Review of Oslo coalition paper BJRE, 29 (2), 2007, pp 201-03.
Intercultural Education and Religious Plurality
R. Jackson & U. McKenna (Eds), (2005)
Oslo, The Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief
£5.00 (pbk), 77 pp.
ISBN 82-92720- 00-6
To obtain copies of this publication a cheque made payable to ‘University of
Warwick’ should be sent to U. McKenna, Institute of Education, University of
Warwick, CV4 7AL, UK.
This is the first of the Oslo Coalition occasional papers, described in the foreword
as a contribution to the Coalition’s ‘Teaching for Tolerance and Freedom of Religion
or Belief’ project. It brings together a number of articles by staff, research students
and associates from the Warwick Religions and Education Research Unit (WRERU)
and it will surprise no one already familiar with its work that the focus is on ethnographic,
interpretative and dialogical approaches to religious education.
Robert Jackson provides the introduction and sets out the key thesis: ‘interpretive
and dialogical approaches to the study of religious plurality can make a very positive
contribution to intercultural understanding and hence to teaching for tolerance’
(p. 5). Some useful background articles provide context: Ursula McKenna’s overview
202 Book reviews
of relevant literature and Jackson and Steele’s account of citizenship education and
religious education within and across Europe. Eleanor Nesbitt offers ‘Some possibilities
for Europe’ of ethnographic approaches to intercultural education and then there
follows a series of short papers based largely on classroom research exemplifying the
approaches in practice. Kevin O’Grady and Julia Ipgrave provide articles on their
research into dialogical approaches conducted in secondary and primary schools in
the UK, Amy Whittall applies the interpretive approach to her able students and Bill
Gent offers a case study based on his research in mosque schools. All of this is
managed in fewer than 80 pages, providing a summary of well-developed theoretical
perspectives combined with practical application in a variety of contexts, addressing
what are key questions for the whole of Europe on intercultural relationships.
The papers use and explore a number of key terms, all of which require further
analysis and explication, including ‘tolerance’, ‘intercultural’ and ‘interfaith’ (with or
without a hyphen), ‘multicultural’ and ‘multifaith’. The meaning and application of
these terms matter because they represent different perspectives and they possess
different meanings, none of which can be assumed by readers. Many of us, for example,
would take issue with the word ‘tolerance’ in the project’s title because ‘tolerance’
can appear to be only the most basic response to difference, lacking in enthusiasm and
engagement. A preferable term, discussion of which is included in this book, is
‘positive pluralism’ which avoids the dangers of the much maligned and misunderstood
‘multiculturalism’ and provides a real challenge to all of us.
Ursula McKenna bravely attempts some definitions of, for example, the difference
between multicultural education and intercultural education, by suggesting that the
latter implies interaction with others which develops interactive and co-operative
skills and includes a global perspective. In other words, there is a ‘pedagogical aspect’
to intercultural education that is lacking in multicultural education. There is room for
further discussion on this, not least because terminology is grounded in its particular
time and context, with its accompanying discourse. There is a stronger focus today
(certainly in the UK) on learning rather teaching, on developing skills rather than
acquiring knowledge. Good multicultural education was interactive, did develop
skills and included a global perspective; unfortunately, we didn’t (and don’t) always
have good multicultural education. There is clearly a need to continue to explore
these terms and their meanings as we develop a philosophy of education that is appropriate
in a rapidly changing Europe, where children and young people need to work
out their own understanding of their identity(ies) and their community(ies) and how
they relate to those that are different from themselves, whatever the particular demographics
of their immediate local circumstances. This is the most urgent task facing
educators and politicians, not just because of the riots in Bradford and Paris, not just
because of acts of terrorism—though these galvanise the politicians to action. Rather,
children need to be safe and confident, respected and respectful if they are to develop
any of the huge potential that rests within each one of them—and that is what
galvanises the educationists.
Two of the concepts which are explored in this book are particularly significant and
readers will find discussion of them helpful. The first of these is Gerd Baumann’s
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‘dominant-demotic discourse’ in which the former is the reification of cultures,
religions and ethnic groups while the latter is the language of interaction through
which cultures continue to develop, change and fuse, in a process of continual
creation. Recognising the fluidity and ever-changing nature of our cultures and
communities is an essential precursor to equality and cohesion. As Jackson points out
‘culture as process’ was absent from the multicultural education of the 1970s; it
cannot be absent from the intercultural education of the present time. A useful term
to which there is brief reference is Roger Ballard’s ‘skilled cultural navigator’. Used
originally to refer to young people who move from the culture of home and community
to that of school and peer group, it can have a wider application. By exploring the
nature of identity and community, teachers and young people can engage in dialogical
and ethnographic explorations that will enable all of them to become skilled cultural
navigators, able to move, with confidence and sensitivity, within and between different
cultures. This is the real challenge and purpose of this collection of papers and it
is the challenge and opportunity which many of us face in our daily work. The second
concept I found particularly helpful is Terence McLaughlin’s ‘minimal and maximal’
understanding of citizenship and its implications for citizenship education. At their
best religious and citizenship education are complementary processes whose full
potential has yet to be developed.
The strengths of this slim collection are that it is timely; it presents informed
overviews and analyses of complex areas; we are provided with very interesting examples
of classroom and extracurricular practice (and we must not underestimate the
importance of complementary and supplementary schooling in the lives of young
people); there is a dual focus on pedagogy and content; we have stimulating examples
of work in progress to inspire other educational practitioners and researchers.
Some important questions are raised and remain on the agenda for all of us: the
relationship between intercultural education and religious education; pupils for
whom religion is not a major part of their identity; how legislation, such as the Race
Relations Amendment Act (2000) in the UK, can support and promote intercultural
education and the place of religious education in schools’ statutory race equality
policies.
In short, this is a stimulating and useful collection of brief papers that can and
should be read and discussed by teachers and education policy makers as we work
towards promoting respect for difference in a rapidly changing Europe.
Joyce Miller, Head of Diversity and Cohesion, Education Bradford, UK.