Teaching Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Learners: A Content Analysis of Teacher Professional Organizations’ Position Statements

Abstract

Teachers are often positioned as the main providers of educational equity and access for culturally and linguistically diverse learners (CLDLs). Teachers’ beliefs regarding this population can play a major role in their instructional and curricular decisions. In this study, we use a lens of professionalization to examine how teacher beliefs might be influenced during the in-service years of a teacher’s career through the role of teacher professional organizations. We utilized document analysis to examine how CLDLs are discussed in the position statements from four long-standing teacher professional organizations (i.e., National Council for Teachers of English, National Science Teacher Association, National Council for Teachers of Mathematics, and National Council for Social Studies). One hundred and four position statements produced between 2000 and 2022 were analyzed. Findings revealed that most position statements employ generic language, rarely referring explicitly to CLDLs, their access to education, the need to consider their languages/cultures in instructional methods and materials, or ways to effectively prepare teachers to meet their needs. Findings suggest that teacher professional organizations should rethink their approach to crafting position statements to be both inclusive and specific in language. Implications for teacher professional development and future research are discussed.