TABLE OF CONTENTS

Identity dramas written into the cultural borderland. Educational implications

In addition to the positive borderline effect, which is often presented in the literature, this text presents the dilemmas and tragedies of the individual, family and community, taking place on the border of cultures, religions and ethnicities. The methodological basis is the concept of the interpretation of the borderland and multi-range identity, through which I read and describe the fate of Emilia Moszczańska Kosiur Niewęgłowska presented by Grzegorz Dżus in the book “Banderowka”, published in 2020. The narration of the book’s main character allowed for presenting the process of shaping the family, individual and social identity. In this process, in the face of experiencing suspicion, helplessness, fear and humiliation, such questions dominate as: Who am I? Who am I to be? How am I to be? The author draws attention to the problem of the narrator’s internal dialogue, points to its value in the educational and humanistic context. He emphasizes how difficult but important, in the process of shaping identity, is the mediation of three areas of identity and the liberating oneself from the stigma of alienation experienced from all sides.

Neither a Pole nor a German – a Silesian – about recognizing one’s own ethnicity

The inspiration for the article is Zbigniew Rokita’s book “Kajś. A Tale of Upper Silesia”. It allowed the author to reflect on the issue of ethnic recognition of a human being as the basis for constructing an ethnic identity. The theoretical context consists of two theses: the first one (following Hannah Arendt) says that human beings always come to this world as new, as strangers, and to make their humanity more real, they need to act and speak; the second thesis (following Martin Heidegger) refers to the “truth of being” and proves that human habitation in the world is complicated. Attempts to understand the relationship between ethnic recognition and identity allowed the author to formulate the thesis that ethnicity is nothing else but knowledge about one’s family, community and the land inhabited by generations. The recognition of ethnicity itself can have three stages: 1) anecdotal identity; 2) attractive identity; 3) patched identity.

Heritage and memory. An essay on the absent culture of Polish Jews

The main research problem of the study is the question whether a culture that is already absent from the social space of a local community is the community’s cultural heritage. Has such a culture been remembered by the inhabitants of a small town and how does it fit into the context of regional education? The axis of the article is the Jewish culture that was present until World War II in two shtetls – “Jewish towns” – in the Świętokrzyskie region: in Włoszczowa and Chmielnik. These are two opposite examples of building a town’s cultural and social identity in the context of the almost complete absence of the Jewish culture and, in the second case, its extensive revitalization. The presented sociological and anthropological research shows that this context is socially and politically conditioned, and (above all) that in order to recall an absent culture from the controversial past, the emergence of social leaders, called leaders of cultural heritage, is desirable. They are organizationally able to initiate activities supported by a sound ideological basis.

The educational, social and economic situation of Jewish women in Wałcz County (West Prussia) from the 18th to early 20th century

In this article, I analyze the functioning of women in Jewish communities in the Wałcz County (Kreis Deutsch Krone), which was part of West Prussia until the end of 1945. This area, located initially between West Prussia and Pomerania and later between several Prussian provinces, was particularly conducive to Jewish settlement. As a result, for example in Miroslawiec (Märkisch Friedland), located in the Wałcz district, at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, the Jewish population constituted as much as 55%. So far, few publications have been written about the Jewish communities functioning in that area. The text is of a historical nature; in the course of its preparation, I have made use of archival materials, the Jewish press of the time, and I have also referred to Prussian legal regulations. As a result, I have analysed the economic, legal and, in particular, educational situation of Jewish women living in the area, taking into account two types of factors that conditioned it – religious orders and Prussian legislation. I also discuss the changes and their causes, to which the functioning of women in these communities was subjected in the period from the 18th to the beginning of the 20th century, as well as the gradual assimilation of the Jewish population, progressing until World War II, which put an end to the presence of Jews in this area.

Indigenous Peoples in the Canadian education system – an attempt to reconcile to the past, the current situation and planned activities

This article is devoted to theoretical considerations on the education of Canadian Indigenous Peoples. In the past, this education was provided in state boarding schools by priests and nuns, mainly for First Nations children aged 4– –16, who were sent there forcibly, taken by force from their parents. There were many cases of abuse in schools such as: physical, mental and sexual violence, experienced by approximately 150 000 children. Some of them never returned to family homes. These schools destroyed the psyche of many young people and influenced their later lives. It was not until 2005 that the Canadian government officially apologized to survivors and their families for the harm suffered by several generations of Indigenous Peoples during 120 years of compulsory education, conversion and integration into white colonizing society. Currently, the Canadian government willing to compensate for past harm, is working at federal and provincial levels to improve access of Indigenous people to the education system at all levels.

Lisbon – the identity of an intercultural city

The aim of the article is to draw attention to the specificity of Lisbon’s identity – the identity of an intercultural city, engaged on the one hand in intercultural dialogue that integrates local communities, and on the other – in the process of a commercial use of this dialogue leading to the revitalization and gentrification of urban spaces. The context for presenting the above-mentioned problems involves: the historical background of Lisbon’s interculturalism, the idea of intercultural cities, intercultural dialogue, models of diversity and the city’s neoliberal policy.

