Are Australian schools good candidates for micropublics of cross-cultural encounter?

According to Ho, a "micropublic" is a space where engagement and negotiation across cultures are unavoidable, as individuals from diverse cultures find themselves having to share a common social space(Ho,2011). Some micropublics are schools, workplaces, neighbourhoods and places of association.

Schools can be ideal micropublics as they throw together people from diverse backgrounds, compelling them to engage in the everyday negotiations of sharing a social space(Amin, 2002 ).

Ho also agrees that schools are  good micropublics as they are institutions most amenable to regulation by governments(Ho, 2011 ). She argues that schools are hosts to conflict and harmony and this teaches young people to negotiate across differences and to respect the legitimate presence of the other. In other words, schools are ideal places for cross -cultural engagement.

More and more students from diverse backgrounds populate 21st century schools. In Australia, one of the public policy goals for the education system is to instill in all students an understanding of and respect for cultural difference. Schools play a critical role in developing young minds, building relationships between people of different backgrounds and creating a socially just civil society. They are also responsible for preparing students to contribute towards the development of a just and harmonious Australian society.

Personally, I agree that Australian public schools are ideal micropublics for cross-cultural encounter.  For many years, multiculturalism has been taught in public schools.Culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds of students  are acknowledged and valued and there is a high tolerance for people from other races and cultures.

In teaching multiculturalism, schools actively embrace the cultures of the dominant groups in their community by going beyond activities like feast days and music festivals. Schools will also try to connect with the cultural knowledge and experience of the school community by including a study of that particular country, language or culture in the school program.

However, whether Australian schools are good candidates for micropublics also depends very much on the cultural composition of the schools. The potential for schools to function as micropublics in which "conflict and hostility can co-exist with a mutual recognition of and respect for the other's legitimate presence in a shared social space" is significantly reduced by cultural homogeneity within schools (Ho, 2011, p.617).

When schools function as cultural enclaves instead of sites for cross-cultural encounter, this represents challenges for multiculturalism to be successful, as everyday interactions  between people of different cultural backgrounds would definitely be reduced. (Ho, 2011, Wise and  Velayutham 2009).

References:

Amin, A., (2002). Ethnicity and the multiculturalcity: living with diversity. Environment and planning A 34 (6), 959-980.

Ho, C., (2011).  Respecting the Presence of Others: School micropublics ad everyday multiculturalism. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 32(6), 603-619.

Wise, A. & Velayutham, S. (eds), ( 2009).  Everyday Multiculturalism, Palgrave Macmillan, London.