As Mitchell points out however, this criterion can overlook the major differences between the cultures that form the Hispanic group, and the multicultural curriculum should ensure the recognition of these basic differences. (Mitchell, 102)

However, this emphasis on difference that is characteristic of the contemporary ethnic studies is not to be taken as a form of absolute belonging or encapsulation of an individual in a certain culture. Multicultural education aims at teaching the differences between cultures and at equipping the individual with the necessary skills for the culturally plural environment. This means that the student learns to understand his own culture and the other cultures, but at the same time to detach himself from the unique identification with a nation or an ethnic identity:

Individuals are capable of having multiple identifications and attachments, including attachments to their cultural community, their nation, and to 'the worldwide community of human beings' (Nussbaum,...
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