Short-Term Experience—Long-Term Impact: The Lasting Impact of Cross-Cultural Immersion Experience on Teacher Practice

• In Event: Cultural Immersion Experiences to Transform Preservice Teachers' Perceptions of Learners

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of classroom teachers’ past participation in a short-term, pre-service clinical immersion experience on preparation for teaching in multicultural classrooms. The phenomenological case study explored the extent to which experiences noted by participants during the immersion time-period amounted to a permanent transformation. Transformative Learning and Culturally Relevant Pedagogy were the theoretical perspectives that guided the analysis in this study. The paper identifies the key findings that emerged from the research in locating differences between temporary and permanent transformations. These findings inform how teacher preparation programs can implement cross-cultural immersion experiences to support teacher development of socio-cultural consciousness as they prepare to work effectively with all learners.

Author

• Kathrine Kramer, Carroll University