Teaching Art in the Multicultural Classroom: Six Position Statements

1 This article is the first of three in a collaborative project by the authors. The second article will deal with curriculum guidelines for the multicultural art classroom and the third will review existing multicultural art approaches.

Abstract

The demands of teaching art in the multicultural classroom are considerable and complex. In addition to the more general concerns that confront all teachers in any multicultural educational setting, there is a further set of concerns that arises from the very nature of art making and art learning as culturally and socially based enterprises. We seek to assist art educators to recognize and respect, not only the sociocultural diversity that may be present in their classrooms, but also to design and implement culturally responsive art curricula. We do this by proposing six position statements which are supported by sociological and anthropological literature, for consideration by art educators. The Cultural Pluralist views of Boas (1974), Bunzel (1929), and Benedict (1934), which are in opposition to the Straight Line Melting Pot Theory, are espoused in these positions.