Childhood experiences and their significance in adulthood – a supplement to the studies among teachers from kindergartens and schools with Polish as the teaching language in Zaolzie in the Czech Republic

The article comprises a presentation of quantitative and qualitative studies, conducted among teachers working in kindergartens and schools with Polish as the teaching language in the territory of Zaolzie in the Czech Republic. Teachers’ experiences are analysed from the perspective of both the constructivist vision of a child, present in pedagogy, and Maria Tyszkowa’s concept of structuration and restructuration of experience (considered to be a part of the constructivist current). The undertaken reflections and the research results enable the recognition of the significance of childhood experiences for the professional development of beginners in teaching careers. Those reflections and outcomes can also enhance the development of teachers’ awareness and responsibility for providing children and youth with experiences that will be of crucial importance in their later life young.

Intercultural sensitivity of Polish emigrants in England, compared to British and Polish citizens living in their countries of origin

The aim of the study was to try to determine differences in the level of intercultural sensitivity of Polish economic emigrants in England, compared to citizens of Great Britain and Poland living in their country of origin. Intercultural sensitivity is understood as an indicator of competence to intercultural communication expressed in the readiness to lead dialogue with a culturally different person. The research was conducted in England and Poland, using the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) by G.-M. Chen and W.J. Starosta, adapted to the Polish conditions by the author of this article. As a result of the conducted research, it was found that the highest level of readiness for dialogue with a culturally different person is presented by the surveyed citizens of Great Britain (who obtained in most of the analysed dimensions high and average results in the upper range) and the lowest – by Polish nationals residing in their country of origin (their results ranked as average).

The meaning of individual social capital for the emotional well-being of students during the COVID-19 pandemic

The article presents the results of the research conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 among students of the University of Bialystok. The aim of the study was to determine the meaning of individual social capital for the emotional well-being of students. Emotional well-being has been defined as an overall assessment of an individual’s quality of life. Individual social capital is a potential resource of personal and social networks of individuals, which they “use” in various life situations. The study showed an interdependence between the individual social capital of students and their emotional well-being.

Distance education during the COVID-19 pandemic in the experiences of Polish students: everyday life and a vision of school’s future

Our project was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. 1955 students from Polish schools participated in the study. The aim was to detect school experiences of children, adolescents and young adults. The results show the lack of digital hygiene, but also the respondents’ general satisfaction with the distance learning and their including its elements in the vision of the school of the future. The differences in the experiences of boys and girls and of the learners in rural and urban areas are a premise for the interpretation of the obtained results in the direction of deepening the previously existing inequalities associated with distance learning.

Does the Wawel Dragon prefer sushi? The semiosphere of the vision of a multicultural city in the 21st century in the artistic works of school students from Krakow

In this text, a semiotic perspective was used to analyze the artistic works of students from Krakow schools submitted to the competition entitled “A multicultural city in the 21st century”. Assuming that the condition for the semiotics of the city are social processes leading to the recognition of objects in urban space as signs, the text is aimed to answer the question: what signs and codes constitute the semiosphere of works taking part in the competition? The analysis shows that the participants creatively used signs rooted in the tradition of Krakow, modifying their meaning by placing them in new syntagmatic systems with signs from other cultural codes. These works also show that the impact of cultural interactions is related to an exchange of signs and the dynamic process of reassigning their meanings. They also illustrate other sociocultural mechanisms taking place in the conditions of multi – and interculturalism. One of them is the simple multiplication of various “cultural packages”, and another – the diverse and dynamic interactions and the interweaving of the multiple elements that make up the entire intercultural space.

The developing of children’s multiple intelligences and key competences in the context of non-formal education. A case study of the competition “Słoneczniki [Sunflowers]”

Educational activities organized by cultural institutions are nowadays developed around the world in spaces other than schools. In particular, some new forms of education for children emerged, which are situated in museums, theatres, and cultural and entertainment centres. Global educational challenges are undertaken in local cultural environments. Their shared value is the focus on developing children’s abilities and the potential for multiple intelligences from an early age. The multiplicity and diversity of cultural offers is undoubtedly an advantage, but also a problem. Hence, the question arises which of these cultural proposals are particularly valuable, compared to others, and stand out in terms of quality. The article presents a case study of the “Sunflowers” competition, held in Krakow, in the context of research into children’s cultural and intercultural education. The materials made available by the organizer of the competition were analyzed in the article. Non-formal education has been discussed as an important area of educational influence and the formation of cultural competence.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Sense of self-sufficiency as a barrier for forming the open religious identity in “destitute time”

The pedagogical reflection on methods and condition of creating of an open religious identity of youth was presented by the author in the perspective of the current social situation, rather unfavourable towards activities in the field of religion especially bearing traits of the openness to the Otherness. Such a situation has been defined by the philosopher and poet Friedrich Hölderlin as the “destitute time”. Therefore, the author has made this quote of Friedrich Hölderlin and Rainer Rilke as necessary philosophical context of the reflection. In a search of the complete overview and description of the open religious identity and determinants of the process of its forming, the author focuses on the selected questions such as religious fundamentalism, sense of self-sufficiency in religious dimension, reflectivity and parrhesia which in in an essential way, positive or negative, determine the discussed process.

About being (not)rooted in Silesianness. New Silesia as a space for creating a biography

New Silesia was the result of a communist project, that was implementing the vision of building a socialist world and creating a new man. This process had fundamental importance for people coming in masses to Upper Silesia to work and for their biographies to be constructed. In the article I present a trajectory reconstruction of the identity of a woman participating in the research. Her biography is an example of the identity processes related to the arrival and life in the „forming” city.

