An Investigation of the Perceived Multicultural Competence among Teachers in the Maltese Education System

An Investigation of the Perceived Multicultural Competence among Teachers in the

Maltese Education System

Marija Vella

University of Malta

Faculty for Social Wellbeing

May 2015

RUNNING HEAD: MULTICULTURAL COMPETENCE – TEACHERS IN MALTA

1

An Investigation of the Perceived Multicultural Competence among Teachers in the

Maltese Education System

Marija Vella

This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award

of Master of Arts in Transcultural Counselling

A collaborative degree programme offered by the University of Malta and the

University of New Orleans.

University of Malta

Faculty for Social Wellbeing

May 2015

MULTICULTURAL COMPETENCE – TEACHERS IN MALTA 2

The research work disclosed in this publication is partially funded by the Master it!

Scholarship Scheme (Malta). This Scholarship is part-financed by the European

Union

– European Social Fund (ESF) under Operational Programme II –

Cohesion Policy 2007-2013, “Empowering People for More Jobs and a

Better Quality Of Life.

Operational Programme II – Cohesion Policy 2007-2013 Empowering People for More Jobs and a Better Quality of

Life Scholarship part-financed by the European Union

European Social Fund (ESF) Co-financing rate: 85% EU Funds;15% National Funds

Investing in your future


Abstract

Increasingly more students from different cultures are entering the education system

in Malta heightening the need for all education professionals to be culturally

competent, especially teachers. Specifically, teachers and transcultural counsellors

who possess multicultural competence (awareness, knowledge and skills) can

collaborate together to enhance the wellbeing of all students. The purpose of the

study was to explore the perceived multicultural competence of teachers in state

primary and secondary schools in Malta and Gozo. The research questions were:

What is the perception of multicultural competence among state primary and

secondary school teachers in Malta and Gozo? What is the relationship between

perception of multicultural competence and teachers’ demographic factors? Based on

the findings, how can transcultural counsellors and teachers collaborate together for

the wellbeing of students? This study surveyed 191 teachers from state primary and

secondary schools across colleges in Malta and Gozo. Findings reveal that teachers

scored highest on Awareness and least in Skills. Teachers who attended a

multicultural course scored significantly higher in their cultural competence than

those who did not. The study sheds light on issues related to ethnorelativism,

ethnocentrism and inclusion. Based on the findings, it is recommended that teachers

actively work to increase their cultural competence and engage in dialogue and

intentional collaborations with counsellors to meet the needs of students from

diverse backgrounds.

Keywords: education; multicultural competence; student; teacher; transcultural

counselling.


Table of Contents

Abstract ........................................................................................................................ 3

List of Tables ............................................................................................................... 7

List of Figures .............................................................................................................. 8

List of Appendices ....................................................................................................... 9

List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................. 10

Dedication .................................................................................................................. 11

Acknowledgements.................................................................................................... 12

Author’s Declaration.................................................................................................. 13

Chapter One: Introduction ......................................................................................... 14

The context: Change is the one constant ................................................................ 14

Societal Reactions................................................................................................... 15

Schools and Teachers are a Microcosm of society................................................. 16

The Teacher: A Crucial Subsystem within the School........................................... 17

School-based counselling within the Maltese Education system ........................... 20

The Need for Transcultural Counsellors in Schools............................................... 21

Inspiration to the study ........................................................................................... 22

Purpose of the study ............................................................................................... 22

Multicultural Competence : The conceptual framework........................................ 23

Social desirability: A lens for reading multicultural research and a limitation ...... 25

Operational Definitions .......................................................................................... 26

Chapter two: Literature Review................................................................................. 28

Multicultural Competence: The Counselling Profession........................................ 28


Multicultural Competence: The Teaching Profession ............................................ 30

Perceptions of Multicultural Competence can be measured .................................. 32

Multicultural competence is associated with Cultural Identity Development........ 33

Multicultural Competence and Cultural Identity:Counsellor – Client Interactions 37

Multicultural Competence and Cultural Identity:Teacher – Student Interactions 38

Multicultural Competence and cultural identity development have an impact on

student wellbeing.................................................................................................... 39

Inequity within the school setting........................................................................... 40

Systemic understanding of Multicultural Competence in the School .................... 45

Counsellors’ Expanded Role: A Systemic and Integrated Approach..................... 47

Collaboration and Consultation between Teachers and Counsellors ..................... 49

Multicultural Competence Training ....................................................................... 50

Purpose of the study ............................................................................................... 53

Chapter Three: Methodology..................................................................................... 54

Research Design ..................................................................................................... 55

Participants for this research................................................................................... 56

Description of the Original Instrument................................................................... 56

Sample Size and Sampling Techniques.................................................................. 62

Data collection and procedures............................................................................... 62

Scoring and data interpretation............................................................................... 63

Limitations in the data collection ........................................................................... 64

Chapter Four: Findings .............................................................................................. 66

Internal Consistency ............................................................................................... 66

The Spearman test .................................................................................................. 67


Demographic Information of Teachers................................................................... 69

Data Findings: What is the perception of multicultural competence among teachers

in the Maltese education system? ........................................................................... 70

Data findings: The relationship between the perceptions of multicultural

competence and teachers’ demographic factors ..................................................... 78

Chapter Five: Discussion and Recommendations.................................................... 104

Discussion of findings .......................................................................................... 105

Implications .......................................................................................................... 120

Recommendations for future research.................................................................. 125

Conclusions .......................................................................................................... 126

Appendices............................................................................................................... 128

Glossary ................................................................................................................... 159

References................................................................................................................ 165

Form H Proposal Submission Completed Dissertation Copyright Release Form ... 180

MULTICULTURAL COMPETENCE – TEACHERS IN MALTA

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List of Tables

Table 1 - Correlations for the subscales..................................................................... 67

Table 2 - Sample Decomposition............................................................................... 69

Table 3 -Mean rating scores for Teachers' Perceived Multicultural Competence ..... 71

Table 4 - Descriptive statistics for the Awareness subscale ...................................... 73

Table 5 - Descriptive statistics for the Knowledge subscale ..................................... 75

Table 6 - Descriptive statistics for the Skills subscale............................................... 77

Table 7 - One-way ANOVA for Gender.................................................................... 79

Table 8 - One-way ANOVA for Religious/Spiritual Affiliation ............................... 81

Table 9 - One-way ANOVA for Age Group ............................................................. 83

Table 10 - One-way ANOVA for number of years teaching..................................... 85

Table 11 - One-way ANOVA for state primary and secondary school teachers....... 88

Table 12 - One-way ANOVA for primary school teachers according to subjects .... 91

Table 13 - One-way ANOVA for secondary school teachers according to subjects. 95

Table 14 - One-way ANOVA for Multicultural Education course............................ 97


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List of Figures

Figure 1: Means Plot for Multicultural Competence Subscales ................................ 71

Figure 2: Bar graph for Gender.................................................................................. 80

Figure 3: Bar graph for Religion................................................................................ 82

Figure 4: Bar graph for Age Group............................................................................ 84

Figure 5: Bar graph for the number of years teaching ............................................... 87

Figure 6: Bar graph for primary and secondary school teachers ............................... 89

Figure 7: Bar graph for Multicultural Education course............................................ 99


List of Appendices

Appendix A: The Questionnaire .............................................................................. 129

Appendix B: Request for Research in State School Form....................................... 135

Appendix C: Email to the College Principals .......................................................... 139

Appendix D: Email to the Head of School .............................................................. 141

Appendix E: Letter for Teachers.............................................................................. 143

Appendix F: Tables.................................................................................................. 145

Table F1–Decomposition of the Sample Demographics ................................... 146

Table F2 - Item frequencies for the Awareness subscale .................................. 147

Table F3 - Item frequencies for the Knowledge subscale.................................. 148

Table F4 - Item frequencies for the Skills subscale........................................... 149

Table F5 - Item Frequencies for the Knowledge Subscale for PSCD and

Guidance Teachers in state primary schools ................................................. 151

Table F6 – Item frequencies for the Skills subscale for PSCD and Guidance

teachers in state primary schools................................................................... 152

Table F7 - Item frequencies for the Knowledge subscale for PSCD and Guidance

in state secondary schools ............................................................................. 154

Table F8 - Item frequencies for the Awareness subscale for Multicultural

Education Course (Yes and No) .................................................................... 155

Table F9 - Item frequencies for the Knowledge subscale for Multicultural

Education Course (Yes and No) .................................................................... 156

Table F10 - Item Frequencies for the Skills subscale for Multicultural Education

Course (Yes and No) ..................................................................................... 157


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List of Abbreviations

ANOVA…………........ Analysis of variance

DES………………....... Directorate for Education Services

JRS…………………… Jesuit Refugee Service

LGBTQ……………. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer

MAKSS-CE-R……….. Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills Survey –

Counsellor Edition Revised

MAKSS Form-T…....... Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills-Survey –

Teachers Form

MUT…………………. Malta Union of Teachers

TCN………………….. Third Country Nationals

UNHCR……………… United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees


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Dedication

I dedicate this dissertation to my parents for the patience, support and

encouragement they have shown me during my studies but especially during this

degree.


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Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my tutor Professor Vivian V. Lee, for accepting to supervise

my work during the writing of this dissertation, and for her guidance, observations

and the wonderful discussions.

I would also like to thank Professor Liberato Camilleri for the time and patience he

dedicated to help me with the statistical analysis of the research.

I thank my parents for their continuous support and encouragement, and for being

understanding when stress levels were high.

Finally, but certainly to no lesser degree, I would like to thank the College

Principals, Heads of schools and teachers, for agreeing to collaborate and participate

in the study.


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Chapter One

Introduction

The context: Change is the one constant

We are living in an era where change is the most salient constant (Falzon, Pisani,

& Cauchi, 2012). Globalization and related processes – economic, political,

migratory, and cultural – are reshaping societal dynamics at local and global levels.

Change is reshaping Maltese culture. During the past few years Malta has undergone

dramatic change (Pisani, Cassar, & Muscat, 2010). Malta joined the European

Union; divorce was introduced; LGBTQ communities became more integrated into

mainstream society; civil union laws were introduced; and the Constitution is

targeted for revision. Social conflict, poverty and political turmoil have spawned

new migratory trajectories (Martinelli, 2006), propelling people from Africa and the

Middle East towards the Mediterranean seeking asylum in Malta and other European

countries. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) (2014)

reports that the total population in Malta is 95.1% Maltese, 2.9% EU national, and

1.9% Non-EU National. The majority of the non-Maltese population hails from the

United Kingdom, with a population of 6,615; followed by Somalia, a population of

1,041; followed by Italy, Bulgaria, Germany, Russia, Eritrea, Serbia, Sweden and

Libya respectively.


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Societal Reactions

Literature reveals that Maltese society is not particularly homogenous and people

across the nation are reacting to change in different ways. Some have responded to

change by a ‘fear of invasion’ and a concern for the protection of ‘Maltese national

identity’, which goes hand in hand with a Roman Catholic identity (Pisani et al.,

2010). Some reactions to cultural diversity are characterized by a marked

xenophobia (Pisani et al., 2010) and a sense of Islamophobia (Gauci & Pisani, 2013),

as some Maltese associate those from Arab countries and Muslims with hostility and

oppression. This has created many stereotypes and misconceptions (Borg & Mayo,

2006). Maltese society seems strongly characterized by an ‘us’ and ‘them’ attitude.

Microaggressions are also common as the Maltese language contains certain

statements that communicate hostile and negative slights to people from different

cultures. Such comments include “Mela jien iswed?” (Am I black?) (Borg & Mayo,

2006). Microaggressions create and perpetuate inequities and are detrimental to

wellbeing (Sue, D., Capodilupo, C., Torino, G., Bucceri, J., Holder, A., Nadal, K., et

al. 2007). In dealing with cultural diversity, Pisani et al. (2010) criticize the

traditional charity approach that instills minorities with a sense of disempowerment.

Another attitude is colour-blindness, referring to ways in which a person fails to

acknowledge and appreciate the different cultural aspects that determine a person’s

identity and behaviour (Pedersen, 1995). ‘Exoticization’ is another issue, and mostly

occurs when cultural displays – where dress, costume, food and music are exhibited

–are placed as the main source for obtaining knowledge and awareness. This results

in the formulation of stereotypical notions about various cultures (Borg & Mayo,


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2006) (Falzon et al., 2012). On the other end of the spectrum are approaches oriented

towards dialogue and self-empowerment, as taken up by various organizations and

NGOs such as Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) and Integra.

The spectrum of responses and reactions suggests that different people have

different levels of multicultural competence. Multicultural competence refers to

awareness of one’s own cultural assumptions, values and biases (awareness);

understanding the worlds of the culturally different client (knowledge); and

developing culturally appropriate intervention strategies and techniques (skills).

Schools and Teachers are a Microcosm of society

Society’s responses and reactions to the increase in cultural diversity create

inequities. Since schools and teachers are a microcosm of society, these inequities

become embedded within the school setting, thus creating a particular cultural

climate.

The Maltese classroom reflects the broader society. Many students from different

nationalities are attending Maltese state schools, including students from UK, Italy,

France, Serbia, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Syria, Turkey, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Somalia,

Eritrea, South America and Asia (Calleja, Cauchi, & Grech, 2010) (Vassallo, 2012).

St. Paul’s Bay Primary School currently serves students from 43 different countries

(M. Dalmas, personal communication, March 16, 2015). The Maltese classroom is


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becoming increasingly diverse in language, race, ethnicity, social class, gender,

sexual orientation, and mental health challenges. The increase in cultural diversity

means that increasingly more students from different cultures have different needs to

be met.

The increase in cultural diversity demands a level of multicultural competence to

help create a climate of inclusion that promotes the wellbeing of the student.

Counsellors are urged to re-examine the current needs and to redefine the counsellor

role to ensure that the counselling service meets the needs of the school populations

(Cuomo, 2014). Improving society by challenging systemic inequities is a major

objective of the counselling profession as counsellors are committed to a vision of

social justice and equity for all students (Lee & Hipolito-Delgado, 2007). To

challenge and transform entrenched inequities, it is essential to systemically delve

deep into the inner workings of the education system. Working systemically means

working for the individual as well (Lee & Goodnough, 2011). Counsellors are

obliged to identify other professionals that influence the wellbeing of those they

serve. Teachers are such professionals and are a crucial subsystem within the school.

The Teacher: A Crucial Subsystem within the School

Teachers are a crucial subsystem within the education system since they can

have an impact on student wellbeing. Teachers who continually seek to develop their

multicultural competence are in a better position to address the ever-increasing


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diverse needs of learners from different cultural backgrounds. On the other hand,

when students’ culture is rejected or not recognized by the teacher, students

experience psychological discomfort, miscommunication and diminished self-esteem

leading to school failure (Irvine, 2001). Teachers’ approach and attitude can transmit

subtle messages to students about the students’ self-worth and self-concept.

Therefore, teachers must be aware of their ‘power’ and use it wisely (Delpit, 1988)

to provide equitable opportunity for all in the classroom.

Primary and secondary school teachers are trained at the University of Malta,

where prospective teachers follow a Bachelor of Education Honors degree in

Primary or Secondary Education. Training lasts four years and teachers are trained to

plan and deliver lessons, and to reflect upon their practice. Prospective secondary

school teachers also have the option to take a course of studies that leads to the

Postgraduate Certificate in Education (P.G.C.E.), which is a one-year course. During

the training of prospective teachers, themes related to cultural diversity, critical

consciousness, pedagogy and social justice are also explored. Training of student

teachers differs according to subject of specialization (Education Act, CAP. 327,

2006) (Faculty of Education, University of Malta).

Borg and Giordmaina (2011) report that many principals question the extent to

which the University is preparing student teachers in differentiated instruction. They

argue that teachers lack the necessary skills and competencies for it. One way

teachers can increase their training in areas of diversity is through the Department of

Curriculum Management, Training and Professional Development Unit, that


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organizes several in-service courses, some of which are mandatory while others are

optional. Three courses were offered in July and September 2014 - ‘Global poverty,

social justice and human rights’; ‘Refugees in Malta – an introductory training from

a human rights perspective’ and ‘Mixed ability and Multicultural Education

Teaching’ - all of which were optional. Each course was carried out over three days.

(Directorate for Quality and Standards in Education, 2014).

Principals in Borg and Giordmaina’s study (2011) commented that teachers are

offered training but tend to not take this opportunity. Research by Falzon et al.

(2012) reveals that 63.6% of teachers who participated in the study had not received

any training related to multicultural competence. When asked which skills they feel

they need to better serve culturally diverse students, teachers replied that they need

to increase their knowledge and understanding to tackle issues of cultural and

religious differences. 53% of teachers in Borg and Giordmaina’s (2011) study did

not agree that their training needs were being adequately addressed within their

college.

