Running head: POSITIONALITY AND LENSES

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Positionality and Lenses

Lauren Swanson
CAHA 502
Northern Illinois University

Positionality and Lenses

Multiculturalism, according to Kincheloe and Steinberg, is everything and nothing at the
same time (1997). The term is used, and often times misused, to describe modern social issues,
such as race, gender, socioeconomic class, and sexuality. Multiculturalism is the co-existence and
the acceptance of diverse cultures. According to Kincheloe and Steinberg, there are five different
lenses of multicultural education: conservative multiculturalism/monoculturalism, liberal
multiculturalism, pluralist multiculturalism, left-essentialist multiculturalism, and critical
multiculturalism (1997). Within these lenses, there are separate descriptions that make each lens

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unique. I never knew that there was so many lenses and how much they differed from one
another. Personally, I believe that I fall in parts of three lenses: pluralism and a little bit of critical
and liberal multiculturalism.
Pluralist multiculturalism is what people think of when they think of a multicultural
education in todays society (Kincheloe and Steinberg, 1997, p. 15). With pluralism, race and
gender differences are recognized, as well as the history and cultures of other traditionally
marginalized groups. In a pluralist society, schools would read books and other forms of
literature by traditionally marginalized groups, such as women, instead of the traditional
literature written by white men. To embrace these groups, pluralists celebrate when important
issues fall outside of the white, male, middle-class characteristics that are dominate in todays
society (Kincheloe and Steinberg, 1997, p. 17). Pluralists are advocates for change and for
making a difference, and that is shown in an educational setting. Although it is hard to escape
from the traditional American ideologies - white, middle class, and being male pluralists look
at these characteristics as being different.
Liberalists, on the other hand, see a sameness within the differences between people, their
identities, and the diverse cultures. This allows different people to compete equally for resources
and work towards only having one race: the human race (Kincheloe and Steinberg, 1997, p. 10).
Also liberalists believe that if all people have the same access to resources, that it is seen as
being fair to all. The main goal of the liberalist multiculturalism is that all people should be at the
same level for everything. However, there are many criticisms to this lens. The main criticism is
that liberalists have a blindness to the ways that non-white, poor, and women are dominated in
Western society (Kincheloe and Steinberg, 1997, p. 15)
Critical multiculturalism is concerned with how domination takes place in society,
how human relations are formed in school, work, and in everyday life (Kincheloe and Steinberg,
1997, p. 23). One of the main goals of critical multiculturalism is that people need to be

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conscious of themselves, which is done with self-reflection. Different identities are shaped by the
dominant perspectives in society, and with self-reflection, an individual is able to understand
why his or her perspectives are being shaped by the dominant perspectives that surround Western
cultures. With critical multiculturalism, education is seen as power, and criticalists believe that
they must be able to educate themselves in order to educate others.
Personally, it was very difficult to connect my educational beliefs and lenses to what
Kincheloe and Steinberg discussed. I didnt see a complete connection to one of the lenses and
had a difficult time understanding the meanings and definitions given to each lens. Therefore, I
believe that I fall into a blend of these lenses because there are certain aspects from each lens that
I can connect to, while others parts of the lenses I either do not understand or believe in.
Personally, I try to look at issues in society and Western culture with a historical perspective
because it is easier for me to understand what is going on in society at a specific time to best
analyze a social issue or movement and the driving forces behind it. History, as I have noticed,
tends to repeat itself. The only difference is that the people represented change. These moments,
movements, and parts of history, while all created for specific rights and agendas, tend to have
the same outline and purpose. As a criticalist, one must educate themselves before educating
others, and one of the best ways to do that is to examine and analyze what made each movement
successful and even examine what could be improved upon.
As stated, pluralists recognize race and gender differences, as well as the history and
cultures of traditionally marginalized groups. I think I can connect with plural multiculturalism
because I want to be able to see a change in how gender is perceived by society. The stereotypes
that separate both men and women usually portray women as submissive, emotional, and weaker
than men. In order to change that, not only would society need to disregard the stereotypes, but
teachers and professors alike would need to include readings, articles, activities that were written

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or created by women, black men and women, Latino men and women, and also by those who
identify within the LGBTQ community. This is also where I blend a little bit with the liberalist
multiculturalism because I see that including texts and resources written by all groups of people,
not just upper-class white men.
I think when working with students, I personally believe that I need to be educated on
the policies, rules, and requirements within the university in order to help students understand
what is expected of them while they are in higher education. Also, I think that having student
affairs practitioners that are able to represent the marginalized populations makes it easier for
students to make a meaningful connection on campus. Finally, I think when students come to
college, it almost serves as a blank slate. Students can ultimately start over and begin to improve
themselves. That concept can happen for all students in the beginning of their college careers,
allowing students to be equal with one another.

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References
Kincheloe, J.L. & Steinberg, S.R. (1997). Changing multiculturalism. Buckingham: Open
University Press.