Intercultural Education

The aim of the course is, on the one hand, to facilitate students became familiar with the basic theories of culture and, on the other hand, to present the multiple interconnections between education and culture, emphasizing on their historical and political dimensions. The main topics of the course are:
– Civilization – Culture. Cultural relativism – cultural universalism. The issue of cultural differences – the issue of social recognition.
– Representation of the “other”: stereotypes and preconceptions. Narratives for the “cultural other”. Ethnography.
– Racism – “race”. Dominant and dominated cultures, power relations and exploitation. From biological to cultural racism.
– Nationalism and the nation-state. Minority issues and minority relations.
– Educating the “other”. From the “educational/cultural deficit” hypothesis to the hypothesis of difference.
– National culture – national education. The education of minorities and immigrants in Greece. The education of the Turkish speaking Muslim minority in Thrace.
– Bilingualism. Relations between language and culture. Research outcomes on the relation between mother tongue and second language. Models of bilingual education.
– Intercultural education: the Greek experience.