the tip of the iceberg. Issues regarding inclusion practices, coopertive learning, and other schemes need to be examined in logitudinal studies or better yet from people who worked in the trenches

I love the hypocrisy that inevitably comes when schools try to be so politically correct, especially when it comes to diversity. Let's take that lightening rod of controversy --- Christmas. Oh excuse me "winter holiday." In our school, the kids spent a day going from classroom to classroom learning about every other winter holiday around the world except Christmas, even though probably 75% of our student families recognize Christmas. I don't mind my kid learning about other cultures, but I do mind when you can't even mention the word Christmas without somebody getting offended. Our school has canceled the "holiday" show two years running where the kindegarteners sang happy non-Christian holiday songs (Frosty the Snowman, etc.) Why? Because some non-Christian family complained. When we destroy lovely traditions in the name of diversity, that's when I have a problem.

Are racist comments generalizations if that is the child's experience. For example, if every white family in your child's class does not show up for Open House and your child asks about it, would that be considered racist by most accounts?

If your school does not have a single person of color meeting grade level in standardized tests, but the white children average over 90%, is that racist?

Where does classism come in to play? Does "poor" matter if it means kids don't have books in their home?

These are questions our family struggles with frequently.

I would say diversity is important. However, I feel it should not be just in the school setting. In order for our children not to be considered racist they should be exposed to different cultures so they are able to adapt to their surroundings. Racism is taught not birthed so when our children make racist comments toward others they are only saying back what they heard.

Wow - this is such a difficult issue. My second grade daughter is lucky enough to go to an excellent school in Oakland CA. It should be noted that my daughter spots trends easily and is gifted (you'll see in a minute why this matters). The local (live in the hills) children come from generally white, college educated, middle-income to high middle-income homes where at least one parent can stay home with their children and volunteer at the school.

About 25% of our children come from the poor areas of Oakland and were given a space at our school because their school was underperforming - SIGNIFICANTLY underperforming. The majority of these children are of color, working class income or on financial assistance and none of whom have a college educated parent. Many ride the bus to school.

Here is where the problems of diversity come in - My daughter has noticed, and we talk about at home, how the children who are not from the neighborhood have trouble reading, all of them. We also talk about how the children who are late in the morning are the children who are not from the neighborhood. The children whose parents never come to school functions, help with gardening, cleaning the school, PTA, walk-a-thon, read-a-thon, etc. are the parents and families of the non-neighborhood kids.

We talk about how working class families often have to work more than one job - and how difficult it must be for them. I have read parts of the book "Unequal Childhoods, Class, Race and Family Life" to her. But diversity is a hot topic. Working through the resentment of having to slow down the whole class because some of the children are not working up to par is a difficult concept - and in our older grades more local parents opt to send their children to private school, which creates more slots for children who are not able to read at the second grade level in fourth and fifth grades, and it gets even worse.

All of that said, my daughter has a opportunity to travel through the tunnel to a school that is made up of over 90% white children and we won't do it - there's too much at stake in ridding your life of diversity for personal gain.

This has been a great discussion. Since it started, I've also sat in and observed at school. A lot of the hard feelings I've been having regarding my daughter's middle school experience has softened up. Sometimes it's hard to tell how big the drama is at school when you get that after-school venting from your kids. Sometimes you just have to see it for yourself. Let's face it, middle school is a difficult time, academically and socially. I feel like I'm sitting in the backseat of Mr. Toad's wildride, waiting for my daughter's steering to get steady!

Anyhow, everyone here has been very helpful, thanks.

That's really well-put buckaroo. The kids do celebrate what makes them the same.

(Oh but I do have to mention how embarassed my poor girl was in class when she confused hispanic countries, got flustered and said, "whatever" prompting the hispanic kids to call her racist. She is as far from it as you can get, so I guess they wanted her to be clear on differences.)

bmac184,
You say diversity is important, but you also say kids need to see people, not race. To choose a school based on it's ethnicity, either way, would be contrary to this belief.

You say your kids don't see differences in their friends ethnicity. Thus, they do not "celebrate diversity" (the phrase that I just hate), they actually celebrate what makes them the same.

My daughter has friends of all ethnicity. She doesn't see them as different culturally. She feels they are in the same culture.

"Diversity Training"? Although I would prefer to send my elementary kids to a diverse school, I don't know that they need diversity training. I would think that being around a diverse group would be educational as it is.

