Discussing school celebrations from an intercultural perspective – a study in the Finnish context

The increased diversity in pupils’ cultural and ethnic backgrounds in schools creates urgent demands for the organization of school celebrations in many countries. Celebrations represent the cultural values of the society and it is important to find out how various traditions are expressed in them. This study examines teachers’ and other educational staff members’ perceptions of Finnish culture, Lutheran religiosity, and intercultural education relating to Christmas, Independence Day, and end-of-term celebrations in Finnish schools. The data of this paper consists of 12 thematic interviews, and participation in two school festivals. The interview data were analyzed qualitatively using content analysis. The analysis of this study shows that festivals are perceived as important parts of education and they can help to create a sense of national or cultural community. However, the intercultural potential of school celebrations is often not put to its full use. There exists an urgent need to create new ways of carrying out celebrations in multicultural school communities so that they would be meaningful for all students.     

Developing elementary school students’ intercultural competence through teacher-led tutoring action plans on intercultural education

The increasing cultural diversity in the current Spanish educational system has had dramatic consequences for school population demography and relationships between students in culturally diverse classrooms. In this context, the development of students’ intercultural competence can contribute to strengthening communication, as well as preventing misunderstandings and coexistence problems. In this study, the effects of a teacher-led intercultural tutoring action programme (TAP) on elementary students’ intercultural competence (IC) were assessed as a function of treatment condition and grade level. Participants were 187 third- to sixth-grade pupils (84% Spaniards and 16% immigrants) who were assigned randomly to treatment conditions (TAP versus comparison). After 20 weeks of programme implementation, the findings revealed that the TAP was successful. Conceptual intercultural competence was better achieved by fifth- to sixth-grade students, while IC skills and attitudes were significantly better developed by third- to fourth-grade students. Implications for teachers and counsellors/schools psychologists are discussed.     

Promoting a European Dimension of Intercultural Education

In order to obtain an effective implementation into school curricula, intercultural education needs the cooperation of different actors and the sharing of experience between educational institutions, school heads, teachers and intercultural education practitioners. This article presents the outcomes of two seminars organized by the European Federation for Intercultural Learning in 1997 to review intercultural education materials for secondary schools and to promote European cooperation projects. It also discusses a project to adapt an intercultural education handbook presently being carried out in six member states during the 1997–1998 school year. This handbook is intended as a starting point for further international cooperation among European secondary schools in the field of intercultural education.     

Adoption as a Diversity Issue in Professional Preparation: Perceptions of Preservice Education Professionals

This research explored preservice teachers' and counselors' perceptions of the needs of adopted children in schools. Using a quasi-experimental survey design, this study examined the views of preservice teachers and counselors toward adoptive families before and after an educational intervention. Findings from this research support the effectiveness of a brief, standardized intervention in increasing preservice education professionals' awareness of particular challenges adopted children and their families may face in school settings. Qualitative data indicated preservice education professionals' awareness of adopted children and their families in their internship experiences. Learning about adoptive families can be part of sensitizing education professionals' to the growing diversity of families and children in U.S. schools.     

Teacher Training with a View Towards Developing Favourable Attitudes Regarding Intercultural Education and Cultural Diversity

An analysis of Spanish multiculturalism, together with the lack of systematic teacher training in the area of intercultural education, a fact which was revealed by a review of the educational programmes and strategies developed in our country, has led us to propose a training course which improves the attitudes of teachers and educators towards intercultural education and the ever‐growing cultural diversity in our country. The study, carried out using a quasi‐experimental methodology and based on the Theory of Reasoned Action, revealed that this type of training programme favours a positive predisposition in teachers towards the development of intercultural programmes in schools, a fundamental element in promoting a further dissemination of this particular focus throughout the whole of the educational system.     

Prejudices against immigrants in secondary school

This paper presents the results of a study of prejudice against immigrants in secondary schools in the Basque Country, in Spain. We carried out a review of the best-known questionnaires and catalogues on prejudices regarding immigration and we drew up a new questionnaire, with positive and negative scales of prejudices, in order to apply them to secondary school students in Euskadi (the Basque Country). We analysed the responses of almost 1500 students and thus obtained results for the main types of prejudice that exists amongst the students. We subsequently examined these prejudices and compared them with the scientific data, reports and other research that have generated much debate. As a result of this research, we have made available to educators, both inside and outside the classroom, the basis for drawing up strategies and plans for educational interventions with secondary school students. We propose a solid foundation for undertaking an educational programme that will be useful for combating prejudices and xenophobia in schools.     

