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Multicultural education

In our educational projects designed both for experts and the general public, we strive to develop intercultural competencies of individuals and organizations in the Czech Republic. We try to work with individuals and institutions so that they help create the right environment for a functioning pluralistic society in the Czech Republic.

Our Little Stereotypes: Through Intercultural Education and Experiential Learning towards Tolerance

The Multicultural Centre Prague as its main coordinator has two partners in this project: INEX – Association for Voluntary Activities and AFS – Intercultural Programs. The project started in June 2010.

Our aim is to contribute to the prevention of xenophobia and racism among vocational schools students using methods of intercultural education and experiential learning.  The project involves students and teachers from 5 regions of the Czech Republic (Central Bohemia Region, South Bohemian Region, Pilsen Region, Region of Karlovy Vary, Region of Hradec Králové). It offers the students direct contact with their peers with a different cultural background (foreigners, members of ethnic minorities).

We have developed an original educational programme which can be divided into 4 parts:

  • Intercultural Seminar
  • Cycle of Intercultural Workshops
  • Experiential Training
  • Miniworkcamp

The Intercultural Seminar and the Cycle of Intercultural Workshops are intended for school classes whereas at the Experiential Training and the Miniworkcamp individual students participate voluntarily.

In this programme students have an opportunity to experience their own attitude towards norms and difference, to think about life in a culturally diverse society, about their own values, the role of media, stereotypes and other topics.

The project offers also seminars for teachers - about intercultural education in general and this project’s methodology in particular.

The internet portal stereotypek.mkc.cz provides detailed information about the project.

Duration of the project: June 2010 – May 2013

The project is funded by the European Social Fund and the national budget of the Czech Republic through the operational program Education for competitiveness.

The main coordinator: Jitka Štefková
phone number: (+420) 296 325 346
e-mail: projekt@mkc.cz

 

La Ngonpo

La Ngonpo project is a three-year Czech-Indian educational project, which focuses on multicultural and global education aimed at secondary school students and also to raise awarness of the general Czech and European public of development issues.

In January 2010 we have launched the international project La Ngonpo which deals with the topics of global development and multicultural education. This three years long project takes part in primary and secondary schools in the Czech Republic and Indian Ladakh. It is targeted for 13 – 15 years olds.

The aims of the project is to acquaint Czech pupils and students with the development topics and to enable them better understanding towards themselves, their own culture, and to increase public awareness of the development topics.

Thanks to the financial support of the European Commission and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic the new methodology and web portal www.la-ngonpo.org  have been created as a meeting point for students and teachers of participating schools. Pupils and students take part in the 24 La Ngonpo lessons run by their teacher according to the original methodology. The pupils have taken part in the film workshop and photography course. In terms of the project the new documentary film about the life of pupils of both countries will be made. Photos and other outputs from the project will be exhibited in public areas of several larger towns of the Czech Republic and also in Ladakh.

Furthermore, in the frames of the project, there will be approximately 15 young people each year of the project, who will travel to Ladakh to volunteer there. This opportunity is open to all interested people, we prioritize IT experts, methodologists or teachers. IT experts will help adjust the PC network and internet connection in the schools. People with teaching experience will help local teachers  teach according to the La Ngonpo methodology. Everyone interested in volunteering in Ladakh can find more on www.lnkm.cz

The financial support of the project ends by December 2012 but thanks to the project setup we expect the teachers will be keen on using  the methodology and communicating on the web portal with their partner classes in the future too. The partner classes or schools will not necessarily have to come from a developing country but practically from anywhere, even though from a different part of our country.

