The first issue deals with changing demographics in schools. In 1984 one in four students was a minority, by 2020 predictions estimate that one in two will be a minority. Another issue educators deal with is inter-cultural tension among students. A proven way to combat this is to have students work in groups that have mixed cultures. The essence of the idea, according to Pate, is that when people share common tasks and goals, they develop positive feelings for each other.
Educators lack of knowledge about other cultures is also a key issue facing teachers.
As of 1985, approximately 88 percent of teachers were white, with that number on the rise. Having such a mono-cultural profession makes providing a meaningful learning experience for all students, regardless of race or culture, quite difficult. Based on our results , we found that a vast majority of students, male and female, had mainly white teachers throughout their educational lives. Results also showed that school location played a factor in cultural diversity. Either schools were primarily white, thus causing biases towards outside cultures, or they were of mixed cultures with much tension among students.