Black and Hispanic Students: Cultural Differences within the Context of Education

We are living in a nation of unparalleled cultural diversity and differences relative to factors such as race, language, income, socioeconomic status (SES), and more. Current and projective demographic data indicate that racially and culturally different (RCD) students-African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American-represent an increasingly large proportion of the national and school population. In many U.S. cities, school districts, and school buildings, these “minority” groups are actually the numerical majority.1 Given ever-changing demographics, issues of culture, difference, and conflict must be addressed in discussions, theories, research, and prevention and intervention efforts among educators.