From the struggle for survival to world-class education – key programs in Singapore’s educational policy

The article draws attention to historical, political and legal aspects of the changes introduced in the Singapore education system. Educational reforms in this country have led to the formation of a highly effective system, i.e. world-class education. The aim of the article is to indicate some key programs of the government’s educational policy that have contributed to the country’s transition from the third world level to a leader of the first-world level. The article is a descriptive overview set in a temporal perspective. As such, it highlights the main changes in the organization and the functioning of the education system. Its five phases have been isolated and their specific features have been described. The effectiveness of the strategy adopted by Singapore has been assessed in the context of its political culture.

Praxeological aspect of literature in intercultural education – the case of selected French language textbooks

In contemporary times, intercultural education is becoming increasingly important because of the economic, social and ideological challenges facing the Member States of the European Union. Mutual understanding and agreement is achieved, among other things, at the institutional level of the school, by learning the language of another nation, and through this – ways of understanding the surrounding reality. The selection of appropriate means that can contribute to the realisation of these assumptions also concerns literary content, which serves as an example of culture-creating human activity, but also as an expression of concrete experiences of people living in a given community, speaking a different language and capable of different religious or ideological perspectives. According to the CECR guidelines, language and cultural education must take into account the preparation of the student to contribute actively to the environment around him / her. The aim of the article is to analyse, using quantitative and qualitative methods, the importance of literature in intercultural education, on the example of French language textbooks and the fragments of literary texts they contain. From the perspective of social challenges, the teaching of literature acquires a praxeological dimension as one of the conditions for effective educational interventions. The literary material submitted for extraction is only a representation of a vast field of literature, nevertheless its selection from the perspective of FLE contributes to the realization of the tasks of intercultural education, the aim of which is to know and establish relations between native and foreign culture.

Courtesy stigma – a challenge for intercultural education

In the article, I describe sick people and people from their immediate environment as Other. I present sociological concepts and research results regarding courtesy stigma. I present an analysis of the narrative interview regarding the mother’s experience of stigmatizing a sick child. Intercultural education is to prepare for life in a diverse world, shape the understanding of difference, learn to get rid of prejudices and stereotypes, therefore, in the end of my considerations, I propose solutions to this pedagogical concept that can improve the well-being of sick people and their relatives stigmatized by the environment.

The model of a contemporary female Catholic as designed by religious girls on the threshold of adulthood. A report on focus group interviews

This article describes the model of a contemporary Catholic woman as designed by religious girls on the threshold of adulthood. In the struggle of young people with existential dilemmas, both specific models and abstract role models may prove to be helpful. Both have become the subject of research carried out in 2021 conducted using 10 focus group interviews with 35 female students in the final years of secondary schools. The focus groups were created by recruiting 17–18 years olds girls of the Roman Catholic faith living in western and northern Poland and attended religion lessons. This article contains an excerpt concerning the model of a Catholic woman in the contemporary world designed by interviewees. The projection task showed that the created role models go beyond the stereotypical images of Catholic women, less refers to a specific traditional Christian personal models and is an exemplification of a new female perspective in Catholicism.

Identity in the age of globalisation (a report on Manford Kuhn’s Twenty Statements Test taken by the students from Poland and Zimbabwe)

The global reality, and in particular the extensive network of economic, political and also strategic interdependencies, especially over the past several years, has led to a significant conversion of the educational model. As a result of the real changes taking place, whole social categories can be observed, whose life, work and also study are completely uprooted from a specific place and the concept of “we” goes beyond the borders of the local community. This raises the question of the factors that shape the “self” in the changing global world of the 21st century. The aim of this article is to compare the categories within which young people from Poland and Zimbabwe define themselves and to identify the dominant elements of a description of the “self” concept. The research tool is the Twenty Statements Test designed by the symbolic interactionist Manford Kuhn. McPartland’s (1959) codification key is used to interpret the test results.

Axiological determinants of the attitudes presented by students of aiding courses aimed at the elderly. The case of Poland and Germany – an intercultural perspective

Functioning in a culturally diverse world has become an everyday reality. European integration, globalisation, and migration of people have become contributing factors in this regard. In this context, a key role is played by intercultural education aimed at identifying, understanding, and supporting diversity. This article is empirical in nature. The survey objective was to diagnose and describe the attitudes and system of values of students of the helping professions towards older persons in Poland and Germany. The diagnostic survey was the research method used. Kogan’s Attitudes Towards Older People scale (Kogan OP Scale) and Schwartz’s Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) were used in the survey. The survey was conducted from October to December 2018. German students (200 persons) constituted the main group, while Polish students (167 persons) were the comparison group. The survey results revealed statistically significant differences between Polish and German students in their attitudes to older persons.

