CIES (West) Annual Conference at UBC (Sept 29 to Oct 1, 2005)
Conference LocationsOpening Ceremonies: Asian Centre 1871 West Mall, UBC Campus
A. KEYNOTE ADDRESSES1. Adam, Heribert (Simon Fraser
University) Using Mandela as a metaphor, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is analyzed with three interrelated goals: First to improve understanding of the reasons for failed conflict resolution in the Middle East by contrasting it with successful peacemaking in South Africa. Second, to critically probe analogies between the two disparate situations and scrutinize whether the frequently used apartheid label fits Israeli policies. Does the anti-apartheid strategy of academic boycott help or hinder the peace process? Peacemaking resulted in an inclusive democracy in South Africa, while territorial separation in two states is widely hailed as the solution in Israel/Palestine. Third, specific lessons from the SA experience of negotiation politics are drawn for the Middle East. A South Africa type Truth Commission is recommended for both societies to narrow the cognitive dissonance, to clarify the historical record and bridge the conflicting meta-narratives. Any controversial compromise must be based on political education of skeptical constituencies. ‘Living together’ peacefully in Israel/Palestine, whether in two separate ethnic states or in a common, multicultural polity, ultimately requires the support of mutually hostile electorates. How such mindsets of collective antagonisms can be reoriented towards reconciliation and compromise is explored comparatively.
Through visual images we can learn to love, to resent, to tolerate, to respect, to feel superior, to persecute, and work toward change. From Edward Hicks' Peaceable Kingdoam to the inspirational work of contemporary artists from diverse cultural backgrounds and haunting media images, this presentation will look at the power of visual arts to create awareness, effect change, and provide implications for inclusive, anti-racist, peace-full approaches to education that help us learn to live together. Graeme Chalmers, a Professor of Art Education at UBC, currently serves as the Director of the Centre for Cross-Faculty Inquiry in Education. He is a former holder of the David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education. B. PANELS1. Chair: Bai, Heesoon (Simon Fraser
University) Learning to live together requires empathic and compassionate understanding of what the other experiences. Such understanding encompasses discursive and non-discursive, and intellectual and emotional communication. How does understanding work in situations of conflict, hostility, and entrenchment? What fosters and extends, and obstructs or limits this understanding in individual and institutional contexts? What historical, ideological, cultural, and institutional factors create barriers to learning and cultivating understanding? How do current ethos, aims, and educational approaches distract and detract from such learning? We will address these questions. Panelists hail from different academic interests, professional
practices, cultural and spiritual traditions (Buddhist-Daoist, Jewish,
Ismali-Muslim, Catholic), and Lebenswelt. We are learning to practice
inquiry, perspectival thinking and dialogue across boundaries. We will
discuss the ethics of tolerance, recognition of equal value of self and
other, sacredness of wilder-ness, the ontology of presence necessary for
the transformation of the public sphere of the classroom, the “hidden
curriculum” of domination and oppression in and out of the classroom,
“deep democracy” and pluralism, and limits of discursivity. 2. Chair: Buttedahl, Paz (Royal Roads
University) A newly created Masters Program in Human Security and Peacebuilding has identified peace and conflict in the context of human security as the metaphor to guide learning. Social justice, equity and power relations are central to understanding the roots of conflict. Reflection, action, empathy and commitment to peace are values instilled by this program. Respect for cultural diversity and the value of learning motivates participants in the pursuit of knowledge and their search for a better world! Inspired by Rolland Paulston’s social cartography, the panel will present insights related to recent experiences in Uganda, Vancouver and Sierra Leone where they worked at peacebuilding. 3. Chair: Dhanatya, Cathryn
(University of California – Los Angeles) In our increasingly globalized world, understanding how to live and learn together has become a necessity. Globalization has led to the creation of an international market economy, which in turn drives the need for internationally competent professionals. Many universities have recognized this trend and have been pressured by the external forces of the global financial market to reevaluate their past goals and practices in order to become more internationalized and develop more internationalized professionals and scholars. This two-part panel will examine current trends, possibilities, and innovations of internationalization movements within the university. The overarching topic of internationalization will be contextualized within the highly contested theoretical framework of globalization; then, utilizing case studies, the panel will illustrate how this phenomenon has manifested itself locally in the United States and abroad in Europe, East Asia and Africa. 4. Chair: Toyotomi Morimoto (Waseda
University, Japan). The purpose of this panel is to discuss the historical and educational significance of contact between native Hawaiians and Japanese migrants in Hawaii. Hawaii is home of the most developed movement in indigenous language education in the United States. Since the 1980s, the revitalization movement has produced a variety of K-12 immersion programs and college-level courses including MA programs. Hawaii is also known as a place of many ethnic groups, each with its own language maintenance efforts. Among them, the Japanese were the largest ethnic group in prewar Hawaii, and they established many language schools for the education of their children. We find a wealth of research on Japanese migrants in Hawaii with an emphasis on Japanese language schools and language maintenance efforts. Very little research has been done on contact between these two groups, although they have shared the same limited geographic area. Thus, in this panel, we will briefly survey the historical aspects of Hawaiian-Japanese contact by delineating how and to what extent they have made contact. We will then discuss some of the contemporary issues of the Hawaiian language revitalization movement and the extent to which Japanese Hawaiians have contributed to this endeavor. 5. Chair: Jacob, James (Brigham Young
University) Global trends indicate a rise in competition regarding (1) entrance into the top higher educational institutions and (2) in graduates seeking employment in a predominantly market-oriented economy. The government of China has played an active role in the development of higher educational talent, especially under the traditionally planned economic system. Trends also show a reduction in government spending in the higher education subsector; alternative avenues for financing tertiary education stem largely from the private sector and increased tuition fees. An atmosphere where the principles of autonomy, excellence, and collaboration coexist is a fundamental underpinning to successful higher education incentive plans in Chinese higher education institutions. In this panel, we consider the issues of minority access, organizational culture and technology, and educational efficiency and excellence at 10 case universities in China. 6. Chair: Wei, Hui-Chuan (National Chung
Cheng University, Taiwan) Education is a world in itself and a reflection of the world at large. For a long time people have consciously used speech to communicate from individual to individual, group to group and generation to generation. UNESCO has identified learning to live together as a pillar for the future. But how are people supposed to learn how to live together. In 21st century Taiwan this is a pressing question with few easy answers. Many valuable possessions have been lost through internal decline or destroyed by external actions. A Taiwanese foundation-sponsored survey suggests Chinese parents are graded by their children as C+ parents and that is the lowest rank compared to other Asian countries. Young people like to talk on the Internet but, in Taiwan, few elderly people are so inclined. In Taiwanese higher education, there is a large gap between technologically-inclined people and those from the social sciences. The notion of ‘excellence” has landed in this context. But this is a slippery and ever-changing concept. Just when it has become crucial people learn how to live together there are large gaps between people, users and non-users of technology, children and adults. This panel from the National Chung Cheng University is organized around the notion of “gaps” as they play out amongst different generations, migrant workers and brides and academic people. 7. Chair: Wright, Handel (University of
British Columbia) This panel addresses the complex relationship progressive African academics (on the continent and in the diaspora) have developed with received critical western discourses. All papers are presented by continental Africans currently located in the diaspora and all reflect what we have come to identify as three, often simultaneous, ways in which Africans respond to western discourses, namely appropriation, ambivalence and alternatives. The three discourses addressed as examples on the panel are philosophy, feminism and cultural studies. The papers indicate progressive Africans find critical discourses empowering and reflective of our own politics (hence our readiness to appropriate them). Yet we also often find them marginalizing and/or inadequate for our specific praxis and populations (hence our ambivalence). Finally we undertake work too often neglected, namely looking to African cultures for traditional or contemporary notions and discourses that can be combined with those from the West or act as alternatives to received Western discourses. 8. Chairs: Yan Huang (University of British
Columbia); Wei, Hui-Chuan (National Chung Cheng University, Taiwan), Wang
Jian (University of British Columbia) Relations between Taipei and Beijing resemble a worrying (and deadly serious) soap opera, Yet, educators in both places routinely find ways to work together. For example, in both the PRC and the ROC there have been determined attempts to apply aspects of the Faure Report and build learning streets, villages, cities and, in Jiangxi, a learning mountain. Most notably, “learning to be” is now supplemented by “learning to live together.” The Comparative and International Education Society has traditionally been a place where mainlanders and Taiwanese can talk with each other. In addition to university professors, international students from China (and other parts of Asia) are at this conference. There will be no lectures or formal papers during this China caucus. Rather, this is a chance for Chinese educators to network with each other at a Canadian university. This session will be conducted in Chinese and, in some ways, resemble a Chinese night market. Bring your good ideas and business cards. Under the guidance of the chairs, participants will briefly describe the most pressing educational issues at home and indicate what research is planned or underway. Hopefully, attendees will link up with like minded colleagues who might be able to bring a comparative perspective to future research. In short, this is an opportunity for Chinese delegates to talk with each other and identify partners for future collaboration. 9. Chair: Olmos,
