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Title: Students Thinking About Citizenship in Canada and Russia


1
Students Thinking About Citizenship in Canada
and Russia
  • Alan Sears
  • Faculty of Education
  • University of New Brunswick
  • Fredericton, NB
  • Canada
  • asears_at_unb.ca

2

The Burgess Shale
3
Intelligence Testing
4
The Cognitive Revolution
  • Individuals do not just react to or perform in
    the world they posses minds and these minds
    contain images, schemes, pictures, frames,
    languages, ideas, and the like.
  • Many early representations are extremely
    powerful and prove very difficult to change. . .
    If one wants to educate for genuine
    understanding, then, it is important to identify
    these early representations, appreciate their
    power, and confront them directly and
    repeatedly.
  • Howard Gardner

5
The Spirit of Democracy
  • A few years ago, we witnessed a compelling
    appeal from some Argentinean educators working to
    foster an emerging democratic culture in their
    country. Dont teach us about the structures of
    democracy, they said, we know all about the
    structures of democracy teach us the spirit of
    democracy. Their appeal captured the essence of
    concerns that we had been exploring with our
    colleagues in the Russian Association for Civic
    Education. Thus, was born the organizing idea
    for this project to focus not on sterile
    mechanisms such as how elections are conducted or
    bills passed, but on the ideas and principles
    which underpin them and infuse them with
    vitality to develop an approach which will
    foster the democratic spirit.

6
Key Ideas
  • Privacy
  • The consent of the governed and the right to
    dissent
  • Respect for diversity
  • Equality/Equity
  • Due process
  • Fundamental freedoms
  • Loyalty
  • Responsibility
  • The common good
  • The goal is to assist students understand the
    ideas to consider their origins and their
    evolution the tensions between and among them
    their relevance in the structuring and
    restructuring of civic life their value in
    molding the principles of how we might live
    together in neighbourhoods, national states and
    the global community.

7
The Centrality of Diversity
  • In Public Policy Canada is distinctive in the
    extent to which it has not only legislated but
    also constitutionalized practices of
    accommodation. Kymlicka, 2003
  • In Education The program of studies emphasizes
    how diversity and differences are assets that
    enrich our lives. Students will have
    opportunities to value diversity, to recognize
    differences as positive attributes and to
    recognize the evolving nature of individual
    identities. Alberta Learning (2003)

8
The Russian Context
  • Emerging democracy in Russia few democratic
    institutions, weak civil society
  • Soviet heritage of submerging ethnic differences
  • Desire for recognition/accommodation by ethnic
    groups
  • Shortage of trained teachers and good materials
    for teaching democratic civic education

"The Russian Federation has significant ethnic
diversity. Twenty-eight million people belong
to more than 100 different ethnic groups. One
hundred twenty million people identify
themselves as Russians.
One can conclude that modern Russia can be
characterized by growing ethnic tensions and a
lack of critical public discussion of these
tensions and government strategy in the field.
Froumin, 2004
9
Diversity Meets Standards
  • NCSS standards
  • Students will be able to
  • Explain and give examples of how language,
    literature, the arts, architecture, other
    artefacts, traditions, beliefs, values, and
    behaviours contribute to the development and
    transmission of culture.
  • Articulate the implications of cultural
    diversity, as well as cohesion, within and across
    groups. (p. 79)

10
Diversity Meets Standards
  • Atlantic Provinces standards
  • By the end of grade 6 will be expected to
  • Describe the influences that shape personal
    identity
  • Identify examples of informal and formal groups
    to which they belong and describe the function of
    those groups
  • Use examples of material and non-material
    elements of culture to explain the concept of
    culture
  • Discuss why and how stereotyping, discrimination,
    and pressures to conform can emerge and how they
    affect and individual
  • Describe how culture is preserved, modified and
    transmitted and
  • Describe the multicultural, multiracial and
    multi-ethnic character of Canadian society.

11
The Study
  • Purpose
  • To discover and illustrate the range of
    conceptions about ethnic diversity held by
    students in grades seven and eight in Canada and
    Russia.
  • Research Question
  • What are childrens conceptions of ethnic
    diversity?

