Cultural Diversity and Social Cohesion in a Globalised World
The crisis of contemporary education, if there is such a crisis, is generated by the burst of knowledge resulting from the unprecedented technological development, from demographic and aspirational explosions, on the one hand, and from a dilution of the impact of social models to which human communities relate to, on the other hand. Thereby, the contemporary society is faced with a poignant lack of a model, a model depicting a theoretical or material system that enables us to indirectly study the characteristics and mutations of another system, more complex, to which the first system is similar. This approach to understanding the concept of model is a fundamental pedagogical resource, having the potential of being a direct, multipurpose strategy. For a society, the model with the most profound formative impact is the one of the realist man and his behaviour, who succeeds in imposing certain values, ideas and definitive actions through his own way of being and behaving.
From this point of view, the discussion on the most suitable university model for the 21st century in a globalised and globalising world has become a priority for all actors involved in the educational process.
The international conference “Cultural Diversity and Social Cohesion in a Globalised World” (organised by Ebru Magazine, Atlantic Turkish-Senegalese Association for cultural dialogue, ATSA, in cooperation with the Ministry of National Education of Senegal and Cheikh Anta Diop University from Dakar) took place on 8 and 9 February 2013. Representatives of 25 countries were present at this event, among which: Senegal, Italy, France, USA, Madagascar, Guinean Bissau, Gambia, Morocco, Turkey, South Africa, Belgium and Romania. The University of South-East Europe Lumina was represented by Filip Stanciu (Ph.D., Associate Professor and Rector of UESEL), Ragîp Gokcel (Ph.D., lecturer and president of the Senate UESEL) and Marin Drămnescu (Ph.D., head of Business Administration Department) – the authors of the intervention in the open discussion of the conference.
University is essentially a European institution, because it was born on the old continent, following the fortunate symbiosis of tradition and innovation. More than nine centuries have passed from the creation of the first universities in Salamanca, Bologna, and Paris – Sorbonne, meanwhile they succeeded in asserting themselves as the main cultural institutions of the West – first in Europe, and later in America as well. Since then, university has evolved from a distant and elitist institutional entity to a genuine cradle of research and innovation, open for knowledge reorganization in the benefit of society.
Science, as we understand it today, and the educational system, especially at the university level, are a creation that submits to the European model. An essential trait of European societies is their ability to edge and diffuse the breakthroughs of knowledge through the creation of institutions meant specifically for this purpose.
The central axis of the conference was, avowedly, the globalisation process and the associated or derived diversity that implies a multitude of risks on the one side but even more opportunities. What is essential is the answer to the following question: how do we approach globalisation in order to build a peaceful future, one that is as moral as possible and animated by perennial values?
In this context several problems were discussed: the socio-cultural diversity, the role and contribution of the civil society in this context, the cultural, ethnical and religious differences, as part of the diversity policy, as well as aspects of multiculturalism, as significant challenges for the government authorities. At the same time, the need for integration and mutual understanding was accentuated, the essential role of citizenship in the dynamic of intercultural interactions, necessary in order to establish a common public space in which common values can be expressed and reduce disparities and polarisations.
As an effect of diversity, the role of intellectuality, of opinion-makers, of non-governmental organisations and private associations in bringing forth-social cohesion has greatly increased. This fact implies a significant and positive understanding of the realities of the present day and also a critical appreciation of the tight connections between diversity, social cohesion and globalisation. From this perspective, one of the objectives of the conference was that of presenting the implications of globalisation for civil society and analysing this problem in the context of the contributions brought by The Hizmet Movement. It is presently estimated that over 1000 schools – secondary and high schools are active and 20 universities in 140 countries in the world, on five continents, in The Hizmet Movement, that offer an education model adapted for the beginning of the 21st century.
