Sociology

The world is becoming a global village. This statement is perhaps the most widely used statement of today by people from all walks of life and fields. One important change that we see today due to the shrinking of countries boundaries is the increase in the level of diversity. Be it the work place, educational institutes, or the society at large, diversity is spreading. The context in which were mentioning diversity is interestingly quite diverse too gender, ethnic, racial, cultural - diversity in society is present everywhere and is increasing at a fast rate. For the purpose of this paper we will maintain our focus on cultural diversity or multiculturalism. Obviously to manage such a society where many different kinds of cultures exist we need to formulate policies. This is done for a number of reasons which will be discussed later in the paper.

Consequently these policies have certain effects on the society. One of these effects is that it breeds social segregation. Social segregation can be based on many different factors these include housing, employment, education etc. What is multiculturalism, why is there a need to have multicultural policies, and how these policies affect government policies regarding education of diverse religious groups is what this paper attempts to assess. The main topic of discussion will therefore revolve around the different multicultural policies governments formulate for the education of diverse religious groups.

Multiculturalism and Multicultural Policies
Multiculturalism is quite a complicated word when it comes to defining it. However socialcollective identity or membership of, or identification with a particular group or groups is phrases that could be used in explaining the term (Benwell and Stokoe 2006, p. 24). Literally multiculturalism means a collection of two or more cultures. This consequently means multiple set of beliefs, values, languages, traditions as a result diverse societies are born within a larger society. Multiculturalism has been synonymously used with diversity and tolerance (Knight 2008, p.106).

In order to manage such a diverse society and to make sure tolerance and prosperity remains intact governments tend to formulate multicultural policies.

These policies are formulated due to several political reasons. Ethnic minorities and other similar groups have little say in government related decisions and other policies which affect these cultures deeply (UNESCO-MOST, 1998). For this reason it is better to have separate policies so that rights of these ethnic and racial groups are not neglected. Formation of policies also encourages participation of these minority groups which is extremely important in protecting multicultural rights. Therefore formulating multicultural policies is a state level affair which needs to be given its due importance.
Another reason for having multicultural policies is to make sure the human rights of migrants are protected and they are able to live peacefully with the other members of the society (UNESCO, 2009). A society has a number of different people from different cultures living together, hence to avoid conflict of interests and ideas it is better to have set policies before hand to ensure a smooth way of living.

Multicultural Policies Promote Social Segregation
According to Merriam-Websters online dictionary segregation is the exclusion or the isolation of a certain group based on its ethnicity, race, or any aspect of ones culture by forcing the group to either live separately, not enter into wedlock with another group, visit separate places for education, worship and other activities, or by any other way that creates discrimination .  All these forms of discrimination create social and racial segregation therefore to avoid such inequity in the society, multicultural policies are formulated. It is however quite astonishing to say that multicultural policies promote social segregation. Policies exist to ensure no signs of intolerance occur in the society but one school of thought exists which support the statement that multicultural policies promote social segregation and hence government policies have a great impact on the education of diverse religious groups operating in a multicultural society.

Government Policies for Diverse Religious Groups
Countries have different concepts and approaches towards formulating multicultural policies. One way it is looked upon is the protection of ones own religion. Multicultural policies promote social segregation when the policies are formulated in a way to protect only the rights and the ideology of the land of the government that is forming those policies. In Europe the fastest growing religion is Islam and the largest minority group with respect to religion is of Muslims according to the 2001 census out of the 60 million British nationals 1.6 million are Muslims, out of which 46 are UK born (CRS 2005, p.10). These Muslims communities are a mixture of people coming in from Asia, Middle East, Turkey, and Africa.

The policies of the UK government, especially after 911 and 7 July bombings clearly show the bias UK multicultural policies have towards the religious minorities present in the country, particularly Muslims (Malek, 2005). After the attacks the UK government has become even more self-protective in their policies. Their policies single out Muslims which separates them from other religious and ethnic groups hence giving rise to social segregation. Britain has a highly diverse society with different cultures operating in it however its policies are clearly mono cultural (Malek, 2005).

Although the UK government initiated projects that communicated to the general public the difference between Muslims and extremist Muslims singling out Muslims in these campaigns in a way segregated them from the rest hence giving rise to social segregation (Malek, 2005).

