Culturally diverse classrooms

Over the years, the increasing number of immigrants has brought about new realities, which have also been felt in schools. In fact, today's classrooms are embracing an even rich diversity of cultures; teachers are exploring novel ways of reaching out to every culturally diverse student; while schoolchildren are familiarising themselves with different cultures and ethnic backgrounds.

Yet, the immigration influx and the different reactions to them, including sentiments of hostility and racism, have led two University lecturers to initiate a study into the multi-ethnic experiences of primary schools.

The project, Educating for Open Mindedness: Maltese primary schools' multi-ethnic educational experiences, is run by Andrew Azzopardi, lecturer within the Department of Youth and Community Studies, and Simone Galea, senior lecturer in the Department of Education Studies, both within the Faculty of Education. It aims to analyse the contexts of ethnic diverse primary schoolchildren, raise awareness about the experiences of these students and their peers, create public debate about these issues, and suggest ways in which the inclusion of culturally diverse children respects the different values and equal rights of every child.

A half-day seminar to present the initial findings and to obtain feedback from teachers, representatives of open centres, the ETC, the social welfare sector and other members of civil society, was held last Wednesday at the National Curriculum Centre in Ħamrun.

Paul Bartolo, who led the discussion, said that one needed to look into the positive educational practices that are being implemented in schools so that these schools can learn from each other. He also referred to his involvement in the area of inclusion, especially the inclusion of disabled children into Maltese classes.

Valerie Sollars, dean of the Faculty of Education, said that children are largely influenced by adults' perceptions, whether positive or negative. Thus, any intervention in favour of promoting diversity in classrooms needs to be targeted not only at primary school children, but also in pre-school.

Children and teachers need to acquire skills in promoting intercultural competence, which have become as crucial as literacy, numeracy and IT skills, predominantly because of globalisation and mobility which have consequently led to the need to embrace cultural diversity. In so doing, one needs to move away from a culture of "tolerance", because tolerance can have a negative connotation.

"Intercultural competence means that while we are nurturing our own culture, we are also becoming aware, understanding and accepting other diverse cultures. People are different, but this difference does not mean that one is superior to another, and this should be instilled in children from a very young age. Tolerance falls short of inclusion."

She also said that teachers carried the responsibility of getting to know about the children's background, as a way of becoming aware of what they bring into the classroom. This knowledge can then be used to help practitioners develop the curriculum, and specific learning programme and activities to appeal to the interests of the children.

Mina Dye-Sharp, project manager at a leading social housing provider in North England, was invited to the seminar to showcase practical programmes and activities which the housing unit was undertaking.

She explained how the Community Regeneration Unit and Bradford Community Housing Trust UK was moving away from offering a 'bricks and mortar' service to offering a wider range of services that make an impact on the very heart of the Bradford society - 50 per cent of which is made up of ethnic groups coming from Pakistan and Bangladesh.

"It cannot be denied that clustering consolidates a community's culture, but communities that fail to have any overlap and meaningful interchanges and relationships breeds fear, misunderstanding, distrust and division."

In such diverse communities, she emphasised that success in education is a catalyst to inclusion and integration. For example, white majority schools are twinned with ethnic group schools in Bradford. On the other hand, teaching assistants from minority cultures are engaged with Bradford schools so as to be able to communicate directly with ethnic diverse students.

Ms Dye-Sharp's accounts of projects that have been undertaken in her community reflected what Dr Azzopardi's and Dr Galea's research has concluded so far: that educators can stimulate the development of positive attitudes in young children and that they can also help eliminate stereotypes by organising activities that enable children to learn the similarities of all individuals.

Dr Azzopardi said that we should dispel myths which tell us that other cultures should be presented as distinct ways of living, or that there should be a separate, unified set of goals and curriculum for multicultural education.

"A multicultural programme should not focus on other cultures to the exclusion of cultures represented in the class. Children from different cultures often have to make major behavioural adjustments to meet the expectations of the school. Teachers should take whatever measures are necessary to see that children do not interpret these adjustments as evidence of cultural stereotypes.

Despite the importance of teachers to raise cultural awareness in the classroom, Dr Galea said that teachers also face difficulties especially within a social context where immigration is a highly debated and controversial issue.

In presenting the experiences of two anonymous teachers, Dr Galea explained that teachers react to these situations in different ways.

"Yet our study shows that there are general issues which teachers who teach migrant students are concerned with, which include language problems, and the lack of basic communication with parents.

Dr Galea stressed the need for more communication with migrant children, their parents, the teachers and with open centres. She said that teachers need to know more about the students, especially their cultural backgrounds and academic profiles. Furthermore, the situation called for awareness building about racial privilege and what can be done to help children develop multiple identities.

Dr Galea questioned: "How are teachers, who have been socialised in a "Maltese" cultural context, able to respond positively to ethnically diverse students, particularly those of different cultural and religious backgrounds? How do we expect teachers to hold to the importance of their teaching to be culture-relevant when the institutions in which they work do not value the different cultural backgrounds, social class, types of family and religious backgrounds?"

She also said that issues such as making migrant children feel more welcome in class, and language barriers, should be addressed.

In finding common ground which can unite students from different cultural background, Maria Pisani, programme and officer coordinator at the International Organisation for Migration, said that beyond issues of religion and culture, what unites ethnic minority students is that they share forced migration.

"We need to be careful about the words we use, and at the way we label these people. We also need to understand that they are often a lot more scared than we are."

Adrian Gellel, from the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Theology, said that one of the difficulties in schools is too much emphasis is placed on syllabus and curriculum.

"Very often, schools place little importance on human formation and on learning about communities. Furthermore, it is only when one gets to know personally someone else that the former can learn about the latter's multicultural experiences. The focus is on how we get Maltese and non-Maltese to interact and get to know each other - and how to bring children together to do the same."

Today's classrooms are rich in cultural diversity. How should teachers fully embrace this diversity and help their students integrate within the educational structure and among their class peers? Through his literature review, Dr Azzopardi suggests a few ideas:

1. Enrich social studies lessons by including multiple perspectives on culture and history, reflecting various viewpoints of different minority groups. An unbiased understanding of alternative interpretations of events in history and contemporary society can help students escape ethnic encapsulation or ethnocentrism.

2. Describe and analyse traditions, events and institutions by using comparisons, to help students learn and appreciate similarities and differences among various ethnic groups. Knowledge of characteristics and needs that all human beings share can foster a sense of community among individuals of diverse ethnic identities.

3. Communicate to students of various ethnic identities that they are all valued members of the school community. Students are more likely to engage in learning when they feel accepted and valued by their teachers and peers.

4. Organise group activities in the classroom so as to provide opportunities for students to establish positive interpersonal relations with everyone in the classroom.

5. Reach beyond the textbook: ask students, parents and the local community to share oral and local histories, family records and community studies. Field trips to museums, outdoor markets and festivals can complement classroom activities.

6. Help students expand their knowledge of ethnic groups through books, magazines and newspapers. Teachers should also read extensively to acquire knowledge about ethnic diversity.

7. Impart and stress upon values of ethnic diversity and national unity. Students of various backgrounds need to know and appreciate attitudes, institutions and traditions they share.