International Journal of Multicultural Education

Special Issue Editorial:

Aileen Park — 2021-12-30

The global pandemic has brought about fundamental changes in education. The abrupt closing of schools has disrupted the teaching and learning processes and presented challenges for schools worldwide. This Special Issue explores “digital inclusion” through the use of technology-facilitated learning platforms and modalities within the multicultural environment of schooling. It especially gives attention to cases that highlight the responses of parents, teachers, administrators, and students in countries that have the digital infrastructure and technological advancement and in those that do not in order to question the “digital divide” and the challenges and implications that this disparity brings to education.

Fostering Pre-Service Teachers’ Antiracist Expectations through Online Education: Implications for Teacher Education in the Context of Global Pandemics

Leticia Rojas — 2021-12-30

The increase in online education programs, accompanied by the current COVID-10 pandemic, has led universities to reconsider alternative ways to prepare teachers for social justice. One under-researched area in this conversation is the need for teacher candidates to examine their racialized expectations that often negate students of color in TK-12 classrooms. This self-study describes one faculty member’s digital critical race praxis (DigitalCrit praxis) as a mediator of her expectations to prepare pre-service teachers for social justice. Research findings have implications for critical multicultural education, digitally based instruction, and teacher preparation.

Beyond Apple Pies, Popsicles and Patriotism: Leveraging Digital Literacy to Unpack Matters of Race, Power, and Privilege

Crystal Shelby-Caffey — 2021-12-30

It is important for all educators, but especially those working in P-12 systems, to not only be prepared to navigate the digital terrain but to do so while taking a critical stance and encouraging students to critically examine and confront injustice. To that end, this article spotlights the work being done in a literacy methods course for preservice teachers. Consideration is given to efforts to engage preservice teachers in the integration of information communication technologies (ICTs) in ways that develop critical consciousness while promoting social justice and equity.

Access and Inclusion of Students with Disabilities in Virtual Learning Environments: Implications for Post-Pandemic Teaching

Susan G. Porter — 2021-12-30

This article reviews the extant literature showing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to inclusive education for students with disabilities. It also explores the disproportionate impacts of distance learning and school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic on the legal rights, social-emotional supports, and quality of instruction for special education students and their families. Early data show that educational impacts of COVID-19 have exacerbated long-standing issues of inequity; these impacts may have long-term repercussions for this underserved group of students. The authors introduce frameworks that may inform future instructional practices to successfully teach students with disabilities in virtual learning environments.

Supporting Online Learning in an Unfamiliar Language: Immigrant Parents and Remote Schooling during COVID-19

Emma Xing Chen — 2021-12-30

The sudden burst of COVID-19 and the shift to remote schooling have posed a special challenge for families whose first language is not English. Engaging in a narrative inquiry, I tell stories of parents from three Chinese immigrant families and how they coped with young children’s remote schooling during COVID. I present the challenges immigrant parents face and the strategies they adopt to support their children. This inquiry offers useful insights into remote schooling during the pandemic by adding perspectives from immigrant parents, who can provide opportunities for educators to learn how to better support minoritized students.

From Digital Divide to Digital Literacies and Mother-Child Pedagogies: The Case of Latina Mothers

Jie Park — 2021-12-30

This article reports on a qualitative study of 22 Latina mothers and their experiences supporting their children’s remote education during COVID-19. Drawing on digital literacies and mujerista theory, the authors analyzed focus group data to find the following: Latina mothers’ struggles involved not just understanding online learning platforms but an educational system that was not responsive to the economic constraints and stressors faced by families; Latina mothers perceived the school district’s response to COVID-19 as performative and inadequate; Latina mothers developed mother-child pedagogies or pedagogies in which the mother and child are involved in teaching to and learning from each other. The findings lend support to the idea that the digital literacy divide does not exist outside of social and economic structures, and to the resourcefulness of everyday Latina mothers.

A Global Pandemic in a Multicultural Society: Comparison between Jewish and Arab Teachers' Metaphors of Teaching

Tali Hayosh — 2021-12-30

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the education system around the world. This article examines the perceptions of teachers who are members of the Jewish majority and the Arab minority in Israel, particularly on their e-learning role during the pandemic. Based on analysis of metaphors chosen by 20 Jewish and 14 Arab teachers, results of the study indicate two themes: (1) a collectivist perception prevalent among the Arab teachers and (2) an individualistic perception prevalent among the Jewish teachers. Recommendations to the education system are based on the cultural differences and inequalities between these groups.

COVID-19, Distance Learning, and the Digital Divide: A Comparative Study of Higher Education Institutions in the US and Pakistan

Sunaina Asher — 2021-12-30

This multiple case study describes the experiences of students, faculty and administrators with distance learning during this pandemic in the context of a Midwestern University in United States and an elitist University in Lahore, Pakistan. The participants were invited to talk about their experiences through a Zoom interview. Data were analyzed thematically and the findings revealed that the issue of the digital divide was as much as problem in higher education as in K-12. Digital divide in Pakistan is far greater due to lack of investment in educational technology. The paper ends with acknowledging the potential limitations and making recommendations for leadership and teaching practice.