James A. Banks

”Unity without diversity leads to hegemony, and diversity without unity leads to chaos.”

Important Dates

James Banks was born on September 24, 1941, to farmers.Banks obtained his associate’s degree with high scholastic honors from Chicago City Junior College in 1963.Banks married Cherry A. McGee on February 15, 1969; who is also a college professor and author.In 1971, Banks was appointed a member of the Task Force to Reevaluate Social Science Textbooks in California.Banks was the twenty-ninth annual faculty lecturer at the University of Washington in 2004-05, the university’s highest honor for a faculty member.In 2004, the American Educational Research Association (AERA) awarded its first Social Justice in Education Award to Banks for a career of research that advances social justice through education research.Banks is currently the Director of the Center for Multicultural Education at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Contributions

Banks has written a number of books: Teaching Strategies for Ethnic Studies; Cultural Diversity and Education: Foundations, Curriculum and Teaching; Diversity and Citizenship Education: Global Perspectives; Race, Culture, and Education: The Selected Works of James A. Banks He is a specialist in multicultural education and in social studies education.He defined four major approaches to multicultural curriculum: contributions approach, additive approach, transformation approach, social action.Professor Banks holds honorary doctorates from five colleges and universities.

"Because of the way in which people are moving back and forth across national borders today, we

must educate students to function across borders, to become global citizens and to develop

cosmopolitan values and commitments.” -Banks

*** I don’t know how to put a video in but here is the link: http://www.uwtv.org/programs/displayevent.aspx?rID=2668