Feedback from teachers during consultation processes for the reform of the

National Curriculum Framework sheds light on a number of challenges that teachers

are currently facing with the increase in cultural diversity. Some of these challenges

are related to (Directorate of Quality and Standards in Education Ministry of

Education and Employment, 2012):


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1. language barriers;

2. number of pupils in one class and meeting all the diverse needs of culturally

different students;

3. Religion - some teachers feel that the Catholic Religion is the religion held

by the majority of the population and that therefore, the Roman Catholic

religion should be the religion instructed, while others feel that not enough is

being done on religious tolerance. One particular initiative is the Ethics

programme intended to substitute the teaching of religious subjects

(University of Malta, Education Studies, 2014).

4. Material/ Resources and Curriculum - Teachers commented that more

relevant materials are needed to meet the diverse needs of students.

School-based counselling within the Maltese Education system

Counsellors and teachers share the commitment towards holistically enhancing

students’ wellbeing. Although they have different roles, together they can

complement each other in their shared vision of enhancing the wellbeing of students.

The Directorate for Education Services (DES) employs college-based

professionals within Maltese state schools. The professionals consist of trainee

counsellors, school counsellors, school-based counsellors and college counsellors

(Cuomo, 2014). The service is college-based, which means that counsellors are

allocated within schools in one of the ten colleges. A directive from the Malta Union


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of Teachers (MUT) (MUT, 2010) states that school-based counsellors have an

increased workload, rendering working conditions “unacceptable for both the school

counsellors and their clients”. Quality is sacrificed for quantity and counsellors were

directed not to exceed a student/counsellor ratio of 1400:1

47% of teachers participating in Borg and Giordmaina’s study (2011) expressed

that the DES is not providing effective counsellor support, as the supply of

counsellors is inadequate. Furthermore, 80% feel that little time is dedicated for

collaborating and cooperation with professionals within the college. Cuomo’s (2014)

study also highlights a lack of dialogue between counsellors and teachers.

The Need for Transcultural Counsellors in Schools

Coupled with the increase in diversity, this situation demands an enhanced

provision of school-based transcultural counsellors within the setting. Currently,

transcultural counsellors reading for a Master of Arts in Transcultural Counselling at

the University of Malta receive training in multicultural competence (awareness,

knowledge and skills) and cultural identity development, enabling them to: examine

human behaviour and development within the social context; understand their own

cultural realities and privileges; recognize their position in society and the

implications of their cultural identity in relation to the people they serve.

Transcultural counsellors engage in ongoing self and professional development to

become more globally literate, and possess a sense of social responsibility and civic


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engagement (International Collaborative Programmes University of Malta).

Transcultural counsellors are thus positioned to work collaboratively with other

professionals including those in the education arena.

Inspiration to the study

The current social context points towards the need for multicultural competence

and for inclusion for the wellbeing of students. This awareness, together with my

own experience as a child and student, and my background in anthropology and

psychology, have given me a deeper insight into the inner workings of society and

culture, as well as the individual within the culture. My previous experiences created

the pathway for the Masters in Transcultural Counselling, that has given me the

means to put my awareness, knowledge, values and beliefs into practice, to fight for

what I believe in, and to be a catalyst for positive change within society.

Purpose of the study

This study investigates the perception of multicultural competence among state

primary and secondary school teachers across colleges in Malta and Gozo. The first

research question was: What is the perception of multicultural competence among

state primary and secondary school teachers in Malta? The second research question

was: What is the relationship between perception of multicultural competence and

demographic factors such as teachers’ age, gender and religion? The third research

question was: Based on these findings, what support/role could the transcultural


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counsellor offer?

Thus, the study provides insight into areas of teacher strength that can enhance

student wellbeing and identifies areas that require collaboration between counsellor

and teacher. Strong, collaborative and consultative relationships with teachers

enhances the efficacy of both in the best interest of children. Moreover, teachers can

become early identifiers of children’s needs that are beyond their ‘comfort zone’ and

make appropriate referrals to counsellors.

This study also responds to counsellors’ broadened repertoire of helping

responses (Sue, Ivey, & Pedersen, 1996). Counsellors not only counsel students

individually and in small groups, but also serve as consultants and collaborators. As

consultants, counsellors can aid in bridging the gap between cultural differences.

They can also help teachers to recognize what the students’ cultural needs are, and

help them recognize cultural clashes during interactions. Collaboratively, teachers

and counsellors can work together to address the needs of a diverse population of

students (Schmidt, 2013). Thus, counsellors serve as leaders and advocates,

promoting a cultural climate of inclusion as part of a team of professionals.

Multicultural Competence : The conceptual framework

Multicultural competence is the theoretical framework used in this study.

Multicultural Competence’ was established by Sue, Arrendondo and McDavis

(1992), specifically for the counselling profession, and forms part of the fourth force


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of counselling – Multicultural counselling (Pedersen, 1991). Three dimensions were

identified: Awareness, Knowledge and Skills. It serves as a tool for recognizing and

challenging systemic inequity (Arredondo, 1999). Inequity refers to the way power

relations within society create oppression, unfair treatment and marginalization. This

takes various forms. Societal reactions such as xenophobia, microaggressions and

stereotyping all create and perpetuate inequity. Multicultural competence therefore

comes with a responsibility and a commitment to social justice, meaning a concern

for the promotion of access and equity for those who have been systemically

excluded on basis of race, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status and other aspects

of cultural identity (Lee, 2013) (Vera & Speight, 2003).

This study also uses Rawls’ (1971, 1999) theory of justice and fairness as the

theoretical underpinning, as he promotes a society of free and equal persons, and

equal opportunity, where the less privileged can also benefit in society. Rawls

portrays justice as ingrained within society’s basic structures that consist of political,

social and economic insitutions, as well as within the relationships between persons

who share an association. Rawls points to the way in which these constituents fit

together into one system of social cooperation from one generation to the next

(Rawls, 1996). Schools are such institutions and have a crucial role in promoting

equity.


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Social desirability: A lens for reading multicultural research and a limitation

As traditionally found in multicultural research, multicultural competency

assessments are significantly correlated with social desirability (Dunn, Smith, &

Montoya 2006). Social desirability is the tendency to present oneself in a positive

manner to others (Holtgraves, 2004) by over-reporting opinions and statements,

exaggerating desirable traits to appear moral, honorable and virtuous, and by under-

reporting or denying the undesirable traits (Hortone, Marlowe, & Crowne, 1960).

Social desirability is touched upon here to provide the reader with a lens through

which to better understand the findings. Social desirability is later described as a

limitation in Chapter Three.


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Operational Definitions

Colleges: Maltese state schools are aggregated into ten different colleges, each

having its own primary and secondary schools.

Collaboration: the style of interaction within the consultation process.

Consultation: process of problem-solving by consulting with teachers, parents, and

other stakeholders.

Cultural Identity Development: one’s sense of belonging to a cultural group, and

one’s attitudes towards people of a different cultural group and the different statuses

one traverses, from an ethnocentric framework to a more ethnorelativist one.

Equity: the elimination of systemic barriers, oppression and unfair treatment, to

create a culturally responsive climate of inclusion.

Multicultural Competence: a set of competencies: Awareness, Knowledge and

Skills, referring to the ability to be aware of one’s own cultural assumptions, values

and biases; to understand the world from the cultural perspective of the other; and to

develop appropriate intervention strategies and techniques.

Perception: one’s understanding and interpretation of a situation.


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Teacher: state primary and secondary school teachers providing educational

services to children in year I up to Form 5. For the purpose of this research, a teacher

does not include Principals, Heads of School, Assistant Heads, Kindergarten

teachers or Learning Support Assistants.

Transcultural Counsellor: This study uses the terms counsellor and transcultural

counsellor interchangeably. The transcultural counsellor has multicultural

competence and, while serving individuals, families and groups, is also a social

advocate, collaborating in transdisciplinary teams to challenge systemic inequities.


28

Chapter Two

Literature Review

This chapter discusses multicultural competence as related to the counselling

profession and the teaching profession, in association with cultural identity

development. The chapter addresses interactions based on cultural identity

development within a counsellor-client relationship and interactions within a

teacher-student relationship, and the implications of this on wellbeing. The chapter

discusses the significance of multicultural competence within the broader education

system, and highlights the long-standing literature on collaboration between

counsellors and teachers, as together they can effectively challenge systemic

inequities within schools to create a cultural climate of inclusion. To achieve this, it

is important to understand the multicultural competence of teachers across colleges

in Malta and Gozo.

Multicultural Competence: The Counselling Profession

Multicultural counselling, the fourth force of counselling (Pedersen, 1991),

incorporates ‘multicultural competence’ as the conceptual framework. Multicultural

competence provides a tool for counsellors to identify inequity, i.e. the way power

relations within society create oppression, unfair treatment and marginalization

(Arredondo, 1999) (Holcomb-McCoy. & Chen-Hayes, 2011). The concept was

established in 1992 when Thomas Parham, then president of the Association of


29

Multicultural Department, identified the need for ethical counsellor practice

guidelines from multicultural and culturally specific perspectives (Arredondo, 1998)

(Pope-Davis & Dings, 1995).

Seminal works by Sue et al. (1992) and Arredondo, Toporek, Brown, Jones, and

Locke et al. (1996 ) noted that models of human development and behaviour used in

the counselling profession were constructed from White, middle-class perspectives,

thus failing to take into consideration other communities. Sue et al. (1992), identify

the three components of multicultural counselling competence: beliefs and

attitudes/awareness, knowledge and skills. The Awareness dimension is sometimes

expanded to include ‘Attitudes’, and sometimes the Attitudes dimension is omitted

from the equation. 31 competencies were developed. Sue et al. (1992) highlight the

significance of being aware of one’s own assumptions, values and biases

(awareness); understanding the worlds of the culturally different client (knowledge);

and developing appropriate intervention strategies and techniques (skills).

Multicultural competence comes with a responsibility of commitment to social

justice - a concern for the promotion of access and equity for those systemically

excluded because of race, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status and other aspects

of cultural identity. Because of this, counsellors intervene on an individual level and

also on a systemic one (Lee, 2013).

One setting in which counsellors work is schools. Inequities exist within society,

within schools, within policies, and also within the hearts and minds of students,

parents and teachers (Erford & Herr, 2011). It is the counsellor’s responsibility to


30

challenge and transform barriers that limit educational, career, personal and social

development of students. However, counsellors must work in transdisciplinary

teams, and are obliged to identify other professionals that influence the wellbeing of

the populations they serve. One such professional is the teacher (Martin & Robinson,

2011).

Multicultural Competence: The Teaching Profession

Teachers are cultural beings. They must recognize that, as cultural beings, they

are never neutral in their approach. Teachers bring cultural patterns and assumptions

into the classroom (Sleeter, 1993). Irvine and Armento (2001) promote a culturally

responsive pedagogy where teaching approaches used in diverse classrooms are

effective and culturally appropriate. This involves knowing one’s self, knowing the

students and the practice of teaching (Howard, 2006). This is achieved through rigor

(continual search for personal and professional growth); seeking authentic

relationships with students by acknowledging, respecting and believing in them, and

by having multicultural competence and striving for equity. This generates culturally

responsive teaching (Howard, 2006).

D’Andrea et al.’s (2003) survey outlines the competencies of culturally

competent teachers, including: awareness of one’s own cultural background, and its

influence on one’s thinking and behaviour, and the ability to compare one’s cultural

perspective with that of persons from another culture. Multiculturally competent


31

teachers recognize when they are communicating appropriately. Teachers are also

aware of cultural biases in the way they have been trained and are able to critique

multicultural research, translating it into evidence-based practice and adapting

teaching methods to cultural contexts. The multiculturally competent teacher also

recognizes the strengths and weaknesses of standardized tests, and is able to assess

students’ needs to provide culturally appropriate education services.

Ladson-Billings (1994) argues that teachers who believe all students can succeed

are culturally relevant, whilst those who believe that failure is inevitable for some,

tend to have an assimilationist approach. Furthermore, Colombo (2007) highlights

the importance of looking at cultural strengths in students rather than taking up a

deficit-thinking approach. It is the responsibility of the teacher to develop attainable

goals for students and provide differentiated instruction (Irvine & Armento, 2001).

Multiculturally competent teachers must become active agents. Consulting and

collaborating with other professionals, such as the counsellor, enhances their ability

to transform their own practice and the environment of the school into a more

culturally responsive one (Erford, 2011) (Holcomb-McCoy & Chen-Hayes, 2011).

Thus, the counsellor - versed in mental health and multicultural competence

(Gladding, 2008) - and the teacher - wielding pedagogical knowledge in increasingly

culturally diverse settings (Irvine & Armento, 2001) – have a common commitment

towards student wellbeing and can become an important resource for one another.

School-based counsellors cannot be effective by working in isolation from the

education system. Similarly, school-based counsellors become important colleagues


32

to teachers (Schmidt, 2013). Counsellors and teachers teamed together can become

learners together, and can collaborate to increase their effectiveness in transforming

the school cultural climate into a more inclusive one.

Perceptions of Multicultural Competence can be measured

Perceptions of multicultural competence (Awareness, Knowledge, Skills) can be

measured. Studies reveal that teachers tend to score high on Awareness but low on

Skills. Luquis and Pérez (2006) reveal that teachers feel culturally aware (i.e. below

culturally competent and culturally proficient), indicating their sensitivity to values,

beliefs and practices of the racially and ethnically diverse students, but lack skills to

identify needs and to respond appropriately to those needs.

Vassallo (2012) analyzed the cultural competence of teachers in Malta. Teachers’

characteristics were analyzed against four dimensions of cultural competence:

awareness, attitudes, knowledge and skills. Vassallo’s findings (2012) indicate that

teaching experience; number of multicultural courses attended; and teaching sector

are significant factors. According to Vassallo (2012), primary school teachers

perceive themselves as more skillful, compared to secondary school teachers.

Nonetheless, the majority of teachers feel the least competent in Skills. Although all

teachers (irrespective of teaching experience) claimed they were aware of the

cultural competence needed, the least experienced teachers scored least in terms of

Knowledge.


33

Castillo’s (2014) study involved investigating teachers’ and counsellors’

perceptions of multicultural competence in working with newly arrived Latino-

immigrant students. Employing multicultural competencies as the theoretical

framework, and the MAKSS-Form-T Survey with teachers, and Multicultural

Awareness-Knowledge-Skills Survey (Counsellor Edition Revised) (MAKSS-CE-R)

with counsellors, as the research instruments, findings reveal that the majority of

teachers and school counsellors perceive themselves as culturally competent.

Teachers scored highest on Awareness and lowest on Knowledge. On the other hand,

counsellors perceived themselves as more competent in Knowledge than Awareness.

Teachers stressed the need for more differentiated instruction in working with the

culturally diverse students. Castillo (2014) notes that neither teachers nor counsellors

commented on any experience on continued training and professional development.

In his study, Castillo (2014) thus emphasizes the need for more multicultural training

in teacher and counsellor preparation programs.

Multicultural competence is associated with Cultural Identity Development

Thomas, Pope-Davis, and Dings (1994) have drawn a link between cultural

identity development and multicultural competence. Cultural identity is necessary in

developing multicultural competence. Cultural identity development refers to one’s

sense of belonging to a cultural group, and one’s attitudes towards people belonging

to different cultural groups (Atkinson, Morten, & Sue, 1993) (Sue, Ivey, & Pedersen,

1996) and how one shifts from an ethnocentric framework to a more ethnorelativist


34

one. Cultural identity models describe different statuses one goes through, depending

on whether one belongs to the dominant cultural group, or the subordinate/minority

cultural group. Cultural identity development is a dynamic process and helps

examine how people create a sense of self in contexts of unequal power relations

(Sleeter & Grant, 1988). Various models have been developed to describe the

process, such as Banks’s Typology of Ethnicity (1976); Phinney’s Multigroup

Ethnic Identity Measure (1992); and Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural

Sensitivity (1993). However, in this study, Helms’s (1990,1995) cultural identity

models, referred to as ‘Racial Identity and People of Color’ and ‘White Racial

Identity Theory’ (as cited in Helms, 2003), will be discussed in further detail.

Helms’s (1990, 1995) model is designed from a standpoint of white superiority,

and individual, cultural and institutional racism. The model describes the racial

identity development of people of colour (portrayed as belonging to the non-

dominant group), and white racial identity theory (portrayed as belonging to the

dominant group). For the purpose of this study, and to refrain from creating a picture

of identity that is limited to racial identity, the two groups will be broadened to refer

to cultural dominant groups and cultural minority groups in general.


35

Below are Helms’s (1990, 1995) cultural/racial identity statuses for a person

belonging to a cultural minority group, starting from the lowest status (as cited in

Helms, 2003):

i) Conformity. Detachment from one’s own cultural/racial group, conformity to

the dominant group.

ii) Dissonance. Negative experiences from the dominant group cause one to

question the nature of conformity.

iii) Immersion. Direct contact with one’s own cultural/racial group and a total

rejection of sociocultural realities of the dominant group.

iv) Internalization. Interacting with others with a positive inner vision of one’s

self.

v) Integrative awareness. Resolution of issues related to affiliation with one’s

group, and awareness of shared conditions of oppression or advantages

with other groups.

