Technology & Multi-culturalism:Technology & Multi-culturalism:Can technology bridge the gap between Can technology bridge the gap between

Jews and Arabs in Teacher EducationJews and Arabs in Teacher Education??

Asmaa GanayemAsmaa Ganayem Dr. Miri ShonfeldDr. Miri ShonfeldDr. Elaine HoterDr. Elaine Hoter

Miri ShonfeldMiri Shonfeld

Head of ICTHead of ICT

Kibutzim collegeKibutzim college

Asmaa GanayemAsmaa Ganayem

Head of ICTHead of ICT

Al-Qasemi collegeAl-Qasemi college

Elaine HoterElaine Hoter

Head of ICTHead of ICT

Talpiot collegeTalpiot college

20082008 StatisticsStatistics

• The Jewish population living in Israel is The Jewish population living in Israel is 5,400,0005,400,000

• The Arab population is 1,400,000 which The Arab population is 1,400,000 which amounts to 20% of the total population in amounts to 20% of the total population in IsraelIsrael

Arab Society in IsraelArab Society in Israel

Identity crisis: Israeli-Arab conflictIdentity crisis: Israeli-Arab conflict.

Language: Arabic & HebrewLanguage: Arabic & Hebrew

Social Arab-Jews relation: live mostly in Social Arab-Jews relation: live mostly in separate areasseparate areas

Discrimination: wide gaps in different socio-Discrimination: wide gaps in different socio-economic aspectseconomic aspects

Religious Israeli JewishReligious Israeli Jewish

separate education systemseparate education system

different political affiliationdifferent political affiliation

Social secular-religious relations: live often in Social secular-religious relations: live often in separate areas and communitiesseparate areas and communities

Lack of understanding between groupsLack of understanding between groups

What is peace for What is peace for Jews living in IsraelJews living in Israel??

Negative Negative peace: the absence of violencepeace: the absence of violencePositive Positive peace: cooperation, harmony, commerce, & peace: cooperation, harmony, commerce, & mutuality mutualityStructural Structural peace: equality, independence, and peace: equality, independence, and sovereigntysovereignty

What is peace for What is peace for Arabs living in IsraelArabs living in Israel??

Negative Negative peace: the absence of violencepeace: the absence of violencePositive Positive peace: cooperation, harmony, commerce, & peace: cooperation, harmony, commerce, & mutuality mutualityStructural Structural peace: equality, independence, and peace: equality, independence, and sovereigntysovereignty

What is peaceWhat is peace??

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Negative Positive Structural

Palestinian

Jewish-Israeli

Percentage of responses (N = 819; Biton, 2002).

Negative Negative peace: the absence of violencepeace: the absence of violencePositive Positive peace: cooperation, harmony, commerce, & mutualitypeace: cooperation, harmony, commerce, & mutualityStructural Structural peace: equality, independence, and sovereigntypeace: equality, independence, and sovereignty

Is it the role of a teaching college to reduce Is it the role of a teaching college to reduce these biases among students studying in these biases among students studying in

pre-service education?pre-service education?

Can ICT help to improve understanding Can ICT help to improve understanding among students?among students?

?

We are We are notnot trying to solve the conflict or trying to solve the conflict or hold discussions on issues of the conflict, hold discussions on issues of the conflict, but we are facilitating a meeting between but we are facilitating a meeting between students on an equal basis according to students on an equal basis according to the model developed with the belief that the model developed with the belief that this will lead to change !this will lead to change !

TheoriesTheories

Pettigrew and Tropp’s summary of the contact Pettigrew and Tropp’s summary of the contact hypothesis (2000) confirmed that in the right hypothesis (2000) confirmed that in the right conditions, contact could reduce bias conditions, contact could reduce bias between groups. between groups.

Necessary conditions:Necessary conditions:

the long term contact between groups rather the long term contact between groups rather than individuals, between people of equal than individuals, between people of equal status, supported at an institutional level and status, supported at an institutional level and based on cooperation rather than competition.based on cooperation rather than competition.

Online Intergroup Online Intergroup Contact HypothesisContact Hypothesis

• Equality of status and collaborationEquality of status and collaboration• Supported by institutionsSupported by institutions• Over a period of time (one year)Over a period of time (one year)• Based on collaborationBased on collaboration• Gradual development between groupsGradual development between groups

• WritingWriting• VoiceVoice

– CollaborationCollaboration

• F2FF2F

(Shonfeld, Ganayem and Hoter, 2006)

AimsAims• Students will experience online collaborative Students will experience online collaborative

learning with different populations they would learning with different populations they would never normally meet. never normally meet.

