• Exploring Pedagogical Practices to Cultivate Wisdom, Courage, and Compassion as Key Tenets of Global Citizenship: A Qualitative Study

  Sharma, Gitima; Bosch, Christina; Obelleiro, Gonzalo (Eonsei University, 2023-08-29)

  The purpose of this study was to explore college students’ and educators’ (N = 29) perceptions, experiences, and recommendations around cultivating wisdom, compassion, and courage as key tenets of global citizenship. Based on pragmatic research design and thematic analysis, we sought multicultural education approaches that could strengthen campus communities’ capacity to advance peace, sustainability, dignity, and wellbeing of all forms of life – all across the world. We have discussed the findings in the context of specific pedagogical practices focusing upon: (a) emergent praxes and curriculum to foster wisdom, (b) courageous dialogues for mutual understanding, and (c) restoring compassion and humanity.
• How Do We Teach Social Justice? A Cross-Disciplinary Synthesis of Social Justice Andragogy

  Das, Bagmi; Farrell, Isabel; Vashisht, Kriti; Gantt, Alexandra; Simpson, Elisabeth; Johnson, Adrianne (Eonsei University, 2023-08-29)

  Social Justice is a critical component of many of the helping disciplines. Similar goals govern these different disciplines, which are reflected in the scholarship of their professional training. However, the crossover in scholarship is limited. This review of social justice andragogy literature from various fields in the United States creates a conversation among these helping disciplines so that they may be able to learn from each other. From these separate realms of scholarship, the authors have derived terms and recommendations of what these disciplines may learn from one another through their shared obstacles and through processing of their work.
• Fostering Teachers’ Empathy and Inclusion in Israeli Society

  Shapira, Noa; Dolev, Niva (Eonsei University, 2023-08-29)

  In this study that draws from the fields of Social Psychology and Multicultural Education, 45 Arab and Jewish pre-service and 108 Arab and Jewish in-service teachers were presented with a program designed to foster intergroup empathy and inclusive views. The two groups went through a similar process: choosing their outgroup, finding media that presented their outgroup's narratives, and reflecting on the experience. This study used mixed methods, including content analysis of the teacher's reflections. The findings indicate that mediated contact is an essential element of the empathy-enhancing process and that the narrative approach evokes expressions of empathy and inclusion. Differential outcomes between teachers were observed, which can clarify the process effects and how they foster empathy and inclusion.
• Pairing Mindfulness and Social Justice: Taking A Step on the Path to Change

  Flynn, Jill (Eonsei University, 2023-08-29)

  This case study explores how teacher candidates responded to the inclusion of mindfulness practices in a course and how they understand mindfulness’ relationship to equity. Findings show that participants responded positively and connected presence activities to social justice in several ways: fostering mental health, addressing systemic inequities, facilitating classroom management, making connections to curriculum, and empowering students. The study demonstrates that pairing mindfulness and equity goals has important potential; however, this is only one step of many needed to recruit and retain a thriving teaching force that can work for equity in schools.
• But What Does it Look Like in Maths? A Framework for Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy in Mathematics

  Marshall, Samantha (Eonsei University, 2023-04-28)

  In response to urgent calls for teaching that is culturally affirming, scholars have developed a myriad of images of culturally sustaining (and related) pedagogies (CSPs). However, for maths teachers, CSPs remain elusive, in part because these images are typically content-neutral and their applicability to practice opaque. In this paper, I synthesize research to help conceptualize and clarify what CSPs may look like specifically in mathematics classrooms. I offer a framework for CSPs in mathematics comprised of four dimensions: (1) anti-assimilationism, (2) strengths-based teaching, (3) power and justice, and (4) affirming identities.
• Analysis of School Educational Spaces: A Challenge for Spatial Relevance in Contexts of Sociocultural Diversity

  Fuentes Vilugrón, Gerardo; Andrade Mansilla, Elías; Bravo Carrasco, Ingrid; Lagos Hernández, Roberto; Riquelme Mella, Enrique (Eonsei University, 2023-04-28)

  This research addresses the problem of the imposition of educational spaces in multicultural contexts. The research is of qualitative nature, based on an interpretative hermeneutic paradigm. It uses collective case study design. The selection of participants was non-probabilistic and intentional, and snowball sampling was used, selecting 15 teachers and 24 students. It is concluded that Chilean schools in multicultural contexts show a lack of social and cultural relevance in the construction and organization of spaces. In addition, it is concluded that educational establishments should consider the implementation of pedagogical and didactic strategies in contact with nature, given that, as has already been demonstrated, children often prefer outdoor experiences as ideal spaces for learning.
• Critical Multicultural Analysis of Award-winning Texts Representing Latina/o/e Experiences

  Pratt, Kristen L.; Puzio, Kelly; Lee, Ying-Hsuan; Crawford-Tobias, Leeah; Hatton-Chamberlain, Amanda (Eonsei University, 2023-04-28)

