Teacher education and the challenge of diversity in South Africa / Crispin Hemson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hemson, Crispin.

Contributor:

Human Sciences Research Council. Child, Youth and Family Development Research Programme. School Integration Project.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Teachers--Training of--South Africa.

Teachers.

Teachers--Training of.

School integration.

Multicultural education.

South Africa.

Multicultural education--South Africa.

School integration--South Africa.

Physical Description:

vii, 66 pages ; 29 cm

Place of Publication:

Cape Town : HSRC Press, 2006.

Summary:

Conflicts in schools over race, fees or language frequently make headlines in South Africa. Such conflicts reflect the multifaceted issue of learner diversity, encompassing racial, class, gender, religious, linguistic, physical and other differences. The need to handle such differences in equitable ways poses new challenges for teachers and teacher education. How are teacher education institutions preparing students for teaching in schools that are different from the ones they experienced as learners? What kinds of skills are they providing to enable teachers to deal with diversity and difference amongst learners?

This study focuses on how teachers are being prepared through the Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) at three different universities. Documentary and oral sources, a small survey, focus groups and interviews provide the basis for: an analysis of the context and history of each institution; the profile of staff and students in teacher-education courses; and the ways in which issues of diversity are addressed. A well-grounded set of recommendations provides direction for the road ahead.

Intelligent, eloquent and concise, this monograph will be invaluable for educationists, academics and policymakers. Teacher Education and the Challenge of Diversity in South Africa is part of a wider, cross-disciplinary School Integration research project initiated by the Human Sciences Research Council. The aim of the broader research project is to investigate the ways in which teachers, texts, managers and policymakers consciously and creatively make sense of and actively address the challenges posed by integration.

Contents:

Research on schools and racial diversity 3

Research on teacher education and diversity 3

Framing approaches to teacher education and diversity 5

Methodology 8

The structure of the case studies 10

2 Case Study One: Multiculturalism 13

Institutional context 13

The research process 14

Demography 14

Curriculum 16

Teaching methods and the handling of conflict 21

3 Case Study Two: Critical Multiculturalism 24

Institutional context 24

The research process 24

Demography 25

Curriculum 26

Teaching methods and the handling of conflict 29

The impact of restructuring 31

4 Case Study Three: Critical Inclusivity 33

Institutional context 33

The research process 33

Demography 34

Curriculum 35

Teaching methods and the handling of conflict 39

The impact of restructuring 39

6 Recommendations 48

Appendix A Schedule for student demographic data 52

Appendix B Demographic data of students surveyed 56.

Notes:

"Report prepared for the School Integration Project of the Child, Youth, Family and Social Development Research Programme of the Human Sciences Research Council"--Prelim.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 63-66).

ISBN:

0796921571

9780796921574

OCLC:

70037811