Paper/Speech Details of Conference Program for the 15th NISPAcee Annual Conference Program Overview IV. Working Group on Democratic Governance of Multiethnic... Author(s) Dea Chkhaidze Foundation for Development of Human Resources Tbilisi Georgia Title Case Study: First example of inclusion the management of interethnic relations course at PA School, Georgia File Paper files are available only for conference participants, please login first. Presenter Abstract Author: Ms. Dea Chkhaidze, social psychologist, Executive Director of Foundation for Development of Human Resources, Georgia The research conducted by the author for the 14th NISPAcee conference demonstrated the lack of inclusion of the diversity management dimension and subjects into curricula of Public Administration pedagogical institutions in Georgia. The theme has been developed during last three months with the initiative and special effort of the Foundation for Development of Human Resources (FDHR) and OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (OSCE/HCNM). This paper demonstrates the case of how can governmental sector and precisely public administration education system prosper in cooperation with the civic sector and its experience sharing. The case describes the development of the cooperation between the FDHR and the Zhvania School of Public Administration (ZSPA) which was established by the Ministry of Education of Georgia in 2005 and serves to the target group – ethnic minorities and high mountainous regions representatives. The result of this cooperation became the inclusion of the Management of interethnic relations course (MIER) into the curricula of the school, which is the first example of teaching such subject in Georgian high education and specialized institutions. The case includes the description of the curricula of the course and its methodology. The main themes covered by the curricula are: theories of the nationality formation and state structure/design in the ethnic-citizenship approach, culture and its aspects, identity formation, ethnic perceptions, ethnic stereotypes and discrimination and coping with negative thinking, international documents regulating the interethnic relations and protection of the minority rights. As this is the first example, the result is not observable yet and it cannot be properly evaluated before the time passes and furthermore, the evaluation criteria/indicators have not been exercised yet as the school has only began its work in January 2006. We have not seen the school graduates in practice and have not observed the implementation of their knowledge on their job places, but the case demonstrates the positive feedback of participant-public servants and declares the need for broadening the target institutions list and giving the bigger space to the intercultural and interethnic relations learning in the Public Administration institutions. The further implication proceeds from the practice: the curriculum has to be proposed to other PA schools and institutions in Georgia. There are only two Schools and few cathedras in the universities occupied the field of PA teaching. We assume that the administrators and organizers of these institutions will take the new concept and develop the curricula of diversity management at their cathedras. The case also demonstrates the effort of FDHR team to propose the created curricula of Management of interethnic relation to the cathedra of Public Servant at Tbilisi Technical University.