When we actually ask students what they think,
we often find that our premises are in serious
need of revision. Barton and Levstik, 2004
12
Subsidiary Questions
  • In what ways do children understand ethnic
    diversity?
  • Do children make distinctions between different
    ethnic groups in Canada and Russia?
  • What are the conceptions that frame these
    distinctions?
  • Do their understandings of ethnic diversity
    include conceptions of accommodation?
  • Are children open to different levels of
    accommodation for different ethnic groups?
  • Do children make distinctions, in terms of rights
    or privileges, between different ethnic groups in
    Canada?

13
Phenomenograpy
  • Phenomenography is an empirically based
    approach that aims to identify the qualitatively
    different ways in which different people
    experience, perceive, conceptualize and
    understand various kinds of phenomena (Marton,
    1986, 1988).

14
Semi Projective Stimuli
  • In most cases, the phenomengraphic interview is
    structured around a concept-specific stimulus or
    springboard.
  • Sometimes participant produced drawings, written
    responses to stimuli, or dramatizations are used
    in conjunction with interviews.
  • The reason for using a stimulus is to provide a
    situation that makes some connection to the
    participants life world.

15
Canadian Stimulus 1
These girls were told that they are not allowed
to wear their headscarves in school.
16
Canadian Stimulus 2
These boys want to be exempt from their schools
No Hats rule.
17
Canadian Stimulus 3
Coach Fired for not Speaking French
A championship basketball coach was fired from an
all-French school near Moncton because he
couldnt speak French. The principal told
reporters that hed rather see the sports
program die than hire an English coach.
18
Canadian Stimulus 4
Native-only fishery sparks protest Dozens of
non-natives were charged with illegally fishing
in the Miramichi Bay during a native-only lobster
catch. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans
set aside two days this weekend exclusively for
the Burnt Church band. The policy has pitted
non-native commercial fishermen against native
fishermen for several years.
19
Russian Stimulus 1
(Sourcehttp//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/17
51223.stm)
Moldavians protest compulsory Russian in schools
20
Russian Stimulus 2
(Source http//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/not_in_website
/syndication/monitoring/media_reports/1335632.stm)
Jewish boys celebrate the reopening of a
synagogue in Moscow
21
Russian Stimulus 3
(Source http//www.friends-partners.org/oldfriend
s/asebrant/life/2002/apr_2002.html)
(Sourcehttp//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/18
51088.stm)
Orthodox Christians protest a visit by Pope John
Paul II to Ukraine
22
Russian Stimulus 4
Top banner reads, Russia for Russians.
23
Data Collection
  • 44 Canadian students interviewed in one rural
    and one urban setting in New Brunswick.
  • 100 Russian interviewed in five locations in
    Western Russia.
  • Interviews lasted between 20 60 minutes
  • Interviews were tape recorded and transcribed

24
Russian Sites
Ryazan
Orel
Samara
25
Categories of Description For Canadian Data
26
Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • A Strong Sense of Our
  • Natasha (Moscow) I dont know about these events
    and dont know how many Krishnaites there are in
    Moscow, but I am not against their temple. Only
    not downtown, but somewhere in the outskirts,
    maybe out of town. If their faith is strong, they
    would go far. Although I understand the feelings
    of Orthodox believers. Not all of our churches
    have been restored, and here we have Krishnaites.
    Where do they come from? If from India, they
    could make a praying house on the territory of
    their Embassy, and if they are Russians they
    dont need such religion. No, tomorrow the
    Chinese would like some kind of pagoda, and the
    Vietnamese. No. Jews have lived for a long time
    in Russia, and Muslims too. Let their temples be
    here, but we dont need others.
  • Teacher But you yourself spoke about freedom of
    faith, how to forbid then?
  • Natasha Nothing should be forbidden, but it is
    not possible to build temples for all those who
    want.
  • Teacher Why?
  • Natasha Its not in our tradition. There are
    three world religions, let there be temples for
    those three religions, we dont need others. Or
    if some people want it, then somewhere far.

27
Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • Knowledge Confused and Superficial
  • Alexy (Orel) Knows that Muslims regard the Koran
    as a sacred book then says, I know less about
    Buddhism than Islam. I know they profess the God
    Buddha. This is the faith of India. This God is
    pictured with an elephant head and horns.
  • Natasha (Orel) When asked what characterizes
    Islam They believe in Allah, they read the
    Koran.
  • Dimitry (Orel) Muslims have a big lent.

