Resources about Diversity and (Early American) Literature

1. “Diversity”. Oxford English Dictionary. June 4, 2007. < http://dictionary.oed.com.ezp.mc.maricopa.edu/cgi/entry/50067782?single=1&query_type=word&queryword=diversity&first=1&max_to_show=10 >

This website presents several definitions of the word “diversity”. Diversity is found in literature under all of its several definitions. It is helpful to know the several meanings of the word so that we are better able to understand that which we are reading. The Oxford Dictionary is a very credible source, and gives several examples, often in old English, that are helpful while reading. --Neil Sherman

2. Castania, Kathy. "What Is Diverstiy?" 1996. Diversity. 3 June 2007 < http://www.ediversitycenter.net/staff_dev/download/kathydiversityfactsheet1.pdf >.

The page is an article which offers different meanings to the word "diversity" and offers more information to provide a clearer understanding of cultural diversity and differences among groups and individuals in order to avoid discrimination and bias. Although the page hardly mentions any type of writing, it does provide an insightful definition of diversity. The author of the page mentions that some may have the perception about diversity as "division," instead diversity should occur to an individual as a positve introduction to change, whether one would accept it or not, but with provided respect. Diversity coins individual, group, sociatal, or international identity as unique. In the case of William Bradford's journal "Of Plymouth Plantation," diversity played a great role during the new settlement period, where English settlers saw a new culture as the American Indians did. Both settlers of the New World clashed but worked out a way to live amongst each other, even though both cultures continued to face rivalry. "Of Plymouth Plantation" significant theme is of discovery and diversity, and it was the aspect of a "New World" that they had to adapt and accept a completely different scenery and atmosphere.

The article is credible as the author is a well-respected and "multicultural expert at Cornell University," according to an article in Cornell News Online at http://www.news.cornell.edu/ .

3. "Gap Analysis." CFO Magazine June Issue 2007. CFO.com. CFO.com. 6 June 2007. <http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/9216073/1/c_9277557>.

The oxford online english dictionary defines diversity as the condition or quality of being diverse, different, or varied. When doing my search for articles teaching about diversity I came across this wonderful article called, \"Gap Analysis.\" This article talks about how a 47-year-old CFO of transportation giant CSX Corp, Oscar Munoz, was preceived as an employee at a pool. A white-American couple approached him handing their dirty towels to him and asking Munoz to take care of them. Munoz just took care of the towels and chuckles at the fact that he was preceived as an employee at this pool. Keep in mind that this man is the finance chief for a $9.5 billion global company. He discusses in his article that people already have, "images in their mind of what to expect from different groups." He explains that women have made advances through diversity programs, however; minorities have not. He goes on in further detail expressing the different advances between women and minorities. This article is a great example of diversity. I found the story at the beginning a little funny.

4. Clements, Phil, and John Jones. Diversity Training Handbook: a Practical Guide to Understanding and Changing Attitudes. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: Kogan Page, 2006. Mesa Community College Library. 9 June 2007 < http://site.ebrary.com.ezp.mc.maricopa.edu/lib/mesa/Top?channelName=mesa&cpage=1&docID=10120244&f00=text&

frm=smp.x&hitsPerPage=10&layout=document&p00=diversity&sortBy=score&sortOrder=desc >.

6. “Defining Diversity.” Magazine Publishers of America. 2003. 16 June 2007 < http://www.magazine.org/diversity/Defining_Diversity/ >.

This website acts as a resource for the magazine industry. Here, diversity is defined as “recognizing, appreciating, valuing, and utilizing the unique talents and contributions of all individuals” regardless of age, experience, color, culture, disability, education, race, gender, religion, etc. More narrowly, diversity is defined as “a collective mixture characterized by differences and similarities.” The idea behind diversity is that this mixture will combine to create something greater. During slavery, blacks were separated from the rest of the American population, preventing any of the benefits of diversity. Harriet Beecher Stowe and Harriet Tubman were both influential figures who worked to show America that African Americans could contribute to America, creating a diverse, and improving nation. Both races could live together and learn from one another’s differences.

This website is a trusted resource for publishers and the magazine industry.

7. “Preservice Teachers Develop an Understanding of Diversity Issues Through Multicultural Literature.”  Multicultural Perspectives.  EBSCOhost.  2005.  p30-38.  19 June 2007.< http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.mc.maricopa.edu/ehost/detail?vid=14&hid=6&sid=46b05a38-1ae4-4e35-89bd-d29436c2c6de%40sessionmgr8 >. 

Written by administrators at Longwood University, this article addresses the growing diversity in schools, along with a method for new and experienced teachers to plan for it, teach it, and embrace it.  The article begins by stating, “As our local school districts and society at large grow more diverse, these preservice teachers face the daunting challenge of understanding how students are unique and different from others and how they, as these students’ teachers, will meet the needs of diverse learners in the classroom.”  They later address the issue of incorporating culturally diverse literature into the classroom as a method of addressing diversity, writing that “Literature is one way in which these preservice teachers can begin to develop new meanings and conceptualizations of what diversity means. Literature is one vehicle for developing those new conceptualizations because readers often find it easier to assimilate new meanings when they are presented within the structure of a story.”  Interestingly, the author goes on to recognize that really good “diversity” literature doesn’t merely focus on the issue itself.  Rather, it portrays realistic characters living imaginable lives, thus granting a better idea of the intricacies of various cultures.  She puts it similarly, writing, “Quality multicultural literature does not merely focus on the issue of diversity but displays characters as individuals who express an array of attitudes and actions as they participate in the events of the story.” Although the article is more or less an instruction manual for new teachers facing the difficult issue of teaching and understanding diversity in the classroom, it does offer many valid realities of the power of literature in achieving such a goal.