The Effects of Multicultural Diversity Training on the Development of a Multicultural Perspective in Preservice Teachers

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of a multicultural diversity workshop in helping preservice teachers to develop a multicultural perspective and to determine whether any significant differences existed for the preservice teachers in terms of their gender, age, geographic background, and preferred teaching level. Participants were 216 preservice teachers enrolled in an educational psychology course at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kentucky. A repeated-measures design was used to determine if significant changes had occurred as a result of the preservice teachers\u27 attendance of a multicultural diversity workshop. The method of assessment involved four composite scales developed from a pre- and post-survey about diversity issues. The results of the present study indicated that, after attending the workshop, preservice teachers demonstrated positive changes in their awareness of discrimination, interaction with diverse groups, and comfort level with diverse others. Some significant differences for the preservice teacher demographics of age, geographic background, and preferred teaching level were also discovered. Implications for further research are discussed