• Students will be proficient internet usersStudents will be proficient internet users• Students will be able to integrate the internet Students will be able to integrate the internet

in their teachingin their teaching• Students will be able to develop and adapt Students will be able to develop and adapt

online materialonline material• Students will participate and be exposed to Students will participate and be exposed to

Inter and multicultural educationInter and multicultural education

How did it workHow did it work??

Kibbutzim Kibbutzim College of College of EducationEducation

Talp

iot T

each

er’s

Talp

iot T

each

er’s

Col

lege

Col

lege

Al

Al Q

asemi

Qasem

i

Academ

ic college

Academ

ic college

Small multi-cultural groupSmall multi-cultural group

Al Qasemi

Kibbutzim College of Education

Talpiot

How does it work with 9 collegesHow does it work with 9 colleges??

Jewish religious college

Jewish secular college

Arab college

Jewish religious college

Jewish secular college

Arab college

The students were divided into The students were divided into topic groupstopic groups

All students

Food & health

Events in History

Environmentalissues

Miri

Road safety

Elaine Asmaa Miri

2 Students from religious sector

2 students from the Arab sector

2 students from secular sector

Special Special EducationEducation

ManifestationsManifestationsof natureof nature

CurrentCurrentaffairsaffairs

The The EnvironmentEnvironment

ReligionsReligions Events inEvents inHistoryHistory

TheTheArtsArts

The The ConsumerConsumer

PhysicalPhysicalExerciseExercise

RoadRoadsafetysafety

Food &Food &healthhealth

Multi-Multi-culturalismculturalism

TopicsTopicsChosenChosen

New Technology TaughtNew Technology TaughtUsing “interwise” or highlearnUsing “interwise” or highlearn

All students try out the technologyAll students try out the technology in their content areain their content area

and do the assignment based on theand do the assignment based on the new technologynew technology

Students post their assignments and Students post their assignments and the group members discuss and critique the group members discuss and critique

the work onlinethe work online

Results

Making wiki sites

Interactive forms

Seminar/paper

Webquests

Interactive PowerPoint

Making movies

Making treasure hunts

Analyzing internet sites

Making and using Blogs and forums

Meetings

F2F F2F meetingsmeetings in each college in each college

Explanations of how to Explanations of how to use the technologiesuse the technologies

Synchronous meetingsSynchronous meetings

More than 50% of the More than 50% of the meetings were meetings were synchronoussynchronous

The studentsThe students connected connected from different placesfrom different places

A-synchronous meetingsA-synchronous meetings

FF22FFIn the middle and end of the In the middle and end of the

coursecourse

Cooperative TeachingCooperative Teaching

Collaboration, trust and harmonyCollaboration, trust and harmony

Division of LabourDivision of Labour

team work:team work:• planning unitsplanning units• giving online giving online

lectureslectures• Evaluating Evaluating

assignmentsassignments

The OICH Model: online inter-group contact hypothesisThe OICH Model: online inter-group contact hypothesis

Educational Technological

type

Media Type

Communication type

Environment Building ofTrust

Levels of Thinking

Individual A-synchronous

work

Synch. individual

work & a-synch. group work

Collaborative synch. group work

Wiki (Web 2)

Video conferencing & multimedia

Forums & Blogs & synchronous platforms Textual

Low trust level

High trust level

High level thinking

assignments

Low level thinking assignments

+audio

+oral/ aural

+visual

Peer review

Reduction in bias between groups

Parallel & sequentialcollaboration

Synergistic collaboration

Dialogue

Face to Face meeting of small groups- (discussions & collaborative work) & lecturers 4 all participants

Required conditions for the OICH Model

Small group cooperation & collaborationInstitutional supportInteraction over a year

Equality of Status Teachers belong to the different cultural groups

Team teachingContent a-political

Face to Face end of course meeting and presentation of projects

collaboration collaboration for research, for research,

conferences & conferences & initiativesinitiatives

The graduates of the courses lead The graduates of the courses lead children in schools in online multicultural children in schools in online multicultural

projectsprojects

Connections Connections between between collegescolleges

Online collaborative Online collaborative courses between courses between

students of the different students of the different collegescolleges

Problems encounteredProblems encountered

• Segregation issuesSegregation issues

• Language issuesLanguage issues

• Collaborative issuesCollaborative issues

• Timetable issues- (festivals and holidays)Timetable issues- (festivals and holidays)

• Political issuesPolitical issues

QuestionQuestion

To what extent can the Internet To what extent can the Internet play a role in bridging between play a role in bridging between cultures and reducing bias cultures and reducing bias among groups?among groups?

Implications and Future PlansImplications and Future Plans

• Involving more collegesInvolving more colleges• Working with in-service teachersWorking with in-service teachers• Going into schoolsGoing into schools

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