As a veteran of Arizona public education, I think I am qualified to say the entire system is flawed. In particular, I take issue with the dearth of cultural education. The community often frowns on any sort of intellectual deviance. In my experience, anyone who refuses to conform is met with scorn or xenophobia. I strongly affirm any sort of global studies class – or any class that fosters cultural awareness – will help students become sensitive and empathetic members of a global society. Globalization is driving the world to become increasingly interconnected, whether we like it or not. Consequently, schools should educate pupils in a way that compliments this politically dynamic society. Whether students take a world religions class, a human sexuality and development class, or an introductory Arabic class, they will gradually learn a mature approach toward different cultures and beliefs. Schools should modify their curriculum to include courses that encourage students to embrace diversity.

Before moving to Arizona, I lived in California for a number of years. In retrospect, I am amazed by the level of intellectual complexity at my old school in San Jose. Easterbrook Elementary was by no means a well-endowed school; the facilities were shabby, and the administration had many issues with overcrowding. Nonetheless, the learning environment was rich and intellectually stimulating. In addition to the rigorous workload, Easterbrook was known for its incredible diversity; students hailed from every corner of the earth. My second grade class alone was composed of predominantly minorities: blacks, Hispanics, and Asian-Americans constituted the majority, but my class also included many students from Europe and the Middle East. My teachers challenged me in not only my academics, but also to take a critical perspective on the status quo. I interacted with other pupils – who were of varying ethnicities, religions, socioeconomic backgrounds, and political beliefs – on a daily basis. Eventually, I learned to embrace the differences between me and my peers, no matter how polarized. However, nothing would prepare me for the culture shock – or rather, the lack of culture – I experienced upon stepping foot on Arizona soil.

My family and I moved to Arizona when I was in fourth grade; in other words, during the optimal season for let’s-make-sure-our-only-daughter-is-sentenced-to-social-isolation-for-the-remainder-of-her-K-12-education. Shortly after stepping foot into Ms. Dorsey’s fourth grade classroom, I immediately realized I was “different” from my classmates. For one, I was quite ahead academically of most of my peers; I had already learned most of the given material in second and third grade back in California. Secondly, I was not white; I was the only Asian girl in the class. However, the biggest difference that especially dichotomized me from my classmates was their mentality toward other cultures. They were quick to label me as a “foreigner”, and they shunned me as if my otherness physically repelled them. My peers thought it was perfectly logical to group me with “those damn chinks”, and enacted swift, merciless retribution should anyone dare to criticize “‘Murica”.

“Shut up.”

“You’re retarded.”

“Nobody cares.”
In retrospect, I realize that I almost never merited any of the spite and vitriol hurled at me all those years. At the time, I often thought to myself: if education has such a profound influence in the development of a child, then maybe introducing some sort of global studies class will get students to empathize with opposing perspectives. I got to live out my wish – to a limited extent – in the form of my mandatory foreign language requirement. However, even my AP Spanish Literature class did little to urge my classmates to learn about different cultures; their primary focus was on cold, hard test scores. Most of the education on foreign languages and cultures we received was force-fed to us as a tasteless gruel. It did not matter if we were actually absorbing the material and taking it to heart; all that mattered was we accept it without question.
Here in Suburbia Wonderland – otherwise known as Ahwatukee Foothills – everything from the houses down to the greenery is disturbingly homogeneous; the place is insidiously picturesque. The schools I attended were similarly formulaic. Any time I tried to express an opinion that deviated from the norm, I was immediately shut down by not only my peers, but even my teachers. Likewise, I was often a target for ridicule due to my ethnicity; I was the token pariah. The bullying got to the point where I was ashamed of being different, even though the color of my skin was something beyond my control. My peers simply could not comprehend the fact there was a world outside of our cushy, sheltered corner of Phoenix. As a result, they were unable to empathize with the issues that continue to plague our society today like racism, homophobia, sexism, poverty, crime, and war.

Arizona public education and its implications in a global context are very much like Plato’s allegory of the Cave. Plato describes a situation in which people live a fettered existence in a dark, isolated cave. Their only outlet to the outside world is through a narrow opening at the end of the cave that lets in some light, as well as through shadows of figures like people and animals, projected onto a wall in front of the captives. The prisoners have no way of knowing what is real and what is false, because their reality thus far has been strictly confined to the world within the cave. Plato then poses the question of how these prisoners would react if they were to be freed, since their perception of truth and reality is solely based on their experience in the cave. Likewise, children raised in culturally homogeneous communities like Ahwatukee grow up to become adults of similarly bland intellect. Their experience in the Arizona public education system is like that of the prisoners in the cave. Throughout the entire duration of their education, these children never learn about anything outside of their realm; nonetheless, they accept their ignorance and live in utter complacency. Puppeteers construct artificial images and project their shadows onto a screen in front of the children. They mold reality for these intellectually malleable and vulnerable people, without any regard for their personal say; after all, the children are at the mercy of the puppeteers. Although many of these individuals will continue living in their respective enclaves in adulthood, at least some will have to abandon their complacent confines and confront opposing cultures and beliefs. While a select few of these people may respond with intelligence and maturity, most will not know how to treat the situation. Such individuals will retaliate with xenophobia or jingoism; thus, their education has failed them.

While demanding a total overturn of the Arizona public education system may be excessive, schools should nonetheless adopt a more culturally mindful curriculum. There is no need for schools to completely reform their established material. Instead, they only need to fortify some of their existing courses. For one, schools can amend their foreign language classes to include more in-depth material on their respective cultures and histories. Many schools already have a foreign language requirement in place; why not take a step forward and broaden the languages offered? In addition to the standard Spanish and French, Arabic and Persian in particular would allow students to not only diversify their intellectual horizons, but also to educate themselves on a region of the world our nation frequently antagonizes. A person should emerge from the education system as a more intelligent and well-developed human being than before. Core subjects like English, history, math, and science serve as the framework for an educated person. STEM subjects foster logical thinking and reasoning, while the humanities push the individual to question the world around them. Likewise, global studies classes encourage people to be aware of the different cultures around them and the social nuances they embody. After all, the purpose of an education is to cultivate a well-rounded person, so they may contribute positively to society.