Dec 09, 2025

Multiculturalism: Opportunities and challenges

Isabel Meirelles, Diane Mikhael

About this video

Description

Toronto is often regarded as the most multicultural city in the world with 45% of the residents speaking at least one non-official language at home according to the City of Toronto Census 2021. Our classrooms at OCAD University reflect this ethnocultural diversity, which is further amplified as we account for international students, who bring their lived experiences from other parts of the globe.
How can we embrace such cultural diversity in design education? How can we shift away from a single Eurocentric perspective to a multiplicity of positions? This presentation aims to critically examine the opportunities and challenges of multiculturalism in the context of decolonizing design education. We will discuss a set of pedagogical approaches focused on multilingualism and the theoretical frameworks informing them. We will share practical classroom activities and outputs from students in the past three years. We will look from two perspectives: the visible form of language, that is typography; and the verbal/vocal/visual aspects of language used to tell stories in different media.
As we embark on decolonizing design education, we argue that multicultural pedagogies can contribute to a more equitable and diverse society. The presentation invites an open and constructive dialogue with other educators who work in culturally diverse teaching and learning environments.

Isabel Meirelles

Diane Mikhael