Advantages of a Multicultural Education System

Multicultural education is an emerging discipline whose main aim is to ensure equality in education among the people from different backgrounds, for example race, culture, and social class. The main aim of this new discipline is to equip these people with the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes that will enable them to effectively function in a diverse society creating a community whose purpose will be for the common good of all its members. Multicultural education draws upon knowledge from more established disciplines such as ethnic studies and women studies and tends to challenge or reinterpret this knowledge. This knowledge is applied to the basic curriculum of multicultural education in respect to the values of diversity which is propagated by this discipline. Multicultural education means different things to different people and this has led to its complexity and since it has so many definitions teachers or instructors implement it in a variety of ways, based on their own understanding of this type of education. There are many reasons why teachers introduce multicultural education in their classrooms and these reasons are implemented to address the following issues: the development of ethnic and cultural literacy; the personal development of individual students especially those from underrepresented communities; the clarification of attitudes and values among students; and finally, the development of a multicultural social competence. It has been proven that education in a multicultural setting enhances teacher effectiveness and student achievement and this is evidence for the continuation and expansion of this field of education. In a country with such diverse backgrounds as the United States, it is very important for students to be taught to appreciate each other’s backgrounds and the best way to do this is to incorporate the literature from all these backgrounds into the education system.

The main reason for the use of multicultural literature in class is to get the students to appreciate each other’s culture in order to have a positive understanding and respect for each other, no matter their background. This encourages the positive development of common relationships, honesty and interest in the others’ culture. Multicultural books should also be used to engender racial pride in students and not to only create an appreciation of the culture of others. Literature affects how students look upon themselves and if some of these students are from a minority background for example, and the literature taught in class does not have any minority character as a hero, then this would lead to a low opinion of their own people, hence a low esteem of themselves.

There are many multicultural books that have come into the market and some of these are not the best type of literature to teach to a multicultural class. Teachers should therefore be very careful about the quality of multicultural literature that they introduce to their classes. Given the rising cost of books, teachers might be tempted to only get those books that are cheaper, not considering their quality, as long as it is a multicultural book. However, teachers should always do their best to ensure that their students get only the best quality of material for their classes, no matter their cost. Teachers should select books which do not display racism by modern standards and should avoid those classics which openly display racism as well as cultural hatred. They should not only select those books that portray minorities in a positive light, but they should also look at the language quality of each of the books they get because language is an essential part of how students receive the message that the book is attempting to convey. Most teachers have very little understanding of the kind of multicultural literature they should introduce in their classes and because of this, it would be best for them to carefully do their research before making any attempt to make a selection. The literature they choose should accurately and respectively show the images of the cultures (especially minority cultures) that they are meant to represent.

In books that have illustrations, these illustrations have to be examined by the teacher to make sure that they accurately represent the people from different races, whether they are white, black, Asian, or Indian, and these, should not be drawn as caricatures. It is best to select books which show the diversity that can be found within a specific race, while those books which only display the stereotypical characteristics of a certain race should be discarded. This will help to ensure that students learn to appreciate the diversity within each race and will prevent them from the vice of stereotyping, something which is never an accurate representation. Once a teacher has established that the illustrations are above reproach in terms of racial stereotyping, then the next step would be to assess the text within such a book. The text should also be able to display the fact that not everybody in a certain community live in poverty, or that they do not have their own thoughts. It should show the diversity and independence that can be found in every community without any of the racial prejudices which some texts tend to display. The text should also be checked to see whether the cultures of minority groups are treated with respect or whether they are considered to be inferior to that of the dominant white culture. On the other hand, the books should show an accurate description of minority cultures and these cultures should therefore not be overly romanticized to make them more appealing.

In conclusion, it can be said that the literature, the themes displayed within them, and the personal achievements of the characters within this literature are very important in enhancing the multicultural material in the classroom. They help in the development in racial pride especially among minority students as well as the appreciation of the culture of others. These materials not only provide an opportunity for the interaction of different cultures on an equal basis, but they also create opportunities for the students to learn about the diversity of their nation.

On Dependence on Communication Technology

Communication technology is one of the most important things in the world today, with most people using it in one form or the other. It enables use to transmit important information quickly and efficiently than was done previously. This technology had developed very quickly over the last few decades with new communication technologies and devices coming into the market everyday. Despite the numerous advantages that communication technology has to offer us, there have developed several related problems and the most significant of these is overdependence on this technology. In this paper, we shall discuss some of the aspects of dependence on communication technology and how they affect companies.

