Project: Intercultural Education Research in Primary Schools of Georgia
Date: 2013
Status: Completed
The research was conducted with the financial support of USAID in the framework of the EWMI’s program G-PAC.
Project Objectives - The overall objective of the project is to ensure equal educational opportunities for all students of Georgia and facilitation of preparation of tolerant and inter-culturally sensitive citizens through education and public policy research, discussions and analysis of National Curriculum, textbooks reform and teachers’ preparedness for mainstreaming of multicultural approaches in instruction process at public schools of Georgia.
The specific objectives of the project:
• To study and evaluate the new National Curriculum, subject standards and primary grade textbooks with emphasis on intercultural education and growing intercultural sensitiveness in students
• To explore capacity of the teachers for ensuring the multicultural environment in the classroom and mainstreaming multiculturalism in instruction process
• To facilitate an improving of the quality of textbook approval criteria, national curriculum, subject standards and textbooks
• To increase civil participation of scientists, researchers, experts, NGO representatives and wider public in elaboration of public policies
• To develop recommendation package for improvement of textbook approval criteria, national curriculum and school textbooks on primary grade
• To communicate the developed recommendation packages to all stakeholders
• To put equal opportunities and multicultural policy change in the agenda of governmental structures.
The project beneficiaries are:
• Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia and respective national centers by the ministry are provided with the policy papers and legislative recommendations for enhancing the education policy
• 2 085 schools throughout Georgia who will be able to ensure equal education opportunity through mainstreaming multiculturalism in studying process
• App. 350 000 students of primary school including more than 35 000 representatives of ethnic minorities and their parents who have good insight into the multiculturalism and tolerance
• App. 25 000 teachers of primary grade including about 3 000 teachers of minority schools who are well equipped with a professional skills to integrate multicultural, unbiased approach in school environment and support to growing of responsive, culturally informed and tolerant citizens.
The research methodologies:
• Textbook, curricular and subject standard analysis: Along with curricular and specific subject standards, 17 textbooks (3 books of Georgian language and literature, 3 books of Painting and applying art, 3 books of Music, 2 books of history, 6 books of GLS) have been reviewed and analyzed.
• Face-To-Face Stakeholder Interviews: Interviews with 70 school teachers of primary grade school have been surveyed through standardized questionnaire evaluating textbooks used in primary school and assessing the capacity for implementation of the policy change introduces in the recent years (new curricular and subject standards, multicultural approach and relevant teaching methods, equity in education)
• 4 interviews with Key education officials - heads of National Curriculum and General Education Development department, National Center for Education Quality Enhancement, National Centre for Teachers’ Professional Development and National Examinations and Assessment Centre have been held.
• Focus Group Discussions: 6 Group discussions with students and parents of primary school, 3 FGD each (Batumi , West Georgia), in Telavi (East Georgia) and in Akhalkalaki (South East Georgia) and experts of national curriculum and general education development department and publishing houses/authors of the textbooks
• Questionnaires: The investigation employed the questionnaire for 400 School teachers of primary grade.
CCIIR has issued Intercultural Education Policy Document in Georgian and English languages -
https://www.radiotavisupleba.ge/a/interview-natia-gorgadze/25222658.html