Diversity as Strength : A case study of a multicultural school in Norway

キョウイク　ニ　オケル　タブンカ　シュギ　ト　ソノ　ジッセン　ノルウェー　ノ　チュウガッコウ　ノ　ジレイ　カラ

キタヤマ, ユウカ

Kitayama, Yuka

オオサカ ダイガク ダイガクイン ニンゲン カガク ケンキュウカ キョウイクガクケイ

Department of Education, Graduate School of Human Sciences, Osaka University

This paper examines educational policies and practices in Norway, focusing on how they reflect social changes and promote equity and equality in a multicultural society. Norwegian society has become increasingly diverse since the 1960s. In Norway, multicultural education was a part of a policy aimed at the assimilation of national minorities and immigrants through Norwegian language education, until a shift in the 2000s towards a more inclusive way of accommodating diversity. The 2004 White Paper stats that Norwegian society should welcome change and introduced a more inclusive model of what it means to be a Norwegian. Consequently, schools have proactively sought to actively learn about the cultures of immigrant children, as policy documents clearly state that they need to learn from diversity. Drawing from a case study in a lower secondary school, this paper examines the efforts of teachers in culturally diverse classrooms, in which they balance respects for different cultures and Norwegian values, such as gender equality and children’s rights. The case study suggests the importance and challenges of sex education because it directly refers to children’s safety; at the same time, it often requires a sensitive approach to both pupils and parents, particularly those from conservative families. This paper also examines complex factors that promote equity in diverse classrooms, such as flexible recruiting policies and teacher education programmes, focus on multicultural competencies and social justice.