Literature on New Documentarian Research on Cultural Competence in-Action

• In Event: 46.041 - Preservice and Professional Teachers Working Across Difference: New Documentarian Research on Cultural Competence In-Action

Abstract

Working from a documentarian perspective (Pinar, 2006), this presentation provides a comprehensive literature review on new research that documents preservice and professional teachers’ cultural competence in-action. Adapting hermeneutic methods from intellectual history that create a “synoptic text” (Pinar, 2006, p. 1) of these literatures, this comprehensive literature review on documentarian research surveys, analyzes, and renders thirty eight (n = 38) empirical-qualitative or -narrative studies from a larger literature review project that surveys fifty-six articles on teacher identity development (N=56). Thirty eight articles from the larger literature review (38/56) document preservice and professional teachers’ development of cultural competence. Please see Appendix (in PDF): “Resource List of Documentarian Research on Cultural Competence in-Action” for a list of research studies since 2003.

This new documentarian research on cultural competence suggests a revision of conceptual content in multicultural teacher education (Bennett, 2007; Grant & Sleeter, 2007) with contextualized empirical understandings from context-driven practical curriculum (Clandinin & Connelly, 1992; Craig & Ross, 2008; Schwab, 1969/1978). Specifically, the synoptic text drives at the following conclusions relevant to multicultural teacher education:

1.Preservice and professional teacher identities need to be evaluated not as static, essentialized, and regulated categories, values or attitudes but as process identifications for engaging in moral-ethical teaching practices.
2.Preservice and professional teacher identifications recast multicultural conscientization as a dynamic, non-linear process full of epiphanies, never-finished, filled with fits-and-starts and requiring practical know-how.
3.Preservice and professional teachers’ identifications require an ample understanding of cultural competence that synthesizes worldview and values discussion with contextually-informed teaching practices and concrete discussions of teaching, learning, and classroom management practices.

Presentation 1 provides an overview of new documentarian research on cultural competence that provides an important lead-in for the presentations that follow.

References

Banks, J. (2004). Multicultural education: Historical development, discussions, and practice. In J. Banks (Ed.) Handbook of research on multicultural education (p. 3-30). San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass.

Bennett, C. (2007). Comprehensive multicultural education: Theory and practice (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Grant, C. & Sleeter, C. (2007). Turning on learning: Five approaches for multicultural teaching plans for race, class, gender, and disability (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Education.

Clandinin, J & Connelly, M. (1992). Teachers as curriculum makers. In P. Jackson (Ed.) Handbook of research on curriculum (pp. 363-401). New York, NY: MacMillan.

Craig, S. & Ross, V. (2008). Cultivating the image of teachers as curriculum makers. In F. Michael Connelly, M.G. He, & J. Phillion (Eds.) The SAGE handbook of curriculum and instruction (pp. 282-305). London: Sage.

Schwab, J.J. (1978). Science, curriculum, and the liberal arts tradition (Eds. I. Westbury & N.J. Wilcolf). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago. (Work originally published 1969)

Author

• James C. Jupp, Georgia Southern University