Lebanon, Diversity and Education in

Diversity in Lebanon is multifaceted and in many cases problematic. With an overarching multi-confessional structure consisting of 18 different confessional communities, diversity often takes the form of a national crisis as these communities articulate distinctive group identities. According to Larbi Sadiki, although Lebanon is considered exceptional among Arab states for its consociational democracy, inter/intra communal hostilities since independence in 1943 to the present day have shown that Lebanon's nascent consociational democracy is incapable of solving inherent political frictions among confessional communities. A national civic culture that promotes democracy is challenged by dissimilar processes of national political socialization of Lebanese youth pursued by the various confessional-run educational institutions whose freedom in education is consecrated by the Constitution.

This entry examines national identity and human partnership in the ...