An Empirical Study of College of Education Faculty’s Perceptions, Beliefs, and Commitment to the Teaching of Diversity in Teacher Education Programs at Four Urban Universities

Abstract

This study used empirical data to investigate College of Education faculty's perceptions, beliefs, and commitment to diversity. A 44-item survey composed of Likert scale-type questions about characteristics, experiences, perspectives, and personal commitments to addressing diversity issues together with demographic questions, was administered to 116 COE faculty from four urban universities. A MANOVA where the independent variables were the demographic data and the dependent variables were five subscales Lynn A. Smolen is a Professor in the Department of Curricular and Instructional Studies, The University of Akron and has received her Ph.D. from the University of Florida. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in reading, ESL methods, and diversity issues. Her areas of interest in research are diversity issues, multicultural literature, and the reading development of culturally and linguistically diverse students. Susan Colville-Hall, is an Associate Professor in 45 0042-0972/06/0300-0045/0 Ó 2006 Springer ScienceþBusiness Media, Inc.(importance of diversity, training for pre-service teachers, college support, teaching diversity in courses, and issues of racial sensitivity) identified four statistically significant factors in faculty's beliefs regarding the importance of diversity. The study found no support for a relationship between the faculty's beliefs about the importance of teaching diversity and their teaching practices.

‘Out’ gay and lesbian faculty and the inclusion of sexual orientation topics in teacher preparation programmes in the USA

“…faculty of colour and women) are more likely to address diversity topics in their own classes as compared to white, male professors (Hurtado 2001;Mayhew and Grunwald 2006;Maruyama and Moreno 2000;Milem 2001;Smith and Schonfeld 2000;Smolen et al 2006). However, Maruyama and Moreno (2000) also found that while faculty representing diversity tend to include more diversity topics in their own teaching, their presence among faculty appears to have little effect upon the diversity content of their colleagues' courses.…”

Professional development for teacher educators: conflicts between critical reflection and instructional‐based strategies

“…In one study, Smolen et al (2005) surveyed and interviewed over 116 full-time faculty at four mid-western colleges of education in order to better understand teacher educators' beliefs, attitudes and commitment to the teaching of diversity. They discovered that faculty members' perceptions of how to prepare teachers to work with diverse student populations varied greatly.…”

Culturally Responsive Training of Teacher Educators

“…First, the classroom teaching force is predominately White and generally lacks the skills to teach and work with CLD students (Smolen, Colville-Hall, Liang, & MacDonald, 2006).…”

“…These effects can seriously hamper diverse college students' persistence (California Tomorrow, 2002). Although teacher educators report believing in the importance of being culturally responsive (Smolen et al, 2006;Tatto, 1996), they do not necessarily demonstrate these skills and dispositions. For example, many faculty members do not feel adequately knowledgeable to infuse diversity topics into their courses and curriculum (Ambe, 2006).…”

“…Even faculty's self-identity, cultural identity, and awareness have been found to affect their ability to educate preservice teachers to be multiculturally competent (Smolen et al, 2006). Participation in programs can help when they are geared toward helping faculty examine their perceptions and attitudes and develop a more culturally responsive approach in their curriculum and interactions with others (Oltjenbruns & Love, 1998).…”