Socially Diverse Polis: Social and School Exclusion

This paper addresses the questions of citizenship in socially diverse polities. Such issues are presently not dealt with adequately because social scientists, parliamentarians and policy makers do not have an informed view which is relevant for the governance of stable democratic systems which embody cultural diversities. The role of social policy systems in ensuring equity in the delivery of services is important in ensuring the citizenship rights of all groups in society.

At the present time economic policies have created a culture of winners and losers which makes the efforts of schools more difficult.

The schools and the educational systems face the challenge of creating a common and shared values orientation on the diversities in the polity. Such communities also present the schools with immense possibilities, if teacher education, school policies and practice, curriculum and classroom organisation can be optimised. Such measures may help obviate the school exclusion of specific groups.     

Religion,human rights and intercultural education

Religions in the contemporary world are Janus-faced institutions. They have the potential of being positive forces but also the capacity of being negative forces. Educators can use the positive aspects and dimensions of religion to foster interfaith and intercultural understandings. In this respect, educators can use the human rights instruments that most nations have approved to ensure that the legal and secular basis of the state provides safety and security to all faiths. This paper discusses these issues and the role of intercultural education in facilitating interfaith education and understanding.     

Some issues for cooperative learning and intercultural education

This article connects the two fields of cooperative learning and intercultural education. We argue that cooperative learning strategies need to be equipped with intercultural understandings. Two key points that are raised here are: (1) that issues of competitiveness amongst learners and students must be dealt with head on rather than treating it from the sidelines or by brushing them aside; and (2) for learning to take place in a truly cooperative manner, there must be an emphasis on an intercultural focus within the curriculum; the content of knowledge within the curriculum needs to be non-centric. This article emphasizes that cooperative learning strategies are effective when the curricular knowledge taught in the school is drawn from all groups (dominant, subordinate or minority groups).     

Teaching Art History in a Multicultural Society: removing the “cultural prison”

Traditionally, art history and art teaching in Europe has negated the influence and importance of non‐European art history, and its influence on Western art. In this paper, we explore the causes and consequences of this phenomenon. The paper argues that arts educators need to work towards establishing a more progressive, non‐repressive and non‐manipulative way of interpreting other cultures and other arts.