A Multicultural Approach to Teaching English Language Arts: Starting with the Personal and Connecting to the Global

It is important to consider students' own understanding of themselves and of others when incorporating a culturally relevant pedagogy and curriculum in the classroom. As young children begin to recognize others who are difFerent from themselves and as they attempt to form their identities, gender and ethnic stereotypes can influence their process of self-conceptualization. To support diverse students' identities within any curriculum program, teachers need to be equipped with a diverse range of culturally appropriate pedagogies (Delpit, 2006; Ladson-Billings, 2004). Diverse students can better navigate the multiple worlds of home, school, and community when teachers' pedagogical strategies engage their personal experiences and identities (Phelan, Davidson, & Cao, 1991). Culturally relevant pedagogy may create opportunities for students - and teachers - to engage with their multiple identities and to draw on their diverse lived experiences and perspectives to interpret and respond to particular issues (Nieto, 1992).

Children become aware of their own ethnicity and begin to discover the differences between cultures at a young age. A number of researchers have argued that many children have this knowledge by the age of 4 or 5 (e.g., Derman-Sparks, 2006; Hyun, 2007; Kendall, 1983; Wolpert, 2006). Biles (1994) therefore argued that cultural identity must be taught at a young age in order for children to "develop positive feelings about their racial and cultural identity" (p. 1). Lo Coco, Inguglia, and Pace (2005) pointed out: "This knowledge is, above all, about children's ability to choose a correct label for themselves, to identify themselves with their own group, and to adopt the specific habits and behaviours ofthat ethnic group" (p. 224).

An important component of multicultural education is a "commitment to broadening children's awareness of and natural acceptance of diverse cultural heritages" (Kendall, 1983, p. 31). When children grow up in diverse neighbourhoods, they tend to become more cognizant and aware of race and racial differences at an earlier age than children who live in monoracial settings (Ramsey, 2006; Ramsey & Myers, 1990). When students have a strong self-concept and think positively about themselves, they are better able to accept the cultural differences around them (Kendall, 1983). Educators play a vital role in helping students develop their sense of self.

Engaging students in a research project in which they explore...