What Kind of Teachers Will Teach our Children? The Worldmindedness of Undergraduate Elementary and Secondary Social Studies Teacher Candidates at Five Florida Public Universities

Abstract

Our research examined degrees of worldmindedness of 644 undergraduate elementary and secondary social studies teacher candidates entering the requisite social studies methods courses in their junior or senior year at five of Florida's largest public universities. Worldmindedness in this study is defined as a worldview in which one sees oneself connected to the larger world community grounded in Personal Responsibility, Cultural Pluralism, Efficacy, Globalcentrism, and Interconnectedness. We hypothesised selected demographic predictor variables as potential correlates of higher scores in worldmindedness. Findings demonstrated that variables significantly related to higher scores were: proficiency in two or more languages, progressive political orientation, taking more content courses with a global orientation, high grade point average, birthplace outside the United States, and female gender. Secondary candidates scored higher than elementary candidates. We conclude with recommendations for educational experiences in teacher education programs that may develop a deeper worldmindedness in teacher candidates with the potential of producing a sophisticated teaching force comparable to the best in the world.