Teaching in our Society: Primary Teachers and Intercultural Competencies

Abstract Living in a context marked by pluralism and heterogeneity is never straightforward, even less so if you belong to a marginalised part of society, in terms of social status, culture and religion. The processes that lead to social exclusion take effect in the first years of a child's life and too often they are formalised in the school system. In Italy, research data and statistics reveal a deep-rooted disparity in the academic trajectories of students from a migrant background when compared with what we might term "native" students. Since the reduced level of attainment of such "non-Italian" students is already noticeable in primary school, where the formal process of acquiring the language skills required in education takes place, we decided to work with teachers from this level of schooling to discover if, and in what way, they have the skills and training required to teach such students. The teachers chosen had taught in multicultural classes for a total of at least five years. Hoping to ascertain whether these teachers employed intercultural competencies in their teaching practice – and if so, which ones – we selected a method based on the narration of a problem situation encountered during their time in teaching. To date, fifty teachers have been interviewed. Analysis of the interviews reveals a heterogeneous reality, with some teachers displaying new forms of sensitivity and cultural competence in response to a changing world and a changing school population, while others seem entrenched in an outdated mindset

What Intercultural Competencies do Italian Primary Teachers Need?

Abstract193 different nationalities are represented among the pupils in Italy's state schools. 9% of school pupils in Italy (802,844) come from a migrant background. The data reveal a deep-rooted disparity in these pupils’ academic trajectory compared to that of indigenous students. With a view to gathering data that might assist in understanding which factors contribute to the disadvantages faced by students of n.I.n., this research has sought to reveal the terms in which teachers who have taught in multicultural, primary-level classes for at least five years, most commonly represent diversity, albeit, in terms of the number of participants (thirty), the sample used is non-representative. The investigation was also designed to generate information regarding the behaviours, expertise and operational skills that the same group of teachers employs in teaching multicultural classes, and to determine whether the practices they describe indicate the possession of intercultural competencies.What representations of diversity are most familiar to teachers? Do teachers possess intercultural competencies that enable them to assist integration and learning in students from migrant backgrounds? The data analysis methodology was based on grounded theory. “Diversity”, the analysis revealed, is understood in various ways: the expression of each person's uniqueness; cultural difference; the prevalence of problems (special needs, learning difficulties, hyperactivity). The stories told revealed various competencies, which were grouped into two types: first-level intercultural competencies (already inherent to good teaching practice), and second-level intercultural competence required/acquired in multicultural classes.Based on these data, the study paints a varied portrait of Italian primary teachers’ professional competence. This admittedly limited set of interviews suggests a heterogeneous reality, with some teachers having responded to a changing school population by acquiring new intercultural competences, and others seemingly stuck with an outdated outlook