When I was first approached about doing an interview regarding the lack of diversity in homeschool curricula, I was totally on board. I enjoy shedding light on the need for all children to have a multicultural education, and I was especially excited to delve in and learn more about an area I’ve heard about but never fully explored – Catholic homeschool curricula.
The article, “Catholic Homeschool Curricula Has Whitewashed World History. Is It Too Late to Fix It?”, was published this week in America: The Jesuit Review – a weekly magazine containing news and opinion about Catholicism and how it relates to American politics and cultural life.
Patrick Tomassi, the writer, was homeschooled along with most of the children in the Catholic parish where he grew up. In the article he explores the idea that “many of us who grew up in the home-schooling world have started to ask whether our education failed us when it came to understanding racism and our country’s troubled history with it.”
It was discouraging to learn of the texts that have traditionally been included in Catholic curricula, yet I know that the Catholic community is not alone in their lack of diverse perspectives and history. Changes, or rumbling of changes, are occurring across the entire homeschooling world, and I find much hope in the apparent shifts away from the one-dimensional incomplete texts many families have historically used.
I’m thankful for the opportunity to be interviewed for this article, and I feel like I have a heightened awareness of the not-so-unique ways Catholic homeschool curricula can and should be improved.
You can catch up with me on Instagram at @heritagemomblog.
As a Catholic homeschooling mom who seeks to teach her kids accurate history and not white-washed nor avoidant of errors/sins at the hands of members of the Church, it has been very difficult to find curriculum I’m satisfied with, that considers the above while also including representation of all different peoples. Our children are biracial and we are working extra hard at supplementing and adapting curriculum we’re using while continuing to search for better. I actually came across your site from finding Tomassi’s article when I was looking to see if there are any resources specially for black Catholic homeschool families and am so glad that I did!!!.
I’m glad that you found his article and that it landed you here. I don’t have resources specifically for Catholic families, but I think you’ll find my lists and Heritage Packs to meet your needs in many ways. I sure hope so!