The Role of Multiculturalism in Teaching Adult Learners in the Candian Context - Report Example

Name University Course Tutor Date ТHЕ RОLЕ ОF МULTIСULTURАLISM IN ТЕАСHING АDULT LЕАRNЕRS IN THЕ САNАDIАN СОNTЕХT Introduction The introduction of multiculturalism in contemporary education systems alleviated the state in which the systems of education, only achieved the rhetorical goals of providing learners with inclusive education. The former education systems had negligible recognition for the fact that the process of learning drew participants from diverse cultures. However, learners from diverse educational backgrounds have now been able to enjoy similar experiences as a result of multiculturalism. An outstanding example of a country where multiculturalism is practiced is Canada, with the concept having been found to impact adult learners in a significant manner (Bean 17). The country represents a multicultural society with a diversity of groups from almost all over the globe. Significant numbers of immigrants entered Canada following the arrival of European explorers in the country’s east coast in the 1960s. The inflow of immigrants into Canada explains the ever increasing diversity of the Canadian population. The Canadian State Policy of multiculturalism, of 1971, has played a significant part in the provision of equal opportunities to learners from diverse cultures. Notably, this policy serves as the basic guideline in the society via its recognition of the reality of diversity in Canada (Bennett 172). In most cases, people from other parts of the world have been entering Canada in search of professional advancement and a good life. The fact that many people enter the country in search of professional advancement has the implication that, the provision of education to adult learners from different cultural backgrounds has become an issue in Canada. As a means of handling the issue of many entrants in Canada, multiculturalism has been used and its role in teaching adult learners explained in existing literature. This paper explores the role of multiculturalism in adult learners using the case of Canada. The paper will make use of existing literature and critical reflection on the topic. The Meaning of Multicultural Teaching In order to understand the meaning of multicultural teaching, one can review both the perception of the society and the definitions given by scholars. In this way, one will find out the features of multicultural education as per the society and as provided by scholars. The society views multicultural teaching as an antidote to hegemonic curricula which hold low regard of non-dominant cultures. Multicultural teaching ought to have a significant emphasis on mutual cultural interrelationships in order to have social critical, activist, wide-ranging, and challenging learning. Scholars have identified a concept in multicultural teaching and research which includes four genre clusters: societal equity, curriculum reform, multicultural competency, and equity pedagogy. According to these four clusters, there ought to be an intercultural education in order to aid students and teachers recognize and overcome the challenges arising as a result of diverse cultures. Social stratification, gender oppression, racism, “ability tracking and streaming, and tribalism ethnocentrism are associated with many harmful effects, thus ought to be eliminated from the society (Bennett 173). In many cases, these challenges have been perpetrated by educational institutions. As a result, educators have been facing complex tasks in their attempts to enhance an intercultural environment and philosophy for students. In order to overcome such complex tasks, the educators ought to make application of intercultural perspectives with an objective of re-designing the concrete assessment and curricula systems in their various discipline areas. These areas are inclusive of physical education, arts, social sciences, history, science, mathematics and literature (Black 345). These calls for the capability of recognizing cultural ethnocentrism and racism, countering it in the course of teaching, alongside designing emergent curricula to handle creatively the controversies among shared values and various ways of viewing the world. Students, from different cultural backgrounds, ought to be provided with chances to become multilingual; fluently speaking the society’s central language, learning other languages, and still retaining their mother tongue (Black 346). The various roles of Multiculturalism in teaching Adult learners in Canada Formal schooling and education in Canada is dominated by public funding; therefore, there is every expectation that the country’s educational systems will provide service to members of the public. The state has the partial role of defining the various public ends, alongside providing ways of recognizing them. As a result, a significant number of legal and constitutional documents have been developed and implemented in the country in order to fulfill the partial responsibility of the state. Canada has a distinct approach to multiculturalism which is evident of the distinct implications of citizenship calling for respect and support for one another (Crystal 22). There has been a significant