Introduction
Rapid development of transportation means, communication technologies and globalization as phenomenon call forth topicality of addressing issues, related to migration, which concern integration and meeting the challenge of reframing critical spheres of social life with respect to the requirements of multicultural society. It may seem that the issue of choosing approach to managing diversity is inherent fir modern governance only. However, it is worth mentioning that in such countries as the USA, Australia and Canada, managing diversity has had quite a long story. The essay below will be dedicated to researching into current challenges of multiculturalism approach in education and considering cosmopolitanism as an alternative.
Topicality of reconsidering multiculturalism approach, which currently dominates managing diversity practice, is connected with two important factors. Firstly, the challenges to multiculturalism policy continuation can be currently traced in societies with long history of diversity management. Secondly, strong need to re-examine results and implications 0of multiculturalism approach to schooling in Australia and Canada is related to the fact that in Europe central and local authorities are currently interested in intercultural education as the way to ‘manage’ growing ethnic and cultural diversity in class (Leemann&Reid, 2006). Both the curriculum and ideological discourses are to be analyzed with regard to considering multiculturalism and cosmopolitanism as possible ways to address diversity in schooling. Let us start comparative study of multiculturalism and cosmopolitanism with briefly examining the history of multiculturalism in Australia, its basic ideas and challenges it is currently facing in the sphere of education.
Multiculturalism policies in Australia
According to Foster&Stockley (1988), the increasing application of the term ‘multiculturalism’ with respect to Australian context is the phenomenon of the seventies of the 20th century. Multiculturalism should be viewed as a social construct or social policy, which can be studied with the help of approaches, stemming from sociology of knowledge, history and constitutional law. The development of multicultural social policy particularly in the second half of the 20th century is called forth by the fact that over the period between 1901 and 1945 the population of the country had doubled due to ever increasing immigration. Lots of immigrants had British background and received sufficient integration assistance from Australian government. Immigrants of non-British origin were mainly Southern Europeans.
In the post-war period migrants and their children were expected to become assimilated as soon as possible. Therefore, at that time schools represented mono-cultural institutions with respect to outlook, not their population (Salili&Hoosain, 2001). In 1960s the first efforts were applied to engage schools into helping immigrants’ children maintain their ‘ethnic’ languages and cultures, so that they can contribute to their future education. In 1971 the first Child Migrant Education Program (CMEP) was provided for establishing teaching English as a second language for migrant children in schools. Future related reforms were aimed at elaborating on multicultural curricula, which not only respected cultural differences, but cultivated them. Many aspects of multiculturalism were introduced at the state level, so that the target group included not only migrants’ children, but native population. So, in 1970-1980s multiculturalism started to be viewed as central governmental policy issue, rather than local concern. The general aims of multiculturalism, promulgated in 1999, include making Australian infrastructure more responsive to the rights, obligations and needs of its culturally diverse population; promoting social harmony among different groups of Australian society and optimizing the benefits of cultural diversity for all Australians.
Main multiculturalism tools, which are currently used in Australian schooling, include English as a Second Language Program, Community Language Program, Anti-racism education program, communication and consultations with parents and communities, who have diverse linguistic and cultural background, vocational educational and training programs for students from different backgrounds.
Despite multiculturalism being viewed as central government policy and including lots of programs, aimed at meeting variety of needs, it is currently facing a range of challenges. To my mind, firstly, it is worth mentioning the lack of profound approach to intercultural differences and benefits, related to being raised in multicultural society. It is important to understand that the implementation of multicultural education values is conducted with the help of either touristic or contribution approaches, which allow nothing but focusing on outward manifestations of culture. Therefore, it may be claimed that students may lack the feeling of culture as something global, which unifies people. Lack of understanding of culture and genuine interactions among students with different backgrounds leads to the fact that racism is still a problem in Australian schools, which manifests itself in such forms as name-calling, teasing, bullying and even exclusion. Effects of racism include negative learning experiences, which prevent students with different ethnic background from continuing studies in Australia. Another critical prerequisite, which promotes the development of racism in different settings, including schools, is related to the fact that current multiculturalism tends to oppress the importance of the racializing discourse in modern Australia instead of acknowledging its importance and applying efforts to exert melting influence upon it.
The last, but not the least issue to mention is the fact that multiculturalism is believed not to respond to the requirements, set by unprecedented volumes and speeds of intercultural exchange, typical for contemporary era (Rizvi, 2008). So, it is clear that the main goal of the following social policy alternative to multiculturalism should lie in creating outlook-related prerequisites for genuine interaction between representatives of different cultures, based on understanding culture as unified and unifying phenomenon instead of viewing it from the points of view of combination of different countries’ culture. Furthermore, one more issue should be taken into account, so that supplementary goal of the reform can be formulated. The problem with multiculturalism lies in the fact that there is a gap between the official representations of multiculturalism in Australia, on the one hand, and highly contradictory experiences, which accompany people of different backgrounds in their everyday life and activities, including schooling (Ang& Stratton , 1998, 5). Bridging this gap is highly important for making life of minorities in Australia free from negative experiences, related to them having non-Australian background.
Having these goals in mid, let us transfer to the analysis of contents and chances for practical application of cosmopolitanism, which is currently discussed as one of most promising alternatives to multiculturalism approach.