Liliana(UCLA) The study of globalization in relation to school reform practices, and subsequent learning experience of schoolchildren remain under-researched and under-reported. Many theorists have reported on their impressions about competitive-based reforms and observed ongoing concerns about privatization. But empirical findings to support these claims remain scant. Without strong empirical data, we don’t know how schools and universities have restructured to reflect the changing needs of the new economy. Furthermore, we have yet to know whether school reform policies that favors standardization has helped bridge social inequalities (given the reduced resources available for students to succeed in K-12 schools and gain access to college). These questions have continued to be ambiguously challenging to researchers and policymakers. We want to discuss partial findings of our research project entitled Educating the Global Citizen: Globalization, Educational Reform, and the Politics of Equity and Inclusion in 16 Countries from East Asia, Europe, Africa, and North and South America. 10. Chair: Hans Schuetze (University of
British Columbia) Overwhelmed by publish or perish? Ready to clobber “peer reviewers” who don’t recognise value in your work or demand eigenvalues when factor loadings are fine? Disturbed by editors who assume positivism is imperialism and qualitative methodologies a bag of slush? Come and meet the editors !! They are not here to give lectures on getting articles published. Instead they will answer questions and reveal deep secrets from beneath the heavy editorial desk. What’s down there? Does it bite? And how come some people publish heaps and others crawl through dangling participles and split infinitives? And never see daylight. This is your chance to enjoy a conversation with journal editors who, apart from answering questions, will urge you to subscribe to the Comparative Education Review, the Canadian Journal of Higher Education or the Canadian Journal for Studies in Adult Education. C. INDIVIDUAL PAPERSListing by author's last name A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z Abdi , Ali, A; Shizha, E; Ellis, L (University of
Alberta) In the transition from autocratic rule to a manageable system of democratic governance in the Sub-Saharan African in the last 15 or so years, Zambia was seen as a better example in the case. Zambia’s multi-party elections in 1991 did not represent a ‘reconstitutionalization’ as many other places in the continent, of the politico-economic intentions of the old guard, but a genuine, bottom up change that ushered in new possibilities. While it is not our intention to question those understandings, it is also clear the entrenchment of the democratic system did not happen in Zambia. As such, we would like to assume a critical position and call for the enhancement and expansion of citizenship education possibilities for the people of Zambia. To corroborate our points, we refer, beyond the general literature, to print media sources and interview data collected from the field in the past 2 years. This shows the need for a more effective public understanding of politics and public policy issues in Zambia. Afrooz, Gholam Ali (University of Tehran,
Iran) Challenges arising from internationalization and globalization have dominated social science literature in recent decades. As a result, in many countries educational authorities have revised their goals and programmes. Digital technology and networking in the context of globalisation has created a particular problem for Islamic countries. Computer networks and satellite programmes inevitably shape the thoughts and beliefs of children, adolescents and adults in Islamic countries. This causes them to adopt new modes of behaviour. In this new context of instant-communication, how do educators balance Islamic thoughts and aspirations with building an effective, modern, and futuristic educational system? How can the demands of “modern” education be reconciled with strengthening cultural values and religious teachings in an international context? What does digital technology mean for curricula, programming, educational texts and Islamic teaching? Akerman, Kelly (University of
Toronto) One of the pillars of knowledge identified by the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-first Century is that of “learning to live together.” A fundamental striving which characterizes the human condition, it finds expression in intercultural education. This paper examines select aspects of intercultural education from a comparative perspective. It is grounded in how notions of linguistic and cultural diversity are uniquely conceptualized in France, Spain and Italy, and how these notions, in turn, are enacted within their respective educational systems. After first distinguishing interculturalism as a separate phenomenon from multiculturalism, I investigate the relationship between society and school. The focus is on the demographic representation of immigrant groups as a non-educational variable in order to make sense of the sociopolitical context as it exists outside the schools. I later turn attention toward instructional materials as an educational variable in order to partly account for the resources available inside the schools. Similarities and differences between the three countries are drawn for purposes of comparative analysis. I conclude by emphasizing how our constantly shifting ‘socioscape,’ in the context of a global community, impels us to embrace the possibility of interculturalism. Alam, Matiul (University of British Columbia) Baca, Paola; Csillag-Wong,
Madeleine (University of British Columbia) Battaglio, Carol (University of British Columbia) Bullying has probably been around as long as teachers have been trying to prevent it. Recent school-wide comprehensive anti-bullying programs have resulted in, at best, a 50% reduction of bullying, at worst a 15% increase. The problem persists, and begs for new understanding. Most research involves quantitative, analysis of questionnaires. This study applies a qualitative method where 18 volunteers, age 10 to 56 were interviewed, audio-transcripts analyzed, a theory of bullying developed, and teachers’ comments solicited. Results of the study suggest a complex picture. “Bully” and “victim” appear to be interchangeable, not simply the behaviour of dysfunctional individuals. Bullying seems to reflect a relationship between individuals involving the negotiation of status among peers. Group dynamics become a powerful and problematic dimension of bullying. Respondents reported that teachers can contribute to the problem of bullying through application of counterproductive standard authority-based solutions, through ignorance of group dynamics, or by unintentionally participating in them. This study suggests social and emotional development needs to take a higher priority in school curricula and educational pedagogy. Bockarie, Abu (University of Regina) This study explores the relationship between education and productivity in two unionized workplace contexts in Saskatchewan. The research is placed within the social, economic, political and historical characteristics of the workplace and explores the relationship among productivity, social development and wellbeing of unionized employees, and education’s role in them. For purposes of this study, education is defined broadly to include the formal structure of schooling and non-formal and informal structure of learning. Data collection included document and record analysis, administration of a survey questionnaire and face-to-face interviews with workers in two workplaces. The study concludes that the relationship between education and productivity, social development and wellbeing of unionized workers is neither simple nor straightforward as different educational and union practices may contribute either to productivity, social development and wellbeing of workers or detract from it. The research documents the relationship between education and productivity, social development and wellbeing; identifies the factors that facilitate and hinder education’s role in productivity, social development and wellbeing in the two workplace contexts; and offers recommendations for best practices with regard to the contribution of education to productivity, social development and wellbeing of unionized workers. Boshier, Roger; Huang ,Yan (University of British Columbia)
After Boshier’s 2004 presentation to high Communist Party officials there was one salient question. “When I go to work on Monday, how do I build a learning village. What do I do?” This paper answers that question. It is based on fieldwork conducted in China throughout 2004 and 2005. Shuang Yu (“Two Fish”) village is a remote village where, until recently, the only notable thing to happen was when Chairman Mao’s train was stopped by a flood and the Great Helmsman shook hands with locals. Shuang Yu is an act of imagination and this paper describes the investigation, initiation and consolidation phases of its transformation and shows how the Communist Party was persuaded to act as a partner. The paper describes how community radio, a book exchange, the Long March Book Tracker, a learning festival, a learning exchange, an inventory of local farm-gate intellectuals and huge respect for out-of-school learning transformed what was once a sleepy and impoverished village. In Shuang Yu the main emphasis was on building social capital and eliminating ageism. The paper describes the process of building a learning village and the crucial roles of Teacher Liu, Mrs. He, Aunty Jing, one-armed Qi, Bouncing Tang, people living outdoors and other activists. Bradlee, Marcia (Northern Illinois
University) In writing The Meaning of Adult Education, Eduard Lindeman gave us a seminal work in adult education. However, most practitioners of adult education have only a superficial and/or fragmentary perspective of his educational philosophy. My paper elucidates Eduard Lindeman’s Philosophy of Adult Education and examines concepts of knowledge building, learning, social change, and possibilities and methods for application of his philosophy. Lindeman believes the foremost problem lies in the realm of human relationships. His work has been examined mostly through his ideas about democracy. While an important element of Lindeman’s overall philosophy, democracy is only one aspect of that philosophy. His overarching philosophy covers the nature of reality in the human realm and creating knowledge within an intersubjective, social world. Democracy provides the best possible conditions for creating an “organic” social environment for this kind of inquiry, creation of knowledge, and discovery of meaning. Lindeman addresses how we can best live together and pursue the “good life.” Butterwick, Shauna (University of British Columbia) Chen, Rosa Hong (University of British Columbia)
