Following is a list of programs and resource materials designed to reduce prejudice or ease racial and ethnic tensions in schools:
The Anti-Defamation League of B’Nai Brith is one of the largest producers of classroom materials on the subject. A full listing of publications is contained in the organization’s 92-page catalog, “Human Relations Materials for the School, Church, and Community.” Copies of the catalog are available for $3 each from the adl at 823 United Nations Plaza, New York, N.Y., 10017.
The adl also sponsors “A World of Difference,” a multimedia campaign designed to teach children to recognize and reject prejudice. Underwritten by private businesses in 21 cities nationwide, the campaign includes a 20-lesson module for schools, special programming for local television stations, and newspaper supplements. For more information, contact a regional adl office.
In Los Angeles, school officials, working in conjunction with a local citizens’ group, have developed “Hands Across Campus,” a prejudice-reduction course currently in use in 13 Los Angeles high schools and in some Dade County, Fla., schools. Also described as an “in-depth” humanities course, the one-semester program features field trips to ethnic neighborhoods, temples, and churches.
Sidney Brickman, the regional school superintendent who helped write the curriculum, cautions that, although the school system will be glad to make course materials available, the program requires teacher training in order to succeed. Inquiries should be directed to the Los Angeles Unified School District, Region A, 1208 Magnolia, Gardena, Calif., 90247.
The U.S Justice Department’s Community Relations Service offers help in mediating race-related disputes wherever they occur. In schools, the service also provides training in intercultural relations for staff8members and selected “student response teams.”
Service workers will also assess a school’s employment patterns, extracurricular activities, and staff relationships to find areas where race-relations can be improved. For more information, contact the Community Relations Service, 5550 Friendship Boulevard, Suite 330, Chevy Chase, Md., 20815.
Multicultural education and race relations is the focus of the current issue of School Safety, a journal of the National School Safety Center. Inquiries should be directed to the nssc at 16830 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 200, Encino, Calif., 91436.
The National Association for the Education of Young Children has published a teacher’s guidebook for dealing with the subject in the preschool age group. Copies of “Anti-Bias Curriculum,” by Louise Derman-Sparks, are available for $7 each from the naeyc at 1834 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20009.
