Multiculturalism and Global Citizenship Education for the 21st-Century “Knowledge Society”: Canada’s Diversity Dichotomy

• In Event: Democratic Citizenship in Education 3

Abstract

In Alberta, Canada social studies teachers navigate multiculturalism policy, popular conceptions of the Canadian mosaic, and a global citizenship education (GCE) curriculum. Multiculturalism relates to national diversity; GCE extends a notion of citizenship to those outside of the nation. Scholarly literature on citizenship education prioritizes cultural diversity and promotes global responsibility; but, the links between multiculturalism and GCE are largely assumed. Some argue that multicultural and global interculturalism are not necessarily mutually reinforcing and that in some ways multicultural and global approaches to diversity can be conflicting (e.g. Kymlicka 2003). The paper will report on a project that seeks to identify the extent to which contemporary scholarship and teacher lessons reveal an implicit or explicit relationship between multiculturalism and GCE.

Author

• Karen Pashby, University of Alberta