Technology integration in multicultural settings

Abstract

This chapter presents an exposition of how multicultural factors influence the design of electronic learning systems to support educational goals and improve learning outcomes for students from diverse cultures. The chapter reviews the specialized literature related to the intersection of the disciplines of multicultural education and instructional design to show how to make best use of instructional settings to support and respect the many cultures that are represented within the modern classroom. The chapter concludes with some suggested future directions for research with a specific recommendation that instructional designers embrace the powerful user configuration features now available in digital and social media to empower learners to modify both technologies and learning environments to support their own cultural learning needs to utilize the affordances available.