  ABSTRACT: The Pura Belpré Award honors Latina/o/e writers and illustrators whose works are acknowledged as best portraying, affirming, and celebrating Latina/o/e cultural experiences for children and youth. Using a critical content analysis of 14 chapter books that received the award, we share findings that reveal the texts consistently portrayed Latina/o/e central characters through asset-based frameworks. The critical content analysis indicated that the central characters demonstrated the asset-based strengths of interdependence and resourcefulness. Interdependence was demonstrated with families and communities, and remarkable resourcefulness was evidenced by pooling physical, internal, and social resources to creatively solve challenges. Implications for practice, especially in relation to supporting culturally sustaining pedagogy in classrooms, are discussed.
• Experiences of Family Collaboration in Early Intervention among Korean and Chinese Caregivers

  Kang, Veronica; Kim, Sunyoung; Wang, Jing (Eonsei University, 2023-04-28)

  Despite the importance of family-centered practice in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part C, a federally funded program for birth to two-year-old children with disabilities, there is a lack of research on Asian families who participate in early intervention in the U.S. This study examined the experiences of two Korean families and one Chinese family in early intervention in the U.S. Interviews were conducted and analyzed by bilingual researchers using ecological systems theory. As a multiple-case design study, the caregiver roles, beliefs, practices, and experiences related to their participation in early intervention were reported through within-case and cross-case analysis.
• Funds of Knowledge at San Basilio de Palenque : A path for preserving its identity

  Horton, Michelle (Eonsei University, 2022-12-29)

  This case study examines how teachers preserve and foster the funds of knowledge students bring to school in the Palenque community. Data were collected using the funds of knowledge Matrix instrument, open-ended questions, interviews, and participant observation. An analysis of data was done using a domain analysis process, a category of cultural meanings. The findings included the creation of three new categories: ethnobotany, Kuagros, and Kulum. The study identified teachers' educational practices that fit the culturally relevant/responsive profile. These involve rethinking curriculum, instruction, what funds of knowledge are and a more ethnographic approach to education.  
• Fostering Culturally Relevant Teaching Through Family Visits

  Szech, Laura (Eonsei University, 2022-12-29)

  This study examines if teachers can learn to be more culturally relevant in their classrooms by reading culturally relevant literature and then engaging in the practice of family visits. The study employed a basic qualitative design with data sources such as transcripts of discussions and visits, interviews, and participant journals. Results show that family visits led to new and more culturally relevant classroom practices.  Based on this study, teachers who engage with culturally relevant training, including the practice of family visits, may become more culturally relevant in their classrooms.
• A Complex Mix of Confidence, Uncertainty, and Struggle: Korean Secondary Social Studies Teachers’ Perspectives and Practice on Multiculturalism

  Kim, Eunjung (Eonsei University, 2022-12-29)

  This study examines perspectives and practices regarding multiculturalism among 20 secondary social studies teachers in South Korea. Utilizing semi-structured interviews and critical discourse analysis, the study seeks to capture how teachers’ understandings of multiculturalism (Damunhwa in Korean) and its practice are influenced by curriculum changes, interactions with Damunhwa students, school duties, and personal experiences. The study finds that teachers know curriculum changes clearly, have little understanding of Damunhwa students, and experience discrepancies between high intellectual recognition of multiculturalism and their own ingrained biases.
• “We Wanna Feel Like We Are America”: Examining the Inclusive and Exclusionary High School Experiences of New Americans in a Small City

  Gilblom, Elizabeth A.; Crary, Sarah L.; Sang, Hilla I. (Eonsei University, 2022-12-29)

  This transcendental phenomenology centers on the perceptions and experiences of New Americans from Africa and Asia who attended high schools in a smaller urban area located in North Dakota. Using Anderson et al.’s (2014) ecology of inclusive education (EIE), we identify environmental factors that promoted or undermined inclusive education experiences for the New Americans in our study. Themes include: collaborative and welcoming EL teachers, differences between mainstream and EL classes and teachers, problematic experiences with school administrators, valued connections with American peers, and balancing family responsibilities with school. Implications for policy and practice that support the inclusion of New Americans in all schools are provided, including ways to disrupt bias in schools and approaches to providing supports for New Americans and their families.
• Just Singing and Dancing: Official Representations of Ethnic Minority Cultures in China

  Lin, Jason Cong; Jackson, Liz (Eonsei University, 2022-12-29)

  This paper uses a critical multicultural, constructivist approach to examine how the Chinese government represents minority cultures in its official discourse. Although at an abstract level the government acknowledges the contributions of minority cultures to society, our findings show a mismatched picture in terms of minority representation. Government documents and discourse recorded and obtained on the government website only highlight traditional and stereotypical cultural aspects related to minorities. These representations essentialise minority cultures, obscure their dynamism and their contributions, reinforce power hierarchies, and discourage critical reflexivity. In this context, we recommend addressing fundamental challenges undergirding this pattern in representation to develop more balanced and comprehensive understandings of minority cultures.
• An Education Scholar and a Tightrope Walker: Reflexivity and Self-Discovery through the Research on How African American Women Navigate the Contested Spaces of Predominately White Colleges and Universities

