BeyondLabels

Performance ethnography I have been exploring is based on a multiracial cultural studies perspective (Diawara, 1996). A relativley new postinterpretive, post foundational paradigm is emerging that is less certain in terms of an interpretive enquiry approach (Denzin, 2003). The ways in which these relationships of difference and commonality are textually represented answer to a political annd epistimological aesthetic. From a feminist, communitarian sense, there are various approaches to performance ethnography.

Christian (2000) identifies three interconnected criteria that shape these representations of the world. Interpretive sufficiency - descriptions should possess the amount of depth, detail, emotionality, nuance, and coherence that will permit a critical consciousness. Paula Freire (2001) says conscientization to be formed - the oppressed gain there own voices and collaborate in transforming there own cultures. Representational adequacy - dealing with being free of racial, class or gender stereotyping issues. Authentically Adequate - in terms of text and according to Christian when they meet three conditions. (a) multiple voices are represented, (b) enhance morality in some way, (c) promote social transformation.

Multivoice ethnographic texts should empower persons, discover moral truths about themselves (in some way), and create social criticism.

Here is a useful quote from someone who has significant influence on my thoughts in the context of bilingual education - Professor Jim Cummins.

"Nowhere in this anaemic instructiuonal vision is there room for really connecting at a human level with culturally diverse students. When we frame the universe of discourse only in terms of children's deficit in English and in phonological awareness (or deficits in any other area), we expel culture, language, identity, intellect, and imagination from our image of the child. In contrast .... an instructional focus on empowerment, understood as the collaborative creation of power, starts by acknowledging the culture, linguistic, imaginative, and intellectual resources that children bring to the school"

The decision to declare 2008 the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue sounds excellent focus. focus is on: * The promotion of cultural diversity in Europe and in the world * A fundamental component of active European citizenship * Ameans to promote flexibility and adaptation to the changes in humanresources brought about by the success of the Lisbon strategy * A solidarity dimension at the service of social cohesion * An element of credibility in policies towards neighbouring countries and external relations in general The Yearis intended to highlight and raise awareness through activities of the cultural industries and beyond. As the DG states the success and impact of the European Year of InterculturalDialogue in 2008 will depend on the active involvement of civil societyand implementation at the grassroots level. And yes this is essential to ensurethat it becomes a long-lasting and durable process extending beyond2008.

Really enjoyed the presentation from Graham and the chat. The summary of Graham supporting information also useful for me. Suggest a read.

Also much respect and thanks to my lovely friends from Ethnic Minority Cultural Initiative and the Mighty Zulu Nation Theatre Production Company. Look forward to working with you all again soon

So I have got there MC-DIP Question set now complete, and uploaded to Plone project site, for those I have been working with on the project - Al, Anna, Mike, Steve etc.. Massive task as the diagnostic cuts across three theoretical lenses - Multicultural education, learnign styles and creativity. The logic behind the questions sets that the diagnostic software will be built around is supporting pedagogy equity for educators and learners. In the environment I work in an imbalance on the teacher and on the Web you can see in many circles an imbalance on the learner through what is frequently termed 'autonomous learning'. The Diagnostic 2.0 software is about intervening for positive educational action for social change and hence fits well with much of the e-learning 2.0 developments and for me logical fit with Knownet software apps.

Just a little more on the background need for such an approach and underpinning thoughts. .....

For me the challenge is to create learning environments that maintain the cultural integrity of every person while enhancing their educational success. At the classroom level, culturally responsive teaching essentially involves using students’ cultural experiences and background as a medium for helping them learn important academic skills. There has also been a general agreement that the development of individual cultural identity is a major process of acceptance of the cultural norms, beliefs, attitudes and values of one cultural group rather than another. Hence multicultural education is important and necessary in order for students to be able to develop personal autonomy. To create inclusive education we need learning environments to re-configure to be in a proactive position to support diversity and equality.

Thats enough for now.. Will be posting over next week specifically on Multiculturalism, Learning Styles and eLearning 2.0 from how I see things..