Translation is the sole means of exchanging literature across languages and cultures. For many years, there have been a variety of studies of theories and techniques of poetry translation. Nevertheless, much of the previous translation theories and art of translation in literary theory do not do final justice to the complexities of the translation process, particularly to those of translating classical Chinese poetry. Little attention has been turned to translators as readers or to the translator’s effective reading of the original texts, which is essentially required for a good translator. Thus, I seek to apply reader-response theory as a theoretical orientation to exploring how the translator, as a primary reader, reads poetic texts affects his ways and quality of translation. In examining different translated texts, I focus my study on the translator’s efferent and aesthetic reading informed by reader response theory. I explore how reader-response in translation may help the translator encompass the multi-dimensions of the language and language-situated discourse in accomplishing his translation task. This paper seeks to offer the reader a fuller conveyance of literature from other languages and cultures as an integral part of the world literature in literature education. Chia, Yeow-Tong (University of
Toronto) The historical foundations for the conceptualizations of citizenship and citizenship education are too narrowly conceived. They fail to take into account other intellectual traditions. The author calls for broader conceptions of democratic citizenship education that takes into account non-Western traditions. The conceptualization of citizenship education in the West is at variance with conceptions of citizenship elsewhere. There is a strong focus on education for democracy and democratic education in Western conceptions of citizenship education. In East Asia, the focus appears to be on education for identity and nation building. We need to have a fuller understanding of the East Asian historical context, which is absent in current historical foundations of citizenship education. This would help us frame broader questions to citizenship education, democratic education, and education for democracy, thus providing the historians background to the perceived dichotomy between East and Western conceptions of citizenship education. In this context, a historical study of citizenship education in Singapore would provide the perspectives to help us better frame issues concerning citizenship education. History and philosophy complement one another in providing needed perspectives in our understanding of this area of study. Chiang, Fang-Shen (National Chi Nan University,
Taiwan) More than two decades ago, Stephen P. Heyneman and William A. Loxley (1982, 1983) from the World Bank published two widely-cited papers, and concluded that children who attend primary school in countries with low per capita incomes have learned substantially less after similar amounts of time in school than pupils in high-income countries¡¨. David P. Baker and colleagues tested this conclusion using data of TIMSS, and found that while this conclusion still holds, the intensity of the correlation has decreased. This paper reexamines this conclusion using IEA's international dataset, i.e. TIMSS-Repeat of 1999 and 2003. A preliminary analysis has shown that, 1) 8th graders¡¦ learning in mathematics and science is still positively related to national economic development, 2) more interestingly, the correlation is curvilinear, instead of a linear one. The meanings of these findings will be discussed. Clover, Darlene; Hall, Budd (University of
Victoria) Cultural diversity continues to evolve rapidly across Canada, having a major impact on everything from communities to the workplace; from social movements to cultural and arts-based organisations; from schools to adult education. As diversity becomes the norm, educators need to look for strategies to successfully incorporate this understanding into their practice. While school-based theorists and educators have recognised the importance of developing broader equity-based pedagogies, with the exception of labour and ESL educators, cross-cultural issues and anti-racist teaching and learning practices have not been well developed or integrated into the adult field. This paper argues that, in order to broaden concepts of equity-oriented and social justice-based education, we need to incorporate existing multi-cultural/anti-racist learning strategies. We must also, however, continue to develop innovative and creative methods that reflect the fundamentals of adult education. This paper examines current theories and practices of cross-cultural, multi-cultural and anti-racist approaches in schools and adult education and explores how visual arts and poetry-based education contribute to these discourses. Cohen, Avraham; Leggo, Carl (University of British Columbia)
An important and overlooked dimension of faculty-graduate student relationships is the quality and nature of the dialogue between mentor and student. Our research explores how the intersections of diverse philosophical and conceptual frameworks can support understanding and dialogical practice in central academic relationships. In particular, we investigate the myth of Mentor and the role of Palles Athena in the mentoring relationship, and we ruminate poetically and psychologically on the qualities of effective mentorship. In our research we address the following question: “What is required to create meaningful mentor-graduate student conversations and relationships?” We challenge traditional mentoring paradigms and offer an alternative, radical, and poetic perspective. In ruminations, poetry, and autobiographical narratives, we describe, conceptualize, and question the mentoring process. In our presentation, we will look reflectively and critically at our own experiences. Questions regarding the distinction between a human being and the role and process of mentoring will be explored. We will collaboratively present our research in a way that describes and exemplifies the ideas contained in the research. The intersubjective and subjective dimensions of experience will be explicated in order to provide a living experience for the audience. Cole, Wade (Stanford University) A number of studies have documented the convergence of school curricula at all levels -- primary, secondary, and tertiary -- around standardized world models. With so much evidence documenting curricular isomorphism, analysts have largely overlooked cases that depart fundamentally from standardized curricular frameworks. I investigate one such case of divergence: tribal colleges and universities in the United States. American Indians are an impoverished minority group comprising only one-tenth of one percent of the U.S. population. That they establish and control independent colleges emphasizing their unique cultural perspectives is therefore nothing short of amazing. I attribute the anomalous existence of tribal colleges, and the dramatic representation of Indian and tribal worldviews in tribal college curricula, to the exceptional semi-sovereign status of Indian tribes. To support my argument, I compare the extent to which tribal colleges, historically black colleges, and "mainstream" institutions incorporate minority cultural content into the intended curriculum. The analysis uses original data describing the contours and content of the curriculum at 29 tribal colleges and 33 black colleges at five-year intervals between 1977 and 2002, with supplementary data for a sample of 30 mainstream institutions in 1992 and 2002. I find that tribal colleges emphasize culture to a much greater degree than either black or mainstream colleges. Dillabough, Jo-Anne (University of British Columbia) Recent research indicates that economically disadvantaged urban youth are currently experiencing heightened forms of social and educational exclusion related to globalization (Ball, McGuire, & McCrae, 2000; Beck, 1999; Dillabough, Gardner, & McCleod, 2004). Very little ethnographic research has investigated the nature and consequences of these strains cross-nationally. This paper seeks to address this gap by investigating, against a background of global change and across three national contexts (Australia, Canada & UK), the experiences, perceptions and negotiations of economically disadvantaged male and female youth (14-18) in relation to social and educational exclusion. The ethnographic data discussed in this paper (year 1 only) extends from both individual research projects in each country and a joint comparative cultural ethnography undertaken cross-nationally (SSHRC funded), broadly phenomenological in approach, organized across four contextual categories: the spatial/local; the historical; the national; and the global. The first context relates to young people’s negotiation of local urban inner-city space and schools in the present; the second to historical legacies of youth economic disadvantage within the same space; the third to marginalized young peoples’ conceptions of citizenship and national identity within the state; and the fourth to globalization and its impact on young peoples’ educational experiences cross-nationally. For the development of these categories, together with the refinement of a conceptual apparatus centering upon the key concepts of choice, risk, exclusion, identity (see Bernstein, 1996; Luttrell, 2002), and citizenship, the research draws particularly from cultural micro-sociology and theories of cultural geography, theories of cultural reproduction, and critical theories of educational change and globalization (see also Dillabough, Garnder, & McCleod, 2004; Wright, 1997). Egan, John (University of British Columbia) Drawing on the finds from a comparative ethnography of young queer men in Vancouver (Canada) and Sydney (Australia), this paper examines the experiences of young (17-24 year old) queer (gay, bi or queer-identified) men in constructing their identities as queer men. Fieldwork and informant interviews from two cohorts (Vancouver n=12; Sydney n=15) collected in 2003 was analyzed using the constant comparative method. While several key themes emerged, in particular the analysis reveals
that K-12 schooling serves as a particularly powerful site that informs
how young queer men view issues of sexuality. The siege mentality
experienced by men in both cohorts, as well as the mitigating factor of
differentiated discourses regarding gay marriage in Australia and Canada,
are of particular note. Young queer men in Australia are, overall, less
optimistic about their value in society than their Canadian
counterparts. Fatemi, Sayyed Mohsen
(University of British Columbia) What does “living together” mean? Are there different ways of living in the world? What does “living poetically” mean? How does language contribute to our living together? What is the role of globalization in promoting living together or impeding living together? This paper addresses these questions from a psychological and linguistic point of view. Taking language as a way of living and not as an instrument, the paper looks into the creational capabilities of language and its constitutional consequences. Along with its critical analysis of discourse and language, the work explores the ontological relationship between language and its corollaries. A shift in language may alter one’s mode of being and may eventually bring forth a new becoming. While recounting the taxonomy of specific modes of being and their original relation to their underlying languages, the paper discusses the characteristics of poetically living in the world through a transformation in the language; a change from mundane discourses to creative modes of expressiveness. In line with offering examples of such a living, the paper focuses on the educational implications of such an understanding and develops a perspective which challenges the pervasive discourses in a world mired with the tyranny of subjugating signifiers which dictate prescribed modes of being and living. In its subtle touch of culture and media, the paper demonstrates how understanding one’s position and its embedded language may offer emancipating hope towards a more responsible being for living together. Flynn, Jean (University of