challenge in the definition of values binding a multicultural citizenry; this is because in providing such a definition, there is a high likelihood of overriding individual rights and respect for diversity. Various scholars have brought forward the argument that Canada has a unique form of multiculturalism- it has four aspects which are individual freedom, cultural retention, equality of opportunity, and cultural sharing. This is a reflection of the principles of choice, interculturalism, equity, and diversity. Ideally, multicultural policies and equity are used to safeguard interculturalism and diversity, where else, human rights are used to safeguard choice. Canadian multiculturalism realization has significantly been subject to TESL-an abbreviation for Teaching and learning of English as a Second Language (Ahlquist 5). It has been found out that ESL teachers have the capability of impacting the views of students on their first cultures and languages thus influencing their decision on whether to pursue subtractive assimilation or multilingual outcomes. ESL education has been availing international students, new immigrants, and refugees of Canadian official language alongside the opportunities associated with it. Notably, upon their arrival and settling, the fore-mentioned groups of students first encounter ESL educators; as a result, these educators normally teach the students ways of negotiating the values, culture of Canada, and official languages of Canada. Role1: Multiculturalism provides equity in access to opportunity in the course of educating adult learners in Canada The first role of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada is the provision of equity regarding the access of opportunity. Canada has demonstrated a great commitment to safeguard communitarian and individual rights in the form of linguistic and educational rights. This commitment by the state has made it possible for international students, new immigrants, and refugees from diverse cultures to participate fully and integrate equally to the Canadian life (Hickling-Hudson 390). In order to achieve the full participation of individual from different cultures and their integration into the Canadian life, the government has made the access to one of the official Canadian languages an educational right. TESL has had a great impact in realizing the equality of participation in the society of Canada through the teaching of one of the official languages in Canada. For instance, the proficiency in English is a requirement for full participation in the Canadian society and economy. As a result, English has provided all the adult learners in the country with an opportunity to understand the country’s economic and social background. Role2: Multiculturalism provides adult learners in Canada with Individual Freedom Multiculturalism provides adult learners with individual choice and freedom. Notably, freedom is one of the essential features for the success of education especially at the adult level. Canada has multicultural policies that advocate for equal rights for the protection of cultural retention and languages a means of guarding individual’s freedom of choice. According to the multicultural policies of Canada, there ought to be an individual choice in language and participation in cultural activities. The policies also call for the promotion of cross-cultural sharing and retention of culture in equal measure. It is thus the choice of adult learners in Canada to participate in certain cultural practice or to use a certain language (Coelho 74). Therefore, Canada has an educational curriculum coupled with the Canadian multiculturalism policies in order to achieve protection of cultural, educational, and linguistic choices. Role 3: Multiculturalism results to Cross-Cultural Understanding among Adult Learners in Canada The third role of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada is the establishment of cross-cultural understanding. The country demonstrates bold attempts in setting up multicultural sharing when building a national unit via cultural retentions and diversity. Ideally, intercultural understanding is a consequence of more than mere information exposure. Therefore, intercultural understanding is not solely subject to tolerance, but rather a function of human being’s respectful and active engagement across the cultural divide. It can, therefore, be argued that intercultural sharing precedes intercultural understanding; in addition, interculturalism is a determinant of effective intercultural sharing (Crystal 15). As a cause of cross-cultural understanding among adult learners in Canada, multiculturalism is characteristic of cultural creativity development having the implication of cultural alternatives (that are hybrid and unique) and results from the knowledge of more than one culture. This form creativity is a consequence of meta-cultural awareness which is knowledge experienced by human beings and is developed in a culturally, specified world view. Multiculturalism has resulted to cross-cultural-sharing in Canada thus fostering national cohesion and unity in the country, while at the same time protecting diversity (Crystal 15). Multiculturalism has also enhanced cross-cultural sharing in Canada