ABSTRACT
The ambiguity of music education policies aiming towards social integration and inclusion is further explored by Mitsuko Isoda in her chapter on the Ethnic Classroom programme in Japanese elementary schools. Targeting students representing the Zainichi Korean population of Japan, who have been (and are still) subjected to extensive hate speech and discrimination, Isoda examines the ways in which this programme aims to foster a positive ethnic identity amongst Zainichi Korean students, yet might simultaneously reinforce their marginalisation from the majority population. She argues that if such programmes are to foster mutual understanding and multicultural symbiosis, teachers require more in-depth awareness of the music and cultures of minoritised groups, and students require more opportunities to learn, create, and perform together.