Nottingham) Learning to live together, learning to live with others means developing an understanding of other people in the spirit of pluralism, respect for differences and peace. We need not look far to observe that there are many obstacles within our communities that challenge the implementation of UNESCO’s fourth pillar of life. Using the practical contexts of Vancouver’s safe injection site and my own professional experience in offender programming within the Nova Scotia correctional system, I will discuss a theory of learning that offers important theoretical support of the everyday learning process of everyday, yet marginalized people. I draw, primarily, on the work of Etienne Wenger and the idea of brokering learning communities to address the challenges of learning to live together. A cultural theory of learning is more than a theoretical framework – it is relevant to our daily actions, our policies, and the systems we design and implement. As educators, we must attend to the texture of our everyday experiences, to find places and times that enable people to engage meaningfully with others, and the facilitate the establishment of learning bonds between communities. Golder, Katherine (University of
British Columbia) Often language entrance and placement tests at post-secondary institutions are used as gatekeeping mechanisms-sorting people in and out, keeping those who don’t exactly fit their desired profile out. In a community that is as diverse as Vancouver, it is important to consider how these tests can best serve candidates who may not fit the “typical” student profile. How culturally biased are the tests? Are some candidates being excluded because they lack the cultural knowledge demanded by the test? To what extent can testing, instead, focus on professional language specific to the candidate’s background and interest? The fact that many foreign-trained professionals in Canada are unemployed or underemployed is well-known. That they can’t access the necessary institutions to be ‘recredentialed’ may be evidence of how institutions, with these tests often being on eof the first points of contact, fail to adequately address the needs, abilities and potential of all test takers. My research at a post-secondary institution in Vancouver is an attempt to explore the how stakeholders (test takers, test developers and administrators, test score users) are impacted by language entrance/placement tests and how they perceive the tests. Grosjean, Garnet (University of British Columbia) Harker, Richard (Massey University, New
Zealand) A problem with school size, particularly at the secondary level, seems to revolve around a tension between the number of students that are required to provide enough teachers to give full curriculum coverage at the basic and advanced levels, and the number of students beyond which bureaucracy becomes a problem with a loss of the sense of community (students and teachers known to each other) which many studies show to be important in student learning. Much of the research debate is around the search for an optimum size (or a size range) for student learning at various levels of schooling. Hence the purpose of this paper is to determine the relationship between school size and student achievements, using data from the 2001 Ministry of Education database on all New Zealand secondary schools. Comparisons are made with research from the U.S.A and United Kingdom, where the relationship shows the form of an inverted U, peaking around 900 students (± 200). This paper shows that the New Zealand achievement data starts to level off at around that size but does not turn down as size increases beyond 1200. The social location of the larger schools is seen to be an important factor. He, Ling (University of British Columbia) A growing concern in the testing of second-language (L2) writing in
high stakes and large-scale settings is about ethical criteria such as
fairness, equality of opportunity, and feasibility. The focus of this
paper is on the issue of test fairness in assessing L2 writing proficiency
of the newly arrived ESL undergraduates to a Canadian institution by using
the Language Proficiency Index (LPI) as an assessment tool. Specifically,
the discussion focuses on two issues associated with fairness in language
testing in multilingual and pluricultural settings: 1) what descriptive
criteria are refined in the LPI scoring scale? Hirsch, Ana (National Autonomous University of Mexico); Castro,
Judith Perez (Juarez Autonomous University of Tabasco) The paper provides a synthesis of the three types of activities that were done as part of the research project about professional ethics. These are: a) The construction of a theoretical frame of reference, b) Interviews to university professors in Spain and c) The construction of an Attitude Scale of Professional Ethics, applied to a sample of groups of graduate students (master and PHD) in different knowledge areas, in Valencia University (Spain) and in the National and Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). We describe briefly the principal results obtained. Hong, Lei; Jiang, Alice (University of British Columbia)
In foreign/second language classrooms, classroom discussion is regarded as a unique process, in which students learn but also negotiate meanings. The Internet chat rooms, where foreign/second language learners can get together simultaneously from various places in the world, bears potentials for the learners to acquire linguistic and cultural knowledge of the target language. But exactly how one can turn these potentials to actual viable tools for foreign language teachers and students is a question that begs for a great deal of research. Will the use of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC), and specifically, discussion through Internet chat rooms, be effectively utilized for the language development of the language learners? Prompted by these questions, this study describes and analyzes how the learners of Chinese negotiate meanings with others in synchronous network discussion settings. The description and analysis is based on comparisons between face-to-face and Internet chat room discussion. Twelve intermediate level Chinese-as-a-foreign-language university students participated in the study. The findings of the study indicated that the students benefited from the online discussion in a different way from the face-to-face discussion and Internet chat rooms provided a unique space for the learners to interact linguistically and socially. Hosoya, Sari (Kanto Gakuin University, Japan); Ushida,
Makoto There are immigrant students studying at Japanese schools. After a while, most speak some Japanese and behave just like Japanese students. But since they do not have enough command of Japanese as a learning language, they easily dropped out of school. There are many Japanese students also who do not attain high marks and cannot survive at school. Although they do not want to be treated differently from other students, they tend to reject or hesitate to attend special supplementary classes. In Japan , there is a school culture that cannot accept diversity. As a result, students suffer. In Finland, students are eager to join supplementary classes when they feel they are behind. There seems to be a culture and an environment that accepts diversity in ability and background. I conducted research in Finland to analyse support systems for Finnish and immigrant students. I will show how the Finnish findings can assist Japan. Huang, Yan; Boshier, Roger (University of British Columbia)
The Internet is deemed to be an essential corollary of modernization and, in two threshold cities (Vancouver and Shanghai) is an essential tool for education, entertainment and daily life. Maybe learning to live together requires Internet knowledge. Vancouver and Shanghai are both coastal cities detached from far-off centres of power (viz. Ottawa and Beijing). They both have a reputation for rebelling against the centre. Each has “key” universities involved in teacher training and with historic commitments to adult education. Both are at the forefront of Internet developments. But what do Vancouver and Shanghai university students know about the Internet? This question was investigated by administering the Internet Quiz to 740 students at East China Normal University in Shanghai and 920 at the University of B.C. in Vancouver. Vancouver students completed the English and Shanghai students the Chinese version of the Internet Quiz. Vancouver students knew significantly more about the Internet than those in Shanghai and, as well, were using it for different purposes. To refine the question, authors also compared the Internet Knowledge scores of Mandarin-speaking students at UBC with those in Shanghai. They also examined gender differences in both places and explore what these and other differences mean for modernization in Shanghai and Vancouver. Inoue, Hiroki (Japan Society for the Promotion of
Science) This study compares self concept in the U.S. and Japan. It was done through in-depth interviews with teachers in both places. The sample was comprised of 59 elementary school teachers who taught classes from the 3rd to 5th grade in the United States and Japan. The interview addressed students’ academic social skills and their self-concept in school settings. The common characteristics of students who have High/Low self-concept students and main causes for that were explored. By recognizing differences and similarities in both countries, how social and cultural contexts influence the development of self-concept was discussed. While the main academic problem in Japanese elementary school was arithmetic, in US schools it was literacy and learning disabilities. It was revealed that (1) praise and acceptance was important for students in order to keep their positive self-concept, (2) the coherence of teachers’ attitude toward students was related to students’ mental stability, (3) setting the appropriate goals for each student and giving positive feedbacks were essential to them, and (4) as compared to Japanese teachers, US teachers emphasized the notion of logical thinking from the elementary level. Jackson, Valery (Curtin University of
Technology,Australia) Australia’s population has increased each year due in part to high
levels of migration. Some 22% of all Australian residents were born
overseas. 43% were born in one of these four countries: the United
Kingdom, New Zealand, Italy or Vietnam. The Australian Bureau of
Statistics reported that the diversity of countries of birth has increased
substantially over the years, and patterns of migration have also changed.
