Diversity is
not a one word definition. Diversity is an understanding of a person’s point of
view, culture, phenotype, and genotype. The media center is one of the charges
to inform not misinform students. The students are bombarded with
misinformation and information out of context delivered by the media, friends,
family, and others concerning people different from them. Some popular books
and classic literature has writing that does not support diversity, but
stigmatizes it by using stereotypes. Even award winning books can be deemed
stereotypical as in Five Chinese Brothers
a Caldecott award winner. The media
specialist should look at the value of the material in their collection. Rujput
provides a checklist to help in this endeavor.
1. Check the illustrations.
2. Check the story lines.
3. Look at the lifestyles.
4. Weight the relationships between
people.
5. Note the heroes.
6. Consider the effect on a child’s
self-image.
7. Consider the author’s or
illustrator’s background.
8. Check out the author’s
perspective.
9. Watch for loaded words.
10. Look at the copyright date. (Rajput,
63)
This checklist
can also be helpful in addressing websites as well. Books in the media center
are not the only ways to support diversity. Programs like Skype can transport
students to different parts of the world to learn about other cultures. This
provides a more meaningful and interactive experience that cannot be derived
from a book. Through the use of special readers and tablets that special needs
students use and other technology. These devices are not available at some of
the elementary schools these students came from. The special needs teacher
explained that these devises helped these students to express their thoughts,
when before they were labeled difficult to work with.
In a broad sense, the media
specialist is the keeper and disseminator of all knowledge of the school. They
must have knowledge on all subjects. An emphasis in the classroom is to teach
the subject/standards and little room is left to teach diversity. Though some
diversity education should come from the home, but we know that sometimes does
not happen and that lays the burden on us.
Rajput, T.
(2009). Questioning Your Collection. Knowledge
Quest, 38 (1), 62 –
69.
