In America, we value and admire success. One aspect of success is learning to accept people whose lives and experiences are different than our own. It means acknowledging our differences as well as our similarities, and understanding that different does not mean better or worse, it simply means different.

Multicultural education supports that aspect of learning and provides the opportunity for children to consciously practice and master the skills of getting along, solving problems, discussing feelings, and understanding differences.

Education has moved toward a skill- and outcome-based approach, and children are frequently tested to make certain they have attained mastery. No test exists to measure how well children get along, but their ability, or inability to do so is visible everyday as they interact with each other. By developing programs that address the individual and unique needs of classrooms, schools and districts, multicultural education seeks to enhance a child's abilities to master those skills.

For most children, school is an introduction to diversity, as they meet others from a different social class, ethnic group or religion. Giving children the tools they need to accept difference is as important as all the other skills taught in school. Multicultural education can provide the tools.