Germany on the way to intercultural care for the elderly

Globalization is a process that has brought many changes in recent decades. Improvement and further development of economic aspects meant that people were offered new opportunities, and this outside the country. It is not only the existing infrastructure that is responsible for the fact that the world is increasingly becoming a multicultural world. Despite many changes, differences between cultures in terms of their attitudes and beliefs, but also the meaning and interpretation of everyday life, are still visible. Migration is closely related to labor policy. If legal requirements allow, the goal of many migrants is to earn money abroad. Over 100 nations live and work in Germany (Visser / de Jong 2002, p. 110). Germany is a multicultural country. Due to the growing number of elderly people, caring for them must adapt to a multicultural clientele. Interculturalism is of great importance not only for care but also for society as a whole. Multicultural work teams are and will continue to be an increasingly common form of work in Germany (Barth, 2000). Not only more and more care recipients, but also more and more carers come from other countries and cultures. For this reason, practice and a change of approach are needed to deal with this topic in a delicate and structured way.

The idea of restorative justice cities on the example of Wrocław

The article aims to present the idea of restorative justice cities and attempts to apply restorative practices by local government institutions and nongovernmental organizations in Wrocław, as well as ways of involving local communities in solving social problems and conflicts affecting city residents. It refers to the concept of restorative justice, which becomes an effective tool for repairing social relations by rebuilding interpersonal bonds, it also plays an educational role, contributing to the revitalization of communities and building a civil society. The article points to the importance of local and environmental communities which, as victims of crimes or conflicts, but also as entities co-responsible for their causes and effects, may be involved in the remedial process in various ways.

Contact with the Other in the “different” time of the pandemic. Reflections on the inclusive school culture

The concept of an inclusive school culture indicates the need for a multifaceted opening to different Others and their diverse educational needs. In this context, strategies oriented towards virtual contact and online relations with Others in a “different” world from the one were familiar with become particularly important. This article addresses the issue of (e)inclusive school culture in times of the COVID-19 disruptions. It presents selected illustrations of empirical research showing that despite the fact that the implementation of the idea of inclusion in the school learning environment is not easy during the pandemic, it is still possible, to provide various opportunities for students to build relations with Others in the spirit of the integration education and justice for all.

Muslim education in Rajasthan. A case study of madrasa for girls in Bikaner

The aim of the presented paper is to describe the functioning of madrasa in Bikaner, Rajasthan. Muslims constitute the second largest religious group in India and thus the largest religious minority. The low literacy level of Muslims and Schedule Castes/Schedule Tribes is well documented in research studies. The method used in this research is that of the case study. The presented results are the effect of the larger project on illiteracy conducted by the author in India in 2011–2020. Martha Nussbaum’s Capabilities Approach was used to analyze madrasa’s activity.

Significance of regional education in shaping regional identity before and in the pandemic times

The undertaken considerations concern the role of regional education in shaping the regional identity of children between 5–12 years old before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The basis of scientific analysis is the experience of children and their mothers. Regional education should lead to the development of the individual and collective identity of an individual, root a young person in his own cultural heritage and enable him to function creatively in a multicultural society. An outcome of the conducted research indicates minor impact of regional education in the range of shaping a regional identity of examined children during the period before the pandemic and its exacerbating ineffectiveness in the Times of isolation and distance learning. Mothers propound the need of action in the area of regional education in order to make children aware of their responsibility for their place of residence, the local community, the protection and multiplication of the cultural heritage of the region. The research indicates the need of consideration both: the current condition of regional education in kindergarten and school space and its actual role in the process of shaping children’s and youth’s regional identity.

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On the pedagogical strategy of Florian Znaniecki eliminating intercultural antagonisms for the civilization of the future

The author presents the pedagogical strategy of F. Znaniecki, discovered by himself, which ramains important for intercultural pedagogy, and which was expressed by the philosophically thinking sociologist only in 1929. It is a controversial pedagogical idea, treated as a condition for overcoming intercultural antagonisms in the mode of a new quality of support for subjective development of children and different than usual in upbringing. This is connected with the simultaneous indication of the importance of educationally critical attitude towards the cultural condition of adults, which requires correction by wise people. The text uses new readings of the writings of the classic sociology, although read differently than shown by its common philosophical, pedagogical and sociological interpretations. This thread is more fully discussed and documented in the author’s book, entitled “Claims and transactuality in the humanities. Florian Znaniecki: the legacy of ideas and its cracks”. Znaniecki’s key pedagogical postulate, important interculturally, is the suggestion of the need to move from raising children in the mode of intra-group socialization to supporting their self-education open to recognizing their own passions, to cultural diversity and stimulating the ability to use the encounter with otherness, in recognition of the naturalness of diversity, in recognition of the naturalness of differentiation, albeit without antagonisms. At the same time, education (bringing-up) in this approach is paradoxically to concern mainly adults, with the correction of their claims, including against the absolutization of their own aggressive prejudices, taken over under the influence of socialization dichotomizations. An attempt is made to evaluate the intercultural pedagogical strategy outlined in this way, which from the very beginning has not met with the sufficient recognition of pedagogy, nor has it been properly evaluated. Znaniecki’s strategy is confronted mainly with the approach of R. Rorty, J. Habermas, as well as M. Buber, H. Gadamer, A. Maslow and M. Kundera. The author points to the traces of the legitimacy of inscribed the attitude of T. Lewowicki in the not sufficiently well recognized aspirations of F. Znaniecki himself, following the reflections in the Jubilee Book dedicated to the former for his 80th anniversary.