There has been little migration from the traditional countries of Italy,
Greece and the Netherlands, whilst New Zealand and the United Kingdom now
show 13% each, down from previous highs of 17% and 28% respectively. In
this paper the author identifies problems that inhibit the ability of
Australians to live happily together. Data is drawn from a series of case
studies highlighting difficulties and triumphs in the struggle to build a
better world and learn how to live together. The purpose of this study is to investigate how young children tell in their narratives and how they describe and represent relationship with others through oral and visual narratives. This research explores the possibility that children develop a means for understanding and expressing themselves in constructing social beings in the world through their participation in their play and drawing. A a qualitative methodology of narrative inquiry is used since the focus of this study is on the children's lived/representation of experience. By using narrative inquiry, I listened to the narratives told by young children during the free choice playtime. Through narrative inquiry, children's experiences are unearthed and translated into stories that lead us to inquire who they are and where they are. Children showed signs of closer connection using narratives. Conforming to the social norms was a means of leading to a sense of living together. Children pointed out the similarities in each other's narratives, which was undeniably an act of establishing solidarity. This study may serve to create educational program that facilitate generative possibilities in addressing the importance of complex narratives in early childhood education through child-centered integrative learning. Jütte, Wolfgang (Danube University Krems, Austria) History provides numerous examples where, after radical political changes have taken place, popularization of the arts (theatre, music, literature) and popular education approaches have been used in an endeavour to win over larger sections of the population – especially in rural areas – for the new social order, to enable them to participate in power and, in general, to overcome the existing differences between urban and rural areas. Typical examples are Lunatcharski, in the newly-founded Soviet Union, and Vasconcelos, following the revolution in Mexico. When on 14 April 1931 the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed, comprehensive cultural and educational programmes were developed. In the maelstrom of the republican atmosphere of awakening there were a series of regenerative popular education approaches which found expression in the missiones pedagógicas. The aim of these “ambulant missions” into the rural areas by students and those engaged in the cultural sector was to make a contribution towards national unity and the overcoming of urban-rural differences through cultural work. They symbolize to a high degree the educational optimism of the republic. In this contribution, the characteristics of the missiones pedagógicas are presented, their effectiveness is discussed and references are made to comparable international approaches. Katira, Kiran (University of New
Mexico) So you say... This poem reflects the sentiments of critical multiculturalists who want education to be liberatory and go beyond mere celebration of differences. Working within teacher education and community-based projects leads me to my heightened curiosity about the relationship between my experiences and the 1996 UNESCO report on learning. Within this paper, I shall unpack the connection between teacher education programs (often promoting “tolerance” and “learning to live together”) and the fourth pillar of 1996 UNESCO report of a similar name. Kilgore, Deborah; McCormick, Theresa (Iowa State
University) Since 2004, feminist scholars at Iowa State University and Kharkiv National University have been working together on a U.S. State Department-sponsored Educational Partnership Grant, to develop curriculum comparing gendered lives across our national contexts. Our very different national experiences have introduced challenges to and opportunities for understanding. National identity is largely invisible to citizens in the United States. By accounting for our own cultural, political, and social paradigms to understand Ukraine better, we have also come to understand ourselves better. With a long history of violent conflict and repressive colonization, Ukraine is intentionally reclaiming and reconstructing its national identity since declaring independence in 1991. The recent “Orange Revolution” exemplifies the continuing struggle to define Ukraine as a nation. At the same time that nationalism creates the potential for solidarity around democratic principles, it also carries the danger of chauvinism shaped by gender constructs. The United States experience has limited application for analyzing the Ukrainian context, but Western feminist theory offers many strategies for critiquing and intervening in the ongoing construction of Ukrainian national identity. In this paper, we will explore the use of feminist consciousness raising methods, including creation of cultural identity maps focused on gender, to further mutual understanding. Kuhn, Michael (University of Bremen, Germany) A recent review of the scientific and political discourses about the Learning Society in the EU funded Research Project EURONET shows many countries are trying to build a learning or knowledge based society. The paper shows how learning in the workplace is joined to the larger project (creation of a learning or knowledge-based society) in several countries. The paper will analyse how different countries have conceptualised workplace learning, defined roles to be occupied by citizens and what developments mean for the nation-state and international context. The paper also reflects on the implications of this concept of global societies for the interplay of social sciences and policies as for the revitalisation of ideologies (national cultures and transnational religions) accompanying globalising learning societies. How do citizens protect their identities against “others” at home and abroad? Larsen, Marianne (University of Western
Ontario) Education policy makers around the world have turned their attention to the quality of the teaching profession. Across a wide range of settings, policies such as teacher testing, appraisals and performance-based pay have been implemented as part of the wider education accountability and quality assurance reform movement. Critics have noted the negative effects of many of these policies, including increasing stress and tension amongst the teaching profession, and decreasing recruitment and retention rates. However, a few jurisdictions have approached the issue of teacher quality from a different perspective. This paper examines the comprehensive teacher policies initiatives taken up in Connecticut, U.S.A. and Finland. In both settings, increases student achievement scores have been attributed to the high quality and social standing of teachers. Teacher friendly policies, such as incentives for training and supports for professional development have contributed towards enhancing the quality and public status of the teaching profession, and standards across the educational system. Drawing upon a comparative approach, this paper explores some of the conditions in these two societies that have enabled the development of these teacher policies and argues that there is much to learn from a close and critical study of teacher policies in Finland and Connecticut. Liang, Kristy Yan (University of British Columbia) This study used the quantitative content analysis to examine students' social presence in a network-based learning environment. Social presence is a person’s feeling of belonging to the community, socially present and socially together. This study examines a graduate courses offered in mixed mode at a Canadian university in Summer, 2004 with 12 graduate students and their instructor. Since the beginning of the course, every student wrote and shared their autobiography on WebCT discussions. Anderson, Garrison, and Archer developed an inclusive template for assessing social presence using content analysis. The researchers developed most of the categories and indicators from a broad range of areas including literature in social presence, media capacity, teacher immediacy, group cohesion, and additional categories and indicators were developed later from their analysis. The indicators could be perceived as the signs of living and learning together. The calculated density of social presence indicators in online messages could provide important quantitative descriptions of social presence in an online environment. Finally, the signs could help educators gain good ideas about students’ level of social presence in a learning community, and provide implications on how to promote a higher level of social presence. Liu, Qin; Lee, Jack (University of British Columbia) While internationalization of the curriculum is seen as a major strategy for accomplishing internationalization in higher education institutions, it has been found to be the most difficult element of international education. Although faculty are believed to be the key for change, previous survey studies have revealed that there is a mismatch between administration staff and faculty members in terms of commitment to internationalization. What individual faculty are doing and what rationales motivate or hinder the involvement of faculty members remains unanswered in previous research. In this paper, the authors describe a case study of the Faculty of Education at the University of British Columbia with an aim to investigate to what extent the Faculty is internationalizing its curricula and how the faculty members are responding to internationalization, a major force for change in higher education. The question of internationalizing the curriculum is conceptualized by looking into the definition, characteristics, typology and implementation strategies of internationalized curricula, all of which have been used to identify the state of internationalizing the curricula at the Faculty. The case will be presented from the perspectives of the university policy, internationalized curriculum initiatives at the Faculty level and some findings from interviews with faculty members. MacDonald, Suzanne (University
of Akron, USA) In light of conference organizers’ interest in focusing educational discourse in the annual meeting to be held in one of the “most diverse, multicultural and vibrant cities on earth,” and in response to UNESCO’s (1996 Report on Learning: The Treasure Within) third pillar Learning to Live Together, I would like to present a three-pronged comparison of education in communities striving to meet that goal within and beyond the local. The paper will examine the theme of multiculturalism/diversity/international perspectives conceptualized and operationalized in educational institutions in midwestern United States, Northern Thailand, and The People’s Republic of China/Xinjiang Province. The dual focus of public school curriculum and instruction, and teacher education programs, in terms of their responsiveness to culturally pluralistic communities in these three world regions, is based primarily on: the researcher’s recent two-year experience in-country with educational reform in Thailand; a visit with educators in schools and universities in Xinjiang Province; and a sixteen-year research agenda on multicultual issues in education in the U. S., most recently focused on a study of five midwestern teacher education programs. Mazawi, Andre (University of British Columbia) The Saudi Arabian university professoriate is characterised by
significant diversity, whether in term of the citizenship background or in
term of the professional socialisation of faculty members. How does this
diversity play out within the Saudi Arabian university system? How is it
shaped by broader constellations of power underpinning Saudi Arabia’s
rentier economy and the state’s dual religious-political constitutional
structure? Adopting a Bourdieuan approach to the study of the academic
field and its relations to the broader field of politics, the present
study explores the disciplinary differentiation of 8322 faculty members
employed in seven Saudi Arabian universities. Using correspondence
analysis, the study investigates how disciplinary fields are
differentiated in terms of gender, citizenship status and human capital
resources held by faculty members. The implications of the findings are
discussed with regard to two major questions. The first pertains to the
nexus between broader constellations of power and their impact on
