Introduction & Tasks | Project Requirements | Project Resources

Project Calendar | California Content Standards

Introduction

The first word that comes to the mind of many when they think of the student body at Mount Diablo is diversity. Our school is home to students whose families come from all over the world. Our students bring to school a variety of backgrounds and personal and family experiences that shape their interactions with others in profound ways. Many students walk the halls of MDHS struggling to balance the demands of blending into the culture of our school, becoming part of the culture of America, and remaining true to their own cultural roots. And, while most people would say the multiculturalism or our school is our greatest strength, it is also the source of many of our most pressing needs. 

The diverse culture of MDHS forms a microcosm for the problems with multiculturalism in the United States. America has a tradition of welcoming the world to its shores spelled out clearly in the inscription on the Statue of Liberty, the sonnet The New Colossus by Emma Lazarus,

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name

Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she

With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

However, upon arrival on America's shores, what happens to the stories, languages, and culture brought over from the homeland? And, how does one balance the idea of being American with the desire and need to hold those cultural traditions? At what point does being Asian American or Mexican American or African American give way to being simply American? Should this even be our goal?

It is these essential issues we want you to explore deeply through this project.

Your Tasks

We Are Mount Diablo, Documentary Videos - Using the ideas explored in the introduction as a starting point, each group will produce two complimentary short documentary videos that explore issues important to the lives of our students and our community. The best of these videos will be featured during our school's multicultural assembly on May 7. In addition, each group will use their documentaries during peer education lessons they develop and deliver to MDHS 9th graders...

Lessons Learned, Peer Education - Each documentary production team will develop a 30 minute lesson to deliver to MDHS Freshman English classes. These lessons will include opportunities for students to reflect on and discuss the issues raised in the documentary. 

Our America, Thesis Paper - Every student will write a thesis paper based on readings from the class reader and other content from the U.S. History and English classes. These papers will address the question "How do we balance our unique cultural tapestries with our desire to unify as Americans?"

We Are Mount Diablo, Photography Exposition - Each documentary team will be responsible for contributing to our "We Are Mount Diablo" photography exhibition. This exhibition, celebrating the diversity that makes MDHS special will appear all around the school during multicultural week. 

Reflecting on Who We Are, Blogging - Each team member will contribute a weekly blog entry reflecting on the process the group is going through and on the issues of multiculturalism in general. In addition to writing, blogs will include photography, poetry, art, music or other content that expresses the feelings and struggles of the team.

We Are Mount Diablo: Issues of Culture and Ethnicity at MDHS

developed by Randy Depew, Natasha Paul, Heather Fontanilla, and Melissa Leonard

The Digital Safari Academy, Mt. Diablo High School, Concord, CA