In his intervention “Notes on a case study – The University of South-East Europe Lumina”, assoc. prof. Filip Stanciu, Ph.D., outlined the desired role of university in contemporary society, pointing out the fact that academic institutions nowadays have the tendency to leave behind the university of formation, focusing on sketching an educational environment dominated by scientific and technical values, creating entrepreneurial skills and material success. This type of reality results in an accentuated focus on theoretical research and educational practices of the development of cognitive aptitudes, procedural skills, limited to certain sequences of knowledge and encouraging the manifestation of the cultural attitudes associated with them. On the other side, universities do not consider character development as a part of their curriculum, because of their focus on the accumulation of knowledge, which is considered essential for their future careers. This lack, correlated with a materialistic perspective on educational results, results in the controversial crisis of education, intensely disputed with both for and against arguments.
With a direct reference to the University Of South-East Europe, the problems faced by it were enounced openly. As such, it was shown that setting up a university after 20 years of controversial history of private superior education in Romania is a difficult enterprise, if we take into account the major risks the founders have taken on (the numerous legislative modifications, the absence of corroboration in some normative stipulations comprised in the general and specific legislation, a vast secondary legislation, the relatively chaotic or incomplete approaches implemented as a result of the integration of stipulations from European documents to which Romania has adhered, the slightly stained reputation of private universities following public scandals they were involved in, etc.). The emergence of this initiative in the Romanian university environment is hard to depict at its true value if we take into account the fact that it takes place in a period of deep financial crisis, in a time interval almost hostile for excellence in education both in the collective mind and at a macro structural level.
As a conclusion, the university – in the opinion of the authors of the paper – can find its meaning and identity by following a third path that can attest to the reconstruction of the human personality from the inside out but not in an uniform manner, but by sustaining the multiple particular aspects, based on some superior principles that target the education of tolerance, individual and collective identity, interculturalism and multiculturalism. We notice that the balanced development of the personality is not possible in the absence of peace and that it cannot become real without upholding the rights of man and safeguarding his fundamental freedom. A university without spirituality and without a spiritualising effect cannot reinvent itself, by oscillating permanently between a traditionalism that keeps it connected to the past and an entrepreneurial superficial model, continually looking for its sense and identity. In context it was reiterated that the cultural dimension of education must be rethought and revalorized in the perspective of an authentic “educational society”, characterised by, among others, an accentuated cultural pluralism.
MEDMODEL 2012
The first international symposium named “The Mediterranean model and the extended Black Sea region” took place on 7-9 June 2012 in Bucharest and was organised by the University of South-East Europe Lumina and the Italian Institute for Philosophical Studies from Naples.
The Mediterranean model influenced the peoples from the Black Sea area and its extended region for a long time. The two “areas” have even nowadays multiple common elements, between them having taken place interferences, influences and confluences. Those values resulted from the dialogue among numerous cultures. For millennia, those have influenced, complicated and enriched the history of a space of meeting civilisations, idea confrontations and all diversity that is specific to nations.
The world of the Mediterranean has influenced in different proportions almost the entire extended area of the Black Sea and even the fascinating Russian civilisation. Can this extended region of the Black Sea constitute, in its turn, a model with effects comparable to the Mediterranean one? The purpose of the symposium was to find, through scientific debate, possible answers to this question. Within the themed sections, attempts were made to identify the similar elements, interferences and reciprocal effects, as well as the specific aspects in culture and civilisation, politics and institutions, as well as economy.
This scientific meeting reunited important personalities from the higher education environment from Italy, Turkey and, of course, Romania. Among these: Luigi di Comite (Aldo Moro Università di Bari), Daniel Barbu (University of Bucharest), Giovanni Lobrano (University of Sassari), Havvanur Şahin (Karaelmas University), Vittore Collina (University of Florence), Maurizio Vernassa (University of Pisa), Luigi Mascilli Migliorini (“Federico II” University, Naples), Marisa Valleri (“Aldo Moro” University, Bari), Cristina Badon (University of Florence).
We mention this scientific event that took place in the spring of the previous university year in order to make a first announcement of participation at the second international symposium under this name that shall take place during May-June 2013 in Bucharest and Constanța, with the purpose of deepening and extending our research area.
Filip STANCIU University of South-East Europe Lumina