university governance and the internal organisation of the academic
workplace. The second pertains to the mechanisms that shape the emergence
of distinct constituencies defined along academic credentials, disciplines
and institutional settings. McMichael, Bill; Greenholtz, Joe (University of British
Columbia) This presentation reviews a variety of innovative and inclusive curriculum solutions developed in the UBC-Ritsumeikan Academic Exchange. The program, in its 15th year, is an award-winning initiative in international education that each year brings 100 Japanese students to Canada for a year. It takes the minority view (at UBC at least) of internationalization as an emergent, collaborative and respectful process that begins with and builds upon the knowledge and skills that students bring to the program. Students are expected to draw from academic knowledge gained in Japan to their studies in Canada, working collaboratively with their peers, using a variety of tools and information resources in their guided pursuit of learning goals and problem-solving activities. The program makes particular use of active learning strategies such as open-book examinations, group literacy and field research assignments, virtual peer support groups, group multimedia presentations, and reflection circles. The presenters consider this approach to be a respectful and inclusive process one that builds upon the knowledge and skills that students bring to the program and helps them gain self-confidence in their ability to contribute wisely to discussions on complex global topics. Minami, Masahiro (University of British Columbia) We live in a multicultural society in which it is almost impossible to avoid interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds and this poses a challenge for “living together.” Due to our cultural differences, communication between a culturally different dyad can often invite misunderstandings. In this paper, Carl Rogers’ model of empathy was critically re-examined from a unique two-phase and the “essence” perspective. This perspective recognizes two phases involved in empathic communication; 1) an effective understanding of the “phenomenal” world of the other, and 2) a successful communication of the understanding back to the other. However, each phase faces various “barriers” when applied in a cross-cultural context. For example, effective understanding of culturally different client would require one’s prior knowledge of the other’s unique cultural “worldview”. Similarly, successful communication phase would require culturally sensitive use of verbal/nonverbal expressions. This two-phase and the “essence” perspective attempts to help audience to become aware of such barriers present in each phase of cross-cultural empathic communication. Although, developed in a therapeutic setting, empathy can be applied to any type of communication including intercultural communication. Further readings on various “barriers” will be provided in an annotated bibliography form to assist audiences’ development of intercultural communication skill. Minnis, John R. (University College of the North) The paper is a theoretical discussion of the link between Aboriginal knowledge, methodologies and world views with their Western-Eurocentric counterparts. The discussion is based on the author’s experience developing a first year program leading to the BA in Native and Northern Studies at the University College of the North (UCN). As the province’s newest university established to meet the post-secondary aspirations of Northern Manitoba citizens, there was a need to prioritize the values and knowledge of the demographically dominant Aboriginal population. It was recognized that Western, discipline-based knowledge, such as that normally defined as the “liberal arts” had equal value and must also be included in the curriculum. The overarching question was, “how do we integrate the two without violating the essence of either one?” The paper describes how this question was addressed by focusing on processes, problems, controversies, and compromises. Despite this cultural, political, and economic factors that divide Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals in northern Manitoba will not be ameliorated any time soon. Morrone, Michelle Henault (Nagoya University, Japan) This research looks at how the function of the school “community” and its volunteers is changing in both Japan and the US, as reflected in the opinions of parents from both countries. The notion of community in the United States is threatened not so much by cultural diversity as by political and economic factors that have created a culture of socio-economic bifurcation. Among parents there is an additional concern regarding a growing lack of consensus on what issues should be dealt with by the local PTA and who, exactly, should end up dealing with them. Parents in the U.S. tend to see the PTA as a tool for getting what they need for their own children’s school and education; the community outside the school has little bearing on their actions. By contrast, membership in the Japanese PTA has been socially mandatory. Parents are expected to take responsible roles in the PTA during their child’s enrollment period in school. Although recent systemic changes (sentaku seido) in cities like Tokyo have witnessed an erosion of this attitude resulting in elimination of the PTA in some districts, outside of progressive Tokyo, in most areas of Japan, the PTA members are still bound to service by strong social and community pressure for maternal participation within the community. Palacios, Carolina (University of British
Columbia) Chileans ushered in the 1990s with a return to democracy. Social movements, in particular, played a key role in the struggle for the redemocratization of Chile by rallying pro-democracy forces, building solidarity and mobilizing protest, even under threat of torture and death. As prominent actors in civil society, social movements contributed to reclaiming the public sphere, eventually mounting sufficient pressure to end the 17-year dictatorship. In order to understand the political context in which social movement activities unfolded, a critical analysis of the redemocratization of Chile is presented by exploring how Gramsci and Habermas can be understood in relation to each other with respect to democratic projects. Based on the literature, a preliminary understanding of the social learning processes involved in creating societal change is discussed. The indigenous knowledge created in and by social movements, such as the communication and organizational skills involved in establishing and maintaining networks, coordinating protest and coping with police resistance, emerged as a central part of political action. The knowledge and skills developed in the Chilean experience provide important information as to how learning in social movements can contribute to creating and strengthening democratic processes and institutions in contexts ranging from post-conflict situations to liberal democracies. Pantzar, Eero (University of Tampere, Finland) This paper discusses the effects of ICT and modern media on educational globalisation. The paper takes a critical view at the assumed quick development of global, virtual learning environments. The author also discusses the role of information and communication technological development which have adverse effects on cultural equality striven for in educational practices - a phenomenon that is part of present reality, in the developed countries also. In the author's view, the main impediments to educational globalisation are primarily constituted by the miscellaneous contexts produced by various cultures and traditions. Several questions emerge when pondering, from a global perspective, on adult education's cultural and media-related problems. We can, e.g., assess the possibilities and willingness of the industrialised countries to help the developing countries build a modern educational infrastructure based on applicable information technology - an infrastructure that complies with the local culture and the current societal context. It is known that several problems will be encountered in implementing the idea of such a global classroom that would also serve the needs of the developing countries. This also requires solutions to a number of tough questions. Who would have the right to distribute learning materials? How to guarantee global cultural equality? Pantzar, Tuula (University of Tampere, Finland) During the last ten years the Finnish comprehensive school has become more multicultural. The new immigrant to Finland is young. Finland’s official immigration policies are located in a liberal tradition. Among other things, this means, that the country’s immigration policy is primarily based on the idea of tolerating difference. This, in turn, arises from the assumption “others” are different. The default value is determined by the concept that we have regarding our own group and those who deviate from it, whose difference we tolerate. Belonging is a central element in the formation of communities, regarding the individual’s position and status within the community. Difference is not necessarily exclusive by nature. Regardless of his or her difference, a different individual may be included in the group, thus constituting inclusive difference. The Finnish comprehensive school is built on the idea of recognising diversity. Learning to live with old and new differences alike is a new curricular challenge for the Finnish comprehensive school. Pitre, Paul (Washington State University);
Heggins,Willie This paper analyzes the college choice behaviors of students, utilizing newly acquired knowledge that has the capability of informing the implementation of equitable policy that will effectively broaden the spectrum of students who are prepared for college. Further, this paper highlights key connections between K-12 and higher education systems and the tremendous potential impact the connections between the two systems have on issues of enrollment, retention, and degree attainment for all. Additionally, this paper explores current research related to college choice in order to gain a better understanding of how students navigate K-12 systems, the relationship between access to opportunity and access to higher education, how college choice research can lead to new and innovative policy regarding school/college partnerships (e.g., P-16 education policy) and the development of new college choice theory related to how ethnic minority and economically disadvantaged students experience the transition from high school to college. Finally this paper focuses on educational issues and challenges from three contemporary perspectives: (1) Theoretical perspectives of college choice (e.g., econometric, sociological and combined); (2) A conceptual framework for moving toward a P-16 policy for all; and (3) Implications of college choice and its impact on education, economics, and society in general. Rogers, Theresa; Tierney, Rob;
Lenters, Kim (University of British Columbia) This paper examines knotty issues related to a situational analysis of literacy instruction in Botswana secondary schools with a team of researchers (three from Canada and two from Botswana) funded by UNESCO and the International Reading Association. We are grappling with competing tensions of best practices and more critical perspectives while working with colleagues in a developing country. What is the role of North American educators in educational policy analysis when we have a limited understanding of or experience with the developing context? How do we talk about improving literacy practices in ways that honour the goals of the project but address the pressing concerns of a country dealing with poverty, AIDS, and environmental issues? How do we broach sensitive educational issues, such as language hegemony, overcrowded classrooms, and teacher and textbook centred instruction, and the elite nature of senior secondary education? We will present these issues as we struggle with them in our current study. Hopefully, dialogue in this session will inform our work. Rubenson, Kjell (University of British Columbia) It is axiomatic that comparative education involves comparison. During the early and mid part of the 20th century it was possible to compare, for example, national education systems. Hence, scholars or policy-makers could compare education in Russia and China, Cuba and Nicaragua or Norway and Sweden. However, because of large-scale migration national education systems are under pressure to change. Is there any “essential” education left? Moreover, institutions such as universities are under pressure to “internationalize.” Given these circumstances, is “comparison” still possible? And what does this mean for the future of “comparative education?” As well as interrogating the contemporary meaning of “comparison,” the author also apologises for and explains why Sweden has never won the America’s Cup. Schuerholz-Lehr, Sabine (University of