This article by Jana Noel (California State university, Sacramento) examines the idea that students construction of identity can be linked to their understandings of multicultural education. This article was written from the prespective of the teacher/educators in the sense that they need to have a good understanding of why our students have such a wide range of definitions of multicultural education. This article ties in really well with my PhD in the sense that, one of my dimension is looking at the identity implication form the learner perspective as well as teacher's perspective. There are not as many discussion around in terms of teacher's identity compared to learners's identity.

Jana discussed how she found out for the first time from her 'student teacher' ......" I don't need to take Multicultural Education, because I'am in Agricultural and we feed the world". Such perception about multicultural eduation is and if it is part of the 'student teacher' thinking has made Jana more determined to gain a better understanding of why her students have such a different understanding of multicultural eduation.

"We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals what is deep inside of us as valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can rick curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit." (e. e. cummings, 1923/1976)

The above quote is the main discussion in an article by Nancy.P. Gallavan & A.Maria. Whittemore that I found very fascinating and deeply involved. It uses the narrative dialogue in its approach and it gave us a deeper understanding of the situation.

The article "When Parallel Lives Intersect: Experiencing Multiple Perspectives in Our Own Journeys" is based on two lives (personal experiences of the two author in the article) of completely different people and how they have openly talked about their own experienced. It highlighted the above quote very deeply and it was quiet emotional for me when I read the article.

Maria is a black female growing in the 50's and she explained how difficult and challenging it was at time being black and female. How she was the youngest of six and lived near the railroad tracks on the far end of town. The house she was living with her family was burnt-out machine shop with no bathroom and her family was the only black family in the community. Her and her siblings had to go to a segregated school which was 8 miles away. Maria was top achieve in the school and when she finally accepted in the white school, she was going through difficult times with other white children who making fun of her but luckily her white teacher see beyond her colour and gave her all the help she needed......

Nancy was too growing in the 50's and was the only white girl who lived in the house with her family who hired the black domestic. Her father was the owner of the local feed mile who hired black laborers and her mother gave her hand-me-down clothing to the black domestics family. Her parents also donated money and many other furnishing to the black families. Her parents also helped the black children to attend college. Nancy always wondered why the black children were not allowed to the while school and...

This article concluded with discussion and gone back to the quote above that we have to accept the person as he/she is and must look deeper and NOT discriminates. For Maris, her life story empowers her to see DIVERSITY as a STRENGHT and not deficits and to model this belief to everyone around her. Same with Nancy, her heart and head were reopened to many bias and social injustice inequalities she experienced in her childhood and how these now clearly apparent to her many years later as a professor of cultural diversity.

IRR journal Race & Class leads with an essay by Matt Carr who writes................ Seems to be a grrowing consensus on both sides of the Atlantic that is presenting Europe as a doomed continent that is being transformed into an Islamic colony called 'Eurabia'. Writer and journalist Matt Carr takes the reader  through the writings of conservative historians and newspaper columnists, right-wing Zionists and European neo-fascists, who find common cause in the dangerous Islamophobic fantasy that 'Judeo-Christian' civilisation is under threat from Muslim immigrants. Hey whats this 'one world order' thing we are being pushed......

Recent event in the north England. On going collaboration with EMCI. Always fun and amazing theatre education for children and powerful message below the fun.............. bridging learning styles and theatre/performance loads of potential and needs more exploration 

An article I picked up from the Futurist magazine is fascinating. It discussed how the west can learn from developing countries with regards understanding different cultures or some people use the term intercultural understanding. It also shows that the issues of cultures were discussed greatly at the time. the world major problems such as poverty, war and hunger are inherent in the current system of world order based on nation-states and economic competition.
The authors believed that these can be solved if people know and understand one another on a global, grass-roots basis. I couldn't agree more with the author. We are still seeing these problems in this modern world and little has been done to improve the situations globally. We must strive to appreciate and understand other cultures so that we can understand and reform our own culture and use these understanding to help us with a platform from which we can see ourselves.
These concepts of culture understanding could open new vistas for all of us. The authors were astonished with the community cooperation in one of thee visit in the pacific. In Fiji, the villages’ still harvesting, drying and exporting sea cucumber to Japan and all the earnings went to the village elders for community project. This shows that collaboration rather than competition makes more available to everyone.
The authors also discussed the option for our future. "The idea that land is something that can be owned by an individual is almost unique to Western culture". For example, the Australian aborigines have no concept of land ownership. they are owned by the land. The land is also a holy place and the spirits of their ancestors.
We have the opportunity to design our own future and we must find a way to escape the norm and biases that inherent in our current culture and open our eyes to the options for a more positive future.