Is diversity training in school compensating for and trying to balance inequities in society or just turning inequities around? My daughter is a minority white at middle school. Her culture isn't celebrated at school like others are, but it's obviously pervasively celebrated in American society in general. Unfortunately, she's occasionally mocked as "whitey."

She's been well acquainted with many cultural traditions since first grade, and her elementary school's International Potluck--a great idea by the way, since many of the most beloved cultural traditions involve family meals. There were at least 17 different nationalities represented. But when we talk about diversity, do we mean it in the multi-national sense, or are talking about european, hispanic and african americans accepting, appreciating and tolerating each other?

Most of the kids get a long great, but it's sad some of the emotional problems that surface in middle school. Some racism appears, but other things do, too. I think the racism is coming from the kids who are being bussed in from the inner city. My little suburban daughter finds the toughness (she would say rudeness) hurtful and unnecessary, but I told her that some kids live in tough neighborhoods and if they don't act tough, life will be hard for them there. This makes sense to her, so she tries not to take the occasional remarks personally.

So I would say I agree with those that say to avoid putting spotlights on differences in any institutional way. Expect the same good manners from everyone. The kids teach each other just being together.

I agree completely. Our children go to a private school and this year, after being in operation for over 25 years, has a diversity council. For the first time there are race issues. It seems as if the creation of this council has caused division instead of unity.

My wife and I think diversity is very important. The more diverse a school is, the less likely a minority group will be singled out.

Don't get me wrong, basics such as quality educators and administration are just as important. But to get a truly well-rounded education, our children should learn the basics and also benefit from their friend's stories about other cultures.

My kids attend Madison School in Skokie, IL (www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/il/other/3743#students). We love it that our children have friends of many different cultures (see diversity numbers) and don't see any difference between their friends ethnicity. They just enjoy the experience.

If we truly want to try to decrease racial divides (they will never be completely eliminated), our kids need to see people instead of race.

Diversity is good for any setting. this is how we as humans can appreciate eachother without being critical of others personal traits which are unique in every living species.

I agree with racheljessica.
I think the "celebration of diversity" drives people apart. I think we should celebrate similarities to bring people together.

Diversity itself is not the critical factor that can impact children but the schools respect for, recognition of and even celebration of the differences that allow a rich experience across individuals. When schools choose to ignore diversity, they are telling those children who come from diverse backgrounds that they are not as valued. It is important for the student, the teacher and the parents because this is the first platform children will have for handling diverse individuals.

I think that schools sometimes fail to see this issue from a child's eyes. I think diversity can have a good impact when the positive is emphasized but have the polar opposite effect when it's not handled well. If a child's first experiences with another race is negative, that can have a bad effect. For example. the first time I heard a prejudiced statement was when I was talking to the father of a childhood friend of mine. It turns out he grew up in a very diverse neighborhood where some boys of a different race used to throw rocks at him. Unfortunately, like many people, he extrapolated that experience to exemplify most people of this race. He did not have a positive experience to counter the negative, so he moved away to a homogenous neighborhood when he grew older to "escape." On the other hand, my daughter for example only had positive experiences with kids of other races. However, in first and second grade, the teachers decided to try to teach the kids about slavery etc. I remember my daughter was confused by this because I don't think she honestly thought about the difference in skin color between herself and her friends until this lesson. Then out of the blue one day she said, "Mommy, I'm glad I'm not black." That was a sad day. I wish the teachers had not tried so hard to teach the kids about "diversity." She could have learned about the conflicts when she was older.

Diversity is important, but the primary focus is the basics. Too much diversity ends up having us focus on how different we are as opposed to how much we have in common. As far as I am concerned the only race is the human race/

Diversity is important in all aspects of education...the staff, the administration and the student's peers. It's very important that everyone has someone they can identify with, and be in an atmosphere where diversity is comfortable and considered the norm...not the exception.

Sorry I got off the question...I have said this many, many times before...it's not the school you send your child to, its the child...if they want to learn they will, if they want to find trouble, they will!!!!

I'm a 50-year-old living in Los Angeles, so I've seen diversity really develop during my lifetime. My 13 year old daughter doesn't know a world without it, and accepts the cultural differences between herself and her friends, differences that co-exist with American similiarities, without question. I don't believe this would be so natural to her if she were being brought up through private school.

