How does sheltering children from basic concepts of reality in our society (ie: not everyone is rich - or poor, not everyone agrees with how the universe came to be, not everyone celebrates the same events or in the same manner, etc. etc. etc.) equate to EDUCATION? How can we observe and celebrate multiculturalism if it is, supposedly, "offensive" to even acknowledge that other ideas exist? The people that came up with this idea need to get out of education as their chosen field of employment. Let them hide in a hole somewhere denying reality while the rest of us, including the children in the NYC education system, get on with their real lives, living with others who are actually different in many ways, from skin color to religion to socio-economic status.