Partners of the Project:
NaZemi - společnost pro Fair Trade (OnEarth – Society for Fair Trade) - creation and evaluation of the methodology
Modrý kámen, základní článek Hnutí Brontosaurus (Blue Stone, member of the Brontosaurus Movement – volunteers in India
Fundacja Nowa Ameryka (New America Foundation) – documentary film and film workshop
Moravian Mission School of Leh - partner school in Ladakh, India
SECMOL - partner school in Ladakh, India

Which topics will appear in the methodology manual for teachers?
During years 2010 and 2011 we have been developing and evaluation the innovative methodology following the latest trends in the multicultural and global education. The pilot version of the methodology can be launched since April 2011 on web pages of Multicultural Center Prague MKC (Prague) www.mkc.cz. Since 2012 we will distribute the final printed version among concerned Czech primary and secondary schools.
The methodology uses various techniques of interactive education and supports pupils and students to reflect and debate on the proposed topics and view at them from different perspectives.

The methodology handles 6 modules (topics):

  1. Circle (me, my identity and everything  that surrounds me)
  2. Hero (what does a heroism mean, different points of view what is a heroism and who is a hero) 
  3. Migration (where do we go, where from, what influences us) 
  4. Water (the liquid essential to our live, ecology)
  5. Beauty (what does a beauty mean for different cultures, what is the beauty scale)
  6. Together (how can we influence the Earth changes) 

The methodology is being created in cooperation with the Society for Fair Trade.

How do the La Ngonpo lessons look like?
Participating schools from both countries are in the same lessons, ideally in the same week of the school year. The opportunity to exchange experience and outputs, compare points of view and opinions of peers from different part of the world enables the pupils to understand the relation between developing and developed countries, and to understand the values of their own community. Last but not least benefit of the project is that the pupils can practice their English as English is the main communication language. After each lesson the Czech and Indian pupils can virtually meet on the web portal www.la-ngonpo.org where they can exchange their experience and information about their gains from the participation in the project.

It is necessary to follow the agreed timetable of the project because of the consecutiveness of the modules. The teachers must bear in mind that it is necessary to dedicate the project one lesson each week during the period of six month (24 weeks). The La Ngonpo lessons do not necessarily have to be led by one teacher. Several teachers of different subjects can split according to their needs.

What is the documentary film La Ngonpo about?
The film makers from our partner organization New America Foundation (Fundacja Nowa Ameryka  - FNA) have been making the film in cooperation with the pilot school pupils during the first two years of the project. The documentary is about lives of the pupils and also about flash floods that affected Ladakh during the stay of film makers in August 2010. The FNA has organized 10 day-long film workshops for 12 pupils from pilot schools in each country. Children learnt how to create their own films. Their shots will appear in the final documentary. The documentary will be launched from the MKC Prague web by the end of the year 2011.

Diversity management (courses designed for company management and teams working in intercultural environment)

Participants learn about basic cultural values and stereotypes in various parts of the world having a major impact on the workplace, management styles, behavior, information sharing, communication and concepts of authority. Courses in diversity management:

  • Increase the adaptability of employees to culturally different working environments and therefore also the chance of attaining your business goals;
  • Develop key intercultural competencies: effective styles of management, negotiation, motivation and teamwork;
  • Teach conflict prevention and resolution of misunderstandings ensuing from different communication patterns;
  • Inspire participants to consider their own culturally determined attitudes, values and stereotypes that they bring with them to the workplace.

Programs for teachers, pedagogues and librarians

  • Seminars providing a comprehensive program of multicultural and anti-prejudice education;
  • Training program for the Czech School Inspection - introduction of standards and guidelines for intercultural education in schools;
  • Intercultural training of teachers using music of different ethnic groups, regions and cultures.

Programs for children and students

  • Intercultural workshops - interactive and entertaining presentation of different cultures with lecturers from relevant minorities (topics: the Roma, Vietnam, China, Africa, Kazakhstan, Japan, Jews, Christianity, Islam, music).
  • Ch@ve: Internet centres - project aims to develop computer competency amongst pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. The project also supports the education of these pupils using information and communication technologies.
  • Roma Integration Support program - the program aims at supporting Roma schoolchildren so that they may enjoy the same benefits of primary education as the rest of the society.

Publications

For more information, please click here


Coordinator of Educational programs:
Lada Vyhnánková
E-mail: education@mkc.cz
Phone: +420 296 325 349