Helms’s (1990, 1995) cultural/racial identity statuses for a person belonging

to the dominant group are the following, starting from the lowest status (as cited in

Helms, 2003):

i) Contact. Lack of awareness of one’s own cultural/racial identity and negation

of cultural/racial differences.


36

ii) Disintegration. Acknowledgement of belonging to the dominant group and

the social implications associated with it, leading to feelings of guilt and

confusion.

iii) Reintegration. Because of the dissonance one experiences, one tries to

resolve intrapersonal conflict, however the person still thinks that the

dominant group is in a superior position and this leads to stereotyping,

and hostility towards other groups.

iv) Pseudo-Independence Immature positive nonracist identity by helping others

acculturate to dominant culture, adopting a paternalistic attitude.

v) Immersion/Emersion. Aware of being in a dominant position but does not

feel a sense of belonging with the dominant group. The person engages

in social activism but this is rudimentary.

vi) Autonomy. The highest level of cultural identity. The person is nonracist,

belongs to the affiliative group, and is aware of values and beliefs within

the dominant culture but is capable of thinking critically to change

systems and eradicate oppression in society.

These processes are dynamic and one does not progress from one status to the

next in a linear fashion (Lee & Na, 2011). Cultural identity attitudes are related to

multicultural competencies. As a person shifts from one status to the next, the

awareness, knowledge and skills change as well. A person in the Contact status

(Helms, 1991, 1995) cannot have a high level of multicultural competence as this

would imply being aware of one’s own assumptions, values and biases;

understanding the culturally different person from the “other’s” point of view; and


37

being able to translate that into behaviour that is culturally appropriate (skills) (Sue

et al., 1992).

Transactional models (Berne, 1964) based on the cultural identity theory in the

literature illustrate interactions between counsellor and client (Lee & Na, 2011), and

between teacher and student within the school setting, and the implications of these

interactions on wellbeing of the people they serve (Helms, 2003).

Multicultural Competence and Cultural Identity: Counsellor – Client

Interactions

Transcultural counsellors use transactional analysis frameworks (Berne, 1964)

based on cultural identity models (Lee & Na, 2011) that help them better understand

interactions and power dynamics between counsellor and client. In a cross-cultural

encounter, counsellors must be aware of dynamics between power and privilege and

how this impacts the counselling process (Lee, 2013). A low multicultural

competence and a low cultural identity result in social marginalization of the client,

rather than a sense of empowerment. Counsellors must use their position to help

empower the client. A high cultural identity and multicultural competence lead

towards strong counselling relationships that create a sense of empowerment within

the client. A counsellor with a high cultural identity is also concerned with equity,

and social justice (Lee & Na, 2011). Lee (2013) points out that for a helping

interaction to be effective, the counsellor must use multicultural competence by


38

considering the cultural factors within the counselling relationship; being aware of

cultural privilege and of stereotyping; having a willingness to learn; and being an

advocate for culturally diverse clients. This means recognizing that clients’ issues

may be found in social environments. A culturally competent counsellor therefore

also challenges systemic barriers. Indeed, literature addresses the expanded role of

the counsellor within school settings (see section ‘Counsellors’ Expanded Role: A

Systemic and Integrated Approach’ of the Literature Review).

Multicultural Competence and Cultural Identity: Teacher – Student

Interactions

Helms’s model of cultural identity interactions sheds light on power dynamics

between teachers and students (Helms, 2003). She identifies three types of potential

interactions. When student and teacher are at the same level in their cultural identity

development, the relationship is a parallel one. This means that the relationship will

neither limit the student nor help him/her develop beyond where the student already

is. Teachers at a lower level of identity development form regressive relationships

with their students. In such a relationship, the teacher tries to change the student’s

thinking and behaviour, making the student feel uncomfortable. This causes conflict

and tension between teacher and student. Teachers at a higher level of identity

development form progressive relationships. This is the most beneficial type of

relationship, as the teacher can recognize students’ development issues and help

them advance (Helms, 2003). This has implications for student cultural identity


39

development and student wellbeing. In fact, studies indicate that multicultural

competence and cultural identity development of teachers have an impact on student

wellbeing (Irvine, 2001) (Kana‘iaupuni, Ledward, & Jensen, 2010) (Robinson,

2012).

Multicultural Competence and cultural identity development have an impact on

student wellbeing

A study on Hawaiian Cultural Influences in Education (HCIE) (Kana‘iaupuni,

Ledward, & Jensen, 2010), shows that culture-based educational strategies positively

impact student outcomes. Students’ socio-emotional wellbeing is positively

impacted, in turn generating positive effects on academic achievements. Employing

a variation of Phinney’s (1992) Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM), the

study reveals that students of teachers who use culture-based educational strategies

have greater cultural affiliation, civic engagement and school motivation (higher

ethnic identity) than students of teachers who do not embrace culture as part of their

teaching. Research shows that developing a cultural and ethnic identity increases

self-confidence, self-esteem, and resilience of the student.

Furthermore, quantitative research investigating teachers’ cultural competency

and student engagement in Hong Kong, using two survey instruments -

Multicultural Awareness Questionnaire (Culhane-Pera, et al., 1997) to measure

multicultural competence (knowledge, skills and attitude) and The Student


40

Engagement Survey (Skinner, 1991) to measure engagement, revealed a strong

positive relationship between students’ perceptions of their teacher’s cultural

competence and their engagement (Robinson, 2012).

However, a focus on student-teacher relationships is not sufficient to create a

cultural climate of inclusion within the school for the promotion of student

wellbeing. Examining the broader picture of the entire school environment and how

multicultural competence and different statuses of cultural identity development

become embedded within the system is equally important. A culturally responsive

classroom in a culturally insensitive school hinders students from achieving their

potential (Irvine, 2001).

Inequity within the school setting

A culturally competent counsellor does not limit him/herself to the counselling

room but extends his/her role to challenge systemic inequity (Lee, 2013) (Sue, Ivey,

& Pedersen, 1996). Similarly, culturally competent teachers do not limit themselves

to the classroom, for “teaching is a calling, not just a job” (Howard, 2006, p.125),

and encompasses the whole school environment (Chen-Hayes, Miller, Bailey, Getch,

& Erford, 2011). Thus, the two professions work in the service of a larger vision to

challenge systemic inequities.


41

As Lee and Goodnough (2011) point out, when Maslow’s hierarchy of needs –

physiological, safety, belonging and acceptance, competency/ achievement,

actualization – is applied to a systems approach, the system becomes the client.

A school that gives no priority to promoting cultural competence tends to meet

the needs of only the advantaged students. Lee and Goodnough (2011) refer to such

a school as a ‘traditional school’. Physiological needs are secured through economic

stability, and a safe climate is only created for those who have a certain power and

status. Furthermore, policies, practices and belief systems favour the dominant

group. As a result, inequities can limit achievement, and self-actualization only

occurs for the advantaged few (Lee & Goodnough, 2011).

The Traditional Classroom reinforces the status quo and limits critical thinking

and self-reflection (Shor, 1992). Traditional classrooms are based on the “banking

model” where the instructor is perceived as the expert and where students are

expected to be passive recipients of information (Freire, 1970). Students are

rewarded for being silent and obedient. In such a space dialogue between students

and teachers is limited. Banks (2007) points to the ideal pedagogy of liberation,

where teachers and students become learners together.

On the other hand, a culturally competent school, referred to as ‘New vision

school’ by Lee and Goodnough (2011), tries to meet the needs of all students.

Physiological needs are met through social and systemic assistance. A safe climate

that promoting a sense of worth and belonging is created, allowing for physical,


42

emotional, intellectual and spiritual growth for all culturally different students.

Achievement and attainment are fostered through equitable policies, practices and

social advocacy through a wide range of future life options for all students (Lee &

Goodnough, 2011).

As Mayo and Tonna (2014) point out, when examining an education system,

major questions to be asked are: who is benefiting from this system and who is being

excluded? Which cultures are appreciated and which are not given importance?

What messages does the dominant discourse transmit to students and how does it

affect their identities?

Banks (2010) explains that significance should be given to the school’s hidden

curriculum and its implicit norms and values. The explicit curriculum consists of

textbooks, bulletin boards, and lesson plans. On the other hand, the implicit

curriculum is that which is left unsaid. It transmits to students, messages about the

school’s views about the students as human beings - as males, females, as students

from various religious, cultural, racial, and ethnic groups. Lee and Goodnough

(2011) stress the importance for counsellors to keep an eye on policy – the spoken

and unspoken that create a particular culture and climate in the school. Such policy

can promote equity or perpetuate barriers that impede students from succeeding.

Since student and community demographics are dynamic, analysis of policies,

practices and procedures should be ongoing to ensure equity for all (Lee &

Goodnough, 2011).


43

Falzon et al. (2012) investigated the experiences and degree of integration of

Third Country National (TCN) students within the Maltese education system,

shedding light on various themes and issues. Falzon et al. (2012) note that teachers

seem to be unaware of the ‘hidden curriculum’. For example, the researchers

describe how schools perpetuate the dominance of Roman Catholicism in the

schools, marginalizing and silencing ‘the other’ in the process. Homogenisation,

along with the inability to recognize such complex characteristics of the cultural self

as race, class, gender, religion and migratory status, was another issue. Falzon et al.

(2012) note how politically incorrect and disempowering terms such as ‘klandestini’

(clandestines) tend to perpetuate social injustice and exclusion. Furthermore, they

note that multi-ethnic/multi-national celebrations and activities seem to remain at the

superficial level, as they mainly revolve around food, dress or international symbols,

resulting in exoticising and trivialising the “other”. Falzon et al. (2012) argue that

teachers must look beyond the surface and deconstruct their own assumptions or

beliefs.

Inequity may also result as a lack of awareness of difference in expectations,

learning styles and values between the home and the school, which in turn creates

incongruence. Research on African American and Hispanic students suggests that

students who are culturally different tend to have different learning styles to

mainstream students. For instance, they have a tendency to treat a matter in terms of

the whole instead of its isolated parts; a tendency to prefer working in groups than

individually; prefer cooperation over competition; have the tendency to prefer

learning by doing and like to have a variation in activities (Irvine, 2001).


44

Di Giovanni’s (2007) anthropological study of Rom/gypsy students in schools, in

Palermo, Sicily, reveals that the teacher often finds difficulty in reconstructing a new

educational arrangement to meet the needs of all the students. The set of skills that

Rom/gypsy children possess upon entering a school environment is incongruent with

what the school expects of them. Rom/gypsy education from the home encourages

initiative, independence and autonomy. Upon entering a school environment, the

Rom child is made to feel disabled because in such a setting, personal initiative is

discouraged and repressed. Di Giovanni (2007) concludes that teachers need to be

trained to become more culturally sensitive to address students from different

cultural backgrounds in a culturally appropriate way.

Verbal and non-verbal communication can also contribute to inequity. Language

barriers make it difficult for students to form social connections and can

subsequently lower self-confidence. Nonverbal communication can also bring about

miscommunication. Nonverbal language includes proxemics (interpersonal space),

kinesics (body language), haptics (frequency of touching), and paralanguage (voice

pitch, tone, and rhythm) (Irvine, 2001). There are differences in the way cultural

groups make or avoid eye contact with figures of authority. A lack of awareness can

result in miscommunication between the teacher and student, eventually resulting in

conflict in schools (Irvine, 2001).

Literature constantly points out that as a result of discrepancies between home

and school, teachers often tend to have low expectations of culturally different

students (Nieto, 1996). Irvine (2001) argues that, if provided with the proper


45

psychological and instructional support, all students, irrelevant of culture, are

capable of learning.

Thus, the level of awareness of the hidden curriculum held by professionals

within schools indicates their level of multicultural competence and cultural identity

development. The level of multicultural competence held by the professionals within

the school becomes embedded within the entire school setting thus creating a

particular cultural climate.

Systemic understanding of Multicultural Competence in the School

Sleeter and Grant (1988) identified five approaches related to education and

cultural diversity that demonstrate different levels of multicultural competence and

cultural identity development.

The first approach is ‘teaching the exceptional and the culturally different’. The

main aim of this approach is to help students from different cultural backgrounds to

adapt to mainstream demands (Sleeter & Grant, 1988). The person is expected to

assimilate into the dominant group and its values, thus leading to a loss of sense of

self. The ‘hidden curriculum’, i.e. the ‘unsaid’ and the subtle norms, values and

beliefs, are unquestioned.


46

The second approach is ‘Human Relations’, where tolerance and unity are

encouraged. Such an approach fails to address the larger social and institutional

structures, and notions of privilege and oppression. It constitutes the colour-

blindness mentality, and tends to stop at the superficial, i.e. traditional food, clothing

and music. Teachers do not realize that they are not neutral. They do not realize that

they are cultural beings themselves and that the way they think, act and behave is a

product and a reflection of their position within the social context that forms part of

a larger macrosystem (Sleeter & Grant, 1988).

The third approach, ‘single-group’ studies, focuses on exploration of a particular

individual or group, for example, women, gay/lesbian community, people of colour,

and people from a low socioeconomic class. The notion here is that schools are

socializing institutions and are thus political sites. Single-group studies encourage

critical thinking, social action and transformation. However, this approach tends to

stereotype identities. The approach tries to challenge attitudes by exposing

information about a particular group and showing the effects of discrimination and

raising awareness on oppression. Single-group studies are not aimed solely at

marginalized students, but try to create a sense of empowerment and group

consciousness to bring about social change (Sleeter & Grant, 1988).

The fourth approach is ‘Multicultural Education’. This approach affirms cultural

pluralism and is based on a philosophy of universal human rights, social justice, and

equal opportunity. It questions stereotypes and encourages self-awareness of culture-


47

based biases. Teachers have high expectations of their students and nurture a positive

self-concept while encouraging co-operative learning (Sleeter & Grant, 1988).

The fifth approach, critical multicultural education, embraces a philosophy and

concepts such as that of Freire (1970). This approach addresses issues of racism,

discrimination, violence and disempowerment. Issues are viewed as linked within a

historic, economic and social construct. This approach also explores power and

identity (Sleeter & Grant, 1988).

Counsellors’ Expanded Role: A Systemic and Integrated Approach

Literature has shown how different levels of multicultural competence and

cultural identity development perpetuate inequity within the school setting – on a

relational level and on a broader school systems level. Counsellors and teachers

share a common commitment towards student wellbeing, and with their unique skills

from their respective discipline, can work together.

The transcultural counsellor has a sense of civic engagement and challenges

systemic inequity (Lee & Hipolito-Delgado, 2007). Thus, the counsellor’s repertoire

of helping responses has expanded (Sue, Ivey & Pedersen, 1996). American

literature tends to use the term ‘program’ to refer to the counselling offered in

schools. Paisley and Borders (1995) state that counselling programs in the U.S. are

“comprehensive and developmental”, and the focus is on primary prevention and the


48

promotion of healthy development for all students. A shift can be noted from a

traditional helper-responder model of counselling that focused on the individual, to

an approach that challenges the education system. Counsellors’ repertoire of helping

responses include: leadership (promoting, planning and implementing prevention

programs); collaboration (with other teachers, principals and other professionals);

coordinating staff-training initiatives to address students’ needs; counselling and co-

ordination (with individual, groups, and families); assessing and interpreting student

needs and recognizing differences in culture, languages, values, and backgrounds;

and advocacy (being proactive in issues of equity and cultural diversity and

addressing barriers that impede learning, inclusion, academic success, to bring about

systemic change) (Martin & Robinson, 2011).

This complements with what teachers in Cuomo’s study (2014) say they need.

78.5% of teachers this study believed that counsellors and teachers can work more

collaboratively through regular feedback. Cuomo’s (2014) study reveals the need for

counsellors to be integrated more within the school system, as counsellors in Malta

tend to have an ancillary role. Cuomo (2014) also report ambiguity around the

counselling referral process. She suggests this may be due to the fact that counsellors

are not making themselves visible enough to promote the service and their role.

Cuomo’s (2014) work thus emphasises the need for more teacher-counsellor

collaborative work. This means that counsellors need to re-examine the current

needs in the school and to redefine the counsellor role to ensure that the counselling

service meets the needs of the school populations (Cuomo, 2014).


49

Collaboration and Consultation between Teachers and Counsellors

Chen-Hayes, Miller, Bailey, Getch, and Erford (2011) point out that working in a

transdisciplinary team is important, and that counsellors need to establish effective

relationships with teachers if they are to be social advocates and change agents. This

is done through collaboration and consultation.

Friend and Cook (1996) define consultation as a process of problem-solving (as

cited in Erford, 2011). Increasingly the literature points towards the importance of

understanding the consultation process through a multicultural lens (Ingraham, 2000)

(Sheridan, 2000). Holcomb-McCoy and Chen-Hayes (2011) indicate that consulting

with multicultural competence involves consulting with teachers and parents;

understanding how culture is influencing the process of consultation; understanding

when the culture of a student is seen as problematic for the teacher; and initiating

discussions on culture-related issues when consulting with teachers and parents. On

the other hand, collaboration refers to the style of interaction within the consultation

process. It refers to how people interact and work in a team during problem-solving

(Friend & Cook, 1996, as cited in Erford, 2011). School-based counsellors cannot be

effective by working in isolation from the education system. Similarly, school-based

counsellors are important professional colleagues with resources to teachers

(Schmidt, 2013).