Just came across the words below and it gives a feel for the climate in the UK. Issues of interest for me here are cultural pluralism and the notion of integration being put forward in the UK. Roy Jenkins' classic definition, integration is 'not a flattening process of assimilation but equal opportunity accompanied by cultural diversity in an atmosphere of mutual tolerance' is what we should be thinking in Europe and move away from the push to assimilation. A Sivananda provides invaluable insight and I suggest check out the full interview where the quote below can from.

There's a new ballgame here - with the 2001 riots in Britain and 7/7, the government has been thrashing about for answers as to how to handle its ethnic minorities. First, with the riots, it blamed the self-separatism of Asian communities for the disaffection between Asians and whites - never acknowledging that successive governments' policies of culturalism, combined with their neglect of the inner cities, had created the enclaves which had turned Asians against whites and vice versa. Thus, the government's thinking this time was not on the lines of 'ethnic disadvantage', as Scarman had it, but of (too much) ethnic advantage, too much 'multiculturalism', not enough integration/assimilation or the much more euphemistic term 'community cohesion'. And now, after 7/7, despite the discovery that the suicide bombers were home-grown and wholly British, the thinking in the UK is to embrace the backward and undoubtedly Islamophobic discourse that is issuing from mainland Europe. Cultural pluralism has gone too far, it threatens our values and our very national safety. A line has to be drawn on difference. Ethnic minorities have now, in the domestic context of the War on Terror, to effectively subsume their cultural heritage to Britishness.

Sivanandan, May 2006

The short motion graphics of myself, produced by Rob Chiu, is compiled from a few different times/events that provides an insight in areas of activity but just as importantly a tool for me to explore and reflect. This approach is used as a means to illustrate where I want to push the BeyondLabels initiative with friends and partners. The main focus needs to remain routed in multicultural education as a critical pedagogic approach but also reach out to partnering areas related to social change and direct action related to exclusion.

Such a time eating project but fantastic and look forward to where next. The idea is one book per year on challenging issues and led by design/illustration and the core communication route. Rob Chiu creative director with his unique vision of things and me as research director routed in education for social change and community action for ethnic minorities and migrants. The trailer of the short film provides a taster and again loads of food-for-thought on where next. The media is clearly instilling fear in society with regards terrorism and there seems to be a need for collective and balance reflection on terrorism and the real situation. Hence our next project..... and hey hopefully it can financially continue to sustain itself.

Note: Thumbnail image by Lim Fung Wee Lee Fung Wee

BlackDayTo Freedom BD2F

Multicultural education and diagnostics as a means of supporting the learning in the educations experience is an area that needs exploring. In particular major research project have been undertaken into personal and group learning needs and how the way people learn, based on individual preferences, directly impacts on education performance (Dunn & Dunn, 1997).

An issue that has always been a problem for educational institutions is how to apply many of the learning styles techniques to large groups and mass education. Technology is undertaking an important role in making learning styles possible for large group sizes and also as a means of enabling teachers to connect again with learners. For example have a picture of detailed profile of individual learners and potential impact on group dynamics has great potential. Learning diagnostics tools are important as enablers and as it indicates diagnostics is view as next generational tools to say Honey & Mumford style 'learning inventories'. As learning diagnostics indicates there is a need for profiling but diagnosing as a means of supporting pedagogy of equity. MC-DIP as an initiative is further developing this an on-going initiative led by the University of Huddersfield. Also Knownet are transforming existing software into a web services application.