EDUCATION 101

Philosophy of Education and Legal

Foundation

Issues on Race, Ethnicity

And Social Class

ReporterCherryl R. Aranda

Teacher IBulacnin National High

SchoolLipa City

Raceclassification system used to categorize

humans into large and distinct population or groups by anatomical, cultural, ethnic,

genetic, geographical, historical, linguistic, religious, and/or social affiliation.

Ethnicity a socially-defined category of people who identify

with each other based on common ancestral, social, cultural, or national experience. Membership of an ethnic group tends to be defined by a shared cultural heritage, ancestry, myth of origins, history, homeland,

language (dialect), or even ideology, and manifests itself through symbolic systems such as religion, mythology and

ritual, cuisine, dressing style, physical appearance, etc.

‘Race’ and ethnicity continue to be major factors influencing children’s and adults’ experiences of education at all levels and in a variety of respects. These include academic achievement, professional employment, social interactions, parental involvement, curriculum development, assessment issues and so on.

Social Class a class society, is a set of concepts in the

social sciences and political theory centered on models of social stratification in which

people are grouped into a set of hierarchical social categories, the most common being the

upper, middle, and lower classes.

The ‘Race’, Ethnicity and Education Special Interest Group is concerned with these and other related issues. The terms ‘race’ and ‘ethnicity’ are acknowledged as problematic but are also commonly used and have recognition as relating to issues of color and cultural racism with which the group will be concerned.

Cultural Diversity: The Changing Face of a Nation

Although the population of culturally and linguistically diverse students continues to grow, the diversity of the teaching workforce has failed to keep pace. It is projected that the teaching profession will become increasingly homogeneous over the next few years.

In the latter part of the twentieth century, interest in cultural pluralism and multicultural education was sparked. It is now characterized metaphorically as a floral bouquet or patchwork quilt; cultural and ethnic differences are valued and respected.

Multicultural Education, Bilingual Education, and Student Diversity

Multicultural education addresses issues of race, language, social class, and culture as well as disability and gender.

Bilingual special education services embrace the use of the pupil’s primary language and culture coupled with an individually tailored program of special instruction.

Issues in Assessing Students From Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Groups

Some of the barriers to achieving meaningful and valid assessments of students from culturally and linguistically diverse back-grounds are the lack of appropriate measurement tools and bias in the assessment process.

Another attempt at meaningful assessment of students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds is a movement toward authentic, performance-based assessment techniques such as portfolio assessment.