50

Teachers have been described as an “excellent referral source” for students

needing support (Erford, 2011). Teachers see their students daily and therefore their

input is essential to help counsellors understand the needs of the school community.

As consultants and collaborators, counsellors can assist teachers to understand issues

from a cultural perspective. Counsellors serve as consultants and can aid in bridging

the gap between cultural differences. This includes working together to increase

effectiveness in dealing with classroom-management problems; working together to

better assess the needs of culturally different students; helping teachers to understand

learning issues and learning styles from a cultural perspective; increasing the quality

of communication with all parents; and creating a safe equitable environment for all

that takes into consideration cultural diversity (Chen-Hayes et al., 2011).

Multicultural Competence Training

All this points to the need for ongoing training. Another counsellors’ role is to

encourage teachers to increase their multicultural competence through ongoing

training (Chen-Hayes et al., 2011).

With the increase in student diversity, the need for multicultural training has

become more pressing (Locke, 2003). Professional growth and development that aim

to increase multicultural competence focuses on changing the way people think by

increasing their awareness, knowledge and skills in working with other cultures. The

aim is also to challenge how people feel about a situation or group (Brislin &


51

Horvath, 1997, as cited in Pedersen, 2003). Changing people’s behaviour tends to be

the easiest and oversimplified outcome of training. However, it is essential to

recognize that people must be ready to make the change, and for change to occur,

one must delve deep within the cultural context. Successful training designed for

change is a long-term process (Pedersen, 2003).

Gorski (2009) analyzed teacher education training on multicultural education and

identified five main approaches. He named them (1) Teaching the ‘‘Other,’’ (2)

Teaching with Tolerance and Cultural Sensitivity, (3) Teaching with Multicultural

Competence, (4) Teaching in Sociopolitical Context, and (5) Teaching as Resistance

and Counter-Hegemonic Practice. Only 26.7% of the courses seemed to be

consistent with the pedagogy of multicultural education. Gorski (2009) states that

most courses failed to address critical consciousness and critical analysis of power

and privilege, and educational inequities. As Grant and Sleeter (2006) reconfirm,

most of the training tends to focus on celebrating diversity and stops at

understanding the cultural ‘“other”’, but fail to go beyond (Grant & Sleeter, 2006).

Such training was criticized since it does not prepare teachers to identify and address

educational inequities to create a more equitable learning environment.

Pedersen (2003) provides the requirements for effective multicultural

competence training. Effective training is based on a developmental sequence that

begins with Awareness and progresses to Knowledge, then Skills. The training must

also include a combination of four methods: didactic and experiential, culture-

specific and culture in general. According to Pedersen (2003), the best way to


52

develop Awareness is through experiential exercises, role-plays, role reversals, and

the analysis of brief case studies. Reading books, attending lectures, and interviews

with resource persons are recommended to increase Knowledge. Skills may be learnt

through modeling and demonstration of a skill, and through the use of audiovisual

models as examples. Constant evaluation of Awareness, Knowledge and Skills is

required to aid self-monitor growth and development. Pedersen (2003) emphasizes

the significance of giving each multicultural competence dimension its required

attention. He states that training loses its effectiveness when: either awareness is

emphasized to the point that one becomes aware of one’s shortcomings and the

inadequacies of the environment; or it focuses on knowledge, which results in failing

to see the need for the information; or emphasizes skills, without developing the

necessary awareness and knowledge (Pedersen, 2003).

Locke (2013) highlights the importance of recognizing that the development of

multicultural competence is more than just a curriculum. It is an ongoing learning

process that requires self-reflection (Howard, 2006). Ongoing professional

development training that is congruent with the needs of the school community is

critical for the transformation of a school environment into a more equitable and

inclusive one. If counsellors are to be collaborators with teachers, they need to begin

to get an understanding of the multicultural competence of teachers.


53

Purpose of the study

Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the perceived multicultural

competence among state primary and secondary school teachers across colleges in

Malta and Gozo. The main question was: What is the perception of multicultural

competence among state primary and secondary school teachers in Malta? The sub-

question was: What is the relationship between perception of multicultural

competence and demographic factors such as teachers’ age, gender and religion?

This study provides insight into areas of teacher strength that can enhance student

wellbeing and identifies ways in which counsellors can be important professional

colleagues with resources, so that collaboratively, teacher and counsellor can

effectively enhance student wellbeing and create a cultural climate of inclusion.


54

Chapter Three

Methodology

The increase in cultural diversity means that increasingly more students from

different cultures have different needs to be met, and this demands an increased level

of multicultural competence to help create a climate of inclusion. The purpose of the

study was, to investigate the perceived multicultural competence among teachers in

the Maltese education system. The main research question was: What is the

perception of multicultural competence among teachers in the Maltese education

system? The sub-question was: What is the relationship between the perceptions of

multicultural competence and teachers’ demographic factors such as age, gender,

and religion? Transcultural counsellors, are positioned to identify systemic

inequities within schools, and to work collaboratively with teachers in a

transdisciplinary team of professionals towards a shared vision, social justice and

equity.

This chapter will expound the methods and procedures applied to carry out this

study. It will also explain how research participants were selected and how data were

collected. Other material included in this chapter includes a description of the

instrument used and an explanation of the methods and procedures employed to

analyze the data.


55

Research Design

Quantitative method was used to investigate the research question. Quantitative

research requires large sample sizes thus allowing for generalizability across various

populations (Heiman, 2014) (Sheperis, Young, & Daniels, 2010). This methodology

was selected as with this kind of design the perceived multicultural competence

could be investigated across a larger cohort, thus rendering the results more

generalizable. In this regard, the qualitative method would have been limiting as it

relies on a relatively small number of participants (Griffin, 2004). Furthermore, the

quantitative method, in contrast to qualitative, has the ability to measure variability

and to compare groups (Guest, Namey, & Mitchell, 2013).

Through the use of descriptive statistics, numbers are used to summarize and

describe the data, and typically requires the mean, median and standard deviation.

Numerical data were collected and analyzed through the use of mathematically based

methods, using instruments to convert phenomena, such as attitudes, beliefs and

perceptions, into quantitative data. Variables are described as they exist at the time

of the study, and results uncover patterns and relationships (Muijs, 2011).

Data were collected through a survey (Appendix A). The survey used is a

variation and adaptation of the Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills Survey -

Teachers Form (MAKSS Form-T; D’Andrea, Daniels & Noonan 2003), a

description and summary of which is provided in the ‘Handbook of Multicultural

Measures’ by Gamst, Liang, and Der-Karabetian (2011).


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Participants for this research

Participants for this research were teachers from Maltese state primary and

secondary schools, ranging from Year 1 up to Form 5, across colleges in Malta and

Gozo. For the purpose of this research, teachers do not include Principals, Heads of

School, Assistant Heads, Kindergarten teachers or Learning Support Assistants. This

research focused on teachers in state schools, as state schools are more representative

of Maltese society and are more in line with government policy, whereas church and

independent schools have a degree of autonomy and may vary in their ethos.

Including these in the study would have meant that other factors would have had to

be taken into account, and given the time and logistic constraints of the study, the

researcher decided to keep the focus on state schools.

Description of the Original Instrument

The survey used in this study was originally developed by D’Andrea, Daniels

and Heck (1991) and was known as the ‘Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills

Survey – Counsellor Edition’ and contained 60 items. Another version of the survey

was later created by D’Andrea, Daniels and Noonan (1993), known as the

Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills Survey - Teachers Form (MAKSS-Form

T), designed specifically for teachers, which was a 60-item survey. However, the

authors then created a shorter version of the MAKSS-Form T (2003), which

contained 41 items. The MAKSS-Form T is a multi-dimensional instrument used to


57

measure the perceived multicultural competence of teachers. The survey is self-

report and consists of three subscales: Multicultural Awareness; Multicultural

Knowledge; and Multicultural Skills. The survey is a psychometric scale and is

designed in a 4-point likert-response option format. It contains two sets of responses

that range from ‘Very Limited’, to ‘Limited,’ ‘Good,’ to ‘Very Good’; and ‘Strongly

Disagree’, ‘Disagree’, ‘Agree’, and ‘Strongly Agree’ (as cited in Gamst, Liang, and

Der-Karabetian, 2011).

Rationale. The survey was selected according to its target population. The

researcher opted for surveys designed specifically for teachers, thus eliminating

other surveys that were designed for other specific target populations as they

contained situations and terminology that were irrelevant to teachers.

The concept of ‘culture’ in the MAKSS Form-T was defined in the broad sense,

in that it did not only include one aspect of culture such as ‘White racial

consciousness’, but included various aspects of cultural identity, such as nationality,

language, socioeconomic background, ability, age, gender and sexual orientation.

Furthermore, the survey is a multi-dimensional one and observes ‘Multicultural

competence’ from three dimensions - Awareness, Knowledge and Skills - thus

providing a more holistic vision.

The MAKSS Form-T has been used in previous research by D’Andrea, et al.

(2003), and has been reported to have high Cronbach’s alpha scores - Multicultural


58

Awareness 0.73; Multicultural Knowledge 0.86, Multicultural Skills 0.93, indicating

its validity and reliability (as cited in Gamst, Liang, & Der-Karabetian, 2011).

Since the survey was designed for a U.S context, it was necessary for certain

changes to be made for it to be adapted to the Maltese context. A modified and

adapted version of the Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills Survey –

Teachers Form (MAKSS – Form T) was used.

Modification of the survey by the researcher. The survey was developed for a

U.S context. It contained statements such as:

‘Most of the immigrant and ethnic groups in Europe, Australia and Canada face

problems similar to those experienced by ethnic groups in the United States.’

Other statements contained certain assumptions, such as:

‘In teaching, students from different ethnic/cultural backgrounds should be given the

same treatment that White mainstream students receive’.

This would have been problematic for a Maltese context because this statement

contains the implication that mainstream students are ‘white’ whilst minorities are

‘non-white’. The Maltese classroom is culturally diverse in terms of nationality, and

in this context, the above statement creates ambiguity and uncertainty as to who the

‘White mainstream students’ are. Does it refer to ‘white’ Maltese students? Does it


59

include students from England or Bulgaria who are ‘white’? Hence, this statement

was amended to:

‘Students who belong to a minority group should be given the same treatment that all

other students receive.’

Statements that were based on and required knowledge of research within the

U.S (such as the one quoted below) were also removed, as there is currently no

research in Malta about the topic.

‘In the early grades of formal schooling in the United States, the academic

achievement of such ethnic minorities as African Americans, Hispanics and native

Americans is close to parity with the achievement of White mainstream students’.

Certain statements also had to be rephrased for ease of understanding, and so that

it was in the format and style of a self-report. Excess text such as ‘At the present

time, how would you rate….’ was removed. Statements were made as concise as

possible.

For other statements, providing examples in parentheses were necessary to

reduce ambiguity and facilitate understanding, for example:

‘My ability to identify and recognize the significance of different aspects of a culture


60

is (e.g. kinship, family, religion, politics, economy, social structure, gender, sexual

orientation, socioeconomic status etc)’

The demographics section was modified to include religion, years teaching,

subjects taught, and teachers were asked to indicate whether they teach at state

primary or secondary schools. ‘Income’ was also removed. Certain terms in the

Knowledge section such as Contract Hypothesis and Attribution were removed, to be

replaced by the terms Xenophobia and Inclusion, as they are more relevant to Malta.

The term Xenophobia is highly associated with issues related to refugees and

foreigners, whilst Inclusion is widely used in relation to education.

The pilot study. In light of the changes made to the instrument, a pilot study

was conducted to receive feedback about the instrument prior to distribution, to

ensure the highest level of applicability to the Maltese context. According to Baker

(1994) a pilot study must consist of around 10-20% of the sample size. This meant

that 18 teachers were needed to conduct the pilot study.

An email was sent to teachers inviting them to take part in the pilot study,

explaining that their participation was voluntary and ensuring them that all

information would be treated with confidentiality. The results from the pilot study

were not included in final results. Furthermore, the teachers participating in the pilot

study did not participate in the actual study.


61

The teachers were organized into focus groups. The test was conducted in the

traditional format (pen and paper). The researcher provided the teachers with criteria

to help them critique the instrument. The criteria included: comprehensibility of

instructions; wording of the survey; and order of the questions. The researcher

invited comments about the perceived relevance of the questions to the stated intent

of the research. Respondents were provided a means of suggesting additional

questions. The researcher received verbal as well as written feedback. It was

essential to find out how the statements in the survey were being understood. To

ensure this, the participants were asked to explain to the researcher, in their own

words what each statement was asking. The researcher looked out for patterns in the

feedback.

Some statements were not easy to understand and had to be rephrased. It was

also suggested by the participants that the different sections were to be made more

distinct to help the teacher focus better on each of the three different multicultural

competencies. The order of the sections was also reorganized, so that the

demographics section was followed by Awareness, Skills then Knowledge. In the

original survey, the Knowledge section preceded the Skills section. Changes were

made to the format as well. Statements were placed underneath one column, and the

response-options were placed at the top in one row, so that potential respondents

only had to tick their response. This way, the survey seemed to have less text.


62

Sample Size and Sampling Techniques

The sample needed from the teaching staff population was calculated using the

‘Sample Size Calculator’ online (from The Survey System, Creative Research

systems 2012). According to National Statistics, in scholastic year 2012-2013 the

teaching staff population size was 3258 (research.gov.mt). This means that a

representative sample of 185 respondents selected from a population of 3258

possible participants guarantees a maximum confidence interval/margin of error of

7%, assuming a 95% confidence level. Due to the small size of Malta, the survey

was sent to all state schools in Malta and Gozo except for two schools, which were

not available to collaborate during the time of the study.

Data collection and procedures

The Request for Research in State schools (Appendix B) was downloaded from

the gov.mt website. It was filled out and signed by the supervisor and sent to the

Directorate of Education. Once permission was obtained from the Directorate for

Education, the finalized survey was uploaded onto SurveyMonkey ®.

An email was sent to the College Principals, informing them about the research

that was about to be carried out in the schools (Appendix C). A covering letter was

then sent via email to the Head of schools (Appendix D), where the researcher

introduced the study and its significance, also attaching a copy of the Request for

Research in State Schools. This was followed by an email that was to be forwarded


63

to all potential participants (teachers) on the mail list, by the Head of School

(Appendix E). The email provided a small introduction to the study. It emphasized

that participation was voluntary and that information would be treated with strict

confidentiality. The email also included a link to the survey, the deadline, and the

contact details of the researcher. Survey responses were collected between 13th

December 2014 and 28th January, 2015.

Scoring and data interpretation

Once the data were collected, the survey data were entered into the Statistical

Package for the Social Sciences software (Version IBM SPSS Statistics 22) for

analysis. A preliminary analysis was conducted to determine which surveys were

valid and which were invalid. Out of the 282 surveys that were collected, 191 were

valid and therefore useable. 91 surveys were either incomplete, or completed by

someone other than a teacher. These surveys were classified as invalid and were

therefore discarded.

Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were calculated to assess the internal consistency

(reliability) of the items in each subscale. The Spearman test was used to assess the

relationship between the three subscales.

A descriptive analysis procedure was computed into SPSS to generate the mean

of teachers’ perceived multicultural competence. The mean was generated for each

subscale (Awareness, Knowledge and Skills). The mean rating scores for each


64

dimension (Awareness, Knowledge, Skills) ranged from 0 to 3, where 0

corresponded to a negative attribute, and 3 corresponded to a positive attribute. Each

likert-response corresponded to a number, where ‘Very Limited’ or ‘Strongly

Disagree’ corresponded to 0; ‘Limited’ or ‘Disagree’ was equivalent to 1; ‘Good’ or

‘Agree’ corresponded to 2; and ‘Very Good and ‘Strongly Agree’ corresponded to 3.

0 indicated perceptions of low multicultural competence, whilst 3 indicated

perceptions of high multicultural competence. The higher the mean rating score, the

higher the perceived multicultural competence. Item frequencies for each subscale

were also noted.

The one-way ANOVA test was used to compare mean Awareness, Knowledge

and Skills scores between several groups clustered by gender, religious/spiritual

affiliation, age group, years of teaching, education level that teachers teach, subjects,

and course on Multicultural Education. The Friedman test was also used to compare

mean rating scores provided for a number of related statements.

Limitations in the data collection

A limitation of quantitative research and questionnaires as a research tool is

related to the fact that since information is collected through structured data

collection instruments, important information, such as contextual factors and the

narrative element that sheds light on people’s own categories of meaning, is not

wholly captured (InterAction, Annex 1: Strengths and Weaknesses of Quantitative

Evaluation Designs, 2015). Therefore this is one limitation in this study.


