insider/outsider position

Depending on certain circumstances, I believe that both an insider and outsider are able to discuss multiculturalism in literature. I believe when literature comes from an insider, children are able to see themselves more clearly because they can recognize themselves in stories. Therefore, they have a better way of relating to it. However, I do not think it is fair to say that an outsider cannot write about multiculturalism. Outsiders who are very well educated about a certain culture, should be given an opportunity to share their side of the issue because this could bring even more diversity into play. I understand that there could be generalizations or stereotypes made, but it is our job as future teachers to stay away from those as much as possible. When outsiders do come up with successful stories that are not biased (or insiders approve of them) I think that they could potentially write a better story about another ethnicity/culture/etc. if the insider is not as educated as the outsider in their own background. In conclusion, I think the best way to solve this debate between the insider/outsider is to combine their ideas together and work together in order to bring their own experiences into the story, and to clear up any generalizations or stereotypes by challenging them.

Hello everyone,
My name is Tiffany and I am a junior at Michigan State University. My major is elementary education, as well as language arts. I am very interested in diverse literature because I want to fit the needs of each individual student when I become a teacher. I think it is very important to have a variety of books with different backgrounds of cultures and ethnicities because students need to relate to books in some way, as well as learn about someone else that is different from them. I just want to make sure that I use the right books the right way without using stereotypes, unless I could use stereotypes to teach my students about the subject. Looking forward to learning more about diverse literature! :)