Multicultural Education: Intercultural Development
1. Presentation By:
Donnelle Bivens, Kirsten Bergin, Kellie Childers,
Kelly Laccinole, Jamie Pursley, and Ashton Walker
ELED 4292 Multicultural Education: Instructing Urban Learners
UNC Charlotte
2. Developmental Models of
Ethnic & Racial Identity
Ethnic Identity:
Social meaning of belonging to a particular ethnic group
Racial Identity:
Race is socially defined on a basis of physical criteria.
Ethnic Group is socially defined on a basis of cultural
criteria.
3. 5-Stage Model of Racial Consciousness
(Cross, 1991 & Spring, 2004)
Pre-Encounter:Negative stereotypes
become part of a person’s identity. (Self-
Fulfilling Prophecy)
Encounter: Questioning the negative
stereotypes from the previous stage.
Racial Profiling: constructing a set of behaviors
based on race, and using that to determine guilt.
4. 5-Stage Model of Racial Consciousness
(Cross, 1991 & Spring, 2004)
Immersion-Emersion:discard ethnic self-hatred, and
take on new identity
Immersion:complete immersion in a person’s ethnic
culture
Causes people to see importance of
contributions to greater society. (Ex. Influence
of Italian art on Western art)
Internalization:people become “fully multicultural” and
adopt view of culture that is accepting and critical.
*There is also another model by Banks (1988) that focuses on more of a global
society.
5. Intercultural Competence
Interculturally competent people have three things in
common:
They are able to manage the psychological stress that
accompanies most intercultural Interactions
They are able to communicate effectively across
cultures-verbally and nonverbally
They are able to develop and maintain new and
essential interpersonal relationships
6. Intercultural Competence
Interculturally competent individuals are able to:
• solve problems and take appropriate risks
• shift their frame of reference as required
• recognize and respond appropriately to cultural
differences
• listen empathically
• perceive others truthfully
• maintain nonjudgmental approach to communication
• gather appropriate information about another culture
7. Bennett’s Developmental Model of
Intercultural Sensitivity
Model provides a framework for understanding individual
development and awareness along a continuum from highly
ethnocentric to highly ethnorelative
8. Ethnocentric Stages of the DMIS
Denial
inability to see cultural differences
reflective of individuals who isolate or separate
themselves in homogenous groups
“stupid questions syndrome” have ideas about
stereotypic knowledge
Children are socialized to believe that their view is
the view of the world, instead of learning that their
view is only one view of the world
9. Ethnocentric Stages of the
DMIS
Defense
Recognition of cultural difference coupled with negative
evaluations of those whose culture is different from
one’s own
When forced into contact with others, individuals
become defensive
Prefer to separate themselves from others because they
don’t have categories for dealing with difference
10. Ethnocentric Stages of the
DMIS
Minimization
Discovery of commonality
Begin to recognize and accept superficial
cultural differences (eating customs) but
continue to believe that all humans are
essentially the same
Believe that physical traits do not matter as
long as they treat everyone the same
Believe all people have the same needs
because they ignore influence of culture
11. Ethnorelative Stages of
DMIS
Acceptance
Ability to recognize and appreciate cultural differences in
terms of values and behaviors
Categories of difference are consciously expanded and
elaborated, with an understanding that others are “not
good or bad, just different”
Begin to seek out cultural difference
May respect and value cultural differences but not
necessarily agree with all they see
12. Ethnorelative Stages of
DMIS
Adaptation
More flexible and competent in their ability to
communicate across cultures
Driven by a need for action and cognitive empathy
2 forms of adaption exist
Cultural
Behavioral
Conscious intention with flexible and permeable category
boundaries
13. Ethnorelative Stages of
DMIS
Integration
Internalization of bicultural or multicultural frames of
reference
Can identify and move freely within more than one
cultural group
Able to facilitate constructive cultural contact between
cultures and tend to become cultural mediators
Rare and difficult level to achieve
14.
15. Identifying
Ethnic Identity Racial Identity
You identify yourself as Physical
belonging to a social characteristics identify
group with whom you you as belonging to a
have cultural specific group, such
commonalities as:
Customs Skin color
Shared language Facial features
16. Growing Ourselves
People can grow from being ethnocentric
to becoming ethnorelative and open
minded.
Through these steps and recognizing
one’s state of mind, we can become the
culture that we as teachers wish to foster:
an understanding and welcoming
community in which cultural differences
are seen merely as spectrums of the
same rainbow.
17. Summary
“Intercultural development is how they develop
their ability to understand and interact more
effectively with people different from themselves.
The developmental model of intercultural
sensitivity (DMIS) was introduced as one means
to understand how people can grow from being
ethnocentric to becoming more ethnorelative in
their orientation.”
Most students and teachers will go through the
DMIS model and it is important that one is given
the support to understand what to do in certain
situations.
18. References:
Cushner, K., McClelland, A., & Safford, P.
(2012). Human diversity in education: An
intercultural approach. (Seventh ed.). New
York: McGraw Hill.