Victoria) During a series of course (re)design workshops which the author co-facilitated at the University of Victoria, it became apparent that teaching staff struggled with concepts such as internationalization, intercultural sensitivity, international education, global awareness, global citizenship, and world mindedness. This observation triggered the question of how educators’ life experiences, as well as their personal and professional backgrounds, interact with their pedagogical approaches towards education for global awareness and cultural competence. This paper examines the relationship between faculty’s professional and personal backgrounds, and the extent to which they incorporate an approach to teaching for global awareness and intercultural sensitivity into the curriculum. The study examines the relevant theoretical frameworks of personal practical knowledge and professional knowledge landscapes, as well as the evidence linking faculty’s cultural competence and world mindedness to classroom practice. A considerable number of empirical studies have been carried out that explore different aspects of faculty experiences, background and disciplinary affiliation, and how such variables affect faculty’s intercultural sensitivity, cultural competence, and world mindedness. However, less conclusive evidence is available as to whether and how such traits in faculty translate into classroom practice. More qualitative studies, in particular classroom observations and ethnographic methodologies, need to be employed to elucidate actual classroom practices. Shohel, M. Mahruf (University of Manchester); Howes, Andrew
J. After the 1960s nonformal education became a highly important arena for developing countries. It is the second chance of education for the people who have not enrolled at or who have dropped-out from schools. Through this the children outside schools and the dropouts have access to basic education. They will also receive some practical skills, which they can apply in real life situations as and when necessary. In this way nonformal education is treated as complementary to formal education. The primary objective of nonformal education is to prepare students to enter or re-enter the formal education sector and provide basic education for illiterate people. Therefore, the Governments and NGOs are launching nonformal education programs to educate the people with basic education. The purposes of nonformal education programs run by NGOs are to reduce illiteracy; contribute to the basic education of children, especially those from the poorest families; promote the participation of girls in education; empower women; and support the government’s universal primary education program. Government and donor agencies are investing huge sums of money into the NGOs for providing nonformal education. So debate remains whether nonformal education is complementary or supplementary to formal education. This paper will discuss about the debate. It will focus on the particular role of nonformal education in developing countries as well as developed countries. The paper will be concerned also with the key interface between the nonformal and the formal education sectors. It will explore the arguments from literature and try to come to a conclusion. This paper will raise some issues that could be worth looking at in further research and give unique opportunity to contribute to the emerging debate about nonformal education and its impact on future educational development. Smith, Annie; La Flamme, Michelle (University of British
Columbia) The authors taught a UBC course entitled (THTR 325B) The History of Aboriginal Theatre in Canada. The course syllabus reads: “Plays by Native writers in Canada have come into their own over the last decade. . . . They have been challenging mainstream theatre with new visions, new voices and new forms of theatre. While Native theatre has a cultural role in the Native community, it is linked to wider problems and communities. Native theatre has charted its own course within the larger context of Canadian theatre.” Our plan was to focus attention on Native theatre artists and discover their contributions to the post-colonial project of Canadian theatre. We brought new aesthetics and voices into the academy by challenging the notion of “theatre” and the way it is taught. As instructors, we visibly represented a mix of races (Germanic, Celtic, Native, Metis, African-American) and our students were racially mixed (European, Asian, Native, Metis, Persian). Our course material challenged us to face issues arising from racism, genocide, violence against women, stereotyping, and appropriation. As co-instructors, we had to face our own biases and expectations. Our students' knowledge and understanding of plays by Native playwrights ranged from minimal to extensive. We used Native rituals, honoured moments of emotional turmoil and did not shrink from probing white and academic privilege. It was an extraordinary journey and we are excited to share some of it with you. Smith, Graham Hingangaroa (University of British
Columbia) This presentation examines the intervention potential of the tribal–university (Wananga) in New Zealand. Many of the indigenous populations around the Pacific Rim are under-represented within university graduating indices. Given that successful participation in higher education is inextricably linked to the potential of indigenous participation within the knowledge society, there is subsequently a prior need for a higher education revolution to reverse these trends and to enhance indigenous access, participation, retention and success. How might such a revolution be developed? Maori communities in New Zealand have produced interesting responses which have the potential to inform other underperforming indigenous contexts. Smolik, Darryl (University of Victoria) Service learning is often viewed as an effective strategy for community
development. Mutually beneficial to both students and community
organisations, service-learning projects often provide a basis for
enhanced civic responsibility and involvement. The purpose of this paper
is to explore the scope, goals and outcomes of a service learning project,
a volunteer fair, in the Village of Nakusp, British Columbia. The goal of
the project was to promote sustained participation in the community’s
non-profit service Stralberg, Sylvia (University of California – Los Angeles)
UNESCO advocates “learning to live together” as one of their four key pillars of life. To achieve this goal, students must be taught to work collaboratively toward humanitarian goals. In this paper, I will discuss data collected from Wildwood, a progressive secondary school in Los Angeles that directly addresses UNESCO’s mandate. As part of their graduation requirements, students at Wildwood must participate in community activities, conduct research on global affairs, and carry out a senior project, which may involve traveling overseas. I will use specific examples of student projects from the 2004-2005 school year to show how Wildwood’s unique curriculum can serve as an exemplary model for preparing students to participate in an increasingly diverse and globalized world. Sork, Tom (University of British Columbia) There are more than 100 graduate/post-graduate programs in English-speaking universities worldwide that train adult educators for a broad range of professional roles. The fortunes of these programs rise and fall based, in part, on how attractive they are to those seeking advanced education, the level of political support they enjoy within their universities, the perceived quality of their teaching and research, and the strength of their relationships—academic, professional and personal—with others in the field. Although much has been written about the preparation of adult educators, this work has largely focused on individual countries or regions of the world. This paper presents a rationale and tentative framework for a global core curriculum in adult education. This audacious and possibly misguided project asserts that there will be substantial benefits to adult education programs worldwide if their curricula have in common certain core components that reflect global concerns and sensibilities while respecting local differences. The impetus for this project comes from interviews conducted in 2000-01 with 117 faculty members in adult education programs in 38 universities in 8 countries (4 in the “south” and 4 in the “north”). This paper is deliberately provocative because there has been far too little debate in the field about what it means to prepare adult educators to work in a globalizing world in the early 21st Century. Spangberg, Ronny (University of Hälsingland, Sweden);
Gullefors, Agneta (University of Hälsingland, Sweden); Bert-Ola Gradin
(University of Hälsingland, Sweden); Norgren, Thomas (University of
Hälsingland, Sweden); Olsson, Gunnar (University of Hälsingland,
Sweden) We represent a rural district, Hälsingland, in Sweden, consisting of six independent municipalities with about 130 000 inhabitants. In our area there are great problems finding the first jobs for our youngsters. Employers ask for well-qualified personnel preferably with work-experience. A knowledge-based economy demands a good infrastructure for education. We are constantly striving to enlarge the opportunities for adults to better their lives with the help of education. We started with benchmarking among ourselves, deliberately sharing good ideas, went on building first study-centres then mini-centres. Video-conferencing and an intranet-based curriculum were the next steps. This means great flexibility to our students. We now share students and teachers and can offer more subjects to our inhabitants compared to working all on our own. Vocational training started with nursing and now we tailor-make programmes where our adults become apprentices or trainees at different workplaces in their municipalities. In Canada we see possibilities to a future cooperation with an interchange-programme for teachers and hopefully an exchange in courses for our students. We use adult education as a way to enhance the chances to a good life for people in our region. Swanson, Dalene (University of British Columbia) Tang, Irene A. (University of British
Columbia) Seeking help is one of the learning strategies that self-regulated learners would utilize to solve problems occurring during their learning processes. The current research findings regarding academic help seeking have been predominantly based on learners using their native languages (i.e., L1 speakers). Are the findings also valid to explain the help-seeking intentions and behaviors of learners using their second languages (i.e., L2 speakers) in the classroom? This presentation concerns my study for which a more comprehensive academic help-seeking model is built in order to encompass factors affecting L2 learners (such as ESL students or non-fluent English speakers) as well as L1 learners (such as native or fluent English speakers) in Canadian secondary classrooms. My study aims to investigate (a) the relations between students’ academic goals and their help-seeking intentions, mediated by their perceived benefits and costs of seeking help with their difficulties at learning tasks and (b) the relations between students’ English verbal competence and their choices of social assistance (i.e., human resources like teachers and peers) and self-help (i.e., nonhuman resources like computers and dictionaries) when having intention of seeking help to solve their learning problems. Torres-Olave, Blanca & Tran, Linh (University of British
Columbia) Amidst a growing concern among educational researchers to explore transnational offerings of higher education (Coleman 2003; French 1999; Jones 2001; Tadjudin 2000; van der Wende 2003), there is a gap in knowledge in the literature regarding institutions like the American University in Cairo: private, independent institutions operating overseas and following the American-university model. These institutions are similar to branch and franchise campuses in terms of administrative and methodological approaches, yet they remain independent and mostly self-governed. We apply the concept of imagined communities (Anderson 1991; Norton 2001; Wenger 1998; Kanno 2003) to explore the main characteristics of these institutions. Through an ethnographic content analysis we identify the imagined communities of three institutions: the American University of Sharjah, the American University in Beirut, and the Arab American University. We detect two patterns of imagined communities in these institutions based on their scope of influence, emphasis on the American model as a defining institutional characteristic, English as the language of instruction, and accreditation procedures. The authors predict the steady growth of these institutions as well as an increased homogenization of their imagined communities. The need for research on this model’s impact on student identity and local higher education systems is stressed. Toutant, Ligia (University of California – Los