Many companies, especially the large ones, have become completely dependent on communication technology to do their day to day business. This technology has enabled them to be able to reach both their regular customers as well as potential customers. Furthermore, communication technology has enabled these companies to cheaply relay their information to a larger audience using all means of communication available to people across their market including social networks, mobile phones, and the internet, among others. The communication technologies being developed today are becoming more and cheaper as new means of communication and devices are being created. Companies are increasingly becoming dependent on communication technology because this technology is becoming more affordable and available to people who make up the potential market, something which was not possible only a few years ago, when technology was more expensive. This has the potential of encouraging these companies not to go out to the potential market to study it for more tangible information about their customers’ needs and may in the process lead to their production of products which are not viable in the market.

Another issue which can come up due to the dependence on communication technology is its vulnerability to sabotage for malicious purposes. The current communication technology is very open for attacks from hackers, rival companies, among others, whose aim is to either use the communication network to gain information on the company’s customers or to sabotage the operations of the company. It is therefore advisable for companies to not only choose communication technology which is cheaper but to also consider its security. Such companies should do their best to ensure that all their communication systems are secure and that regular checks are made to detect whether there have been any breaches in such systems. The modern communication systems are highly dependent on electrical power and any interruption of power supply would mean that no communication can be made. Furthermore, the dependence on communication technology should be minimized and only be used sparingly to ensure the security of their communication systems. More traditional ways of communicating with potential customers should be put in place so that these companies can better get to know exactly what their customers want as well as keep themselves secure from any breakdown of their communication network.

In conclusion, we have seen how cheap communication technology has not only helped companies to market their products widely, but has also led to the reduction of the quality of their products due to their not being able to directly make an assessment of their customers’ needs. Moreover, we have seen how communication technology can be vulnerable to attacks and sabotage from people with malicious intentions and why it is best to continue to use the more traditional methods of communication. It is therefore best for companies to carefully select their communication technologies to ensure efficiency.

The War in Syria: American Blindness to its Realities

The war in Syria has become one of the most controversial issues in the modern world, and mainly because of its beginnings, divisions between major political parties in the United States have been developed. The Syrian war has brought with it huge human casualties, and although it was expected that it would be completed quickly like the Libyan War, thanks to the support of the United States and its allies, the war is currently continuing. This situation has left a lot of doubt among both the Democrats and the Republicans about whether it was reasonable for the United States primarily to participate in the Syrian conflict.

When President Obama announced his intention to attack Syria after what was allegedly the use of the Syrian government's chemical weapons against its own people, the PPS, it is expected that there will be that wide gap between the two sides in Congress. However, this was not so, because in a rare demonstration of unity between Republicans and Democrats, it was widespread to resist any airstrikes against the Syrian government or direct participation of the United States in the conflict. The fact that there was widespread opposition to the United States Participation in Syria on both sides is a true statement about the sensitivity to this issue of the American that the public feels. In the rare case of unity, representatives of both sides seem to have almost unanimously chosen to represent the true feelings of their constituents, who are mostly tired of the war. In fact, the polls showed that the United States should stop concentrating on solving external conflicts and instead focus on solving a growing number of problems in the domestic arena.

Despite the seeming unity of the two sides with regard to Syria, the fact is that the United States government does not have a clear policy towards Syria, and this may be the reason that the conflict lasted for the past two years. This conflict has, however, also created a situation where it has become difficult for the United States to deal with the diverse consequences such as the development of the refugee problem. It is more likely than not that the continuation of the Syrian conflict will create a refugee problem, as Syrian refugees seek to settle in the United States. The fact that Syrian refugees will likely continue seeking asylum in the United States has become a worrying subject in both parties and this is likely to be another issue which will unite the Democrats and the Republicans in a bipartisan way. In addition, the Syrian war has caused US allies in the region, Turkey and Jordan to have such as the influx of refugees that has created a sad situation in these countries. The fact that Democrats and Republicans, despite having been proven that they can work together, have not yet come up with a clear policy towards Syria, is the most alarming. The United States Congress must exert pressure on the government so that it creates a clear policy that will put an end to the Syrian conflict that will provide lasting peace for the Syrian people.

Both the Democrats and the Republicans believe that the Assad regime lost its mandate to rule the Syrian people, and because of this, it must go. It has been a standing position of both of these parties since the onset of the conflict. However, because of the changes of the status on the ground due to Russian and Iranian intervention has led to a situation where it is essential to come to an accommodation. The latter step would an extremely important one because it would curb the number of internally displaced persons in the country, but the number of refugees in neighboring countries creating similar situations to those that failed states the situation.

However, the United States has only been indirectly involved in Syria. This process has involved the government, supported by the Democrats, working to support the Syrian rebels in providing weapons and training. There has been coordination with the allies in the region to train militant groups and help them transit to Syria to fight government forces. Although the United States has not been directly involved in the conflict, in the form of boots on the ground, it has worked with its allies to provide logistic support to the rebels, which apparently has been approved by both Democrats and Republicans.