Conference presentation
International immersion programs as a catalyst for cultural competency development in HPE pre-service teachers
Australian Association for Research in Education Conference (University of Melbourne, 27/11/2023–30/11/2023)
28/11/2023
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Abstract
Developing a shift towards a cultural change of inclusion of students with different cultural backgrounds within the Australian education system, has become an integral component of the preparation of Australian pre-service teachers. In countries such as Australia, there has been an increased focus on graduate teachers to have the knowledge and be able to demonstrate their understanding of the impact of culture and cultural identity on the educational outcomes of their students. As such, cultural competence has become an integral component of exit requirements for all Preservice teachers (PSTs). While there is no one agreed way to integrate this into the training curriculum of preservice Health and Physical Education (HPE) teachers, international immersion programs have been identified as one possible way. This presentation will demonstrate how an international culturally focused immersion program was effective in helping to develop cultural competency within a cohort of Australian preservice HPE teachers.
Method
Participants consisted of 18 HPE pre-service teachers in their second year of undergraduate study. The students spent three weeks immersed in a primary school setting, undertaking their first teaching practicum. The primary data source was semi-structured interviews conducted with the pre-service teachers, post program involvement.
Results
Initial results showed a significant increase in the preservice teachers' understanding and demonstration of cultural competency. The participants indicated a substantial increase in personal knowledge of how to include students of various cultural backgrounds within HPE lessons, and also a significant change in terms of appreciation of cultural inclusion, different cultural backgrounds, and beliefs.
Conclusion
The findings help to reinforce the concept of immersion programs as an effective method to engage students in the process of developing cultural competency in preservice teachers. The benefits included a significant increase in cultural awareness across the cohort. In addition, the findings show that pre-service teachers expressed a noticeable increase in their understanding of cultural competency and how to integrate this knowledge, through newly developed skills into their lesson design and delivery. Pre-service teacher critical reflections also showed strong links to cultural change underpinning a shift in personal teaching philosophies across the participant cohort.
Details
- Title
- International immersion programs as a catalyst for cultural competency development in HPE pre-service teachers
- Creators
- Lana McCarthy (Author) - Southern Cross UniversityMatthew Winslade (Author) - Charles Sturt University
- Conference
- Australian Association for Research in Education Conference (University of Melbourne, 27/11/2023–30/11/2023)
- Identifiers
- 991013259609902368
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Education
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Conference presentation