Multiculturalism in school is focus of Sunday panel

Sharon Moore's responsibilities as a first-grade teacher at Backman Elementary School in Rose Park go far beyond teaching reading.

Many of her students don't speak English, and for some students, Moore's classroom is the first glimpse of Western culture.

Moore will be one of the speakers on a Utah Martin Luther King Jr. Human Rights Commission panel focusing on multiculturalism in public education on Sunday, Aug. 22. The program, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Salt Lake City Public Library auditorium, will be free and open to the public.

"We have 30 different languages at our school," Moore said. "There's an influx of refugees, coming out of refugee camps with no transition. . . . We are having to teach them life skills before we can teach them to read and write."

Michael Styles, program manager for the commission, said the program will focus on diversity in public education, ethnic student test scores and college admission.

"We want to come up with positive solutions," Styles said. "How can we make our community for all our kids more inclusive and more respectful."

He said one challenge along the Wasatch Front is an expanding population, with growth in suburbs such as Draper, Riverton and South Jordan.

"There's not a lot of cultural diversity out there," he said. "In those school districts, teachers have a challenge sometimes to addressing culture, they just don't understand the challenges there."

Moore said she's learned first-hand that "you have to be flexible." And dealing with refugees, Moore's had to learn quickly about other cultures. For example, something as simple as pointing to a student, and indicating "come here" with your finger is offensive in some cultures, she said.

The panel is the first of a six-month series on topics ranging from challenges to disabled and mentally challenged citizens, to the challenges immigrants face, Styles said.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Human Rights Commission was created in 1991 to teach people from all cultures about diversity and the inclusiveness of all people, Styles said.

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