Abstract
Based on two large-scale studies from Germany, we examined how different types of teachers’ cultural beliefs are related to immigrant students’ school adaptation. Specifically, we investigated the relationship of teachers' multicultural beliefs appreciating cultural diversity, their egalitarian beliefs focusing on all students' similarities and their assimilationist beliefs that immigrant students should conform to the mainstream context with immigrant students' academic achievement and psychological school adjustment as indicators of their school adaptation. We also explored all of these associations for non-immigrant students. Study 1 used data on the multicultural, egalitarian, and assimilationist beliefs of German language (NTeachers = 220) and mathematics (NTeachers = 245) teachers and on students’ achievement and feelings of helplessness in German language classes (NStudents = 2606) and mathematics classes (NStudents = 2851) as well as students’ school satisfaction. Study 2 analyzed data on teachers’ multicultural and egalitarian beliefs (NTeachers = 456) and students’ achievement and self-concept in mathematics (NStudents = 4722). Overall, multilevel analyses revealed no relationship between teachers’ cultural beliefs and any of the indicators of immigrant and non-immigrant students’ school adaptation. These findings challenge the notion that overall, teachers’ cultural beliefs effectively translate into students’ school adaptation.
Highlights
In times of global migration movements and growing cultural diversity in schools, it is important to identify factors that facilitate immigrant students’1 school adaptation in the receiving societies
While the slopes varied significantly between German language classes (τ11German = 0.598, p = 0.014), they were similar across mathematics classes (τ11math = 0.161, p = 0.575)
Students with an immigrant background felt helpless as their non-immigrant peers in German language classes and mathematics classes, the relationship between domainspecific helplessness and immigrant background varied significantly across classes (τ11German = 0.037, p = 0.017/τ11math = 0.030, p = 0.001)
Summary
In times of global migration movements and growing cultural diversity in schools, it is important to identify factors that facilitate immigrant students’ school adaptation in the receiving societies. Scholars argue that teachers’ cultural beliefs, i.e., their views on how people from different cultural backgrounds should live together, affect how they operate in culturally diverse classrooms (e.g., Hachfeld et al, 2015, 2011). Educational researchers engage in lively discussions on how teachers’ cultural beliefs may facilitate immigrant students’ school adaptation (e.g., Hachfeld et al, 2015): Is it helpful if teachers appreciate differences in their students’ cultural backgrounds and view them as enriching for their instruction or if they believe in the effectiveness of focusing on all students’ similarities? Educational researchers engage in lively discussions on how teachers’ cultural beliefs may facilitate immigrant students’ school adaptation (e.g., Hachfeld et al, 2015): Is it helpful if teachers appreciate differences in their students’ cultural backgrounds and view them as enriching for their instruction or if they believe in the effectiveness of focusing on all students’ similarities? Does it hinder immigrant students’ participation if teachers believe that these students should assimilate to the mainstream context? Whereas previous work has primarily examined effects of the cultural diversity climate in schools as perceived by students on students’ school adaptation (for an overview see Schachner, 2019), empirical investigations on the role of individual teachers’ cultural beliefs are scarce
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