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Teacher creates text on cultures
By BARBARA BEHRENDT, Times Staff Writer INVERNESS -- When Scott Waters wanted to start a new program at Citrus High School a year ago, the social studies teacher went looking for materials to teach the curriculum. He explored textbook suppliers, but there was nothing appropriate. So, he did the next best thing. He perched over his computer keyboard at home last summer and wrote a textbook himself. Waters' multicultural education program was approved, and he is working with his fourth batch of students since August. He said he has been so impressed by their understanding of the subject matter that he wants the district to provide this education throughout the county, and at an earlier age. Those sentiments are shared by members of the county's Multicultural Advisory and Planning Task Force and the Anti-Bullying Committee, according to School Board member Carol Snyder, who is a member of both groups. "I think it's very important that we move toward awareness of and sensitivity to, as well as appreciation of, other cultures," Snyder said. "They have to learn more about the geography of the entire world, the new political awareness. Then it's so much harder to hate someone." At a recent meeting of the multicultural committee, Snyder said she learned from teachers who had seen prejudice and ignorance firsthand in the school district. The incidents ranged from racial slurs to a celebratory display of a Confederate battle flag at an athletic event by students who may not have appreciated that many African-Americans view the flag as a reminder of slavery. Snyder said she doesn't believe there is a lot of prejudice in the schools, but some of what is there is very intense. A good multicultural education, she hopes, might reach those people. But the issue is much more than just teaching about race relations. "Many times when you mention multicultural education, people think about the race issue, but it goes well beyond black and white," said Annie Brooks, a Crystal River Middle School teacher and member of the task force. The state requires districts to teach about other cultures and encourage students to try to understand and appreciate the differences among their classmates and their community. According to the Florida statute, lessons must include instruction in the Holocaust, the history of African-Americans and the study of contributions made to the country by Hispanics and women. The task force is working to develop a districtwide multicultural education. The goal is to provide understanding about different people, develop positive self-concepts and promote positive interaction in a society becoming more culturally diverse. "Dade and Hillsborough and Pinellas are on the cutting edge of implementing these programs," Brooks said. "Citrus County is playing catchup . . . we're taking baby steps but we're on our way." Rich Hilgert, coordinator of student services and the administrator who oversees equity issues for the district, said officials are looking for better ways to deliver the message of multicultural acceptance and appreciation. He has sat in on the multicultural class taught by Waters and said he thought that it was a good approach. Waters got interested in the topic more than a year ago when he inquired about teaching a course on American Indians. His interest comes partially from his own background. His grandmother was a Seneca Indian. Although he wasn't able to find a course on Native Americans in the course code directory for the state, he did find a code for multicultural education. And that is where he decided to put his focus. Waters would teach a course looking at the various cultures that had melded into the United States over the years, including Indians, African-Americans, Asians and Hispanics. Soon after Waters settled on teaching the class with approval from Citrus High administrators, he found there was no standard text for the course. Because he originally was told it would start in January of this year, he figured he had months to work on the research to write his own book. Just two weeks into the summer, he got a call from a school official. The course was on, but it would start in August instead of January. He had just two months to write the text. "I kissed my summer goodbye," he said. By the time school began, he had written and bound copies of a book entitled The First Americans: A Cultural Study of the American Indian. Waters said the book does not explore the cultures in tremendous depth, but he doesn't have time for much more in the nine-week elective course. "The kids are interested in this. What they've learned up to this point is learned from bad Westerns and Hollywood," he said. He relies heavily on other reading materials, as well on topics ranging from the immigrants to civil rights. He focuses on sources that expose students to the experiences of people from various cultures and what they had to live through. Waters said that approach is a far cry from the traditional way that students learn about other cultures. For years, the course World Cultural Geography has given high school students their look at people from other places. But that course didn't give enough stories about the human experiences that other cultures share. "They've got to be able to look at each other with real understanding and say, hey, his ancestors went through some stuff," Waters said. "This is making it real for the kids. This is real history." Snyder said the school system has to work hard to develop knowledge and appreciation both in the students and in the staff. That will work not just on opening the minds of students, but also making schools safer. Cutting down on bullying has been a high priority for the School Board. "Much of the bullying starts out because children are different," Snyder said. "We need them to be made aware that different is not bad." At the earlier grades, multicultural awareness sometimes takes the form of an introduction to the lifestyles, foods and music of other countries. Earlier this school year, for example, Forest Ridge Elementary School organized a multicultural fair that gave youngsters firsthand experiences with different foods and dress. A multicultural extravaganza is slated for April 12 at the Crystal River Middle School. Representatives from diverse Citrus communities, such as Greek, Irish, German and Hawaiian, will show goods from their homes, discuss their history and demonstrate music and dance. Snyder said she sees such events as a good first step, but by no means the final lesson needed by young pupils. "They still need to have an awareness of the differences in lifestyle, food and dance," she said. "But I hope that we go deeper than that and investigate a little bit of their history. See where they're coming from based on their history and their environments."
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