‘A bit of a chameleon act’: a case study of one teacher's understandings of diversity

Abstract

While for political, economic and social justice reasons, there is now an emphasis on ensuring that all children achieve educationally, including those whose ethnicity, 'race' or socio-economic status are different from the dominant culture, multiple and often contradictory discourses operate concerning how teachers should work with diversity. Within post-structural theories, 'race', socioeconomic status, gender and ethnicity are theorised as fluid, dynamic and interconnected categories of identity. In this article, working with post-structuralist concepts including notions of 'discourse', 'subjectivities', and 'investments', I briefly review a number of discourses around identities and difference that play out within education, particularly in Australia, but with reference to research in North America, and the United Kingdom as well. I then draw on research data to present a case study of one teacher's perspective on diversity. Using his childhood experiences of being both an 'insider' and 'outsider' in mainstream culture, I speculate on how his subjectivities shape and are shaped by his professional identity and relations with students. I discuss his understanding of diversity and of socially just pedagogies in light of current discourses and consider some implications for how teacher education might develop richer, more complex understandings of diversity.Tandis que pour politique, raisons économiques et sociales de justice, il y a maintenant une emphase sur s'assurer que tous les enfants réalisent éducativement, y compris ceux dont l'appartenance ethnique, la course de`'ou le statut socio-économique sont différent de la culture dominante, le multiple et les discours souvent contradictoires fonctionnent au sujet de la façon dont les professeurs devraient travailler avec la diversité. Dans des théories poteau-structurales, course de`', statut socio-économique, le genre et l'appartenance ethnique sont théorisés comme fluide, catégories dynamiques et reliées ensemble d'identité en cet article, travaillant avec des concepts de poststructuralist comprenant des notions du discours de`', subjectivities de`, et investissements dè, Je passe en revue brièvement un certain nombre de discours autour des identités et de la différence qui jouent dehors dans l'éducation, en particulier en Australie, mais concernant la recherche en Amérique du nord, et le Royaume-Uni aussi bien. Je dessine alors sur des données de recherches pour présenter une étude de cas d'une perspective du professeur sur la diversité. En utilisant ses expériences d'enfance d'être un initié de`'et étranger de`'dans la culture traditionnelle, Je specule sur la façon dont ses subjectivities forment et sont formés par sa identité et relations professionnelles avec des étudiants. Je discute son arrangement de diversité et des *Corresponding author. Deakin University, pédagogies socialement justes à la lumière des discours courants et considère quelques implications pour la façon dont l'éducation de professeur pourrait développer plus riche, des vues plus compl...

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