Abstract
Drawing on concepts of ethnicity and ethnic nationalism, this paper seeks to analyze the reasons and extent to which school education has been utilized to define the newborn nation. This will be done through an analysis of Myanmar’s political history and, subsequently, through an examination of specific educational policies and practices such as the introduction of a one-language policy, standardized curriculum and textbooks and teacher-centered pedagogies that have deliberately been used in the attempt to assimilate rather than integrate Myanmar’s ethnic diversity. The second part of the paper will address the nature and dynamics of decades of identity-based conflicts arguing that the “ethnicization”of the education system in favour of the Bamar majority has not only acted as a catalyst for the perpetuation of violence exacerbating divisions along civil-military lines but has reinforced ethno-linguistic identities through the use of education as a tool of resistance, with critical implications for social cohesion, tolerance for diversity and the overall future of the country.
Highlights
Listed as a lower-middle income country (World Bank, 2019a), Myanmar has been rife with violence between Bamar-majority governments and ethnic minority groups demanding greater political and human rights since the end of the British colonial period in 1948
It will argue that the ‘ethnicization’ (Bush & Saltarelli) of the education system—in favor of the Bamar majority—has both catalyzed political violence and has reinforced ethno-linguistic identities through the use of education as a tool of resistance
The case of the Mon community shows that the ethnic divide is rarely total despite past violence as attested by the implementation of bilingual policies and practices promoting Mon schools as spaces of relationality and understanding of diversity
Summary
Listed as a lower-middle income country (World Bank, 2019a), Myanmar has been rife with violence between Bamar-majority governments and ethnic minority groups demanding greater political and human rights since the end of the British colonial period in 1948. While the integration of diverse groups in society is unlikely to occur without an understanding of the state language, the exclusion of minority languages and cultures can be perceived as a threat to the survival of a particular group’s ethnic identity (Bush & Saltarelli, 2000), leading to the emergence of highly resilient “minority nationbuilding” stances
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