Co-Creating Culture, Equity, and Social Justice- An Evaluation

Part one

Smidt (2013) defines “child in culture” as one born, raised and adopt what the setting culture entails. For instance, when children are raised by their parents they learn from them. Their behavior is controlled by the the environment they are in. Children find themselves in culture, culture natures them and they develop what they absorb from the firsthand culture.

According to Smidt (2013), Brontenbrenner’s ecological model, children interact with culture in variant ways. Firstly, Smidt holds that as a child grows him or she learns more about his or her home (2013). Through home, the child relates to all family members including the extended ones. In the family setting they identify themselves as family members. Furthermore, by using cultural tools obtainable, children define family norms and roles, gender parts, images and tongues (Smidt, 2013). Secondly, a part from home, kids familiarizes with schools, hospitals, and religious settings. They learn about organizational culture where they integrate norms, beliefs and codes of respective institutions.

 Finally, they are exposed to community webs and workplace of their parents, and social networks (Smidt, 2013). Throughout these exposure to diverse culture, they are shaped to a lengthen of making their own decisions that will have an impact to their life. Moreover, they discriminate themselves from others, who they are different to, and associate with who they are comparable to (Smidt, 2013). They realize their identity by discovering their race, age mates, social groups, and even their standards of living among others.

Cultural capital is defined differently by many scholars. Sullivan (2002) defines cultural capital as ideas and knowledge both linguistic and cultural proficiency of in debt with culture which can only be produced by mother family conveying the dominating culture. On the other hand, Lamont and Lareau defines cultural capital as culture which is widely shared made up of attitudes, favorites, properties and performances used either unswervingly or secondarily in communal and social exclusion (1988).

Cultural capital is of great importance to children and families in relation to equity and social justice in different ways. Firstly, learning institutions ensures that, children of common persons have confidence in that they all have equal chances. So success and failure depend on personal gifts independent of social condition (Bennett & Silva, 2006). Secondly, Cultural capital have initiated establishment of schools as secluded confidences, weakening local authorities on holding schools, and development of personalized admissions measures and actions across various schools (Bennett & Silva, 2006). As a result, the capacity of middle class student will increase to use education system hence leading to professional and management careers for their children (Bennett & Silva, 2006).

Finally, it is essential to counterbalance the costs of the imbalanced circulation of cultural capital by the requirements placed on higher learning institutions to increase the proportions of their intakes of students recruited from underprivileged backgrounds ((Bennett & Silva, 2006).

When children learn more than one language, a part from the mother language. They are able to learn more from others, hence, by doing so they can freely express themselves, understand and know their right more (Smidt,2013). High and popular culture carries with it modernity. They respect rights of everyone, including children. They uphold rights of children by empowering them with education, so that they can express themselves and develop (Smidt, 2013).

Part two

It is a project formed by a group of seven enthusiastic helpers. To put into practice “Be the change” as said by Gandhi. It embraces education, as an essential gift to children. This project aims at empowering children by educating children to understand that it is their accountability to protect human rights of all to make a transformation in the world. Furthermore, this project is aimed at caring, protecting, educating and rehabilitating children. Moreover, it enables children to express themselves, survive and develop.

Global citizenship upholds diversity across the globe by ensuring every child access education. In some communities and even some countries, children are unable to access education due to customs and beliefs. Furthermore, in war tone countries it is difficult for young ones to receive education. In addition, some from underprivileged backgrounds does not see the light of education. This programme ensures that all these children from various calamities access education wherever they are. Nonetheless, it ensure that every child has the right to express him or herself, has the right to develop and access education without any barriers.

Social justice consists some elements that directly affects peace. When one fights for children’s right, by ensuring that they acquire education, they freely express themselves and develop, and rehabilitate them. Through these children will know and understand their rights, fight for them. So by providing social justice is comparable to working for peace. 

My community is composed of people who embrace culture and traditionally beliefs. If I was to implement this project I will have to face different challenges. Firstly, parents will render the project useless. Most parents did not access education from childhood so they will see no need for their children acquiring education. Since they are surviving without it. Secondly, our culture is against girl child education. And so, by forcing girls to school I will be seen as an outcast. Finally, global citizenship, as a project require a lot of time and financial support. As a university student, I have insufficient funds to fund it as well as time (most of time I attend to my lessons)

From the project, it is evident that global citizenship is a factor of social justice. Firstly, global citizenship brings about social justice to kinds through rehabilitation programs. For instance when children cannot access education, express themselves freely or develop. They feel abandoned. The only way to regain their self-esteem is to fight for their rights. So that they do access their education and have their rights as others. Secondly, when children access education they empower themselves: Because through education they know and understand more about their rights. Nevertheless, they will stand as per their rights, and fight for the rights of the coming generation. Lastly, by enhancing this project into school curriculum, students feel authorized to effect change, however, discovering the predicament of creation’s children.

References

Smidt, S., (2013). The Developing Child in the 21st Century: A Global Perspective on Child Development. London, UK: Routledge.

 Sullivan, A., (2002). TireNemerlanas’Joumal of Social Sciences, 38 (2), pp.145 – 146.

Lamont, M., & Lareau, A., (1988). Cultural Capital: Allusions, Gaps and Glissandos in Recent Theoretical Developments. Sociological Theory, 6 (2), pp. 153-168.

Bennett, T. & Silva, E. 2006, ‘Cultural Capital and Inequality – Policy Issues and Contexts’, Cultural Trends, 15(2-3): 87-106.