Iroquois Corn in a Culture-Based Curriculum: A Framework for Respectfully Teaching about Cultures

Carol Cornelius offers a new culture-based framework that provides a way to research and develop curricula based on respect of the diverse cultures of this nation. Using the Haudenosaunee culture as an example, Cornelius examines the source and reasons for the prevailing stereotypes about American Indians and explains how those stereotypes became the standard curriculum taught in America. She uses the components of world view and how it structures a way of life—the interaction of corn and culture, the dynamic aspect of Haudenosaunee culture, and the contemporary role of corn—to weave the interdependent, holistic, interdisciplinary framework for culture-based curriculum. Using this conceptual model, teachers can develop a culturally sensitive curriculum on any culture. The book therefore fills a void for teachers who want to utilize a multicultural approach in their classroom, but don’t know how to begin the process.