ERIC Number: EJ1088523
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016-Apr
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-2324-805X
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Pre-Service Foreign Language Teachers' Awareness of White Privilege
McGowan, Shannon L.; Kern, Anne L.
Journal of Education and Training Studies, v4 n4 p45-57 Apr 2016
Over the last several years teacher preparation programs have strived to adequately prepare pre-service teachers for more diverse populations in the classroom. However, little research has been done to examine the attitudes of pre-service teachers related to white privilege. This is the qualitative report from a mixed-methods study which examined those attitudes, the quantitative report has previously been published. The quantitative portion employed a pre/post-test survey surrounding interactive activities and found a significant change in participants? attitudes regarding social issues of privilege, such as racism and sexism (McGowan & Kern, 2014). This paper reports the ways pre-service foreign language teachers examined their understandings of white privilege. Students in a language methods course (N=19) participated in specific activities to explore how they relate privilege and oppression to their own lives and futures as teachers. A grounded theory approach was utilized to analyze the students? responses to questions regarding the activities. From the analysis, six major themes were discovered. Three themes indicated the affordances pre-service teachers gained from the activities regarding privilege. Whereas, the other three themes indicated possible challenges in regards to privileged thinking. Suggestions for further research include determining the long-term effects of the intervention and extending the instructional intervention length.
Descriptors: Preservice Teachers, Whites, Advantaged, Power Structure, Qualitative Research, Mixed Methods Research, Student Attitudes, Racial Bias, Gender Bias, Methods Courses, Grounded Theory, Intervention, Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, Language Teachers, Teacher Education, Equal Education
Redfame Publishing Inc. 9450 SW Gemini Drive #99416, Beaverton, OR 97008. Tel: 503-828-0536 ext. 503; Fax: 503-828-0537; e-mail: jets@redfame.com; Web site: http://jets.redfame.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A