Between ‘homeland’ and ‘diaspora’: multicultural education in Israel and South Korea

The aim of this qualitative case study was to explore multicultural education for ‘newcomers’ in Israel and in South Korea. Despite their differences, the two countries face the same inflow of two types of newcomers – one group that is expected to fully integrate, and the other of newcomers considered temporary. The educational challenge that results is recognition of the cultural groups, and providing equal educational opportunities, for both. Four schools were compared, two in each country, measuring multicultural education according to Bank’s five dimensions. Findings show that the same dimensions could be identified in all schools. The differences were in the school’s interpretation of the cultural identity of the students, congruent with their legal status, and degree of acceptability by the host country. The groups that were expected to fully integrate into the host country (perceived as a ‘homeland’) were given a more assimilatory education, as manifested in the Content Integration dimension; whereas the groups that were considered foreign were given a more multicultural education, with the schools making more references to their national culture, thus enhancing an identity of a ‘diaspora.’     

Multi-ethnic school environment from the school leader’s perspective: challenges and approaches to improve multi-cultural competency among teachers in Malaysia

This study aims to identify the challenges and approaches to improve a multicultural competency among teachers in multi-ethnic schools environment based on school leaders’ perspective. Data collection method used in this study is qualitative method. A total of nine school leaders from the states of Kedah, Penang, and Perak were included in the interview session. The results of this study show that the challenges faced by teachers in practicing the multicultural competency are lack of experience toward cultural diversity. A late exposure to cultural diversity makes it difficult for teachers to accept and adapt in a multi-ethnic school environment. The approaches suggested by school leaders to improve the multicultural competency are as follows: (1) Courses on cultural diversity should be organized to enhance the knowledge about cultural diversity; (2) the development of more open and better policy for education system in Malaysia in order to prepare teachers with a higher multicultural competency for teaching students from diverse ethnic and cultural groups; (3) an early exposure to cultural diversity in order to increase the multicultural competency, especially during teaching practicum.     

Religious Pluralism and School Provision in Britain

Popular education in Britain grew out of the social conscience of the Christian churches. Government investment in schools only began in the last quarter of the 19th century and even where schools were funded it was primarily to plug the gaps left by the voluntary organisations. Throughout the 20th century, Britain had a dual system of provision by which state and churches cooperated in the provision and funding of schools. The last 30 years have witnessed an interesting development in Britain in the political response to religious diversity and education. Some members of the more recent religious minority communities have sought to join the dual system by seeking funding for religious schools on the same basis as the Christian churches. In the last 5 years, several schools run by minority religious groups have received state funding. In its latest Green Paper, the government argues the case for greater diversity in educational provision and looks to increasing the participation of Christian and other religious groups in educational provision, not least by reducing the financial quota which religious bodies have to pay towards the upkeep of such schools. In the light of continuing problems with personal and institutional racism at many levels of British society, and the well-documented increase in Islamophobia, this paper explores what model of pluralism is likely to suit Britain's future society best and what form of educational provision might prove the most effective in promoting it.     

Do magnet and charter schools exacerbate or ameliorate inequality?

School choice typically refers to opportunities to enroll youth in public and/or private educational alternatives to traditional neighborhood public schools. While these options continue to grow in the United States under the umbrella of school choice, magnet and charter schools are the most common forms of public school choice. In this article, we review the development of school choice and the differing historical and philosophical origins of magnet and charter schools. We then summarize what we know about the extent to which these public choice options exacerbate or ameliorate two forms of inequality—academic achievement and school segregation by race and class. Research suggests that magnet schools often encourage racial and class diversity, while charters contribute to racial and socioeconomic isolation. While low‐income minority students may benefit academically from attending magnet schools, it is unclear whether charter schools have any effect on achievement when comparing charter school students to their counterparts in traditional public school. We expect that continued growth of magnet schools will likely promote school diversity both within and between districts, though some types of magnets may also inadvertently promote segregation. However, expansion of the charter school sector will heighten school segregation and exacerbate racial and socioeconomic isolation.     