U.K. chief Rabbi, Johnathan Sacks further describes how multicultural policies in the U.K. have promoted social segregation and has consequently become a threat to democracy. In his new book The Home We Build Together Recreating Society Sacks talks about the segregation process that started with the Jews and Blacks, followed by women, gays, and most recently the Muslims.  He argues that British policies have in a way always promoted social segregation as initially the policies excluded the rights of minorities, and now they are formulated in a way that treats the minorities in a special way.

Government Representation for Asian Muslims Living in the UK
UK government policies have been accused of discriminating the Muslims and not having sufficient Muslim representation in the government. Muslim representation is very less among governors and other senior members which create a bias when formulating polices. The Commission for Racial Equality report shows that ethnic minorities have a very insignificant representation in education colleges they make up 3 of further education governors and 2 of the Sixth Form colleges governors (AMSS, 2004 p.16). UK politics and government has therefore a very nominal and at time no participation at all of Muslims. The reason for this has been primarily blamed on the Muslims themselves for not being able to engage and interact with the UK government and also the existing Muslims members in the Houses of Parliament. In UK 5.5 of the total population is of ethnic minorities group out of which, according to the CRE report 1998, the MPs in the Parliament were a mere 1.4 (AMSS, 2004 p.16). It is quite evident from these figures that Muslim representation in political committees is very much absent. This consequently becomes a disadvantage for Muslims and other minorities when government policies are formulated.

Government Policies and Educational Racism
Educational and institutional racism with respect to education exist primarily due to the reasons mentioned above. Muslim populations are discriminated in the mix of people representing the government and therefore the education policies also suffer as Muslims are not able to influence or take part in decisions that affect their religious groups. Another area we see discrimination on the basis of religion in the area of education as per a government policy or preference is recruitment. A study conducted by Alan Ross, a professor of the University of North Londons Institute of Policy Studies, found out that white teachers with an experience of 12 years who had become deputy heads and heads were 21 compared to the 14 of Asian teachers and 12 of black teachers who had the same work experience (AMSS, 2004 p.25). The reasons for these figures vary however the government bodies attributed it to misinterpretation of responses during interviews.

The government of UK has formulated certain policies in education that are aimed towards integrating the Muslim communities of UK with the other British nationals. One of these policies is to develop adequate command over English as a language and to have satisfactory knowledge regarding British culture, traditions, and history (CRS 2005, p.14). This can be demonstrated by either clearing a test or a language classes that will require the approval of the UK government. Along with these in 2004 ceremonies for citizenship have also been made compulsory which requires British nationals to swear allegiance and pledge to the Queen and UK rules and rights (CRS 2005, p.14). According to the government these are ways that will better integrate the new nationals with the UK ideology and make them feel part of the nation hence they will be able to take part in policy making more responsibly and actively.

Another policy formulated in 2004 was aimed towards all foreign religious ministers such as Islamic Imams to have a command over the English language (CRS 2005, p.14). This might be discrimination for the elderly groups however the younger generation supports this policy as British Muslims especially those born in UK are not familiar with the language the elderly ministers preach in. Moreover the English language is important not just for teaching but also in taking part in activities such as community counseling, community representation and other leadership positions. If Muslims want more representation in the government implementation of such policies will prove to be highly beneficial. Language is one barrier if eliminated will help the Muslim community to do a lot more for their rights and end the discriminatory policies of the UK government.

Another education policy has been the mandatory study of the Citizenship study which in 2002 was made part of the national syllabus for all British secondary schools (CRS 2005, p.14). This would help inculcate more responsibility as British citizens and help their civic knowledge improve better so that theyre able to participate more as British nationals in issues such as education. Education is the primary way of increasing Muslim representation in UKs political and legal system which will eventually strengthen the British society as a whole and decrease the discriminatory behavior of British nationals towards religious minorities such as the Asian Muslims to bare minimum. 

The UK government is aware of the diverse religious groups present in its multicultural society and is formulating many different policies in trying to minimize social segregation as much as possible. An ethnic minority achievement grant was established by the British government in 1999 which was aimed towards looking after the different educational requirements of student of ethnic minority groups with this grant the minority groups wanting to learn English as an extra language were given approximately 300 million on an annual basis (CRS 2005, p.17).