through intensive learning of new languages among adult learners in the country. In the course of learning a new language, cross-culture is developed within an education system. There is always an alarm that individuals will harden at some intervals of ethnocentrism, via encapsulation of culture; it has been found out that high interdependence exists between cross-cultural sharing and interculturalism. Besides this interdependence, interculturalism also exhibits dependence on the appreciation of shared experiences and values going beyond people’s participation in a number of local cultures and histories (MacPherson 4). It has been found that human rights’ language is capable of providing a framework for the consideration of collective values and identity of humans. These are inclusive of emphatic sensibilities owing their promotion to religious traditions and secular rights of humans. Role 4: Multiculturalism provides cultural diversity and retention while teaching adult learners in Canada The fourth role of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada is that it enhances cultural diversity and retention. In Canada, education programs had realized the result of teaching non -natives the English language and had embarked on integrating the Canadian culture to the immigrants-the result is cultural diversity and retention (MacPherson & Tigchelaar 56). The integration policy paved the way to multicultural existence. Role 5: Multiculturalism establishes a sense of cohesion among educators and students from different cultural backgrounds The fifth role of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada is the establishment of cohesion among educators and students from a diversity of cultures. As years go by, cultural diversity continues to pose a major challenge in a number of education systems across the world. However, the concept of multiculturalism seems to be alleviating this situation in Canada. It is worth noting that, Canada is among the global nations with the highest levels of cultural diversity in their education systems are concerned. With the idea of international students, there is every need for the adoption of the Canadian culture and values by the visiting students and educators (MacPherson & Tigchelaar 67). The concept of multiculturalism has enhanced the degree of integration between Canadian students and international students pursuing various courses in the country. It is worth noting that the international students are mostly adult learners having started their education in other countries. Likewise, educators from other countries, thus other cultures, have also ended up in Canada where they have to work with Canadian nationalities. This has the implication that an immense deal of cohesion has to exist between the local and international educators. Sometimes back, this cohesion posed a major challenge but has significantly been alleviated by the unique system of multiculturalism witnessed in Canada. Conclusion This paper has identified at least five roles of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada. Firstly, multiculturalism provides equity in access to opportunity in the course of educating adult learners in Canada. It is thus possible for international students, new immigrants, and refugees from diverse cultures to fully participate and integrate equally to the Canadian life. Secondly, multiculturalism provides adult learners with individual choice and freedom. The third role of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada is the establishment of cross-cultural understanding. The fourth role of multiculturalism in teaching adult learners in Canada is the enhancement of cultural diversity and retention, thus enabling integration between international adult learners with those from Canada. Finally, multiculturalism establishes a sense of cohesion among educators and students from different cultural backgrounds. Work Cited Ahlquist, R. “Contesting the curriculum in the schooling of indigenous children in Australia and the USA: from Eurocentrism to culturally powerful pedagogies”. Comparative Education Review, 47(1), (2003). Print. Bean, T. “The role of multicultural literature as a counter force to the literary canon”. In A. Hickling-Hudson, J. Matthews and A. Woods (Eds.) Disrupting Preconceptions: Postcolonialism and Education. Flaxton, Brisbane: Post Pressed Publishers, 2004. Print. Bennett, C. Genres of research in multicultural education. Review of Educational Research, Summer, 71(2), (2001): 171–217. Print. Black, M. “Using your city as a multicultural classroom”. Teaching Education, 11(3), (2000): 343–351. Print. Coelho, E. Adding English: A guide to teaching in multilingual classrooms. New York: Pippin Press, 2003.Print Crystal. Language death. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2000.Print. Hickling-Hudson. “Multicultural Education and the Postcolonial Turn”. Policy Futures in Education, Vol 1 No. 2, (2003): 381 – 401. Print. MacPherson,S., & Tigchelaar . New directions: Human rights education forfamilies. Edmonton, AB: Indo-Canadian Women's Association, 2004. Print. MacPherson. TESOL for biolinguistic sustainability: The ecology of English as a lingua mundi. TESL Canada Journal, 20(2), (2003): 1-22. Print. Read More