Directions

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TitleCultural democracy for whom? : a view from the Pacific Islands
AuthorThaman, Konaiholeva Helu
SubjectMulticultural education|Oceania
Educational anthropology|Oceania
AbstractCultural democracy is a philosophical precept which recognises that the way a person communicates, relates to others, seeks support and recognition from his/her environment (incentive motivation), thinks and learns (cognition) is a product of the value system of his/her community. Furthermore, an educational environment or policy that does not recognise the individual’s right to remain identified with the culture and language of his/her group is said to be culturally undemocratic (Ramirez and Castaneda, 1974: 23). In the author’s view, cultural democracy, for most Pacific island societies, has to do with the right and the opportunity to study and learn important elements of their own cultures in schools and universities, an opportunity denied them since schools first began in the early part of the last century, because most schools were set up to transmit a foreign culture in a foreign language. She therefore wishes to make a case not only for understanding Pacific cultures, but also for including important aspects of them in the curriculum of formal education, including university, as a first step towards intercultural education and a true cultural democracy for all.
Volume/YearDirections: Journal of Educational Studies no.30, vol.16, no.1, 1994
Collationp. 3-19 ;
Notes• Bibliography: p. 18-19.
 
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