To What Extent Can the School Reduce the Gaps Between Children Raised by Divorced and Intact Families

This study deals with the extent and conditions under which the school can compensate children for the deficit in parental investment due to the divorce of their parents. Pair matched samples of one- and two-parent children from seven elementary schools, located near Tel Aviv, Israel, are compared. Children raised by divorced mothers in regular schools turned out to have lower scholastic achievements as well as lower popularity (among peers) than children raised in intact families. However when the same comparison was carried out in an experimental school having an extended school day and student participation, most of these differences dissapeared. Some implications of these findings for educational policy are discussed.     

Mobilizing intercultural education for equity and social justice. Time to react against the intolerable: A proposal from Spain

Abstract

Education is suffering from the consequences of strengthening neoliberal policies, which impose an education model that serves the interests of the hegemonic economic system. The market rationale is being implemented in schools, moving the interests from equity to efficiency, from equal opportunities to performance. Starting from setting out a panoramic view of the way in which the intercultural focus in Spain has been used, with an approach to the different educational spheres in which we have carried out our work and research –educational policies, teacher education, school practice and education outside the school – we discuss the paradoxes and ambiguities that remove the transformative capacity of intercultural education and propose the reformulation of interculturality as an ethical and political project to subvert inequality by mobilizing to collectively create and enable images of education that contribute to a sustained way of building an equitable and fair society. Assuming our role as academics, we design a specific collective proposal on who mobilizes, with whom, as well as the attributes of the processes to be generated are discussed as well.     

Supporting systemic social and emotional learning with a schoolwide implementation model

A strong body of research indicates that evidence-based programs designed to promote social and emotional learning (SEL) can lead to positive developmental outcomes for children and youth. Although these evidence-based programs have demonstrated benefits for students, it is also well-established that programs must be implemented with quality and sustained to maximize positive outcomes. To support schools in implementing SEL that is integrated into all aspects of a school community, the CASEL School Guide implementation model was developed to guide school leadership teams in establishing a vision; selecting, implementing, and sustaining evidence-based programs; and integrating SEL schoolwide. The School Guide model is based on CASEL’s School Theory of Action which includes planning, implementing, and monitoring schoolwide SEL. This paper describes findings about the feasibility and degree of implementation of this model as carried out by 14 school leadership teams who were supported by SEL coaches. The participating schools implemented an evidence-based SEL program as the foundation of their efforts to promote schoolwide SEL. Findings demonstrate the feasibility of implementing this model in urban schools that primarily serve students of color, as all teams successfully carried out the implementation model and demonstrated increased levels of capacity related to supporting schoolwide SEL.     

The Cultural Politics of Integrating Deaf Students in Regular Schools in Zimbabwe

The integration of deaf students into regular schools in Zimbabwe is fraught with cultural and political problems. Traditional beliefs that are negative toward disability are still prevalent among many people. The adult deaf community views integration negatively and with disrespect mainly because integration programmes in Zimbabwe do not promote deaf culture. The influences of foreign individuals and organisations of the deaf are at times, in directions that are not compatible with an agenda that aims to meet the educational needs of all deaf students. These factors are problematic and mitigate against the integration of deaf students in regular schools. This paper examines the cultural politics involved in the integration of deaf students in regular schools in Zimbabwe. It suggests ways to alleviate this dilemma for parents to make correct school choices for their deaf children.     

The challenges of mathematics education for Indigenous teacher training

In this article, I outline research carried out on in an Ethnomathematics course designed to train Indigenous teachers in Costa Rica, in which the following ethnic groups participated: Ngabes, Bribris, and Cabecares. The challenge is to develop a mathematical education that provides equitable conditions for the different groups within innovative curricular proposals. This research is based on the construct of ‘Cultural Mathematical Knowledge' which serves to describe intrinsic characteristics of socially differentiated groups and thus propose a model for teacher education. The design of the course incorporates an empirical base, a theoretical base, and a methodological base. It is a multicultural and multidisciplinary proposal based on Indigenous mathematics and on the ideas of mathematical enculturation, to be developed through curricular microprojects in Indigenous schools. The course promotes preparing the teacher as a researcher to shape him or herself mathematically, as someone who carries out appropriate educational actions in an academic environment in accordance with an ethnolinguistic reality, a cultural worldview, and awareness of the potential of the students of Indigenous schools.     

