Breaking the silence of exclusion: examining the complexities of teacher education for cultural diversity

Abstract

This article is based on an in-depth case study that examined how a teacher education programme in New Zealand prepared pre-service teachers for cultural diversity (based on the author’s unpublished PhD thesis, Teacher Education for Cultural Diversity; conferred by Curtin University, June 2012). Framed within a critical constructivist inquiry paradigm, the primary research question explored how pre-service teachers were prepared to meet the learning needs of students in culturally diverse classrooms. The question was explored on four levels: curriculum, pedagogy, perceptions of effectiveness and diversity capacity. Empirical findings were reported thematically and highlighted the complexity of the issue. Key curriculum findings revealed variability in the depth of pre-service teacher preparation for cultural diversity and a conceptual development of sociocultural competence. Pedagogical findings reported three types of activity, namely dialogic activity, monologic activity and reflective activity and four types of social relationships, namely expert–novice, professional partnership, critical minority and silent minority. Findings on participant perceptions of effectiveness and diversity capacity are outlined, and limitations of the study are acknowledged. Three initial propositions on how to prepare the pre-service teachers for cultural diversity are proposed.