Following the brutal killing of George Floyd in the USA last year, important questions related to cultural diversity, race equality, and community cohesion has resurfaced. Isabelle Mukadi, a BlackLivesMatter British activist said in an interview on BBC that it is high time that there should be a revision of the National Curriculum (BBC News, 2020). This is due to the increasing awareness among students from ethnic minorities who are interested in a curriculum, which can link to their lived experiences and identities. The Curriculum is currently a reflection of the dominant social group in Britain which has paved the way for a narrow, monocultural expression of the world in which the ‘others’ in the society are side-lined.

It is essential to answer questions concerning the inclusivity of the education system for children belonging to ethnic minority communities in the UK. This issue is particularly pertinent in areas of historically low diversity like Plymouth, which has more recently experienced a rise in its minority population and where inclusive growth was highlighted as a challenge in two consecutive Plymouth Reports of 2014 and 2019. Hence, it is necessary to support children from ethnic minorities by recognizing their diversity. Simultaneously, there is possibly a need to educate children across all communities on diversity as differences can be appreciated only when they have this knowledge.

Multicultural education might be incorporated to facilitate the inclusion of these children. Multicultural education involves two essential elements: equity and cultural awareness, which are, fulfilling the educational requirements of ethnically diverse children and preparing pupils across all communities for the multiracial, multicultural society that Britain is. While the National Curriculum today is the center point of the educational enterprise, the teachers are the curriculum framers who put the curriculum in motion inside the classroom. A revised look at the Curriculum can be the starting point in which the teachers might play a significant part. The task design is crucial where teachers can place equal importance not only on ‘how’ the task is taught but also on ‘what’ and ‘why’ it is taught as all these three are intricately interwoven. The teachers might use the curriculum as machinery to create students’ conception of a multicultural Britain breaking the stereotypes. This will help in providing a plural and hospitable dimension to national identity for the ethnic minorities, telling the national story where they see themselves as important characters as well, thus creating “ a common identity in which all can see themselves, and giving all a sense of belonging to each other” (Modood, 2014:145). A sense of belonging thus fostered among students of diverse backgrounds might help to boost their self-esteem and confidence building.

My research aims to explore the experiences and perspectives of students, practitioners, and parents towards multiculturalism in primary schools.

My research questions are:

• How do schools implement the guidelines laid down in the National Curriculum concerning the promotion of multiculturalism?
• How do policies around multiculturalism relate to the inclusion of children from ethnic minority communities?
• How is multiculturalism incorporated in the life of the school, and how this relates to the promotion of SMSC (spiritual, moral, social, cultural) development?
• What are the experiences of parents, practitioners, and children on multiculturalism?

I will adopt a qualitative interpretivist methodology with multiple case studies in four primary schools in Plymouth. In my research, a case study may help to understand the prevailing trend on multiculturalism in other schools with similar demography and location as Plymouth. I will take a relativist ontological approach where reality is considered to be dependent on human interpretations of it. Individuals may have multiple perspectives and interpretations of multicultural education in primary schools. I will adopt an interpretivist epistemological approach, which will allow me to study the numerous ways in which individuals behave in their social context. My background and experiences will influence my research study. In my research, I have selected the paradigm of the sociocultural theory developed by Lev Vygotsky (1967), which believes that individuals’ cognitive development is inseparable from their social, cultural-historical context. I find socio-cultural theory relevant to my research as multiculturalism can provide a medium for the children to relate to their context and to have a meaningful interpretation of their purpose of education through a holistic cognition of the world as it exists. Amidst COVID-19 and following my conversation with the gatekeeper, I have crafted a remotely conducted research design, drawing on a range of approaches from different established methodologies. I will draw on Mosaic methodology. Devised by Clark and Moss (2011), the term, ‘mosaic’ suggests bringing together pieces from various sources to form an all-encompassing picture of children’s perspectives, giving children a voice as active members of the school to share their lived experiences. This is particularly necessary for my research to provide “a context in which the experiences of individuals from seldom heard groups are given the status” (Pascal and Bertram, 2009; Clark and Moss, 2011). In the ongoing pandemic, an opportunistic negotiated sampling has been adopted to identify and gather rich data. The research participants in each school include one Year Group from key stage 2, the teacher, head of key stage 2, headteacher, and two BAME (Black, Asian, minority ethnic) and two non-BAME parents. Data will be gathered through focused observation of students’ activities, online interviews with the adult participants, and selective documentary analysis. I may be interested to explore the connections between mosaic and facet methodologies in the next stage of my thesis. This is because facet methodology will allow me to foreground interesting insights into perspectives in my research design in today’s difficult context.

As a University teaching assistant, I undertook a Master's level professional teachers training last year where the issue of inclusion of ethnic minority students was not addressed even once. This possibly speaks volumes about the invisibility of this important issue from policy and practice. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989, Article 28) not only recognizes the right of the child to education but also to achieve it based on equal opportunity. Education policy since the 1980s has focused substantially on ‘standards and achievement’ underplaying the important issues of equality and inclusion. Educators may address the issue of marginalization of children from ethnic minorities to raise awareness about their inclusion which in turn, might assist to create safe places for them in schools and the society, at large. There are very few studies in Plymouth. The 2013 Plymouth University project conducted by Cotton et al. did not study settled ethnic minority communities exclusively. Until the primary education system introduces a multicultural curriculum embracing all communities, the children from ethnic minorities will continue to live in an ‘invisible state’ in their shell, and more so, in Plymouth, where these people are comparatively fewer. The original contribution lies in attempting a holistic exploration of multiculturalism in Plymouth, possibly for the first time and that too, through the socio-cultural theory adopting the mosaic approach. We are passing through a phase of alienation due to COVID-19, Brexit, and BLM movement. My research is, therefore, a timely topic of study. My research may contribute to the ongoing studies supporting a multicultural curriculum. Thus, it may have a wider appeal to a broader audience with the national interest. My findings may also give guidance to policymakers in Plymouth to identify potential areas where culturally relevant intervention programmes can be directed.

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