Moving Ahead in Madrid: Aspirations and Expectations in the Spanish Second Generation

This paper examines determinants of aspirations and expectations among children of immigrants based on a statistically representative sample of 3,375 second generation youths interviewed in 101 public and private secondary schools in metropolitan Madrid. We review the past literature on status attainment in general and aspirations and expectations, in particular, and draw from it a set of six hypotheses to guide the analysis. Most theoretical statements in this field have been developed on the basis of U.S. data; studies in other immigrant-receiving countries, especially outside the Anglophone world, have been scarce. The study thus provides an opportunity to test and refine existing hypotheses in a different national context. We present breakdowns of educational and occupational aspirations and expectations by gender, parental education and type of school attended. This is followed by multivariate regressions of all four dependent variables on these three plus other predictors suggested by the research literature. This analysis ends with structural equation models - recursive and non-recursive - that provide an integrated theoretical statement of the causal structure of ambition in the Spanish context. Implications of our findings for theory and policy are examined. Suggestions for future research in this field are discussed.     

Multicultural education in Thailand

This study examines multicultural education policy in Thailand. The researcher used the qualitative research methods of interviewing, observation and document examination to obtain data. Theory about multicultural education was used as a theoretical framework. The sites of study were eight primary schools that served students from diverse cultures – Muslim, Buddhist, Burmese, Cambodian and Thai – in the southern provinces of Thailand. Results showed that current educational policies do provide opportunity for migrant students to access public education. The Ministry of Education has allowed schools to apply their own rules and regulations that reflect the diverse cultures of their students. The results also show that the curriculum includes references to various cultures, that textbooks contain content that encourages students to live in harmony with people from different cultures and that some schools have implemented bilingual education programs. However, deeper analysis of school practices made it clear that what seems to be an acceptance of cultural diversity is just another form of assimilation. The well-established features that define Thainess remain intact and the inclusion of culturally specific content is insufficient to change the unequal power relations among dominant and minority groups in Thailand.     

The relationship between school mobility and students in foster care earning a high school credential

This study examined the relationship between school mobility for Colorado students in foster care and educational attainment outcomes, specifically earning high school diploma, a high school equivalency diploma (e.g., through examination such as a GED), or exiting the K-12 system without a credential. Multinomial logistic regression was utilized to analyze the predictive role of school mobility related to high school educational attainment within a statewide sample of four cohorts of students who experienced out-of-home placements during high school. Results indicated that students in the foster care cohorts changed public schools an average of 3.46 times during their first four years of high school. As the average number of school changes increased, the odds of earning a high school diploma decreased and the odds of earning an equivalency diploma (e.g., GED) or exiting without a credential increased. Grade level analysis suggests that educational stability in ninth and twelfth grades may be particularly important to closing the high school graduation gap for students in foster care. A more comprehensive child welfare profile that includes frequency of residential moves, types of placements, and mental or behavioral health indicators was not included in analyses, and this limitation must be considered when using the results of this study to inform policy or practice.     

Self-evaluation of assessment programs: a cross-case analysis

The goal of this article is to contribute to the validation of a self-evaluation method, which can be used by schools to evaluate the quality of their Competence Assessment Program (CAP). The outcomes of the self-evaluations of two schools are systematically compared: a novice school with little experience in competence-based education and assessment, and an innovative school with extensive experience. The self-evaluation was based on 12 quality criteria for CAPs, including both validity and reliability, and criteria stressing the importance of the formative function of assessment, such as meaningfulness and educational consequences. In each school, teachers, management and examination board participated. Results show that the two schools use different approaches to assure assessment quality. The innovative school seems to be more aware of its own strengths and weaknesses, to have a more positive attitude towards teachers, students, and educational innovations, and to explicitly involve stakeholders (i.e., teachers, students, and the work field) in their assessments. This school also had a more explicit vision of the goal of competence-based education and could design its assessments in accordance with these goals.