65

Furthermore, multicultural competency assessments are significantly correlated

with social desirability (Dunn, Smith, & Montoya 2006). Social desirability is the

tendency to present oneself in a positive manner to others (Holtgraves, 2004). This is

done by over-reporting opinions and statements, and exaggerating desirable traits to

appear moral, honorable and virtuous, and by under-reporting or denying the

undesirable traits (Crowne & Marlowe, 1960). Paulhus (1984) maintains that social

desirability can take two main forms: self-deceptive enhancement’, whereby the

respondent unintentionally presents himself in an optimistic manner; and

‘impression management’, whereby the respondent consciously manipulates the

responses to enhance positive traits (as cited in Ragozzino, 2009). Social

desirability, therefore, is one of the limitations.

Another limitation is that the researcher had to trust the Heads of school to

forward the survey to the teachers. The researcher could not be certain that the

information was passed on to the targeted staff members. Furthermore, once the

survey was sent, there was no guarantee that teachers who received the questionnaire

would answer.


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Chapter Four

Findings

The purpose of the study was to investigate the perceived multicultural

competence of state primary and secondary school teachers who are currently

working in the Maltese education system. The main research question was: What is

the perception of multicultural competence among teachers in the Maltese education

system? The sub-question was: What is the relationship between the perceptions of

multicultural competence and teachers’ demographic factors such as age, gender,

and religion? Findings of the study have implications for teacher-counsellor

collaboration. Together, counsellors and teachers can increase their effectiveness to

enhance student wellbeing and to create a cultural climate of inclusion.

This chapter presents the data collected via the MAKSS-Form T survey

(D’Andrea et al., 2003), that was computed into the Statistical Package for Social

Science Software (IBM SPSS) and that was analyzed through descriptive statistics

and the one-way ANOVA, to answer the research questions. Some tables related to

the findings in this chapter are found in Appendix F.

Internal Consistency

Cronbach’s alpha was used as a measure for internal consistency on a number of

items measured on a 4-point Likert scale (0 - Strongly Disagree/Very Limited, 1 –


67

Disagree/Limited, 2 – Agree/ Good, 3 – Strongly Agree/ Very Good), in order to

determine whether the scale is reliable. Items that measured Skills and Knowledge

had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.867 and 0.895, respectively. This indicates a high level

of internal consistency for the subscales with this specific sample. These reliability

measures are similar to the Cronbach’s alpha in D’Andrea et al.’s (2003) study,

where Skills and Knowledge were estimated at 0.93 and 0.86, respectively. On the

other hand, Cronbach’s alpha value for items that measured Awareness was

estimated at 0.537 in this study, implying a poor internal consistency. The latter

contradicts D’Andrea et al.’s (2003) study, since reliability for Awareness was

estimated at 0.73, implying a higher internal consistency amongst the items for the

Awareness subscale.

The Spearman test

The Spearman's rank-order correlation was used to measure the strength of

association between the subscales: Awareness, Knowledge and Skills.

Table 1

Correlations for the subscales

Awareness Knowledge Skills

Correlation Coefficient 1.000 0.482 0.399 Awareness

P-value 0.000 0.000 0.000

Correlation Coefficient 0.482 1.000 0.534 Knowledge

P-value 0.000 0.000 0.000

Correlation Coefficient 0.399 0.534 1.000

Spearman's rho

Skills

P-value 0.000 0.000 0.000


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Table 1 contains the correlation matrix and the P-values. In this case, the correlation

matrix is a 3x3 array whose elements are numbers between -1 and +1. These

numbers give a measure of the degree of relationship between the subscales:

Awareness, Knowledge and Skills.

The hypotheses for each pair of subscales are:

H0: There is no relationship between Awareness and Skills

H1: There is a relationship between Awareness and Skills

H0: There is no relationship between Awareness and Knowledge

H1: There is a relationship between Awareness and Knowledge

H0: There is no relationship between Skills and Knowledge

H1: There is a relationship between Skills and Knowledge

From Table 1 one can observe that the correlation between Awareness and

Skills is 0.399. This indicates there is a positive relationship between these two

subscales. Furthermore, the P-value is less than 0.05 level of significance, which

means that the H1 hypothesis is accepted, as the correlation between Awareness and

Skills is significantly different from 0.

Similarly, it can be observed that the correlation between Awareness and

Knowledge is 0.482. This indicates that these two subscales are positively correlated.


69

Furthermore the P-value is less than 0.05 and hence the H1 hypothesis is accepted, as

the correlation between Awareness and Knowledge is significantly different from 0.

Also, it can be observed that the correlation between Skills and Knowledge is

0.534. This indicates that these two subscales are positively correlated. Furthermore

the P-value is less than 0.05 and hence the H1 hypothesis is accepted, as the

correlation between Skills and Knowledge is significantly different from 0.

Demographic Information of Teachers

Out of a sample of 282 state school teachers, 191 responses were valid, whereas

91 were invalid, which were therefore discarded from the sample as depicted in

Table 2.

Table 2

Sample Decomposition

Sample Size % of total survey respondents

Valid Responses 191 67.7

Invalid Responses 91 32.3

Total 282 100

The study consisted of a total 191 participants (67.9% of the total sample size) of

which 74.9% were female and 25% were male. Also, 93.7% of the respondents


70

identified as Christian, whilst 6.3% have a different religious/spiritual affiliation.

The sample comprises respondents aged 21 years and over. The largest proportion of

the respondents was between the age of 31 and 40, followed by those within the 21-

30 age bracket. The sample consists of teachers teaching at state primary schools

(43.5%) and at state secondary schools (65.5%). At the time of the study, the largest

proportion of the teachers had been teaching for 11 to 19 years, followed by those

who had been teaching for 6-10 years (23%), 20+ years (22.5%) and 0-5 years

(18.8%). Only 12% of the participants attended a multicultural education course. The

remaining 88% of the teachers had not attended any course related to multicultural

education (Appendix F, Table F1).

Data Findings: What is the perception of multicultural competence among

teachers in the Maltese education system?

Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences

software, Version IBM SPSS Statistics 22. The items on the MAKSS-Form T were

rated on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 to 3 (0 - Strongly Disagree/Very

Limited, 1 – Disagree/Limited, 2 – Agree/Good, 3 – Strongly Agree/Very Good).

Low scores (0 being the lowest) indicated that teachers perceived themselves as

having a low multicultural competence, whilst high scores (3 being the highest)

indicated that teachers perceived themselves as having a high multicultural

competence. The higher the mean rating score, the higher the perceived multicultural

competence. Table 3 and Figure 1 reveal that the highest mean rating score was for


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Awareness (1.99), followed by Knowledge (1.83) and Skills (1.78), which implies

that teachers perceived themselves as moderate in their level of multicultural

competence.

Table 3

Mean rating scores for Teachers' Perceived Multicultural Competence

Multicultural Competence Awareness Knowledge Skills

Mean 1.99 1.83 1.78

Figure 1. Means Plot for Multicultural Competence Subscales


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The Friedman test was used to compare mean rating scores provided for a

number of related statements in each subscale. The null hypothesis (H0) specifies

that the mean rating score provided for the statements are comparable and is

accepted if the P-value exceeds the 0.05 level of significance. The alternative

hypothesis (H1) specifies that the mean rating scores provided for the statements

differ significantly and is accepted if the P-value is less than the 0.05 criterion. The

mean rating scores for all the statements in each subscale in this study differ as the

P-value exceeds the 0.05 level of significance (Tables 4, 6, and 8). The item

frequencies for each subscale were also noted (Appendix F, Tables F2, F3 and F4).

The following sections draw information from data presented in tables related to

the Friedman test and from tables illustrating the item frequencies.

Awareness subscale. Respondents scored highest on the Awareness Subscale

(1.99). Table 4 reveals that the highest mean rating score (2.18) was for the

statement “I understand how my cultural background influences the way I think and

act”. This implies that most of the respondents are aware that cultural backgrounds

influence the way they think and act. This was closely followed by the statement “I

am aware that the way I think and act impacts my relationship with students and

families from different cultural backgrounds” with a mean score of 2.15. The

statement “My understanding of the concept of ‘relativity’ in terms of goals,

objectives and methods of working with culturally different students and their

families” resulted to have the lowest mean rating score (1.76) when compared to the


73

other items. This indicates that the majority of the respondents tend to have the least

awareness on this statement.

Since the p-value (approximately 0) is less than the 0.05 level of significance, the

alternative hypothesis (H1) is accepted. This implies that the mean rating scores

provided for items in the Awareness subscale vary significantly.

Table 4

Descriptive Statistics for the Awareness subscale

Mean

I understand how my cultural background influences the way I think and act. 2.18

I am aware that the way I think and act impacts my relationship with students

and families from different cultural backgrounds 2.15

My awareness of different cultural institutions and systems is (e.g. churches,

mosques, schools, NGOs etc) 1.93

My ability to compare my own cultural perspective with that of a person from

another culture is 1.96

My ability to realize when I am communicating appropriately or not with a person

from a different cultural background is 2.05

Ambiguity and stress often result from multicultural situations because people

are not sure what to expect from each other 1.97

Teachers need to change the way they think and also to transform the way they

communicate their ideas to cater for the complexity of human behaviour 1.92

My understanding of the concept of ‘relativity’ in terms of goals, objectives and

methods of working with culturally different students and their families is 1.76

X2 (7) =86.374, p < 0.001

Table F2 (Appendix F) reveals that more than half of the respondents perceived

themselves to be fairly aware (i.e. selected Agree or Good). 52.9% of the

respondents agreed that they understand how their cultural background influences


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the way they think and act; 50.3% of the respondents agreed that they are aware that

the way they think and act impacts their relationship with students and families from

different cultural backgrounds; 63.4% of the respondents indicated that their

awareness of different cultural institutions and systems is good; 64.9% of the

respondents indicated that their ability to compare their own cultural perspective

with that of a person from another culture is good; 62.3% of the respondents

indicated that their ability to realize when they are communicating appropriately or

not with a person from a different cultural background is good; 65.4% of the agreed

that ambiguity and stress often result from multicultural situations because people

are not sure what to expect from each other; 57.1% of the respondents agreed that

teachers need to change the way they think and also to transform the way they

communicate their ideas to cater for the complexity of human behavior; 62.8% of the

respondents rated their understanding of the concept of ‘relativity’ in terms of goals,

objectives and methods of working with culturally different students and their

families is as good (Appendix F, Table F2).

Knowledge subscale. The Knowledge subscale consists of eleven items.

Teachers were asked to rate their understanding of various terms related to

multicultural competence. Table 5 illustrates that respondents perceived themselves

as having a good understanding of the following terms: Inclusion (2.43), Prejudice

(2.32); and Culture (2.31). The terms that teachers reported having the least

understanding were Cultural Encapsulation (0.99), followed by Ethnocentrism (1.21)

and Transcultural (1.48).


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provided for items in the Knowledge subscale vary significantly.

Table 5

Descriptive Statistics for the Knowledge subscale

Item: Rate your

understanding of each of

the following terms Mean

Culture 2.31

Ethnicity 2.07

Racism 2.26

Xenophobia 1.59

Inclusion 2.43

Prejudice 2.32

Multicultural Teaching 1.91

Ethnocentrism 1.21

Pluralism 1.55

Transcultural 1.48

Cultural Encapsulation 0.99

X2 (10) =843.233, p < 0.001

Table F3 (Appendix F) represents the eleven statements related to the

Knowledge subscale. More than half of the respondents perceived themselves as

having a good understanding of the following terms related to Knowledge: Culture

(57.1%), Ethnicity (52.9%), Racism (52.4%) and Prejudice (50.8%). The majority of

the respondents have a good understanding of Inclusion (45.5%) and Multicultural

teaching (48.7%). The terms Xenophobia and Pluralism resulted in an ambivalent

response. 31.9% of the respondents perceived themselves as having a limited


76

understanding of the term Xenophobia, whilst 33.0% of the respondents perceived

themselves as having a good understanding of the term. Similarly, 35.1% of the

respondents indicated they have a limited understanding of the term Pluralism,

whilst 35.6% of the respondents indicated that they have a good understanding of the

term. Furthermore, respondents perceived themselves as having limited knowledge

of the term Ethnocentrism (52.4%), Transcultural (41.9%) and Cultural

Encapsulation (51.8%).

Skills subscale. Results of teachers’ perceived multicultural competence

revealed that teachers scored the lowest on the Skills subscale, as illustrated in Table

6. Most of the teachers agreed that: “Students who belong to a minority group should

receive the same treatment that all other students receive”, with a resulting mean

score of 2.16. The majority of the teachers also agreed that “Students who belong to

a minority group should receive treatment that takes into consideration their cultural

diversity” with a resulting mean score of 2.04. Teachers also indicated that they had

a good ability to “assess the educational needs of female students”, with an estimated

mean score of 2.02. However, teachers gave a lower rating score on their ability to

“assess the educational needs of male students” (1.99). Teachers gave the lowest

rating scores on their ability to “critique multicultural research” (1.32), closely

followed by the “ability to assess the educational needs of students with mental

health challenges” (1.41), and the “ability to assess the educational needs of gay or

lesbian students” (1.60). Teachers also scored low on the “ability to provide

appropriate educational services to culturally different students and their families”

(1.60).


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provided for items in the Skills subscale vary significantly.

Table 6

Descriptive statistics for the Skills subscale

Mean

Differential treatment in the provision of educational services is not always

considered to be negative discrimination. 1.94

Students who belong to a minority group should be given the same treatment that

all other students receive. 2.16

Students who belong to a minority group should receive treatment that takes into

consideration their cultural diversity. 2.04

The concept of ‘integration’ seems to, implicitly, favour the dominant culture. 1.76

My ability to teach students from a different cultural background is : 1.91

My ability to assess the educational needs of culturally different students and their

families is : 1.66

My ability to deal with discrimination and prejudices directed at me by a student is 1.79

My ability to recognize that the way I have been trained has instilled in me some

culturally biased assumptions is : 1.73

My ability to discuss how teaching methods can be adapted to a particular cultural

context is : 1.70

My ability to understand and explain the behavioural problem of a student from a

different cultural background is : 1.70

My ability to identify and recognize the significance of different aspects of a culture

is : (e.g. kinship, family, religion, politics, economy, social structure, gender,

sexual orientation, socioeconomic status etc)

1.83

My ability to identify the strengths and weaknesses of educational tests in terms of

their use with persons from a different cultural background is : 1.63

My ability to critique multicultural research is : 1.32

My ability to provide appropriate educational services to culturally different

students and their families is : 1.60

(Tables Continues)


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(Table Continues)

My ability to consult with another education professional concerning the needs of

culturally different students and their families is : 1.77

My ability to effectively acquire information and resources to better serve culturally

different students is : 1.74

My ability to assess the educational needs of female students is : 2.02

My ability to assess the educational needs of male students is : 1.99

My ability to assess the educational needs of gay or lesbian students is : 1.60

My ability to assess the educational needs of students with physical disabilities is : 1.84

Mean

My ability to assess the educational needs of students with mental health

challenges is : 1.41

My ability to assess the educational needs of students coming from different

socioeconomic backgrounds is : 2.01

X2 (21) =434.254, p < 0.001

Table F4 (Appendix F) reveals that more than half of the participants rated their

skills as good. However, the majority of respondents perceived themselves as having

limited skill in the “ability to critique multicultural research” (60.7%) and to “assess

the educational needs of students with mental health challenges” (48.2%).

Data findings: The relationship between the perceptions of multicultural

competence and teachers’ demographic factors

The one-way ANOVA test was used to compare the mean scores for Awareness,

Knowledge and Skills between several groups clustered by Gender,

Religious/Spiritual Affiliation, Age group, Years of Teaching, Education level

(refers to the education level taught by teachers), subjects, and course on


79

Multicultural Education. The null hypothesis (H0) specifies that the mean rating

scores vary marginally between the groups and is accepted if the P-value exceeds the

0.05 level of significance. The alternative hypothesis (H1) specifies that the mean

rating scores vary significantly between the groups and is accepted if the P-value is

less than the 0.05 criterion.

Gender. The mean rating scores for Awareness, Knowledge, and Skills provided

by males are comparable to their counterparts as seen in Table 7. Since the p-values

(0.961, 0.978, 0.568 for Awareness, Knowledge and Skills respectively), exceed the

0.05 level of significance, the null hypothesis (H0) is accepted. This implies that

there is no significant gender discrepancy in the three subscales.

Table 7

One-way ANOVA for Gender

Gender Sample Size Mean P-value

Female 143 1.99 Awareness

Male 48 1.99 0.961

Female 143 1.83 Knowledge

Male 48 1.83 0.978

Female 143 1.79 Skills

Male 48 1.76 0.568


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Figure 2 reveals that participants from both subgroups scored higher on

Awareness than on Knowledge and Skills. Figure 2 also displays the error bar graph

with the 95% confidence intervals for Gender. This is a range of values for the actual

mean rating score if the whole population of teachers had to be included in the study.