Community in the discourse of pedagogy and intercultural education

The article presents the community as a category inscribed in the narrative of intercultural pedagogy, as an interdisciplinary pedagogical subdiscipline and educational practice. The concept of community and sociological approaches to this category were described, highlighting the variety of approaches and possible epistemological interpretations. Common features of various definitions of a community were indicated: goals and norms shared by members of the community, recognized values and accepted means of achieving them. Particular attention was paid to the concept of community in communitarianism, which treats the identity of an individual as a derivative of tradition assimilated by him in the course of socialization and the social functions he performs. The community was shown as a space of interpersonal relations in which the category of the Other was immanently inscribed. The relationship of the Self with the Other was referred to the source responsibility that the Self discovers as the sphere of freedom. The importance of hospitality, justice and creative understanding in the dialogical relationship with the Other was described. Openness to dissimilarity, readiness to recognize it and respect for the Other, as an inalienable element constituting a community and enabling the achievement of non-selfish Good, were also exposed.

Integration of Indigenous knowledge resources with the multicultural system of education in Canada

The article shows the integration of Indigenous knowledge resources with the multicultural system of education in Canada as a challenge to some assumptions about the process of complementarity and possibility of binding to the both culturally different ways of knowing. The article is based on theoretical frameworks which introduce conceptual foundations for reflects on issues related to intercultural education and integration. It shows Indigenous ways of knowing and some keys for how the Indigenous knowledge can be known. It describes the quality of Indigenous pedagogies and how the Indigenous knowledge can be taught. In the second part of the article, it undertakes an issue of the digitalization of Indigenous knowledge resources for the purpose of promoting it, decolonization as a dominant look at the analyses of the relationship between Indigenous knowledge and educational system. In conclusion, there are three possible ways of approach to their integration concerning short descriptions and critical comments.

School for countryside in Poland and worldwide – social and cultural contexts

This text draws some social and cultural problems connected with a primary school for countryside in Poland and USA. This is divided – except introduction – into four main parts. The first one deals with efforts undertaken in the past to improve education to the country. Problems associated with collective municipal schools are presented in the second part. Part three and four reflects on the research results of small schools in USA and Poland in XX and XXI c.

Finnish pre-school education. Sources and evolution

Since 2000, Finnish education has been considered the correct way to teach children who are eager to go to school and achieve one of the best results in the international educational survey PISA. Finns, on the other hand, believe that family and preschool education constitute an important stage in the development of children and determine their biography. That is why we present the development of preschool education in Finland. It was a long process influenced by various social and ideological changes, reflected in the legislation. The main purpose of this text is therefore to discuss the origins and evolution of preschool education.

Situation of Roma in Slovakia during COVID-19 pandemic

The article presented here presents the most important state measures directed at Roma and marginalized communities during the CoOVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, a state of emergency was declared in Slovakia in connection with the spread of the pandemic, which for the residents of the Slovak Republic resulted in an immediate restriction of contacts, manifested in the closure of all types of schools, institutions and many workplaces. The mandatory mass quarantine of entire marginalized communities has raised NGO concerns about the equal treatment of people living in Roma communities in Slovakia. It is estimated that up to 70 percent of Roma children were not receiving distance education during the first wave of the pandemic, and up to 60 percent had no contact with an educator. Technical equipment, access to educational systems, but also Internet coverage in cities and municipalities became obstacles to education.

Students about relations with Different/Stranger

The article presents the results of the research on the definitional view of the Other/Other, the sources of knowledge and personal experiences of the respondents relating to people different from them. In the first part of the article, the definitions of Otherness/Alien according to different authors are cited and the difference of these two conceptual categories is shown. In the next part of the paper, the negative reactions of society to otherness/ foreignness are presented, with particular emphasis on racist and xenophobic attitudes. Research showing the scale of pejorative behavior toward Otherness/ foreignness in Polish society is presented. The third part of the study presents the results of the author’s research on the relations of students of the University of Rzeszow and the State Higher School of Technology and Economics in Jaroslaw with Others/Aliens, who are part of their immediate environment, including students. The analysis of the research results is an attempt to answer the question “Who is the Other/Other in the perception of students?”.

Sexuality in relationships during the first wave of COVID-19

Since the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions, such as lockdown and social distance) have had an impact on people’s lives. In this paper, our aim is to analyze how the lockdown (restrictions) in the early stage of the outbreak had an impact on sexuality in intimate relationships among the people in Poland and Japan. Online surveys were conducted in both countries. For this purpose, measurements were performed using the quantitative method with the use of an online questionnaire by Barbara Rothmüller adapted to the requirements of the study. Then comparisons were made between the Polish and Japanese groups. The results were compared to the existing knowledge in the field of the studied phenomenon. The observations made allowed to note several statistically significant differences between the studied groups and the areas in which the subjects from the Japanese and Polish samples did not differ significantly from each other. The observed differences mostly concerned the dynamic of the declared changes in the area of sexual behavior, which turned out to be higher in the Japanese group. The theoretical depiction refers to the differences between eastern and western cultures and the specificity of Poland and Japan, which, being culturally homogenous, function in the era of globalization.