28
Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • Knowledge Confused and Superficial
  • Food, Fun and Festivals
  • Irina (Orel) Asked about traditions of the
    peoples who live in Russia They celebrate
    different holidays probably.
  • Tatiana (Kinel-Cherkassy) I like to socialize
    with Armenians. They are merry, I am never bored
    with them. I like to visit them when they
    make pilaf.
  • Ludmilla (Moscow) Asked how Tartars might be
    different from Russians, They have more carpets
    in their apartments.
  • Peter (Moscow) Every people has its pluses and
    minuses. The Japanese, for example, make cars
    better than anyone else in the world the
    Georgians sing wonderfully.
  • On Shrovetide People make pancakes.

29
Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • Hostility to Accommodation
  • Marina (Kinel-Cherkassy) Every country has one
    nationality.
  • Victoria (Moscow) Asked about a Russian speaker
    born and brought up in Moldova where Russian has
    been an official language He should learn the
    Moldavian language or He can emigrate
  • Natasha (Moscow) I am sorry for my own
    language, but Moldova is an independent state.
    They have their own language, why should they
    need Russian? Let them study Moldovan. She
    goes on to argue that Russian is the language of
    great artists and thinkers and says, If they
    (Moldavians) want to be culturally backward, let
    them be so.

30
Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • Hostility to Accommodation
  • Ludmilla (Ryzan) When a Russian person comes to
    another country, he feels like a guest there and
    if they come here they feel like hosts. . . .
    If he came as a quest, he is not a citizen of
    this country. He should live like a guest, be
    modest.
  • Peter (Moscow) The majority of people are
    Orthodox, so the country is Orthodox too.
  • Teacher And should other religions have the
    same rights as the Orthodox Church?
  • No, they can believe, they have this right, but
    there are more Orthodox believers here, their
    interests are more important for the country . .
    . I am not against it. I dont impose my faith
    on them, but I dont want to have in my city more
    mosques than churches.
  • Yuri (Orel) Asked if Russian should allow
    immigrants, Yes, but not too many of them.

31
Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • Hostility to Overt Intolerance
  • Gregori (Moscow) I live by a code and one
    provision in it says not to respect neo-fascists
    and to fight with them.
  • When asked what the state could do about
    neo-fascists, It can forbid fascist parities.
    For instance the Radical National Party. It
    takes roots in fascism. During the Second World
    War there were Hitlerjugend teams in Berlin. So
    the radical national party just took the idea.

32
Other Emerging Categories from Russian Data
  • Ethnic conflicts exist elsewhere in space and
    time are expressed in large scale conflicts
    Chechnya insurgency, Catholic and Protestant
    conflicts in middle ages.
  • Diversity is intellectually and socially
    interesting.
  • Separation of Islam and the bandits who
    perpetrate terrorism.
  • Ethnic differences are superficial and conflict
    should be easy to resolve.
  • The root of cohesion/conflict lies with
    individuals not groups.

33
Concerns
  • Ignorance
  • Diversity as Foreign
  • Hostility to Diversity and Accommodation

34
Approaches to Accommodation
  • Passive accommodation if it doesnt cost me/us
    anything
  • Pragmatic accommodation if I/we can avoid a
    fight
  • Principled accommodation flowing from some
    sense of principles or rights

35
Conclusion Early Maps
Peck, Carla, Sears, Alan Donaldson, Shanell
(2008). Unreached and Unreachable? Curriculum
Standards and Children's Understanding of Ethnic
Diversity in Canada. Curriculum Inquiry, 38, 1,
63-92. Peck, Carla Sears, Alan (2005).
Uncharted Territory Mapping Students
Conceptions of Ethnic Diversity. Canadian Ethnic
Studies, XXXVII, 1, 101-120. Sears, Alan,
Voskresenskaya, Natalia, et al. Nurturing the
Spirit of Democracy in Russia and Canada A
Collaboration in Civic Education. Presented at
the Annual Meeting of the American Educational
Research Association, San Diego, California,
April 12-16, 2004
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