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A new intercultural framework for education is being developed as a pedagogical response to increasingly multi-ethnic societies in Europe. This framework has been gaining ground during the last decade within EU Institutions (Commission of the European Communities, European Commission, Council of Ministers, OECD, OSCE) and the Council of Europe Documents and replacing multiculturalism as the guiding framework. This shift has generated an ardent debate between multiculturalists and interculturalists. Indeed, there is much criticism of the interculturalist framework. This article positions itself within this current debate and offers a critical analysis of the conceptual mapping of interculturalism within which there are tensions, ambiguities, and often conflicting goals and strategies. In addition, this work highlights the problematic dynamics intrinsic in the theoretical framework of interculturalism as a political and philosophical framework as well as in its pedagogical manifestation in educational settings as intercultural education. We analyze this educational framework from a stance of sociology of education taking into account the institution of schooling as one that is contextualized in existing socio-political dynamics, narratives, and lived-realities.

Globalization and dynamic transnational migrations are bringing remarkable demographic differences to Europe and the United States. Transnational immigration flows from Eastern Europe, Africa and elsewhere are creating economical and educational inequities that are forcing EU nation- states to reflect on these differences and imagine solutions. Immigrants bring cultural practices, forms of art, and perspectives on all aspects of human experience that transform and enrich the cultures of host countries. Dichotomies between natives and newcomers emerge, as well as new forms of identities and distinctions between "them" and "us". In addition, schools are not prepared to educate diverse children with varied educational backgrounds and languages. Societal inequities cannot be understood in isolation but rather need to be understood from a global perspective. This book gathers researchers from across the globe to examine paradigms, policies, and practices for developing an inclusive intercultural and transnational framework to reduce inequities. This is necessary to positively integrate culturally-diverse families, children and adolescents into schools and societies.

Europe is a multi-ethnic society experiencing a rise of anti-immigration, racist, xenophobic discourses, and right-wing political rhetoric and movements proposing legislation to further solidify structural inequality and institutionalized systems of oppression that fuel educational inequities. Social Justice Education in European Multi-ethnic Schools brings together researchers in the fields of sociology and education to examine debates in multicultural education. Drawing on critical theory, the book takes an in-depth look at how these challenges are being addressed (or not addressed) in educational contexts and in the proposed framework of intercultural education adopted as a conceptual and educational framework by the European Union over the last two decades. The book begins with an analysis of the sociological models and theories of migration and their connection to multiculturalism and interculturalism. It engages in the current debate between multiculturalism and interculturalism, bringing to light the "political rhetoric" that fueled narratives about the "failures" of multiculturalism, which ushered in the intercultural framework. It puts forth a critical analysis of interculturalism, linking it to neoliberalism, and policies of civic integration and the concept of govermentality. Advocating for a transformative framework informed in social justice education that aims to promote more equity in schools, it critically analyzes and discusses intercultural education, the pedagogical extension of interculturalism, as per the European documents highlighting its goals, pedagogies, tensions, and challenges. Social Justice Education in European Multi-ethnic Schools will be of great interest to academics, researchers, and scholars in the fields of intercultural, multicultural, and transformative education.

AbstractDespite attending schools in a state internationally recognized for innovation, research and education, Latine students in Massachusetts, USA continue to disproportionately experience discrimination, economic segregation, health disparities and racial inequities that have shaped their schooling experiences and outcomes across the educational pipeline (Colón, "We are beautiful people": The schooling experiences of Puerto Rican school‐aged mothers [PhD Thesis]. Tufts University, 2019). Grounded in critical analysis of intercultural education towards social justice (Pica‐Smith et al., Social justice education in European multi‐ethnic schools. Addressing the goals of intercultural education. Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, London, 2019), this paper critically examines publicly available data to highlight barriers, opportunities and the need for educational researchers, policymakers and administrators to collectively reimagine an educational project that attends to the needs of this population. In the context of the unyielding disparate impact of COVID‐19, we argue that more ever, this reimagination needs to be grounded in the dynamic conception of culture (Levitt et al., International Migration Review, 38, 1002, 2004), intercultural perspectives on education that are based on critical notions of intergroup contact, dialogue and exchange (Allport, Forms and techniques of altruistic and spiritual growth: a symposium, 1954, 367; Council of Europe, White paper on intercultural dialogue. Living together as equals in dignity, Strasburgo, 2008) and multidimensional notion of belonging at the micro and macro levels for a more just education writ large.