Reframing Boundaries: Teachers’ Perspectives on Language Diversity in Early Childhood Classrooms

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 9:45 am - Gold 3
  In Roundtable Session: Discussing Liberatory Praxis and Freirean Pedagogy

Abstract

Teacher education plays a pivotal role in advancing equity and inclusion for linguistically and culturally diverse student populations. This qualitative study examines teachers’ evolving perspectives on language diversity in early childhood classrooms. Conducted during the 2023–2024 academic year the research draws on written reflections from practicing teachers’ discussion posts in an online graduate course at an institution in Chicago, Illinois. Findings indicate that participants’ pedagogical views shifted through engagement with course materials, fostering inclusive practices rooted in linguistic equity. Informed by Freirean pedagogy, this study underscores the transformative potential of teacher. education in cultivating critical, inclusive approaches to language diversity.

Author

• Ana Luisa Borba Gediel, Federal University of Viçosa