When two confidence intervals overlap considerably, it indicates that their respective

mean scores are comparable. However, when two confidence intervals are disjoint, it

indicates that their respective mean scores differ significantly. The confidence

intervals for Awareness and Skills are disjoint for both males and females, indicating

that their respective mean scores differ significantly.

Figure 2. Bar graph for Gender


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Religion/Spiritual Affiliation. The mean rating scores for Awareness,

Knowledge and Skills provided by the participants of Christian faith are similar to

participants with another religious/spiritual affiliation, as seen in Table 8. Since the

p-values (0.995, 0.355, 0.433 for Awareness, Knowledge and Skills respectively),

exceed the 0.05 level of significance, the null hypothesis (H0) is accepted. This

implies that there is no significant discrepancy in Religion/Spiritual Affiliation

among the three subscales.

Table 8

One-way ANOVA for Religious/Spiritual Affiliation

Religion Sample Size Mean P-value

Christian 179 1.99 Awareness

Others 12 1.99 0.995

Christian 179 1.82 Knowledge

Others 12 1.97 0.355

Christian 179 1.78 Skills

Others 12 1.86 0.433

Both subgroups (Christian and Others) scored higher on Awareness than on

Knowledge and Skills (Figure 3). Figure 3 displays the error bar graph with the 95%

confidence intervals for Religion. This is a range of values for the actual mean rating

score if the whole population of teachers had to be included in the study. When two

confidence intervals overlap considerably, it indicates that their respective mean

scores are comparable. However, when two confidence intervals are disjoint, it

indicates that their respective mean scores differ significantly. The confidence


82

intervals for Awareness and Skills within the group of those who identified as

Christian are disjoint, indicating that their respective mean scores differ

significantly. On the other hand, confidence intervals for those who belong to a

different religious/spiritual affiliation overlap considerably, indicating that their

respective mean scores are comparable.

Figure 3. Bar graph for Religion


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Age group. As illustrated in Table 9, the mean rating scores for Awareness,

Knowledge and Skills provided by age groups (21-30; 31-40; 41-54; 55+) are also

similar to each other. Since the p-values (0.641, 0.619, 0.319 for Awareness,

Knowledge and Skills respectively), exceed the 0.05 level of significance, the null

hypothesis (H0) is accepted. This implies that there is no significant discrepancy

according to Age group among the three subscales. As Figure 4 illustrates,

participants scored higher on Awareness than on Knowledge and Skills. Those

participants who are 55 years of age or over scored higher in Awareness, Knowledge

and Skills than their counterparts.

Table 9

One-way ANOVA for Age Group

Age group Sample Size Mean P-value

21-30 54 1.94

31-40 72 2.01

41-54 45 1.99

Awareness

55+ 20 2.04

0.641

21-30 54 1.77

31-40 72 1.89

41-54 45 1.79

Knowledge

55+ 20 1.87

0.619

21-30 54 1.78

31-40 72 1.80

41-54 45 1.71

Skills

55+ 20 1.88

0.319


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Figure 4 displays the error bar graph with the 95% confidence intervals for Age

groups. This is a range of values for the actual mean rating score if the whole

population of teachers had to be included in the study. When two confidence

intervals overlap considerably, it indicates that their respective mean scores are

comparable. However, when two confidence intervals are disjoint, it indicates that

their respective mean scores differ significantly. The confidence intervals for the

age groups 21-30 and 55+ overlap considerably, indicating that their respective mean

scores are comparable. On the other hand, confidence intervals are disjoint for age

groups between 31-40 and 41-54 for the Awareness and Skills subscales, indicating

that their respective mean scores differ significantly.

Figure 4. Bar graph for Age Group


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Number of years teaching. The mean rating scores for Awareness, Knowledge

and Skills by the number of years teaching are similar to one another, as shown in

Table 10. Since the p-values (0.806, 0.423, 0.662 for Awareness, Knowledge and

Skills respectively), exceed the 0.05 level of significance, the null hypothesis (H0) is

accepted. This implies that there is no significant discrepancy according to number

of years teaching, among the three subscales.

Table 10

One-way ANOVA for number of years teaching

Number of years teaching Sample Size Mean P-value

0-5yrs 36 1.95

6-10yrs 44 1.98

11-19yrs 68 2.00

Awareness

20+yrs 43 2.02

0.806

0-5yrs 36 1.74

6-10yrs 44 1.94

11-19yrs 68 1.81

Knowledge

20+yrs 43 1.82

0.423

0-5yrs 36 1.84

6-10yrs 44 1.75

11-19yrs 68 1.77

Skills

20+yrs 43 1.78

0.662


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Participants in all subgroups scored higher on Awareness than on Knowledge

and Skills. Teachers who had been teaching between 0-5 years scored higher on

Skills when compared to other teachers who had been teaching for longer years.

Teachers who had been teaching between 0-5 years provided lower rating scores on

Knowledge and Awareness when compared to other teachers (Figure 5). Figure 5

displays the error bar graph with the 95% confidence intervals for the number of

years teaching. This is a range of values for the actual mean rating score if the whole

population of teachers had to be included in the study. When two confidence

intervals overlap considerably, it indicates that their respective mean scores are

comparable. However, when two confidence intervals are disjoint, it indicates that

their respective mean scores differ significantly. The error bar graph shows that the

two confidence intervals for Awareness and Skills are disjoint for those who have

been teaching between 6-10years, 11-19years and 20+ years, indicating that their

respective mean scores vary significantly. The confidence intervals for those who

have been teaching between 0-5 years overlap considerably, indicating that their

respective mean scores are comparable.


87

Figure 5. Bar graph for the number of years teaching


88

State primary and secondary school teachers. The mean rating scores for

Awareness, Knowledge and Skills provided by state primary school teachers are

similar to those provided by state secondary school teachers, as portrayed in Table

11. Since the p-values (0.256, 0.054, 0.566 for Awareness, Knowledge and Skills

respectively), exceed the 0.05 level of significance, the null hypothesis (H0) is

accepted. This implies that there is no significant discrepancy between Primary and

Secondary school teachers among the three subscales.

Table 11

One-way ANOVA for state primary and secondary school teachers

Level of Education Sample Size Mean P-value

Primary School Teacher 83 2.02 Awareness

Secondary School Teacher 108 1.97 0.256

Primary School Teacher 83 1.74 Knowledge


Primary School Teacher 83 1.76 Skills


Participants from both subgroups scored higher on Awareness than on

Knowledge and Skills. Secondary school teachers scored higher on Knowledge

(1.90) when compared to primary school teachers (1.74) (Figure 6). Figure 6

displays the error bar graph with the 95% confidence intervals for state primary and

secondary school teachers. This is a range of values for the actual mean rating score

if the whole population of teachers had to be included in the study. When two

confidence intervals overlap considerably, it indicates that their respective mean


89

scores are comparable. However, when two confidence intervals are disjoint, it

indicates that their respective mean scores differ significantly. The error bar graph

show that the confidence intervals for Awareness and Knowledge are disjoint for

both primary and secondary school teachers, indicating that their respective mean

scores differ significantly.

Figure 6. Bar graph for primary and secondary school teachers


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Subjects taught.

State primary school teachers

Awareness. As seen in Table 12, the mean rating scores provided by state

primary school teachers for the Awareness subscale according to subjects taught are

similar to each other. Since the p-value for Awareness (0.273) exceeds the 0.05 level

of significance, the null hypothesis (H0) is accepted. This implies that there is no

significant discrepancy among primary school teachers according to subjects taught,

within the Awareness subscale.

Knowledge. On the other hand, the p-value for Knowledge (0.011) does not

exceed the 0.05 level of significance, and thus the alternative hypothesis (H1) is

accepted. This implies that there is significant discrepancy among primary school

teachers according to subjects taught within the Knowledge subscale.

Skills. Similarly, the p-value for Skills (0.005) does not exceed the 0.05 level of

significance and thus the alternative hypothesis (H1) is accepted. This implies that

there is significant discrepancy among primary school teachers according to subjects

taught, within the Skills subscale.

PSCD and Guidance teachers scored higher in Awareness, Skills and Knowledge

(2.17, 2.37, and 2.19 respectively) when compared to other teachers. Teachers who

teach the main subjects, Religion and Social Studies scored lower on Skills and

Knowledge when compared to their counterparts.


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Table 12

One-way ANOVA for state primary school teachers according to subjects

Primary school teachers Sample Size Mean P-value

Main (English, Maltese, Mathematics) 58 1.98

Religion 47 1.92

Social Studies 47 1.92

Art/Music/Drama 28 2.04

ICT 13 1.96

Physical Education 34 1.96

Science 35 1.95

PSCD/ Guidance teacher 9 2.17

Awareness

Other 12 2.11

0.273


Religion 47 1.60



ICT 13 1.80


Science 35 1.65


Knowledge

Other 12 1.84

0.011


Religion 47 1.68



ICT 13 1.83


Science 35 1.72


Skills

Other 12 1.95

0.005


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Due to the statistical significance that emerged through the one-way ANOVA for

state primary school teachers according to subjects taught, further analysis was

undertaken to observe the item frequencies as provided by the PSCD and Guidance

teachers in the Knowledge and Skills subscale (Appendix F, Tables F5 and F6).

Knowledge. PSCD and Guidance teachers in state primary schools scored

significantly higher in the Knowledge subscale than teachers who taught other

subjects. Table F5 (Appendix F) illustrates that respondents who are PSCD and

Guidance teachers perceived themselves as having a very good understanding of the

terms Inclusion (88.9%%) and Culture (77.8%), Prejudice (77.8%), Racism (77.8%)

and Multicultural Teaching (77.8%). The terms Xenophobia, Ethnocentrism,

Pluralism and Cultural Encapsulation had mixed results.

Skills. PSCD and Guidance teachers scored significantly higher in the Skills

subscale than other teachers. As Table F6 (Appendix F) reveals, the majority of

respondents perceived themselves as having a very good ability to assess the

educational needs of students coming from different cultural backgrounds (55.6%)

and to assess the educational needs of students with physical disabilities (55.6%).

66.7% of respondents rated themselves as having a good ability to understand and

explain the behavioural problem of a student from a different cultural background; to

critique multicultural research; and to provide educational services to culturally

different students and their families. 55.6% of the respondents also rated themselves

as having a good ability to recognize that the way that they have been trained has


93

instilled in them some culturally biased assumptions; and to discuss how teaching

methods can be adapted to a particular cultural context.

State secondary school teachers

Awareness. The mean rating scores provided by state secondary school teachers

for the Awareness subscale, according to subjects taught, are similar to each other.

Table 13 shows that the p-value for Awareness (0.207) exceeds the 0.05 level of

significance. Thus, the null hypothesis (H0) is accepted. This implies that there is no

significant discrepancy among secondary school teachers according to subjects

taught, within the Awareness subscale. Secondary school teachers who teach

Geography/History/Social Studies/European Studies teachers (2.15) and PSCD/

Guidance teachers (2.10) provided high rating scores for the Awareness subscale. On

the other hand, Art/Music/Drama teachers (1.69) provided low rating scores.

Knowledge. Since the p-value for Knowledge (0.002) does not exceed the 0.05

level of significance, the alternative hypothesis (H1) is accepted. This implies that

there is significant discrepancy among secondary school teachers according to

subjects taught, within the Knowledge subscale. Respondents who teach

Geography/History/Social Studies/European studies provided high rating scores for

Knowledge (2.60), followed by respondents who teach the subject enlisted as Other

(2.06), and by teachers who teach Languages (2.00). Art/Music/Drama teachers

(1.64) provided low rating scores for Knowledge.


94

Skills. Since the p-value for Skills (0.686) exceeds the 0.05 level of significance,

the null hypothesis (H0) is accepted. This implies that there is no significant

discrepancy among secondary school teachers according to subjects taught, within

the Skills subscale. Respondents teaching the subject enlisted as Other (2.03) and

PSCD/Guidance teachers (1.90) provided high rating scores for the Skills subscale.

Respondents teaching Physical Education (1.48) and those teaching Religion (1.69)

provided lower rating scores when compared to the other respondents.


95

Table 13

One-way ANOVA for state secondary school teachers according to subjects

Secondary School Teachers Sample

Size Mean P-value

Math/Accounting/Business Studies 15 1.91

Languages 29 2.03


Sciences 19 1.89

Computer Studies / ICT 8 1.86

Geography/History/Social Studies/European Studies 9 2.15

Religion 4 2.00

Home Economics/Textile Studies/Design and

Technology 13 1.88



Awareness

Other 3 2.04

0.207


Languages 29 2.00


Sciences 19 1.75



Religion 4 1.80


Technology 13 1.77



Knowledge

Other 3 2.06

0.002

(Table Continues)


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(Table Continues)

Secondary School Teachers Sample

Size Mean P-value


Languages 29 1.77


Sciences 19 1.77



Religion 4 1.69


Technology 13 1.80



Skills

Other 3 2.03

0.686

Due to the lack of statistical significance that emerged through the one-way

ANOVA for state secondary school teachers according to subjects taught, no further

analysis was undertaken to observe item frequencies as provided by any subject

category.

Geography teachers scored higher in the Knowledge subscale but were overtaken

by the PSCD and Guidance teachers in the Skills subscale and scored only

marginally higher than the PSCD and Guidance teachers in the Awareness subscale.

Such a marginal statistical difference was considered too low and ambiguous to

warrant further statistical investigation.


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Multicultural Education Course. Since the p-value for Multicultural Education

course (0.002, 0.000, 0.002 for Awareness, Knowledge and Skills respectively) does

not exceed the 0.05 level of significance, the alternative hypothesis (H1) is accepted.

This implies that there is significant discrepancy between teachers who took a

multicultural education course and those who did not, within the three subscales (see

Table 14).

Table 14

One-way ANOVA for Multicultural Education Course

Figure 7 illustrates that in general, participants who had taken a multicultural

education course provided higher rating scores in their perceived multicultural

competence across all three subscales than those who had not taken a multicultural

education course. Participants who had taken a multicultural education course

provided higher rating scores for Knowledge (2.22) when compared to Awareness

(2.18). Participants who had not taken a multicultural education course scored high

on Awareness (1.96) but lower on Knowledge (1.78). Both subgroups provided low

rating scores for the Skills subscale (1.98) for those who had taken a multicultural

Multicultural Education Course Sample size Mean P-Value

Yes 23 2.18 Awareness

No 168 1.96 0.002

Yes 23 2.22 Knowledge

No 168 1.78 0.000

Yes 23 1.98 Skills

No 168 1.75 0.002


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education course and 1.75 for those who had not taken a multicultural education

course).

Figure 7 displays the error bar graph with the 95% confidence intervals for those

who had taken a multicultural education course and for those who had not. This is a

range of values for the actual mean rating score if the whole population of teachers

had to be included in the study. When two confidence intervals overlap considerably,

it indicates that their respective mean scores are comparable. However, when two

confidence intervals are disjoint, it indicates that their respective mean scores differ

significantly. The error bar graph in Figure 7 reveals that the confidence intervals

are overlapping considerably for those who had taken a multicultural education

course, indicating that their respective mean scores are comparable. For those who

had not taken a multicultural education course, the two confidence intervals are

disjoint for the Awareness and Skills subscale, indicating that their respective mean

scores differ significantly.


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Figure 7. Bar graph for Multicultural Education course


100

Due to the statistical significance that emerged through the one-way ANOVA for

the Multicultural Education course, further analysis was undertaken to observe and

compare the item frequencies in each subscale for those who had taken a

Multicultural Education course with those who had not. Item frequencies are

illustrated in Appendix F (Table F8, F9, F10).

Awareness. Those who had taken a multicultural education course scored

significantly higher in the Awareness subscale than those who did not take a

multicultural education course.

Table F8 (Appendix F) reveals that the majority of respondents who had taken a

multicultural education course reported to have a good awareness of different

cultural institutions and systems (65.2%), and a good understanding of the concept

of ‘relativity’ in terms of goals, objectives and methods of working with culturally

different students and their families.

On the other hand, the majority of the respondents who had not taken a

multicultural education course agreed with the statement that ambiguity and stress

results from multicultural situations because people are not sure what to expect from

each other. 66.1% of respondents also rated to have a good ability to compare their

own cultural perspective with that of a person from another culture. 63.1% of the

respondents rated themselves as having good awareness of different cultural

institutions and systems, and a good understanding of the concept of ‘relativity’ in


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terms of goals, objectives and methods of working with culturally different students

and their families.

Knowledge. Those who had taken a multicultural education course scored

significantly higher in the Knowledge subscale than those who did not take a

multicultural education course.

Table F9 (Appendix F) illustrates that respondents who had taken a multicultural

education course perceived themselves as having a very good understanding of the

terms Inclusion (73.9%) and Prejudice (65.2%). Most respondents rated themselves

as having a limited understanding of the term Cultural Encapsulation (47.8%). The

term Ethnocentrism had mixed results since 39.1% of the respondents perceived

themselves as having a good understanding of the term, whilst 34.8% perceived

themselves as having a limited understanding.

