integration of Schools

The concept of the integration of schools has influenced the field of curriculum studies by enhancing the understanding of how schools operate, providing an undergirding for multiculturalism, informing the study of tracking and ability grouping, and serving as a foundation for professional development for teachers working with diverse youth. The integration of schools refers to the process by which desegregated schools replace an ethnocentric curriculum with one that incorporates previously marginalized voices and perspectives. To prevent the conflation of these terms, integration is first distinguished from desegregation, and then theoretical perspectives of integration, curriculum, multiculturalism, and tracking are discussed.