  Haynes, Christina S. (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  Chronicling my research on academically successful Black women attending predominately white institutions (PWIs), I reflect upon the anxiety, anger, and disillusionment that I personally experienced in graduate school. I discovered while completing the dissertation that other Black women at PWIs navigate similar challenges. Using narrative inquiry, I explore how this research program developed and how the high-achieving women interviewed shaped my ideas about gender, race, and belongingness and the complexity of coping with racism. I wish for other women of color to realize they are not alone in their frustrations; I hope my research helps these women understand that their presence is both needed and valued in the academy.
• The Creation of National Cultures through Education, the Inequities They Produce, and the Challenges for Multicultural Education

  Smagorinsky, Peter (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  This essay compares and contrasts the educational movements of three nations—the United States, Mexico, and the Soviet Union—established according to Eurocentric cultural values. In each country, mass education was undertaken to help produce an assimilative national culture during formative periods characterized by instability. In two of these nations, the U.S. and Mexico, this foundation eventually required an accommodation to address multiculturalism. This latter-day perspective is designed to recognize, respect, and appreciate a variety of cultures. This essay examines the ways in which these two oppositional goals—monoculturalism and multiculturalism—have intersected in schools.    
• Challenges for Teachers Working in Mainstream Schools with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students in Chile: Two Case Studies

  Tapia Parada, Carla Ignacia; Tour, Ekaterina (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  Recently, Chile has experienced a significant increase in linguistically and culturally diverse immigrants from Haiti. However, little is known about how Chilean teachers cope with this issue. Using Haworth’s (2009) model of contextual layers of teachers’ work as a conceptual lens, this article reports the findings from two case studies. Findings show that participants often struggled to teach their culturally and linguistically diverse students. These difficulties were attributed to teachers’ low levels of professional preparedness to work with these students and limited in-school support. The article offers several implications for different stakeholders.
• “I’m Brazilian, Not Brazilian American”: The Experiences of Second-Generation Brazilian Adolescents Preserving Their Heritage Language and Resisting Assimilation

  Halpern, Clarisse; Austin Ward, Zachary; Aydin, Hasan (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  Culture and heritage language (HL) preservation are crucial to developing children of immigrants’ ethnic and social identity, creating a sense of belonging, and fostering family and ethnic community support. However, numerous challenges permeate the experiences of underrepresented ethnolinguistic groups like Brazilian immigrants who are largely invisible in the United States. Therefore, this study investigated the lived experiences of second-generation Brazilian adolescents with culture and HL preservation. In-depth interviews and a focus group were conducted with 13 participants. The findings highlighted the participants’ embrace of their Brazilian ethnic identity and rejection of their American citizenship, and emphasized HL in affirming their identities and confronting discrimination.
• The Wrong Tools for the Job: Teachers' Voices on Cultural Capital Mismatch

  Recknagel, Crystal; Hong, Ji; Francis, Dionne Cross; Wang, Qian; Parsons, Alexandra; Lewis, Laura (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  This case study investigates how teachers in a school with a large population of low-income students of color in the U.S. perceived students’ cultural capital and associated teachers’ roles. Twenty-seven teachers were interviewed and discussed four domains of cultural capital mismatch between students and teachers: behavioral, experiential, academic, and family norm. Teachers often characterized these misalignments as students’ deficits and undertook parenting or friendship roles. This study highlights the need to support and train pre-service and in-service teachers’ critical consciousness, so that teachers leverage students’ cultural tools to enhance instruction and to counteract deficit views of students of color.
• Assessing Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions and Practices to Differentiate Instruction for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students in Secondary Classrooms

  Zaier, Amani; Maina, Faith (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  This study examined self-reports and instructional videos provided by 25 preservice teachers to demonstrate differentiated instruction in meeting the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students (CLDS) in the United States. Self-reported journals were thematically analyzed and compared with corresponding instructional videos. The results revealed a mismatch between perceptions and practices of differentiation. Clearly, additional efforts must be taken to prepare preservice teachers to differentiate their instruction for CLDS in the areas of content, process, product, and environment. Teacher preparation programs must invest time and resources to adequately prepare preservice teachers for the challenge of differentiating instruction for CLDS.
• Using Transformational Leadership to Create Brave Space in Teaching Multicultural Education

  Brazill, Shihua; Ruff, William (Eonsei University, 2022-08-22)

  The study explores how multicultural education instructors use transformational leadership to establish “brave space” as a foundation for critical conversations about identity. Establishing brave space within education courses is essential to facilitating pre-service teachers’ understanding of social justice; yet, little research exists regarding the use of transformational classroom leadership to achieve this. This qualitative study is comprised of semi-structured interviews with three instructors through a lens of transformational classroom leadership. Our findings suggest that transformational leadership practices such as modelling the way, challenging the process, encouraging the heart, etc. facilitate students’ understanding of identity, relational trust, and their tacit values.

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