Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions of Cultural Competence to Teach Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students

Abstract

ABSTRACT Culturally competent teachers are in high demand as the English learner (EL), culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) student population increases in the U.S. However, the teaching force continues to be predominantly female, White, and monolingual, inexperienced in dealing with diverse populations. Typically, teacher preparation to teach ELs and CLD students consist mainly of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses that teach pre-service teachers to become linguistically competent and earn their ESOL endorsement certifications but do not ensure that they will be prepared to be culturally competent and responsive in their practices. In this study, an instrument was designed in Qualtrics to measure pre-service teachers’ perceptions of cultural competence in teaching CLD students. On the one hand, the results indicated pre-service teachers’ high disposition, openness, and comfort levels when learning about different cultures and languages and their students’ cultural and linguistic backgrounds. On the other hand, the respondents acknowledged having limited training to prepare them to teach and interact with diverse student populations and having limited experiences interacting with them. The study reinforces the importance of providing pre-service teachers with ongoing opportunities during their teacher preparation programs to develop cultural competence and culturally responsive teaching skills before graduating.