Jerusalemian and Lippstadtian peregrinations of Matołek the Billy Goat. Research on the Polish picturebooks in the East and West

The authors trace the previously non-examined history of the editions of Kornel Makuszyński and Marian Walentynowicz’s adventures of Matołek the Billy Goat (canonical example of Polish children’s picturebooks) published during the Second World War (in Palestine) and immediately after it (in Lippstadt, Germany) in the context of the life of Poles in exile (in particular in the aspect of culture and education) in the Middle East and West Germany. Research analyses are focused on the circumstances and mechanisms of publication, adaptation and graphic modification, educational functions and the scope of the reading impact of these initiatives in the context of the mass migrations of the time and intercultural exchange. Also, as far as the interpretative aspect is concerned, the peregrinatory nature of the main plot line seems to convene with the socio-historical context of the day, marked with the common mass experience of migration, which additionally co-created space for intercultural educational offers as a part of the educational life of Poles in exile.

From the acquisition of the mother tongue to the multilingual competences of a child at a younger school age

The aim of the article is an attempt to describe the main challenges for the language development and mother tongue education of a child at an early school age in the context of common multilingualism, resulting from the compulsory learning of a foreign language at the stage of preschool education, international mobility of families and migration. At the heart of the research is the relationship between the mother tongue and other languages of the child. The place and role of the first language in acquisition / learning new languages was discussed in the light of the findings of psycholinguistics and comparative glottodidactics. Theoretical reflection only illuminates the more important aspects of this complex issue. It is guided by the thesis that cultural and linguistic diversity gives rise to the need to think about language education in a holistic way, that is, one in which there is an integration of paradigms, approaches and recommendations of mother tongue teaching with methodologies of foreign language teaching. Scientific assumptions and concepts regarding the development of a child’s multilingual competence are supported by examples of specific didactic solutions used in countries with a rich tradition in the field of intercultural education. The conclusion of the considerations is – it is worth using innovative pedagogical strategies, activities and resources that could support students’ multilingual competence whom we work in schools in Poland.

Message from the border and the need for education, or what it teaches young people multicultural reality

From the end of the summer of 2021, we have been receiving media messages showing the migration situation on the Polish-Belarusian border. The incoming images and information reveal the dramatic situation of people-refugees- migrants from the Middle East trying to reach Western European countries through our country. Deprived of humanitarian aid, they camp in the woods. Cold, hungry and sick, they expect help from the relevant services. The situation is very difficult, as it has a humanitarian and social dimension, but also, and perhaps above all, a political one. This image reaches adults, but also young people, who are not always able to understand the situation and the lack of help. Observing the attitudes of adults, young people take part in the lesson of indifference and acceptance of evil. The aim of this text is therefore to draw attention to the message received by the young generation and to identify what educational activities should be undertaken in educational environments in order to maintain responsibility and humanitarian values, which should dominate the educational and upbringing processes. So that in an increasingly multicultural world they become a common social practice.

Sightseeing as a space for intercultural education

The article is an attempt to draw readers’ attention to the potential for broadening the field of interests and activities of theoreticians and practitioners of intercultural education that lies in sightseeing. In particular, it is about this type of activity as undertaken by contemporary Poles with respect to the area of the former Polish Eastern Kresy (i.e. the territory Poland lost in the aftermath of WW2 – fragments of the present Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania). Apart from the reflection on the forms of tourism and the place occupied therein by sightseeing, the article concentrates on its five spheres useful for intercultural education: (1) informal mode of getting acquainted with an ‘Other’, who (2) is not ethnically and culturally too distant, (3) on visiting the given area that (4) may be of an incidental and short term character as well as (5) be concentrated not only on people but also on their cultural products: symbolic and material. The article closes with examples of situations in which ill-conceived sightseeing distorts the idea of intercultural education. After all, even though hypocrisy or biased presentation of a place and its inhabitants, education that reproduces the monocultural face of a given land is possible.

About the need for increased intercultural education in the face of the right-wing populism in Poland

The phenomenon of right-wing populism, which has been spreading in Poland for several years, is deeply permeated with exclusive and anti-pluralist demagogy, which has consequences for public education in our country. In this context, an urgent socio-educational challenge is to counteract students’ fear of what is different and unknown, as well as to develop respect and empathy towards other people, i.e. their different worldview, culture and religion. The aim of this article is not to construct some ad hoc and one-off school and pedagogical initiatives in the face of populist lies and manipulation, but to create the conceptual foundations of an educational, interdisciplinary and, above all, anti-populist preventive system that would be thoroughly filled with the premises of intercultural education and educate young citizens who perceive pluralism as cultural and social value.

The article is an attempt to characterize the methodology of multidisciplinary empirical research, designed and implemented within technical, exact, natural, social, and humanistic sciences. Three paradigms have been characterized: Education 4.0, Industry 4.0, and Society 5.0. The author’s attention was drawn to the need for a clear formulation of detailed concepts as well as their content and context. The types of possible empirical research and the methods and techniques used in them were presented, attention was also drawn to the importance of the model used in the research. It was considered necessary to disseminate methodological knowledge for the reliable execution of empirical research, allowing for its repeatability, verification, and evaluation.

Memories of World War II (WW2) have a deeply cultural dimension and therefore are interesting for intercultural studies. This paper is based on an interpretative analysis of some field and desk research data, carried out in Poland by an interdisciplinary team of social scientists, educators and historians in 2018–2020. It is focused on socio-educational factors in the transfer of knowledge and memory of WW2. The researchers try to distinguish socio-educational factors responsible for the preservation of this memory across a range of age cohorts. Sources of knowledge, school curricula and socio-demographic aspects are set against the measured levels of historic facts concerning WW2. The data sets derive from questionnaires, telephone interviews and in-depth interviews with diverse groups of respondents along with a review of teaching history curricula in 1946–2020. On the basis of the findings, it is argued that a successful transfer of memory and knowledge of WW2 goes beyond teaching history at schools and beyond the contemporary political agenda. This article is meant to serve as a barometer of social changes in respect to fading memories of WW2.

