Preparing teachers for diversity: lessons learned from the US and South Africa

Abstract

The world's predominant growth populations are largely students of color who have historically struggled for high-quality educational opportunities. Within this context, educational reformers around the globe are challenging teacher preparation programs to prepare teachers to work effectively with students from diverse backgrounds. This article reports on a cross-national study that investigates a program designed to facilitate the development of teachers who are committed to teaching culturally and linguistically diverse students. It presents an analysis of US and South African teachers’ developing discourses that revealed differences in the development of commitment among teachers who engaged in talk-related activities in a teacher education program versus those teachers who engaged in talk-related activities in addition to theory–enacting activities within diverse classrooms. Through the analysis, I explore how teachers’ developing commitment can be facilitated by carefully designed classroom activities and show how those developing commitments are revealed in the teachers’ discourse practices. My intent in presenting this investigation is to help us better understand how applications of activity theory can assist us in addressing the global challenges that face teacher education programs.

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