Multicultural education in a global era. New perspectives and practices in contemporary society

Abstract

Addressing the needs of a culturally diverse student population has become a critical skill for today’s teachers. As the U.S. population grows ever more diverse, white females continue to represent the majority of public school teachers. To address the issue, it is necessary to focus on the importance of teacher training and how universities nationally and internationally can increase efforts to create opportunities for their students to have applicable experiences prior to going into the culturally diverse classroom as a credentialed teacher. Using a global immersion program aimed at increasing future teachers’ cultural awareness, this chapter provides a practical example of how one university in the U.S. has actively addressed this growing concern. Immersing teacher education students in a foreign country provides opportunities to experience for themselves what it feels like to be from a different culture and linguistic background. The changes in these pre-service teachers’ cultural attitudes and their transformed identities resulting from their teaching experience abroad are analyzed and recommendations for incorporating cultural awareness and sensitivity training in global teacher preparation programs are provided.