How Sustainable Is Pupil Self-Esteem as an Educational Objective for Religious Minorities?

De Gruyter Open. Available from: Walter de Gruyter, Inc. 121 High Street, Third Floor, Boston, MA 02110. Tel: 857-284-7073; Fax: 857-284-7358; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://www.degruyter.com

Y

14

Self Esteem; Minority Groups; Religious Cultural Groups; Buddhism; Adolescents; Well Being; Family Relationship; Peer Relationship; Learning Motivation; Beliefs; Psychological Patterns; Values; Student Diversity; Foreign Countries; Surveys; Correlation; Statistical Analysis

10.1515/dcse-2016-0020

2255-7547

Although the importance of self-esteem in educational achievement is contested, it remains a significant touchstone of multicultural religious education. This study set out to establish differences in demographics and attitudes between high self-esteem and low self-esteem Buddhist teenagers who are a small religious minority in Britain. Low self-esteem teens expressed less well-being, more worry in relationships with their family and friends, low motivation in school, more supernatural beliefs, more introversion, felt Buddhism irrelevant and used the internet more. Self-esteem was not linked to religious values or environmental concern. Narrow focus on self-esteem as an educational aim risks the known weaknesses of multiculturalism that have since been overcome in pluralist education. The limited usefulness of the self-esteem concept does however reveal ways forward for teachers of minority education, introverts and sustainability.

As Provided

42

2016

EJ1124375