Angeles) A revolution in higher education is taking place across Europe. If Europe is to be united in all aspects, from trade to culture, and if borders are to become more permeable, education must lead the way. Time, space and environments for learning are being reshaped by a new initiative, the Bologna Declaration. This paper explores the European initiative to reform their higher education systems in a convergent way in order to promote European citizens mobility and employability. Along with the Bologna Declaration’s main objectives and its criticisms, different views on globalization and global citizenship are discussed. The concept of development from above and below is analysed. The last part of the paper discusses a particular application of the Bologna Declaration in the higher education system in Romania. It concludes that the Bologna Declaration reflects a paradigm shift in educational thinking. A Europe of Knowledge can be linked to Foucault’s view of knowledge as a function of power and not something that has an independent, objective existence, but rather, a construction, the product not of consensus but of conflict. Vokey, Daniel (University of British
Columbia) With a sideways bow to Walt Kelly, whose comic character Pogo famously said “We have met the enemy, and he is us”, in this paper I will first present the view that an indispensable aspect of learning to live together is unlearning the habit of constructing “enemy images”. I will then describe a number of traditional practices for getting beyond such “us and them” thinking. Finally, I will raise for our collective consideration the question “Through what processes and with respect to what evidence could we test the validity of this view?” In the presentation I will drawn from a variety of sources including John Crossan’s work on parables, Buddhist teachings on compassion, philosophical deconstructions of dualistic thinking, and Marshall Rosenberg’s characterization of non-violent communication. Volkov, Alexei (Université du Québec à Montreal) Mathematics and science education in China and Vietnam is in the midst of a “paradigm shift” where the old system partly based on “imported” European models (China) or French colonial model (Vietnam) and heavily influenced by Soviet model in 1950s-1980s, is being replaced by a heterogeneous collection of elements from the United States, developed countries of the British Commonwealth, and the European Union. The paper analyzes this process, locates it in an historical context and speculates about its possible outcomes. Walker, Judith (University of British
Columbia) Over the past two decades, educators and researchers have decried the predominance of neo-liberalism in ideology and policy, which, they argue, has allegedly reduced adult education to ‘training for the global economy.’ There are signs, however, that discourse and policy surrounding adult education is changing. By examining two Canadian policy documents and recent budgets, I show how the federal Liberal government has embarked on a nation-building project that acknowledges globalization while stressing the importance of tradition, culture and social cohesion. These documents draw on two distinct ideologies and consequently employ two sets of discourses. On the one hand, education is portrayed as a way to raise Canada’s GDP and relative competitive position in the world market. On the other, community, cooperation and civic participation are also promoted as educational goals. These documents point to the centrality of the nation-state in educational policy; Canadians are urged to come together and participate in education and training for the sake of Canada, not for their own financial self-interest. Nonetheless, it is debatable whether this current blend of social democracy and neo-liberalism will work as a nation-building project, as it engages two contradictory discourses with arguably two opposing goals Walter, Pierre (University of British Columbia) To the Western eye, the country of Thailand is a bundle of contradictions. A Buddhist monarchy steeped in the conservative traditions of the past rules alongside a modern developmentalist state intent on globalizing a free market economy. During the economic boom of 1986-1997, the Thai state followed a path of export-oriented growth and liberalized markets for foreign and MNC investment, and made plans for a high tech industrial deepening. In the Economic Crisis of 1997, when much of this growth turned out to be built on shaky investments of foreign capital, the economy crashed. At this point, the King stepped in and issued a nation-wide call for Thais to return to self-reliant farming and the moral economy of the Buddhist Kingdom of old. In higher education, these contradictions are evident in the civil service bureaucracy of state universities; and an expanding array of private universities and joint ventures aimed at international markets and middle class educational consumers. Between the two stands the mixed model of the Autonomous University, neither public nor private, but somewhere in between. This paper charts the rise of these autonomous universities and analyzes the contradictions of Thai reform in higher education. Warren, Deborah (Okanagan University College) Many video games involve violence. Learning to live together may depend on the honouring of one or more spiritual perspectives (i.e. letting go of fear, learning to trust in the perfection of creation and developing some measure of faith). The complexity of video games provide spiritual metaphors for players (taking risks, death and re-spawn, exhausting the need for control-fantasy, relying on intuition, recognizing the gifts of destiny, many paths to a state of grace). Interactive entertainments permit the player to engage complexity and allow the fantasy ‘If only I were the one in control’. Exhausting oneself while being the anchor of the game invites more experience the use of intuition. Winning the game often depends more on trusting intuition, than careful planning and judicious use of resources. Players often sustain an altered state of consciousness, while experimenting with new (and risky) strategies. These altered states of consciousness may be comparable to prayer or meditation states, thus representing a new potential for research. Wright, Don (Amnesty International Canada) As a grassroots activist with Amnesty International Canada based at the Pacific Regional Office in Vancouver, I would like to share my experience with organizing and supporting a series of human rights film nights and festivals across Canada. In the early 1940s, the National Film Board of Canada established community film councils across the country to host films specifically produced to help Canadians learn more about each other. This program continued through the 1950s but faded with the advent of television. With a sack of films in one hand, and a stack of reports, petitions and sign-up sheets in the other, we are forging a new country-wide film circuit in collaboration with local Amnesty groups, public libraries, student unions, colleges and universities. This time, however, the aim is to help Canadians better understand what is happening in the world with a particular focus on human rights challenges and triumphs, and an emphasis on fostering personal reflection and collective action. This presentation will draw on feedback from community hosts and will be illustrated with short clips from some of the traveling film. Wright, Handel (University of British Columbia) Since its institutional inception at the University of Birmingham in the 1970s, cultural studies has quickly evolved from a specifically Anglocentric discourse dominated by neo-Marxist class analysis to a decidedly international field of numerous regional traditions that addresses broad issues of institutions, social difference and representation. This paper examines the place of two areas of study that remain relatively underrepresented in cultural studies, namely the field of education and the African continent. It endorses the notion that there is a cultural studies turn in progressive work in the field of education, not only in North America but indeed globally (a turn that is evolving in “glocal” rather than merely “global” terms). It also acknowledges the evolution of an African cultural studies. Putting these two developments together, the paper examines the potential of the articulation of African cultural studies and cultural studies of education in a hybrid discursive praxis of African cultural studies of education. Central to this discussion is the fact that both African cultural studies and cultural studies of education are characterized by “ambivalence” of their proponents. Xiong, Jie (University of Alberta) With a worldwide trend of vocationalizing higher education (HE), tertiary vocational education (TVE), similar to postsecondary/higher vocational education, emerged in China with its own features. High-level skilled workforce is highly demanded in China with the rapid development of a market economy under the open door policy. Traditional Chinese HE has been confronting challenges of providing qualified high-level skilled manpower. What kind of talents should be fostered by HE? Such a question and pressure originated from industries urging the government to find a solution. Modeled after the successful experience of developed countries to cultivate high-level skilled workforce, Vocational and Technical Colleges were set up by Chinese government in 1996. By indicating the emergence of TVE, it implicates the establishment of a binary HE system accompanied by the ideological transformation from Confucianism to vocationalism. In this paper, a theoretical framework of understanding vocationalization at different levels is employed and developed. Through the analysis, it explores that understanding vocationalization of HE through a system level will be helpful to explore that TVE has played a role as facilitator in the process of Chinese HE reform in three areas: (1) Expansion of HE; (2) Decentralization of HE; (3) Establishment of a lifelong learning system. Xu, Shi Jing (University of Toronto) In “fluctuating landscapes” with “shifting thinking”, we are searching for dialogue. To explore and understand Chinese families’ sense of belonging in their journey for home in Canada, this paper develops a conceptual understanding of “Chineseness” on landscapes in transition. A narrative perspective enables me to perceive the collective Chinese heritage as a global heritage, in which sense, people are not divided or “othered” by cultural or sub-cultural identities but connected and included in diversity by an extended and expanded “we” in our shared interdependent global community. Accordingly, multiculturalism is, and always will be, a journey and a dialogue. This is a journey we shall live, in narrative unity with our mutual “we-consciousness” cultivated in diversity. Zabitgil, Özlem (Pennsylvania State
University) The basis of peace is to know the other. Not knowing causes fear, and makes tolerance and harmony harder to achieve. Education is the key for building peace and tolerance. Multiculturalism approach in education can widen our horizons. It is crucial to learn other nations’ educational revolutions and practices to gain more knowledge, understand the other better and to discover our fuller potential as educators. This paper draws attention to an Adult Education Revolution in the Turkish History. After Turkish Republic established, Turkey's illiterate rural population formed an overwhelming 80 % of the total population in 1930s. At such a critical time for Turkey, village institutes were created as a unique reformist adult education project to boldly put into practice and to equalize the gap between rich and poor, and so to democratize the young republic. This session is valuable for reminding and encouraging us of our potential and power as educators. As adult educators/learners, we have the responsibility to learn about the reforms and revolutionary educational practices in different contexts and histories to recognize our potential in creating a more just and democratic society. |