An inquiry into:

Multiculturalism and
inclusion for all
Descriptor links (Year 3 History):
ACHASSK062
ACHASSK063
Guiding questions
 Where does culture come from?
 Who is diverse?
 What is inclusivity?
 Why is it important to practice inclusivity?
 When/where do we see multiculturalism in everyday life?
 When/where do we not?
 When/where do we see inclusion in everyday life?
 When/where do we not?
 How does culture affect society?
 How does inclusivity affect society?
My prior knowledge
 I believe culture is reflective of a group or society’s beliefs, values, ideas and customs.
 I believe the issue of detaining children is a major problem for Australian society and inclusivity.
 I believe that cultures differ on macro-, meso-, and micro-scales within society.
 Countries and societies have distinct cultures as recognised by others.
 States, communities, workplaces, and sports teams can demonstrate different cultures.
 Culture will differ from family to family and between groups of friends.
 I have experienced different cultures throughout my life and I believe it is highly important to respect other people’s culture.
 I recognise that it is sometimes difficult to understand another person’s culture and their practices.
 I know that people can behave differently due to their cultural upbringing.
 I believe every individual is diverse.
 Recently I have witnessed multiculturalism and inclusivity in the Commonwealth Games:
 Sportsmanship was demonstrated between athletes of different cultures.
 Athletes with disabilities participated in their events alongside ‘regular’ events, as opposed to the Olympics vs Paralympics (which
often have poor coverage).
 I speculate that leaders within groups could influence the culture of that group and the level of inclusivity that is displayed.
 Leaders might include: country/state leaders, sport-team captains, mothers/fathers, big personalities within a group of friends.
 I recognise however, that particular groups can form based on similarities of beliefs, values, and ideas.
 Specific cultural groups might not value diversity and as a result will not practice inclusivity.
 Possible sources of information
Primary generic Primary specific Secondary generic Secondary specific

Historical documents Diaries, photographs, Newspaper articles How important is culture

policies in shaping our behaviour?

Audio and Video recordings Listening to Indigenous Websites Culturally inclusive

elders and people from environment
other cultures around
the world ‘Refugee or Migrant?’
Government Multiculturalism and Scholarly books/journal Cultural diversity in
reports/policies/statistics the Social Inclusion articles global workforce: issues
Agenda and challenges
Speeches Human rights, Reports/handbooks Engaging with Aboriginal
multiculturalism and and Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous rights communities
Art Artworks by Syrian Social media Twitter
refugee children
My findings
 There are numerous international human rights documents that address multiculturalism issues
(Calma, 2008).
 These documents address issues of religious and racial discrimination.
 According to Calma (2008), a world where multiculturalism is endorsed is a response to cultural
and linguistic diversity.
 The appropriate use of language and word choice is vital for an inclusive environment to be
established (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, 2016).
 Inclusivity can be achieved through acknowledging diversity: "Diversity is about our relatedness,
our connectedness, our interactions, where the lines cross” (Sussman, as cited in Murmu, 2014,
p.68).
 Through policy, the Australian Government promotes social inclusion for the disadvantaged by
making available programs and services (Parliament of Australia, 2013).
 Diversity must be recognised as more than just gender, race, age, or culture; diversity includes
visible and non-visible aspects (Murmu, 2014).
 Murmu (2014) notes that discrimination laws cover a selection of characteristics to ensure fair
treatment; these characteristics include things like race, gender, religion/belief, sexual orientation and
age.
Action plan
 Please see the Coggle below on the webpage to view the action plan.
What have I learnt? And a critique of possible
solutions
 Exposure/representation of diversity and culture through media and the arts
 Art forms and media, particularly digital media, is not available to all.
 Visual art, music, drama, and media arts cross language barriers as they do not require cognitive skills to
interpret meaning or emotion.
 Inclusive practice
 I believe true inclusive practice takes skill and patience at times; when there is discourse or
disagreement between individuals or groups of people, bias and judgment can often enter the
conversation, subconsciously or verbally.
 Historical aspects of societies and cultures where inclusivity has not been practiced can impact on future
generations’ ability to integrate and function as effective and respectful citizens.
 Education
 Education is not available to all and its effectiveness relies on the receiver wanting to learn and
understand what is being taught.
 The social aspect of schools can be difficult to navigate for some, impacting on the effectiveness of this
solution.
 Mutual respect
 Mutual respect is not always present between individuals or groups of people and can subsequently
impact on aspects of inclusivity and cultural acceptance.