Chapter 7: Interrogating Privilege, Plurality and Possibilities in a Multicultural Society

Successful development and maintenance of a multicultural social studies curriculum is intertwined with the social, cultural, political, and economic forces of the nation, the individual states, and their unique communities. Presently, because of social, political, and demographic changes, theconcerns and purposes of multicultural education are being redefined within an epistemic shift (Welch, in McLaren, 1997) that is taking place throughout the United States and Canada. As we move fromthe limited perspectives afforded by Eurocentric world views, much that was previously accepted without question is giving way to the ambiguity, uncertainty, complexity and fluidity necessitated in the engagement of multiple ways of knowing and their divergent perspectives. Research that once championed the duality that set reason above emotion and elevated the production of rational thinking grounded in empirical evidence is giving quarter to experiential knowledge grounded in spiritual, emotional, relational, as well as rational thought. Those who once sought answers in empirical data,now search for understanding by posing questions, describing webs of fluid relationships, and narrating interconnected stories (see, e.g., Preissle-Goetz & LeCompte, 1991; Grant, 1999).