In the pedagogical analysis undertaken in this study, some theoretical and methodological conceptualizations were applied, referring to the model of youth’s quality of life, developed on the basis of qualitative material collected in the course of international comparative studies – Tadeusz Lewowicki’s Theory of Identity Behaviors and Harold J. Noah’s model of comparing the quality of academic education. The basis for outlining the relationship between students’ life satisfaction and their sense of identity in the local, regional, national, European and supra-European dimension was the comparative research conducted in 2019–2021 in the Polish-Czech-Slovak borderland. The analysis and interpretation of the collected empirical material show that – although the neighbouring countries have undergone political changes, they belong to the European Union, and they collaborate in many areas – the living standards, but above all the influences in the educational sphere, the models and social values, as well as in lifestyles, are significantly different.

The existing borders have very often lost their meaning and do not fulfil the functions assigned to them for many centuries. Today, especially in Europe, many borders are “dematerialized” and exist mostly in the memory and consciousness of people. Contemporary academic youth is in a special situation – they participate in the rapidly changing sociocultural world and, at the same time, experience some phenomena that have never been present on such a large scale. The reflection upon the young, learning generation of Czechs, Poles and Slovaks is associated with an attempt to find answers to many questions, among which those regarding plans for the future and the sense of life satisfaction seem to be of great significance. What I have recognized as important is finding out if the young plan their future during their studies and/or work abroad and how they assess their sense of life satisfaction, taking into account two aspects – their family life and financial situation.

The contemporary socio-economic reality generates the need to create a life project that determines the direction of implementing important goals as well as of developing new competences. This inspires the individual to look for ways of thinking and behaving which can serve as protection against various risk factors. This applies to the factors which enhance socio-professional ambivalence, the difficulty of taking advantage of life opportunities and performing new social roles. The study introduces the subject of designing the future by academic youth. It is a group that, at the stage of entering adulthood, takes up the challenge of adequate learning about their own needs and confronting them with the value system, in order to realistically determine their capabilities, both at the emotional and behavioral level. Then they will be ready for their internal and external exploration. In early adulthood, developing a plan for life turns out to be both an important protective factor and a manifestation of proactivity. In this context, creating a plan for life can also mean taking care of oneself and one’s self-development.

The article is an attempt to identify the tendencies displayed by university teachers towards the adoption of e-learning solutions in the academic environment. The paper is divided into four main sections. Section one explains the theoretical assumptions behind remote education and the role of the university teacher, with behavioral component being considered the core element. Section two describes the research methodology and defines the original research tool used to measure the scale of concrete actions taken by university teachers in their embrace of e-learning. On the basis of the analysis of the results, the importance of further education of academic staff for the improvement of the quality of education was demonstrated, regardless of the place of residence or professed values. The concluding section sums up the findings and puts forward recommendations for higher-education institutions in the area of remote education in the academic environment.

This article aims to present our own research, diagnosing the level of psychosocial competencies of academic teachers at technical university – the competencies which are particularly important in the mediatised world. The research was done among 141 academic teachers of the Silesian University of Technology with the use of a diagnostic survey in 2019–2021. An expanded statistical analysis allowed the interpretation and assessment of 13 variables describing the investigated competencies.

Poland has been becoming a migrant country over the past years, experiencing recently increased visibility of migrant children at schools. At the same time, the issue of their support and integration remains on the margin of educational policy and depends on the activity of local authorities and, above all, of school head-teachers and teachers. Drawing on the qualitative study carried out in 2020 within the project CHILD-UP Children Hybrid Integration: Learning Dialogue as a way of Upgrading Policies of Participation (Horizon 2020) in schools in Kraków and South-East Poland (where one of the centres for foreigners is located), this article comprises a discussion on the extent to which Polish schools are ready to accept migrant (including refugee) children, to enhance their agency and support integration processes. Therefore, it raises a question whether schools are able to effectively support migrant children linguistically as well as help them enter into peer groups in the course of their educational activities.

Since Poland joined the EU in 2004, intercultural education has become one of the fundamental goals of the Polish educational system. Many Polish educators believed that it was only through intercultural education that they would be able to teach students necessary skills which would support them in the transition to becoming truly multicultural and cosmopolitan. In other words, intercultural education was perceived as a must for post-socialist CEE countries in order to catch up with Western Europe. Our argument is that intercultural education has been created, developed and implemented in the specific context of Western, multicultural societies. However, our sstandpoint is far from negating its importance and role in education in the 21st century. On the basis of a critical reflection on the Eurocentric approach within educational studies, the problem is outlined of teaching intercultural education “by dry run” in the context of Polish schools – i.e. teaching about global dependencies without a direct link with or presence of cultural “Others”, who are usually known only through the media and literary canon. It is indicated that this form of education often fails to serve its goal as it is frequently implemented in a one-sided way: by Polish educators, in monocultural schools, as narrations about Others rather than their presentations through the lens of their experiences, stories or methodologies and so considering the voices from outside thecontext of Central and Eastern European countries.