On the other hand, the majority of respondents who had not taken a multicultural

education course rated themselves as having a good understanding of the terms

Culture (59.5%), Ethnicity (53.6%), Racism (53.6%), and Prejudice (53%). Most

respondents reported to have a limited understanding of the terms Ethnocentrism

(54.8%) and Cultural Encapsulation (52.4%). The term Xenophobia had mixed

results as 34.5% of those who had not taken a multicultural course rated themselves

as having a limited understanding, whilst 30.9% rated themselves as having a good

understanding. Pluralism also had mixed results as 36.3% of respondents rated


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themselves as having a limited understanding of the term, and 35.1% perceived

themselves as having a good understanding.

Skills. Those who had taken a multicultural education course scored significantly

higher in the Skills subscale than those who had not taken a multicultural education

course. However, both subgroups are scoring the lowest in the Skills subscale.

As Table F10 illustrates, 73.9% of those who had taken a multicultural education

course and 79.8% of those who had not taken a multicultural education course

agreed that “Differential treatment in the provision of educational services is not

always considered to be negative discrimination”.

73.9% of those who had taken a multicultural education course perceived

themselves as having a good ability to discuss how teaching methods can be adapted

to a particular cultural context, whilst slightly more than half of the respondents who

had not taken a multicultural education course indicated to have a good ability

(51.8%).

56.6% of those who had taken a multicultural education course perceived

themselves as having a good ability to critique multicultural research, whilst 64% of

those who had not taken a multicultural education course rated themselves as having

a limited ability.


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Both subgroups reported mixed results for their ability to assess the educational

needs of gay or lesbian students. 30.4% of those who had taken a multicultural

education course rated themselves as having a limited ability, whilst 43.5% rated

themselves as having a good ability. 37.5% of respondents who had not taken a

multicultural education course reported to have a limited ability, whilst 48.2% rated

themselves as having a good ability.

Respondents who had taken a multicultural education course scored mixed

results in their ability to assess the educational needs of students with mental health

challenges, where 30.4% rated themselves as having a limited ability, whilst 43.5%

rated themselves as having a good ability. On the other hand, half of the respondents

who had not taken a multicultural education course perceived themselves as having

limited ability (50.6%).

In conclusion, findings of this study answered two main questions: ‘What is the

perception of multicultural competence among teachers in the Maltese Education

system?’; and ‘What is the relationship between the perceptions of multicultural

competence and teachers’ demographic factors? Findings reveal that teachers scored

highest on Awareness and lowest on Skills. Furthermore, although there was no

statistical significance with most demographic factors, ‘Multicultural Education

course’ was a good predictor of teachers’ perceived multicultural competence as

there was a statistical significance within all three subscales for teachers who had

taken a multicultural education course and those who had not.


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Chapter Five

Discussion and Recommendations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of multicultural

competence among state primary and secondary school teachers across colleges in

Malta and Gozo. The main question was: What is the perception of multicultural

competence among state primary and secondary school teachers in Malta? The sub-

question was: What is the relationship between the perception of multicultural

competence and demographic factors such as teachers’ age, gender and religion?

This chapter discusses the findings in light of the literature and previous

research, and related theoretical constructs. The findings throw light on areas that

contribute to systemic inequity. These are areas that require collaboration between

teachers and counsellors so that together they can increase their effectiveness in

enhancing student wellbeing and in creating a climate of cultural inclusion. As a

result of the findings and issues raised, the chapter provides implications for

collaboration between teacher and counsellor as well as recommendations for future

research.


105

Discussion of findings

Overall perceived multicultural competence. Findings of the study reveal that

the mean rating scores for each subscale lie between 1 and 2 (i.e. between

Disagree/Limited and Agree/Good), indicating that teachers perceived themselves as

having a multicultural competence that is neither too high but neither too low.

Respondents scored highest on the Awareness subscale and lowest on the Skills

subscale. Such findings seem to be a common trend as research – such as that carried

out by Luquis and Pérez (2006) and Vassallo (2012) (see Chapter Two) - reveals that

generally teachers feel they are aware but lack the skills to put their awareness and

knowledge into practice.

One reason for respondents scoring high on the Awareness subscale and low on

the Skills subscale may be due to the fact that a high awareness in combination with

a lack of skills may render the respondents more aware of their shortcomings and

challenges in effectively providing an inclusive education for students from different

cultures (Pedersen, 2003). They may also be more aware of oppressive systems that

perpetuate inequities, and this can lead to frustration (Pedersen, 2003). However, it is

also possible that sometimes people are not even aware of their own cultural values

and assumptions that are different from others. Awareness is an important precept in

the development of multicultural competence (Pedersen, 2003). Awareness and

Knowledge can together create the pathway for the development of Skills.

Moreover, Pedersen (2003) states that one can never fully achieve or master

Awareness.


106

Understanding the concept of relativity. In comparison with the other items on

the Awareness subscale, respondents scored lowest in their “understanding of the

concept of ‘relativity’ in terms of goals, objectives and methods of working with

culturally different students and their families” (1.76). Similarly, teachers

participating in Castillo’s (2014) research scored lowest on this item within the

Awareness subscale.

Scoring lowest on this item may be due to the fact that in their training and from

their own personal experience as students, teachers have been instilled with the more

traditional Western model, that has been constructed from a particular worldview

and culture and which inevitably contains cultural biases and assumptions (Banks,

1993) (Bemak & Chung, 2003) (Irvine, 2001). Such a model embodies, and is

congruent with, the values of a dominant culture, and thus may not necessarily

benefit and include all culturally diverse students.

Nevertheless, the fact that the majority of respondents (62.8%) rated themselves

as having ‘good’ awareness on the afore-mentioned item, whilst 27.2% rated

themselves as having a ‘limited’ awareness, suggests that most teachers are aware to

a certain degree, of ethnocentric and ethnorelativist (perspective-taking) processes

and frameworks.

Ethnocentrism refers to the way one interprets the culture of the “other” from

his/her own cultural worldview (Bennett, 2004). Ethnorelativism on the other hand,


107

refers to the ability to interpret a culture from the worldview of the “other” (Bennett,

2004). Working through these processes is an important analytical tool. A lack of

this competence can lead to less tolerance towards students possessing a different

cultural worldview (Armento, 2001).

Understanding Ethnocentrism. Ethnocentrism (1.21) and Cultural

Encapsulation (0.99) in the Knowledge subscale had the lowest mean rating scores.

Castillo’s (2014) results are similar as Ethnocentrism and Cultural Encapsulation

were amongst the terms with lowest mean rating scores.

Findings of this study reveal a huge discrepancy as the mean rating scores for the

Ethnocentrism (1.21) and Cultural Encapsulation (0.99) are much lower than the

mean rating scored for the item concerning relativity in the Awareness subscale

(1.76). It is important to recognize that the ‘understanding’ of a term occurs on

different levels: the recognition of a term (i.e. being aware of the existence of a

term); knowing what the term means; knowing the associated processes and how it

manifests; and using that awareness to remodel behaviour. Being able to connect a

behaviour with a construct is a means to better self-monitor one’s behaviour, and

thus becomes an important tool to increase multicultural competence.

Literature on ethnocentrism, such as that provided by authors like Bennett (2004)

and Helms (2003) have often presented ethnocentrism and ethnorelativity on a

spectrum of two opposing ends. Literature throws light on the processes involved in

shifting from a state of ethnocentrism or cultural encapsulation to a state of ethno-


108

relativity. Therefore, the understanding of the concept of ‘relativity’ in terms of

goals, objectives and methods of working with culturally different students and their

families, when their understanding of ethnocentrism is low, is put into doubt.

Ethnocentric beliefs and practices are a major roadblock to student development

(Marx, 2008). Literature has shown that operating from an ethnocentric framework

results in: marginalization; undervaluing abilities and strengths of culturally different

students; not being able to recognize the needs of culturally different students;

misunderstanding culturally appropriate behaviour; and employing instructional

strategies that are incongruent with the learning styles and communication found

within students’ home cultures (Delpit, 1995; Gay, 2000; Irvine, 1990; Nieto, 1999,

2002, 2004; Sleeter, 2001, citing Marx, 2008).

These behaviours are illustrated in Falzon et al.’s (2012) research as authors

throw light on the nature of microaggressions, exoticization, the traditional charity

approach, and the usage of disempowering terms across the education system in

Malta. The issue of ethnocentrism is further supported by the findings from the

Skills subscale as they reflect the particular challenges related to operating from an

ethnorelativistic/ perspective-taking approach.

Issues of Ethnocentrism as reflected in the results for Skills. Respondents

scored lowest on their ability to critique multicultural research (1.32); identify the

strengths and weaknesses of educational tests in terms of their use with persons from

a different cultural background (1.63); understand and explain the behavioural


109

problem of a student from a different cultural background (1.70); discuss how

teaching methods can be adapted to a particular context” (1.70); and to assess (1.66)

and provide (1.60) the educational needs of culturally different students and their

families.

Critiquing multicultural research. Having a lack of skill to critique multicultural

research raises questions to how such research can be translated into evidence-based

practice. Multicultural research must be carefully interpreted and implemented

within a cultural context (Holcomb-McCoy & Chen-Hayes, 2011) (Irvine, 2001).

There have been advances in such research, but it must be interpreted wisely. Having

a lack of skill can be harmful for students as it can result in negative assumptions

about the students’ ability that can limit the student in achieving his/her potential.

Critiquing multicultural research and translating it into evidence-based practice

requires an understanding of certain terms and processes as those enlisted in the

Knowledge subscale. In this regard, counsellors can share their awareness,

knowledge and skills with teachers so that through collaboration they can move

towards a more culturally responsive pedagogy for the benefit of culturally different

students.

Identifying weaknesses and strengths of standardized tests. Similarly, a lack of

skill to identify weaknesses and strengths of standardized tests, and a lack of skill to

recognize the cultural appropriateness of teaching methods, may lead to biased and

inappropriate conclusions and decisions about the students’ needs (Holcomb-McCoy

& Chen-Hayes, 2011).


110

Furthermore, research has constantly highlighted the importance of setting high

expectations for all students (Armento, 2001) (Ladson-Billings, 1994). As pointed

out in the Chapter Two, when teachers take up a deficit-taking approach, it is

difficult to recognize cultural strengths in their students (Colombo, 2007). Teachers

must enhance their ability to develop attainable goals for students and to provide

differentiated instruction.

Transcultural counsellors adopt a strengths-based approach and their aim is to

help empower. Thus, transcultural counsellors have training that can help teachers

recognize biases in standardized tests. Standardized tests must take into account the

learning styles of the students. Counsellors can draw attention to issues of learning

styles from a cultural perspective, and help in creating a bridge between

incongruence of home and school for student achievement. When the classroom and

school is responsive to the diverse needs, it creates a safe environment where

students can self-actualize.

Assessing and identifying the needs of culturally different students. In order to

develop attainable goals and differentiated instruction, teachers must have the skill to

assess and identify the needs in order to serve culturally different students and their

families. However, findings of this study reveal that respondents have a lack of skill

to assess (1.66) and provide (1.60) such needs.

Irizarry and Raible (2011) state that many teachers are not aware of students’

sociocultural realities, and are disconnected from the students they serve. This can be


111

facilitated through collaboration with counsellors, who do not only focus on one-to-

one relationships within the counselling room, but who are also aware of and

concerned with sociocultural realities. Cuomo’s (2014) study reported a lack of

communication between teachers and counsellors, which has implications for the

kind of dialogue that needs to take place in order to better assess the needs of

culturally different students.

Furthermore, teachers in Falzon et al.’s (2012) study reported a lack of

engagement from parents of culturally different students. This makes it more

difficult to assess the needs in order to provide educational services. Consultation

becomes significant, and involves being aware of cultural issues and dynamics, and

initiating discussion about such clashes with consultees (Holcomb-McCoy & Chen-

Hayes, 2011). Therefore, findings of this study, as well as other literature, point

towards the need for teachers, counsellors and parents to collaborate together to

better assess the needs of culturally different students and their families.

Assessing the needs of students with behavioural problems. Respondents are

finding it challenging to assess the needs of students with behavioural problems

(1.70). This is an area where counsellors and teachers can collaborate through

referral. To do this effectively, teachers must have an understanding of the

counsellor’s role. Cuomo’s (2014) study reveals that teachers have a misconception

about the counsellor’s role in relation to students with behavioural problems, as the

majority of teachers believed that the counsellor should administer disciplinary

measures. Such a misconception was also pointed out by Goodnough, Pérusee, and


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Erford (2011). Counsellors have strategies to deal with difficult behaviours, which

they can share with teachers. Counsellors can also understand behavioural issues

from a systems-based and a cultural perspective, and can thus impart their

awareness, knowledge and skills about students’ behavioural problems.

Assessing the needs of students with mental health challenges. Respondents

also reported a lack of skill to assess the needs of students with mental health

challenges (1.41). This is a specific skill for counsellors as counsellors are trained to

be familiar with mental health issues which can include the diagnostic criteria for

mental health disorders, and are sensitive to the debate surrounding cultural

appropriateness of the DSM (Kaffenberger, 2011). This is another area of counsellor

and teacher collaboration that can be facilitated through referral. Since counsellors

work in a transdisciplinary team, consultation with parents, teachers and mental

health professionals are necessary. Counsellors can also make outside referrals for

mental health services (Kaffenberger, 2011).

Assessing the needs of gay/lesbian students. Teachers are finding it challenging

to assess the needs of gay/lesbian students (1.60). These are needs of contemporary

students, as society is becoming more open to accepting people having a different

sexual orientation. The law for same-sex marriage has just recently passed in Malta,

and society is slowly adjusting to this change. In schools, this can mean dealing with

same-sex parents and has implications for teachers and counsellors to help create a

safe environment preventing bullying and ostracization (Fontes, 2003).


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Ambiguity and stress often results from multicultural situations. Although

teachers scored low on various skills, teachers scored higher on their ability to teach

students from a different cultural background (1.91), which sheds light on a

contradiction. Nevertheless, 65.4% of teachers agreed that ambiguity and stress often

result from multicultural situations because people are not sure what to expect from

each other.

This indicates that the majority of teachers are aware of cultural differences.

However, the extent to which the ambiguity and stress is experienced, and the way it

is managed can also suggest different levels of multicultural competence. Feelings

related to ambiguity and stress are: “uncertainty, insecurity, fear, sense of emotional

risk” (Buehler, Gere, Dallavis, & Haviland, 2009, p.409).

This finding is not surprising, as in dealing with a pluralistic society teachers

have to master pedagogical knowledge; manage the classroom; keep discipline;

engage in instructional differentiation; and enhance their multicultural competence

(Alamillo, Padilla, & Arenas, 2011). This finding also resonates with the study

carried out by Falzon et al. (2012) who state that teachers are struggling with the

‘unknown’. They observe that some teachers expressed uncertainty in dealing with

religious diversity, particularly in relation to Islam.

Another facet to consider is the homogeneous makeup of teachers. Participants

of this study were mostly Maltese teachers and identified as Christians. This links


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back to literature that describes Maltese identity as associated with a strong Catholic

identity (Pisani et al., 2010).

When the cultural identity development model is applied here, it might seem that

teachers are experiencing disintegration (Helms, 2003), which refers to the

disorientation and anxiety provoked as a result of cultural encounters. People also

experience confusion about new knowledge acquired about different cultures. Due to

the fact that previously schools were less culturally diverse, the need for teachers to

consider their own cultural identity and practices is coming into question only now.

This generates ambiguity and stress as a result of multicultural situations.

Irvine (2001) points out that inexperienced teachers tend to find it challenging

to address the needs of most students especially when faced with students from

different cultures. This contradicts the findings of this study, as there is no statistical

significance between the multicultural competence of those who have just started

teaching and other teachers who have been teaching for longer years. Although there

is no statistical significance, teachers who have been teaching between 0-5 years,

scored higher on skills when compared to the other respondents. This also

contradicts the principals’ (Borg & Giordmaina, 2012) statements on preparation of

student teachers at the University of Malta (refer to Chapter One). It should be noted,

however, that those who have been teaching between 0-5 years also scored lower in

the Awareness subscale, which raises the question related to the translations of

awareness into skills when awareness is less developed than the skills.


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What kind of inclusion is taking place? The findings on relativity,

ethnocentrism, and skills and the discrepancies amongst them leads to the question:

What kind of Inclusion is taking place? Are students provided with equitable

opportunity?

Teachers scored highest on the terms Inclusion (2.43) and Prejudice (2.32). In

light of the previous observations, this raises issues related to the risk of embracing

inclusion from an ethnocentric framework. Teachers’ cultural identity and the way it

influences student wellbeing becomes an interesting aspect to explore. As explained

in Chapter Two, depending on whether the relationship is a parallel, regressive or a

progressive one, a teacher can help the student either remain at the same status,

regress to a lower developmental status or progress towards a status that embraces

critical and analytical thinking and social justice (Helms, 2003).

