Chapter 2 Ethnicity and Race

     It is human nature to want to feel comfortable.  Naturally, people who share the same culture will often gravitate to one another.  People associate with people they like.  People like people with whom they can converse easily.  People can most easily converse with people who have common interests and, yes, speaking the same language helps, as well.  While racism and ethnocentrism do exist, simply having a majority of one's associations with people of the same ethnic group should not imply that one does not like other ethnic groups.  It should not imply that one does not respect other ethnic groups.   This is just the reality of relationships in society, certainly adult society.   After all, it is human nature, not just American nature, to want to feel comfortable.

     While adult society often maintains a certain amount of seperation, over time integration has increased (Chapter 2, pg. 57, ethnic identity). As educators we have a unique opportunity, being in a school environment, to continue this trend.  We have the opportunity to encourage interactions among students who, otherwise, may socialize within their comfort zone.  Improvements in the students' interactions will lead to new friendships.  New friendships will present avenues to improve not only the school community, but possibly increase the interactions of the students' parents and grandparents, as well.  This would in turn improve the interactions in the community at large.

     As a future educator, I am keenly aware of the importance of improving the quality of the interactions between the students.  This can be done by seeing our cultural, ethnic, and religious differences as an opportunity to learn something new.  Not to change our minds about what we believe, but to expand our knowledge and understanding of the wonderfully diverse world around us.  The key principle being mutual respect and appreciation for our different ideologies.

     This mutual respect and appreciation for our differences, while also recognizing our shared culture, is one of the key factors in promoting a healthy society.  That is why, as educators, it is our responsibility to develop fair and appropriate practices which will increase multicultural interaction and understanding, while at the same time assisting students to overcome their propensity to stay within their comfort zone.