The role of teacher education in preparing teachers for critical multicultural citizenship

This article examines the influence of a teacher education program designed to promote aspects of critical multicultural citizenship on the views of preservice teachers׳ concerning citizenship education for culturally diverse contexts. The findings are based on a case study of four minority preservice teachers who attended a large research university in the Southwest and who expressed beliefs related to critical multicultural citizenship. Two questions guided this study: Where did participants acquire their views on citizenship and citizenship education? What role did their teacher education program play in fostering their views of citizenship education? Findings from this study illuminated nuances in the interaction between participants׳ prior beliefs about teaching for citizenship education and those ideas expressed in the teacher education program. While participants clung soundly to prior experiences, they often borrowed terminology and tools that were explicitly conveyed in the teacher education program to both express their ideas and to frame their classroom practices. Implications for teacher educators are discussed.