The article presents the relationship between the grit factor and the mental well-being of young people recruited from high school students in Podlaskie Voivodeship (n = 275). The study was conducted using the Short Grit Scale (SGS) by A.L. Duckworth, the Psychological Well-Being Scales (PWBS) by C. Ryff and the Cantril’s Ladder of Life Scale. The obtained results indicate significant positive relationships of grit with the current assessment of the quality of life and mental well-being in each of the six dimensions measured with C. Ryff’s PWBS tool (autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relations with others, purpose in life, and self-acceptance). Since grit is a construct showing positive relationships with well-being and quality of life and a modifiable one – it can be shaped at an early stage of development – it should be considered as an important element when drawing future educational plans.

The awareness of the society that it is responsible for what the nature looks like, as well as for developing human relations, results in the popularization of the idea of sustainable development. The aim of thos study is to present an analysis of the literature on the subject focused on the description of the reality and possible directions of changes in education, considering it as global challenges in three aspects of sustainable development: the economic, ecological and social. The greatest challenge today is to create a multidimensional view of a constantly deepening social and environmental crisis. The change that should be made in education should concern the processes that are aimed at combining the three aspects and at balancing their importance. The essence of education for sustainable development was shown in shaping the values, empathy and awareness that are needed to act for society, as well as the environment and the economy on a global scale.

This article discusses reflections on doing research with and about migrant children, focusing on addressing “race” and racialization processes as well as integrationist implications of “doing good” among both school professionals and researchers. The motivation is to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of how to research integration while also promoting a child-centred approach and taking children’s own understandings and opinions into account. Written at the threshold of the phase of analysing data from fieldwork with children, which is one of the main analytical tasks in the MiCREATE project, this article is a summary of some focus points and concepts that turned out to be of importance during the ongoing epistemic reflexivity process in the research project. Taking a point of departure in general methodological reflections on a structuralist-constructivist approach and on constant epistemic reflexivity, three approaches that could be useful in reflections and analyses are suggested: reflections on the concept of integration, on race and diversity, and on researcher positioning within a research project both while studying practices of “doing good” and aiming at “doing good” in itself as well.

The aim of the study presented in this article was to verify the presence of the assumptions of anti-discrimination education in the lyrics of songs featured on the album “Hip-Hop racism stop! #1”, a project launched as part of a Polish campaign called “Music Against Racism”. The study involved using the content analysis method in an interpretative paradigm according to the contextual theory of meaning. The main conclusion is that the use of songs as a form of educational support can be a valuable element in the anti-discrimination education, but it is crucial to call for “negotiating with young people the content of existing culture”, which may provoke discussion with students about the ways in which words are used to form a specific image of the world. Another important conclusion is the “paradox of violence” referring to a tendency to appeal for the rejection of violence, while at the same time using violence-provoking words.

The article encourages comparative perspectives on people who emigrate and immigrate. It draws attention to the knowledge of the history of migrations: most European countries faced emigration in the early 20th century, while in the beginning of the 21st century, they witness immigration that exceeds emigration. The most common reason for immigration in Slovenia is employment. Work permits are issued to people who come to work here, because they are needed. Yet, it is people who come, not workforce, and these people have families. Consequently, the second most common reason for immigration is family reunification. When discussing immigration, we underrate the role of bilateral agreements, yet they pave the way for greater economic migration between the signatories. Knowing the migrations of past and present, including official statistical data and the emigration-immigration perspective, it is extremely important to understand that there are people behind these numbers. The article comprises a recommendation to publish texts that include not only numbers, but also people with their life stories, immigrants and emigrants in the same publication. To develop intercultural education, it is essential that migrations and diversity are a part of the curriculum and teaching materials.

The article concerns selected problems in the development of the Internet in terms of its impact on the religious attitudes of young Poles. On the base of the research on the use of the Internet and the development of religiosity, their situation is presented in the context of the situation of American teenagers. Americans are one of the largest media markets and have strong and traditional Christian communities. Therefore, certain trends in religious attitudes could have appeared earlier and outlined more strongly there than in other parts of the world. Which of them are reflected in the Polish situation? How is the Internet used by young users in the United States and Poland? Is there anything specific to the Polish situation in shaping religious attitudes via the Internet? The final results of the comparative analysis undertaken are to lead to conclusions showing the characteristics of the Internet that enable it to influence the shaping of the world-view and to forecast directions in which these changes may go. Research on the Internet’s influence on religiosity has a short history, but dynamic changes in both religiosity and technology call for the opening of new research spaces.

The paper presents an empirical test of the theory of gender revolution by Goldscheider, Bernhardt and Lappegård in Poland and Austria. The two countries were chosen because they both are examples of conservative welfare states and intend to enlarge the involvement of men in childcare. The authors conducted a trend analysis to investigate the specific stage of gender revolution the two countries can presently be situated in. The statistical analysis was based on the data from the International Social Survey Program (ISSP) at three different points in time: 1994, 2002 and 2012. The analyses revealed that the level of egalitarian attitudes in Austria is more prominent than in Poland. In both countries, women tend to be more egalitarian than men. The growth of egalitarian attitudes towards gender roles is increasing over time, but only in Poland. However, in Austria an increase in egalitarianism in domestic and care work can be observed over time.