Moreover the underprivileged minorities who have the learning abilities are being given help under the Aim Higher program which helps them enter good universities as students as well as teachers (CRS 2005, p.17). This program has however been criticized by Muslims as they feel the program is more focused towards the black students and is not favoring students of Muslim backgrounds. Muslims also blame racism and lack of support towards Muslim children and students for their poor academic performance. For these reasons Muslim children are sent to Muslim schools by their parents so that such discrimination can be avoided. The Blair government tackled this problem by funding Muslim schools however only five schools have been provided with this funding so far compared to the 7000 Christian schools that are being funded by the UK government (CRS 2005, p.21).

One policy that UK has towards promoting diversity in education and employment is by not using quotas it is primarily done through the different anti discrimination laws and policies that the UK government tries to formulate and implement. However religious minority groups such as Muslims argue that this way they are at a disadvantage as according to the UK Race Relations Act citizens cannot fight discrimination based on religion it is only valid if it is based on race or ethnicity (CRS 2005, p.18). Though in 2003 new regulations were implemented that banned discrimination on religious grounds, nevertheless it did not apply to the Race Relations Act which is applicable in areas of education, housing, and other services. Hence many Muslims as well as British office holders propose that the Act should be revised and religious discrimination should also be included in it. A survey was conducted by an Islamic human rights group of UK which reported that in 1999 35 Muslims felt being discriminated and harassed compared to the 80 of Muslims in 2004 (CRS 2005, p.18).

A Perspective toward Policies
One school of thought argues that by formulating multicultural policies that allow the different groups operating in a society to operate and live in ways they want to governments are in a way promoting social segregation as that separates them from the rest (Sniderman, 2007). Sniderman argues in his article Identity Crisis published in the Guardian, that by giving the right to people to pray in their own places of worship, gain education in their own religious institutes, and follow their own customs and traditions, governments are in a way promoting social segregation as that makes people see themselves as dissimilar from the rest. 

Cultural assimilation and cultural integration are two concepts that are synonymously used with multiculturalism. Cultural assimilation is the integration of different ethnicities into one broad principle culture that is politically assimilated. As opposed to multiculturalism which identifies all the cultures present in a single society as different and separate, cultural assimilation treats the entire society as one and then formulate policies accordingly.  Multicultural policies will therefore in some way or the other promote social segregation as it will always view the different cultural groups in a society as separate entities. Hence political and other policies should be formulated by viewing the entire society as one with minimum multicultural policies if social segregation needs to be minimized.

Policy issues regarding social integration have been debated over and over again. The problem in policy formation such that it does not promote social segregation is the fact that it is more of a qualitative issue than a quantitative one (Jeannotte 2008, p.8). Governments need to realize that multicultural policies are not an academic phenomenon but a social one where different perspectives according to the time in context need to be involved (Jeannotte 2008, p.8). 

Conclusion
Multiculturalism tends to view the different cultures operating in one society as separate entities therefore multicultural policies tend to promote social segregation with respect to education, based on the different religious groups. This paper focused on the government policies of UK regarding education of diverse religious groups residing in UK, particularly the Asian Muslims. These policies were multicultural i.e. different for the natives, the immigrants, the ethnic returnees, and the other groups that were different on the basis of their religion. It was quite evident from the different reports and surveys that all education related government programs and policies discriminated the minorities or the Asian Muslims in some way or the other which consequently promoted social and religious segregation particularly in the discipline of education.

Governments need to realize that in order to have a cultural assimilated society and a socially and politically integrated country, policies and other government related programs should not have a multicultural perspective. What is not realized are the problems that countries face due to multicultural policies that promote segregation such as July 7 U.K bombings and 911 If at all there is a need to distinguish certain groups in policy formation it should be fundamentally for the protection of the rights of that particular group and should not be directed towards their exclusion in any way or form as that will breed further complexities for the entire nation and not just that particular minority.

To increase Muslim participation in the education policy of UK more and more empirical researches must be conducted by the Muslim community as well as other concerned parties to create awareness of this discrimination. A database of these researches and the educationalists conducting the researches must be kept so that the government has a better idea of the efforts that are being undertaken by communities. The government on the other hand should be aware of the growing Muslim religion and others for that matter and keep quotas for minority representations in the government so that when policies on areas such as education are being formulated the right decisions can be made.