TY - JOUR

T1 - Changeability of pre-service teachers’ beliefs about multilingualism

T2 - a person- and transition-centered approach

AU - Kardel, Lotta

AU - Ehmke, Timo

AU - Lemmrich, Svenja

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

PY - 2024/12/19

Y1 - 2024/12/19

N2 - Teachers of all subjects and grades must remain aware of the linguistic and cultural diversity among their students, as second language learners often experience educational disadvantages. Therefore, (pre-service) teachers must acquire pedagogical language knowledge and skills in linguistically responsive teaching (LRT), and develop positive beliefs about multilingualism. To analyze the changeability of German pre-service teachers’ beliefs about multilingualism, our study combined a person- and transition-centered approach with a longitudinal design. Pre-service teachers (n = 312) from nine universities across Germany were surveyed before and after attending academic opportunities to learn (OTL) about LRT. We used a validated questionnaire to capture participants’ beliefs about (1) valuing family languages other than German, (2) feeling responsible for language teaching, and (3) valuing multilingualism in class. Our findings showed a significant positive change in beliefs between the pre-and post-tests. Latent transition analysis demonstrated differences among beliefs; therefore, we identified three profiles of pre-service teachers: the uninvolved criticals, the responsible controllers, and the consistent supporters. Moreover, we identified different transition patterns: the OTL changed the beliefs of half of the participants to enable them to move between profiles (especially the uninvolved criticals).

AB - Teachers of all subjects and grades must remain aware of the linguistic and cultural diversity among their students, as second language learners often experience educational disadvantages. Therefore, (pre-service) teachers must acquire pedagogical language knowledge and skills in linguistically responsive teaching (LRT), and develop positive beliefs about multilingualism. To analyze the changeability of German pre-service teachers’ beliefs about multilingualism, our study combined a person- and transition-centered approach with a longitudinal design. Pre-service teachers (n = 312) from nine universities across Germany were surveyed before and after attending academic opportunities to learn (OTL) about LRT. We used a validated questionnaire to capture participants’ beliefs about (1) valuing family languages other than German, (2) feeling responsible for language teaching, and (3) valuing multilingualism in class. Our findings showed a significant positive change in beliefs between the pre-and post-tests. Latent transition analysis demonstrated differences among beliefs; therefore, we identified three profiles of pre-service teachers: the uninvolved criticals, the responsible controllers, and the consistent supporters. Moreover, we identified different transition patterns: the OTL changed the beliefs of half of the participants to enable them to move between profiles (especially the uninvolved criticals).

KW - latent transition analysis

KW - linguistically responsive teaching

KW - multilingualism

KW - opportunities to learn

KW - teacher education

KW - Teachers’ beliefs

KW - Educational science

KW - Empirical education research

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85212476089&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1080/09658416.2024.2434017

DO - 10.1080/09658416.2024.2434017

M3 - Journal articles

AN - SCOPUS:85212476089

JO - Language Awareness

JF - Language Awareness

SN - 0965-8416

ER -