Human Relations Approach

Human Relations Approach

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Human Relations Approach

Ways to best address cultural diversity in the diverse, democratic society especially in American schools has been a subject of debate for quite a while. Multicultural education approach advocates for equal opportunity and human diversity. According to Pai and Adler (1997), advocates for pluralism across differences in race, ethnicity or culture have a perception that a multicultural education approach is best suited for a democratic society “participatory democracy is fundamentally pluralistic…it entails the acceptance of the intrinsic worth of all human beings and their unique individuality” (p.104).

For a diverse society to be democratic, rights of each citizen must be respected no matter their diversity. This is achieved when citizens embrace diversity. Banks (2006) noted that

Diversity… provides schools… with an opportunity to educate students in an environment that that reflects the reality of the nation … and to teach students from diverse groups how to go along … and take actions in public interest. (p. 144).

This approach aims to achieve overall goal of making a diverse society to thrive and changing completely the academic environment as a whole rather than dwelling on the curriculum only.

The following instructional strategies are flexible and can be used to assist teachers strive for excellence and guarantee equal opportunities for students. The first one is direct instruction variation where the teacher presents, then students share and reflect. The second strategy is active learning instructional strategy; it engages students by matching instruction to student’s point of interest, development and understanding level. Also, students find active learning more motivating than passive learning. Active learning helps students learn to work with students of different cultures.

The last strategy is case studies where students: are actively involved in learning; practice problem solving; relate knowledge to real life situations. Students are more likely to collect data of greater depth than can be obtained by other experimental or research designs.

Reference

Pai, Y & Adler, S. (1997). Cultural foundations of education (2nd Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.