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The Education of Minorities in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East

By:
Cynthia S Sunal, University of Alabama
Oluseyi Matthew Odebiyi, Arizona State University
Kagendo Mutua, University of Alabama

A volume in the series: Research on Education in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Editor(s): Cynthia S Sunal, University of Alabama. Oluseyi Matthew Odebiyi, Arizona State University. Kagendo Mutua, University of Alabama.

Call for Chapter Proposals

BOOK 10 OF THE SERIES: RESEARCH ON EDUCATION IN AFRICA, THE CARIBBEAN, AND THE MIDDLE EAST:
Education has expanded to serve more of the populace in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East over the past 70 years. Research in curriculum and instruction in these regions has also been rapidly changing. Available reports from these regions often present international perspectives, making it difficult for scholars, practitioners, and students to keep abreast of relevant knowledge. The book series, Research on Education in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East, provides a comprehensive view of pre-K-16 current and emerging research approaches, educational models, and local relevant knowledge within these regions. Topics covered in each volume are determined by considering enduring and present issues and trends, as well as generative themes related to current research and theory. Published volumes include empirical studies, literature reviews, positing of theoretical and conceptual bases, and policy analysis.

CALL FOR CHAPTER PROPOSALS, BOOK TEN:
We invite you to contribute a chapter to Book Ten of the series to be published by Information Age Publishing in Fall 2024: The Education of Minorities in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East.

An increased number of stakeholders such as the national government, local community, and teacher education programs within Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East have worked to emphasize expansive learning opportunities including minorities. Here, we focus on minorities as national, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious and other non-dominant groups. They are fewer in number within the populace and seek to preserve and develop their identity and social self-identification. Such minority groups may be diaspora minorities in the regions upon which this book will focus. Although challenges continue, educational policy and efforts often involve instituting various approaches aimed at providing relevant schooling and eradicating the marginalization of minority groups.

Educators have focused on creating and adapting curriculum content and pedagogy to reflect the diverse backgrounds of their minority students. Parallel to public school curricula, some minority groups have created and introduced curricula and pedagogy to maintain, honor, and develop their group’s identity. The scope of these efforts is large and covers different levels of education from early childhood to university. It also covers a wide range of social forms such as ethnicity, class, gender, and ability/disability. Because these efforts involve possibilities and challenges, discourses on the education of minorities are complex. Mainstream reports may be far removed from how minorities actually experience the educational contexts in the regions.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are seeing different dynamics in what it means to educate all students. For instance, some students from minority groups engaged with technologies to access curricula while others have done so to avoid pandemic-imposed isolation from mainstream social spheres, and yet others did both. Understanding the functions of curriculum and instruction to provide educational opportunities; addressing the inclusion and possible marginalization of minorities in public education systems in these world regions continues to be challenging if not problematic.

We invite educational researchers to propose chapters for Book Ten documenting, describing, and/or raising critical issues and/or questions on efforts intended to make relevant and appropriate public education available to minorities.

SOME GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR PREPARING THE CHAPTERS:
The overarching question we invite authors to grapple with in each chapter is: “As efforts to expand public education increase in the world regions of Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East, what is the status of education of minorities aimed at improving their educational outcomes while preserving and developing their identity and social self-identification? What educational implications might the efforts reported have for public education?”

Some potential questions specific chapters might examine include the following:

1. Are there local minority group-structured curricula and pedagogical strategies that are providing outcomes worthy of modeling elsewhere? What research focus underpins the curriculum and strategies implemented?

2. What impacts can be determined from local and/or national programs aiming at the development of, and support for, specific minority groups within a society?

3. What curriculum characteristics and/or instructional strategies used to support the inclusion of a minority group have import for use at the national level with all students? With other minority groups within the nation?

4. How does the curriculum address a minority group’s ways of life (for example, existing ideology and beliefs, the notion of existence and essence, and daily lived experiences)? What educational outcomes are documented, if any, from the efforts to address the minority group’s ways of life?

5. How has political recognition, or lack thereof, of minority group communities translated into changes in public education for minorities?

6. How are governments negotiating context-relevant and norm-related issues in the public schooling of all learners from minority groups at the local and/or national level?

These guiding questions are by no means exhaustive but are just a few within the purview of this proposed volume. In addressing these questions, be sure your chapter touches on “What has been done?” “What was its purpose?” and “What are the educational outcomes?” Chapters will provide points from which further research and practice might occur.

GENERAL OUTLINE FOR CHAPTERS:
Each chapter should be 30 double-spaced pages, including references, using the format required in the latest edition of the APA publication manual. Each chapter will feature research including suggestions as to how best to promote and advance research and practice in the region under discussion in the chapter. While we anticipate great content variability among chapters and while we would like contributors to have needed flexibility in the features of their respective chapters, we are nonetheless offering the following suggestions as a general outline to promote consistency between chapters.

Each chapter should:
a) include a brief overview of the minority groups and state an intent to improve educational outcomes for learners.

b) address the educational level it targets (e.g., early childhood, primary, secondary, or tertiary).

c) include diversity components of the learners targeted (national, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and/or religious minority groups).

d) answer the overarching question of this volume: “As efforts to expand public education increase, to what extent has the education of minorities improved educational outcomes and at the same time, preserved and developed the identity and social self-identification of the group served?

e) References.

Note: The chapters must be built upon, and report, original research by the author(s).

We hope you consider this scholarly contribution as an opportunity for you to provide researchers, practitioners, and policy-makers with knowledge enhancing the quality of their scholarship and services to persons with whom they work.

As you know, there are no widespread sources of exemplary research in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. As such, though we have developed a list of distinguished potential contributors for the chapters, we realize there are persons doing excellent work in these disciplines whom we have not included in this invitation. So, we welcome suggestions from you of others whose work we should consider. Please forward to us their contacts or invite them to serve as co-authors with you. Knowing that you are very busy, we have established timelines that will allow you to contribute to this book. Dates and associated tasks are outlined below.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE FOR PUBLICATION:
April 2023: Your email response on your commitment to write this chapter
July 2023: Submit a 5-page chapter proposal
October 30, 2023: Our proposal reviews are completed
December 1, 2023: First draft of your chapter submitted
January-February 2024: Our review of your chapter occurs
March, 2024: Return of your first draft, and your final revisions are completed
May 1, 2024: Your final manuscript submitted
June, 2024: We submit the manuscript to the publisher

We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest opportunity. Please send an e-mail reply to Cynthia Szymanski Sunal at cvsunal@ua.edu. Let us know if you accept our invitation to write the chapter. Thank you for considering our invitation.

Send all inquiries to Cynthia Szymanski Sunal cvsunal@ua.edu

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