The hostility she gets (that I mentioned in my earlier post) is from a small percentage of the kids that are bussed in from their own homogenous neighborhoods and seem to prefer that to diversity.

Anyway, to answer the question: Diversity is a beautiful thing. It's our world and it's the way it should be. But it is complicated. Every generation it's getting better and better. Although Hispanic culture seems celebrated above others in my public school system and city, but that could be just our school. This could be just an impression I have because of the ever-increasing Hispanic population.

My kids go to a very diverse school, and they are the minority, they have never had a problem at the school or anywhere for that matter. Our neighborhood is diverse as well and I'm very happy that it is. My children have learned from kindergarden, that everyone no matter what color or religion, are the same. My husband and I have made sure of this!!!!

YES IT IS! Unfortunately, many are not able to take advantage of it depending on where you live; neighborhood cultural mix that defines available school choice. I believe diversity teaches tolerance, something that so many adults today are lacking because of their experiences.

anonymous -

Yes, there are angry people out there. Sometimes it's difficult and unpleasant. But the alternative is to retreat to our own corners (as if they could be defined). Then all of us can remain anonymous and ignorant of each other.

If the school administration is not addressing problems, they should be called out for it.

Diane

Role play the bully, teach your child appropriate responses to bullying tactics. Humor is a vital tool. Your child develops a sense of humor can turn the bully around and or at least neutralize the anger your child.

Anger and hostility are unfortunately part of the course in our education system. Children need to learn strategies, and your a concerned parent so that's a big plus. There are good books on the subject, but I suggest you tailor a program that fits with your child and you. I have a similar situation to you. We role play alot, and it wouldn't hurt to learn self defense for ones confidence. Humor is a great equlizer, but learning to be assertive, teaching I messages that focus on the actions rather than the character of the bully are areas I suggest you start at.

By the way....
I am a teacher (you sort of guessed), counselor as well, and run the New York State Schools Against Violence in Education for my public school. Have a book outa perfect book for parent and child to curl up to, email me if interested, or if the advice seemed helpful. Take care dpapell

My child is a racial minority at her middle school. Also small for her age, she experiences some racial bullying. Although the teachers write it up when they encounter it, the administration does nothing. Most of the kids at the school are just kids, but some are angry and racist. Our ideals about diversity are being challenged. Racism (or you could call it ethnic disdain) is more common, we're finding, among the economically disenfranchised, who need someone to blame. These kids--I can't believe some of the things they say. Do they learn that at home? Diversity is celebrated at school, but the reality of tolerance is only given lip-service with vague "Character Counts" posters around the campus, but no real investigation into what that means.

So, I see progress: my daughter has friends of every race (and did in elementary school as well.) But she feels stress and intimidation nearly every day at school. Not in every class, but enough that it seems cruel. What should I do?

political agendas should be excluded from class, basics and thinking skills instead

I grew up in a time and place where there was practically no diversity. Many school district were still segregated, and many communities were segregated also, officially or not. Diversity mostly consisted of Catholic vs. Protestant.

My white kids have been going to a large school that's 65% black, and 35% Hispanic with a smattering of various other ethnicities thrown in. The economic diversity is also much wider than where I grew up. The politics even among ethnic groups are much more complicated than I would ever have imagined.

I believe my kids' experience to be much superior to mine. I had an excellent education, but my knowledge of people different from me was entirely imaginary. My opinions on social problems was embarrassingly simplistic - both in stereotypes and idealistic assumptions.

It's one thing to "celebrate" diversity, but it's still pie in the sky if all you're doing is trying ethnic cuisine and reading some idealistic stories. It's another thing to live with the effects of different cultural attitudes and historical realities. It's a learning experience for the whole family. You truly learn to judge each person by their individual character even as you construct generalities.

And it's not just white people learning about minorities, it's everyone learning about everyone. Of course some people choose to not learn. It can be surprising who makes what choice. And that's a useful lesson as well.

How can one truly celebrate diversity in a non-diverse environment? We all have ingrained biases that are only tempered with reality, not theory. Harvard University has a real-time survey that tests ones' tolerance to diversity. Living in NYC, I grew up in a very diverse environment and thought I was fairly well balanced. I was amazed at my own results. Children recognize differences early on in live and require reinforcement to diffuse the stereotypes that exist and that reinforcement includes visual observation of others and how adults interact and treat others that are different.