Rethinking multiculturalism, reassessing multicultural education report 1

This report provides insights into the current practices of multicultural education and the opinions and understandings of New South Wales (NSW) public school teachers around increasing cultural and linguistic diversity in schools and the broader Australian community. The report is the outcome of the first stage of the Rethinking Multiculturalism/ Reassessing Multicultural Education (RMRME) Project, a three-year Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Project between the University of Western Sydney, the NSW Department of Education and Communities (DEC) and the NSW Institute of Teachers. Surveying teachers about these and related matters seemed a useful first step in considering the state of multicultural education some forty years after its inception (Inglis, 2009). The project as a whole involved a state-wide survey – the focus of this report – as well as focus groups with teachers, parents and students in 14 schools in urban and regional NSW, and a professional learning program informing the implementation of action research projects in each school. Read also: Rethinking multiculturalism, reassessing multicultural education report 2: http://apo.org.au/node/42670 Rethinking multiculturalism, reassessing multicultural education report 3: http://apo.org.au/node/42671 &nbsp

“No More Strangers and Foreigners, but Fellowcitizens:” Multicultural Education and Conflict

This paper argues that prevalent forms of multicultural education are separatist and divisive in nature, irrational, inequitable, and can cause conflict. A unifying brand of multicultural education is offered as an alternative which builds on commonalities, can alleviate conflict, fosters academic achievement for all students, and is built on Christian principles

African-Born Immigrants in U.S. Schools: An Intercultural Perspective on Schooling and Diversity

Despite the significant increase of African-born immigrants in the United States of America, the education system does not recognize their presence and does little to facilitate their integration through the implementation of necessary curricular adjustments. The purpose of this article is to call on multicultural education advocates to endorse the argument for the distinctness of African-born immigrants as a complex cultural group with unique vulnerabilities requiring sensitivity. Organizationally, the paper develops four key points: the current demographic representation of the African population; the absence of African voices in multicultural education scholarship; the salience of multicultural education advocacy in recognizing the essence of African cultures in the western world; and the minimal coverage of African topics in the U.S. curriculum. Two sets of recommendations, curricular and culture-oriented, conclude the argument

Rethinking multiculturalism, reassessing multicultural education report 2

Rethinking Multiculturalism/Reassessing Multicultural Education Project Report Number 2: Perspectives on Multiculturalism is the second report of Rethinking Multiculturalism/Reassessing Multicultural Education (RMRME), an Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Project between the University of Western Sydney (UWS), the NSW Department of Education and Communities (DEC) and the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards (BOSTES) incorporating the former NSW Institute of Teachers (NSWIT) and the Board of Studies. It follows an earlier report, Rethinking Multiculturalism/Reassessing Multicultural Education Project Report Number 1: Surveying NSW Public School Teachers and will be followed by a final report Rethinking Multiculturalism/Reassessing Multicultural Education Project Report Number 3: Knowledge Translation and Action Research. This second report provides an analysis of 42 focus groups involving a total of 222 parents, teachers and students in the 14 targeted schools. These included primary and secondary schools from a range of contexts: urban and rural, high and low socio-economic status (SES), and high and low levels of cultural diversity (see Table 1, p.9). The views recounted here are not intended to be representative of the schools themselves (which remain anonymous) nor of teachers, parents and students in NSW as a whole. Nevertheless, they provide a useful record of diverse perspectives to be found across NSW schools regarding multiculturalism and multicultural education. The report documents the complex array of cultural backgrounds and forms of identification amongst students, parents and teachers in NSW public schools, which challenges conventional wisdom about the nature of cultural diversity. It finds, however, that there is something of a mismatch between this complexity and teachers’ experience and expertise in multicultural education

Multicultural Curriculum in Rural Early Childhood Programs

This study investigated the use of multicultural curricula in early childhood programs (licensed and licensed-exempt) in rural communities in Wyoming. In previous studies, little attention has focused on the nature of multicultural education in rural schools. This study specifically explored the ways in which existing instructional strategies and curricula were utilized to address the diverse learning needs of young children, and the ways in which culture and race are embraced and celebrated in early childhood programs in rural communities. Data showed a positive correlation (r= .45 p = \u3c .01) between national accreditation of early childhood programs and the availability and use of multicultural curricula

Building a Community of Shalom: What the Bible Says about Multicultural Education

Multicultural education is a highly controversial topic in which it has been the center of contentions and conflicts as it has evolved for the last couple of decades. Several concerns and problems existed in the field of multicultural education will be addressed in this article. In addition, a new framework of multicultural education, called the shalom model, which is drawn from the Bible is presented, along with the characteristics of the model. The goal of multicultural education, according to this model, is to build a community of shalom, an image that is clearly described in Isaiah 11:6. In order to accomplish this goal, the model suggests that all people need to be equipped with the truth that all people are the image bearers of God. This concept is expanded into four implementation interventions when relating to others: biblical perspective; cultural competence; contextualized pedagogy; and intentional praxis. Finally, regarding the application issue of this model, some points of the implementation strategies are addressed in this article

Review Essay: Arthur M. Schlesinger\u27s Vision of America and the Multicultural Debate by Jesse M. Vazquez

In April of 1990, Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., published an essay in the Wall Street Journal entitled When Ethnic Studies are Un-American. [1] The publication of that article followed, by about eight months, the release of New York State\u27s Department of Education\u27s now controversial report -- A Curriculum of Inclusion. [2] Interestingly, the publication of The Disuniting of America: Reflections on a Multicultural Society also follows, by about seven months, the release of New York State\u27s second and most current Education Department report calling for the development of a new multicultural social studies curriculum -- One Nation, Many Peoples: A Declaration of Cultural Interdependence.[3

Are We “Reading the World”? A Review of Multicultural Literature on Globalization

Given its commitment to “reading” the social context, how is multicultural education accounting for the shifting context of our globalized world? A conceptual review of multicultural journals reveals limited engagement. However, a more sustained analysis could fuel re-articulations and contestations of the purpose of education in the 21st century