Cosmopolitanism: roots and applications
The idea of cosmopolitanism is not new for sociology of knowledge and other related fields of study. The concept of cosmopolitanism represents a historical category, which is currently viewed without specific reference to the definitions, developed in terms of particular society or discourse. According to the opinion of N.W. Sobe (2009), it is worth considering cosmopolitanism both as a question of identity and formation of the identity (self-definition with respect to the world beyond immediate surroundings local circumstances, inherent for the individual) and political action (strategic locating self and community with regard to local and global formations). Both views are relevant for education as particularly over the period of schooling the development of self’s identity takes place and can be subjected to influence, exerted by curriculum. Influencing self-awareness of the individuals is an important tool to be used to combat current challenges of multiculturalism. According to S.Spisak (2009), the core value of cosmopolitanism lies in assuming that all humans possess equal worth through self-awareness. Furthermore, cosmopolitanism can be viewed as the process of constant learning about culture and intercultural relationships, so it may seem natural that an unprecedented increase in global connectivity, which can be currently watched all over the world, requires not only re-examination of the way individuals’ self-awareness is formed in terms of schooling, but also implementing continuous education about the nature of culture as a global phenomenon and relationships, which may exist between cultures, when being viewed through lenses of the nation-state
In the study, dedicated to the oxymoron concept of vernacular cosmopolitanism (2006), P.Werbner sets an important question whether the local, culturally specific, rooted can xo-exist with translocal, transnational, universalist and modernist. To my mind, the very existence of the term ‘vernacular cosmopolitanism’ testifies to the fact that such co-existence is possible. So, while Australian schools and possible remedy for existing issues, it is worth understanding that pure cosmopolitanism cannot exist due to the existing power of locality, which cannot be combated due to its deep roots and constant maintenance in environment different from schools. Cosmopolitan outlook should be developed in such a way that will accept duality of things. In other words, considering culture as global unifying and unified value should correspond with the fact that existence of such a global culture, inherent for the whole humankind, does not prevent existence and active development of local cultures, which are contributing one into one another and thus creating the global culture of the humankind, where all the humans are equals. Furthermore, it is important to underline the need to include understanding that cosmopolitanism does not necessarily refer to globalization, the development of international communication and growing mutual influence of cultural, typical for contemporary era, but represents the view, which can exist and be practically implemented in any country in any historical moment (Delanty, 2006). Another concern should be associated with the fact that cosmopolitanism should not be viewed only within the terms of economic flows and politics. The core peculiarity of modern cosmopolitan perspective is about its being situated and person-centered. In other words, the first thesis is that cosmopolitanism is to exist in different situations. The second one is associated with the fact that a person with cosmopolitan outlook exerts constituting influence on culture and, therefore, can influence its general framework and contents.
In theory it is rather easy to develop the understanding of the cosmopolitanism-based framework for schooling and its core principles and concerns, whereas success of introducing education to cosmopolitanism perspective depends to great extent on the way theoretical provisions, set above, will be implemented in practice. The first thing, which I think about, when coming to this question, is promoting the development of international education. However, facilitating international exchanges and reinforcing other relevant measures can be used only after students reach particular age. On the other hand, it is quite possible to develop exchanges network in terms of one country, so that from quite an early age students get the chance to be introduced to other cultures and views. Another critical step is connected with reconsidering approaches to teaching students about culture. It is worth avoiding learning about cultures in abstract manner and applying pure touristic approach, while providing pupils with the opportunity to explore cultures and related differences themselves and emphasizing interrelations between a person and culture, and between cultures.
Conclusion
Multiculturalism, which is Australian governmental ‘managing’ diversity policy, is currently facing range of challenges, which are to great extent related to the gap between governmental views of multiculturalism and perceptions, which are developed in students within the educational system and, therefore, experiences of particular people. Cosmopolitanism is often seen as the most worthy alternative in this regard.
Viewing culture as a kind of phenomenon, which has unifying power, irrespectively of location and historical period, is likely to help students understand culture more profoundly without concentrating on nothing but its external aspect. By-turn, more profound understanding of culture along with being aware about the fact that an individual has the power to influence and even transform culture is likely to be the right tool to combat the issues, related to the gap, which factually exists between governmental representations of what multiculturalism is and actual experiences of particular people. As soon as students feel themselves capable of participating in the process of creating of the culture, they are expected to approach culture-related issues in more thoughtful manner, which is likely to prevent them from bullying their fellow students, who have different background. To my mind, one of most important keys to existing challenges, which is presented by cosmopolitanism, lies in introducing more personal approach to culture and granting students a feeling of participation in forming of even not the local culture, but the one of the humankind.
References
Ang, I. & Stratton, J. (1998) Multiculturalism in Crisis: The New Politics of Race and National Identity in Australia. Topia: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies 2, 22-41
Delanty, G. (2006). The cosmopolitan imagination: critical cosmopolitanism and social theory. The British Journal of Sociology, 57(1), 25-47.
Leeman, Y. & Reid, C. (2006). Multi/Intercultural Education in Australia and the Netherlands. Compare: A Journal of Comparative Education, 36(1), 57-72
Foster, L.E., Stockley, D (1988). Australian multiculturalism: a documentary history and critique. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters
Rizvi, F. (2008). Epistemic Virtues and Cosmopolitan Learning Radford Lecture, Adelaide Australia 27 November 2006. The Australian Educational Researcher, 35(1), 13-35
Salili, F., Hoosain, R.(2001).Multicultural education: issues, policies and practices. Charlotte: Information Age Publishing
Sobe, N. W. (2009). Rethinking "Cosmopolitanism" as an Analytic for the Comparative Study of Globalization and Education. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 12(1), 6-13
Spisak, S. (2009). The Evolution of a Cosmopolitan Identity: Transforming Culture. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 12(1), 86-91
Werbner, P. (2006). Vernacular cosmopolitanism. Theory, Culture & Society, 23(2-3), 496-498