In their training, transcultural counsellors use transactional models that help

them understand the interaction and power dynamics in relationships (see Chapter

Two). In doing so, transcultural counsellors focus on their multicultural competence

(Awareness, Knowledge Skills), and on their personal transformation and content

mastery of cultural identity development. Thus, counsellors can encourage teachers

to assess relationships between teacher and student as described in Helms’s model

(2003), to move towards more progressive relationships.


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Equality or Equity? The majority of respondents agreed to the statements

“Students who belong to a minority group should be given the same treatment that

all other students receive” (52.4% agreed, 32.5% strongly agreed) and “Students

who belong to a minority group should receive treatment that takes into

consideration their cultural diversity” (60.7% agreed; 22.5% strongly agreed).

This raises issues of equality versus equity. Equality has a tendency to be

equated with sameness (Ladson-Billings, 2000). When this happens, student

differences are negated and thus students’ educational needs are not met. Very

often, privileges are taken for-granted and as a result, students are seen as having the

same resources and social capital.

Does this finding mean that students should receive the same treatment as

everybody else? This approach verges towards ‘Monoculturalism’, an approach that

emphasizes assimilation to the point that ethnic and cultural differences are

eliminated so that everybody is viewed the same (Bemak & Chung, 2003). However,

it should be noted that teachers agreed to the statement that cultural diversity must be

taken into context. This seems to suggest that all students should at least receive the

same treatment, and that those who need differential treatment because of cultural

diversity should receive it as well. This suggests equity. In such an approach, the

teacher is aware of pluralism, and embraces a multicultural perspective (Bemak &

Chung, 2003).


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Integration seems to, implicitly favour the dominant culture. The finding for

“Integration seems to, implicitly favour the dominant culture” contradicts the finding

for the item on the need to “take into consideration cultural diversity’.

52.9% of the respondents agreed, and 13.1% strongly agreed, that integration

seems to, implicitly, favour the dominant culture. However, the findings do not

provide insight into whether the respondents agree that it should favour the dominant

culture, or whether the participants are aware of the issue but believe that it should

not be that way because it perpetuates inequity. What is interesting, however, is the

fact that a significant number (34%) of the participants is not aware that integration

seems to favour the dominant culture. This indicates that 34% of the respondents are

not aware of inequities within the system.

Berry (2003) defines integration as the way a person from the minority group

maintains his/her original culture whilst taking an interest in learning and

participating in the dominant culture. Whilst integration can be positive, he argues

that it is only successful if the dominant culture is open and inclusive. It can be

argued that integration is dependent upon the dynamic nature of cultural identity.

Thus, when integration is practiced from a lower level of multicultural competence,

it can lead to the diminished significance of the culture of the other, the culture of

the other becoming absorbed into the dominant culture.

This reinforces the notion that the student is expected to adjust to institutional

norms rather than the other way round (Lee & Waltz, 1998), and links to the concept


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of the ‘hidden curriculum’ as discussed in Chapter Two. Lee and Goodnough (2011)

highlight the significance of school-based counsellors to constantly keep an eye on

‘policies’ that promote equity or perpetuate barriers that impede students from

succeeding.

This raises important questions: what kind of inclusion is taking place? How

does it affect student self-worth? How does it affect the way the student looks at

his/her culture and other cultures when particular cultures are valued more than

others?

The concept of integration can be linked to the statement: “teachers need to

change the way they think, and also, to transform the way they communicate their

ideas to cater for the complexity of human behaviour”. 57.1% of the teachers have

agreed to this statement, whilst 16.2% strongly agreed. This means that the majority

of teachers recognize that they need to make a change within themselves. However,

the findings of this study revealed that the majority of teachers did not attend a

multicultural education course, which can be a format for both personal and

professional growth and development.

This finding resonates with Falzon et al.’s (2012) study, which found that 50% of

teachers feel that they need to change their approach in the classroom. Falzon et al.

(2012) also reported a resistance to change and a lack of a proactive approach.

86.4% of teachers said they do not need help from support mechanisms (that include


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counsellors), and 63.6% of teachers had not received any training related to teaching

culturally different students.

Multicultural Education course. In this study, only 12% of the respondents had

previously taken a multicultural education course. Those who had taken a

multicultural education course scored significantly higher on all subscales than those

who had not taken a multicultural education course. Other studies also have shown a

positive relationship between taking a multicultural course and multicultural

competence (Castillo, 2014) (Vassallo, 2012). The fact that very few teachers

attended a multicultural course raises the questions: Is it because there is a lack of

opportunity? Are teachers aware that such courses can improve multicultural

competence? If a variety of courses are offered, which are chosen and which are not?

Bartolo (2008) points out that “Culturally responsive teachers…see themselves as

responsible for and capable of bringing about change to make schools more

equitable” (p.8).

Both those who had taken a multicultural course and those who did not, scored

lowest on Ethnocentrism and Cultural Encapsulation. Whilst results suggest that a

multicultural education course had an impact on teachers’ perceptions of

multicultural competence, one also questions the themes that were explored and to

what depth, and also themes that were left unexplored.


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Transcultural counsellors must collaborate with school staff members to

encourage and promote training opportunities that are congruent with the students’

needs. Counsellors can encourage teachers to engage in ongoing professional growth

to further develop their multicultural competence to better serve all students from

different cultures.

Pedersen (2003) suggests strategies for the development of multicultural

competence, as discussed in Chapter Two. The findings of this study suggest the

need for training that focuses on issues related to ethnocentrism and cultural

encapsulation, as well as a particular focus on skills that can be actualized in society.

As part of addressing teachers’ skills, guidance on working collaboratively with

counsellors may also be useful in meeting the needs of a diverse student population,

as 30.3% of teachers in this study, as well as findings from Cuomo’s (2014) study,

point towards the need for more collaboration and consultation between teachers and

counsellors.

Implications

The study sheds light on the perceived multicultural competence of teachers and

the relationship of multicultural competence with various factors. The findings

provide insight into areas of teacher strength, and identify areas where counsellors

and teachers can be effective collaborators together from a multicultural perspective


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for the wellbeing of students. For this to happen, both counsellors and teachers must

be proactive agents in the transformation process.

To transform the school environment into a more inclusive one for the wellbeing

of all students including students from different cultural backgrounds, teachers can:

1. Become more aware of support services offered by counsellors within the

college and use the counsellor as a source of outreach;

2. Develop multicultural competence to be in a better position to assess and

recognize when a student needs to be referred to the counsellor;

3. Consult with counsellors about behaviour-related issues and make referrals;

4. Become more actively involved in society in ways that increase awareness

and an understanding of the inequities within society. This can bring teachers

closer to the students’ needs;

5. Learn more about the cultural background and experiences of the students

and their families by engaging in dialogue with them. This brings the teacher

closer to the students’ strengths and needs;

6. Believe that all students can learn and achieve, without holding stereotypical

assumptions;


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7. Recognize the transcultural counsellor as a collaborative colleague with

resources that can help them enhance their professional development within a

culturally diverse classroom;

8. Become inquirers of their actions, instructional goals, methods and materials

they use. Teachers can do this by engaging in dialogue with the counsellor to

constructively critique multicultural research and translate it into practice;

9. Share success stories with other teachers, counsellors and professionals and

share empirical research;

10. Prepare and help empower students to effect change in society. However,

teachers must ensure that they continue to develop their own multicultural

competence.

While teachers are engaging in these processes, counsellors as collaborators can:

1. Cultivate relationships with teachers and school staff by raising awareness

about the counsellors’ role, by being more present and available in schools

and by engaging in ongoing dialogue with teachers;

2. Guide teachers to understand the incongruence between home and school due

to cultural difference in parenting styles, forms of discipline, patterns of

communication, and gender roles expectations;


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3. Help broaden teachers’ perspectives related to learning styles from a cultural

perspective and to discuss with them biases and strengths in standardized

tests;

4. Encourage teachers to assess their relationship with students using Helms’s

model (2003) to ensure teachers become a resource to students to help them

develop their own cultural identity;

5. Share their awareness, knowledge and skills in critiquing multicultural

research and to translate evidence based practice to the appropriate context;

6. Identify needs of gay/lesbian students, and/or students whose parents are

same-sex partners, to create a safe environment to prevent bullying and

ostracization;

7. Guide teachers in understanding psychosocial development of students from

cultural perspectives, including the impact of premigration and trauma on

students who came to Malta as refugees;

8. Help teachers understand how behavioural problems of students may be

understood from a cultural and system-based perspective; and encourage

referrals so that counsellors can give service to students and families with

such needs;


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9. Assist teachers through collaborative classroom instruction (Lee &

Goodnough, 2011). This involves teacher and counsellor delivering a lesson

together in a way that is complementary. Counsellors can bring in their own

counselling expertise, especially on critical discourse around issues of culture

and diversity, and can thus support and enhance student learning and

development;

10. Work in a transdisciplinary team that includes principals,

headmasters/headmistresses, assistant heads and other professionals in the

school system;

11. Keep an eye on policies and their implementation that promote or mitigate

student wellbeing, and challenge those that perpetuate inequity;

12. Encourage teachers and other school personnel to engage in ongoing

professional training to develop multicultural competence. This involves

engaging in a self-monitoring process.

If counsellors and teachers are to be social advocates for the wellbeing of

students, multicultural competence must be a professional mandate. Counsellors and

teachers must recognize that the development of multicultural competence is a life-

long journey that helps them grow on a personal and professional level. This is done

through a process of continuous self-reflection, a continuous search for knowledge;

by seeking to develop a critical mind; by keeping up-to-date with the literature and


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research from their own respective disciplines; and by being globally literate (i.e.

being aware of what is going on around the world). With the development of

multicultural competence, counsellors and teachers gain a common language that

helps them address issues of inequity more effectively.

Recommendations for future research

The study has investigated a crucial subsystem within the education system -

state primary and secondary school teachers. Nonetheless, this study has only

explored one subsystem. Other subsystems also need to be explored, such as parents,

students, headmasters/headmistresses, assistant heads, college principals, and the

community. This means a multilevel approach must be taken to delve deep into the

inner workings of the system.

Therefore, future research can:

1. Investigate multicultural competence within Church schools, Private schools

and Independent schools in Malta;

2. Explore multicultural competence through qualitative research (individual

interviews, focus groups and observation in class) to complement the

research;


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3. Explore cultural identity development of teachers and students in relation to

interaction models (using Helms’s model); and the cultural identity

development and multicultural competence of parents, LSA’s,

headmasters/headmistresses, assistant heads, and other relevant stakeholders;

4. Study the relationship between multicultural competence of teachers and

student engagement and academic achievement;

5. Engage in ongoing analysis and examination of policies, practices and

procedures to promote access and equity for all;

6. Analyse the different types of training offered and the content, offered in in-

service training and degree courses at the University of Malta;

7. Investigate how multicultural competence develops across time through

longitudinal studies;

8. Investigate the perceived multicultural competence of counsellors in schools.

Conclusions

This study has investigated the perceived multicultural competence of teachers in

state primary and secondary schools across colleges in Malta and Gozo. It has also

explored the factors that can significantly relate to multicultural competence. The

study has exposed various contradictions and raises important issues and themes. It

revealed a discrepancy between teachers’ Awareness and Skills. The results for


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Awareness, Knowledge and Skills reveals a dynamic between ethnocentrism and

ethnorelativism, which contains implications for the nature of cultural identity

development held by teachers, and which in turn has implications for the kind of

inclusion that is taking place. Teachers in this study seem to acknowledge the need

for an inclusive education, and yet only 12% attended a multicultural education

course. Some of these contradictions may point towards a tendency for social

desirability. What has also emerged from this study is the way counsellors and

teachers can dialogue with each other in a transdisciplinary team as leaders and

social advocates. However, such collaboration is only facilitated and rendered

effective, if it is accompanied by ongoing professional training that gives both

counsellors and teachers a common language of multicultural competence.

Counsellors and teachers together, with a common goal and vision, can transform the

school environment into a more inclusive one for the wellbeing of all students.


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Appendices


129

Appendix A: The Questionnaire


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Multicultural Awareness, Knowledge, and Skills Survey for Teachers (2014, 2015)

(Adapted from ‘Multicultural Awareness-Knowledge-Skills Survey – Teachers Form MAKSS Form T, D’Andrea, Daniels, and Noonan, 2003)

This survey is designed to help you evaluate your current level of multicultural education competence. It is divided into two sections. The first section involves completing a number of demographic items. The second section consists of a list of statements and questions that are related to a variety of multicultural issues. Please read each statement/question carefully and make sure to answer all questions. Please select the response that best fits your reaction to each statement/question. The survey should not take more than 10 minutes of your time.

Marija Vella B.A.(Hons)(Melit.)

Section 1 Demographics

Gender: o Male o Female

Nationality: o Maltese o Non-Maltese

Religious/Spiritual Affiliation: o Christian o Other

Age group:

o 21-30 o 31-40 o 41-54 o 55+


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Years teaching: o 0-5yrs o 6-10yrs o 11-19yrs o 20+yrs

I am a:

o Primary school teacher o Secondary school teacher

Subjects I teach at school (for primary school teachers):

o Main subjects (English, Maltese, Mathematics) o Religion o Social Studies o Art/Music/Drama o ICT o Physical Education o Science o PSCD/Guidance teacher o Other

Subjects I teach at school (for secondary school teachers):

o Math/Accounting/Business Studies o Languages o Art/Music/Drama o Sciences o Computer studies/ICT o Geography/History/Social Studies/European studies o Religion o Home Economics/Textile Studies/Design and Technology o PSCD/Guidance teacher o Physical Education o Other


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Section 2

Please select the response that best fits your reaction to each statement/question.

Awareness

Item Strongly Disagree

Disagree Agree Strongly Agree

I understand how my cultural background influences the way I think and act

o o o o

I am aware that the way I think and act impacts my relationship with students and families from different cultural backgrounds

o o o o

Very Limited

Limited Good Very Good

My awareness of different cultural institutions and systems is (e.g. churches, mosques, schools, NGOs etc)

o o o o

My ability to compare my own cultural perspective with that of a person from another culture is

o o o o

My ability to realize when I am communicating appropriately or not with a person from a different cultural background is

o o o o

Strongly Disagree


Ambiguity and stress often result from multicultural situations because people are not sure what to expect from each other

o o o o

Teachers need to change the way they think and also to transform the way they communicate their ideas to cater for the complexity of human behavior

o o o o

Very Limited


My understanding of the concept of ‘relativity’ in terms of goals, objectives and methods of working with culturally different students and their families is

o o o o


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Skills

Item Strongly Disagree


Differential treatment in the provision of educational services is not always considered to be negative discrimination.

o o o o

Students who belong to a minority group should be given the same treatment that all other students receive.

o o o o

Students who belong to a minority group should receive treatment that takes into consideration their cultural diversity.

o o o o

The concept of ‘integration’ seems to, implicitly, favour the dominant culture.

o o o o

My ability to: Very Limited


teach students from a different cultural background is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of culturally different students and their families is :

o o o o

deal with discrimination and prejudices directed at me by a student is :

o o o o

recognize that the way I have been trained has instilled in me some culturally biased assumptions is :

o o o o

discuss how teaching methods can be adapted to a particular cultural context is :

o o o o

understand and explain the behavioural problem of a student from a different cultural background is:

o o o o

identify and recognize the significance of different aspects of a culture is : (e.g. kinship, family, religion, politics, economy, social structure, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status etc)

o o o o

identify the strengths and weaknesses of educational tests in terms of their use with persons from a different cultural background is :

o o o o

critique multicultural research is : o o o o provide appropriate educational o o o o


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services to culturally different students and their families is : consult with another education professional concerning the needs of culturally different students and their families is :

o o o o

effectively acquire information and resources to better serve culturally different students is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of female students is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of male students is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of gay or lesbian students is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of students with physical disabilities is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of students with mental health challenges is :

o o o o

assess the educational needs of students coming from different socioeconomic backgrounds is :

o o o o

Knowledge

Have you ever taken a multicultural education course?

o Yes o No

Rate your understanding of each of the following terms:

Very Limited


Culture o o o o Ethnicity o o o o Racism o o o o Xenophobia o o o o Inclusion o o o o Prejudice o o o o Multicultural Teaching o o o o Ethnocentrism o o o o Pluralism o o o o Transcultural o o o o Cultural Encapsulation o o o o


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Appendix B: Request for Research in State School Form


136


137


138


139

Appendix C: Email to the College Principals


140

To the College Principal, My name is Marija Vella and I am currently reading for a Masters in Transcultural Counselling at the University of Malta in collaboration with the University of New Orleans, U.S My dissertation involves investigating the perceived multicultural awareness, knowledge and skills among primary and secondary school teachers in state schools in Malta. In this regard I shall be inviting teachers from state primary and secondary schools in Malta and Gozo, to take part in a survey and I would be very pleased to include teachers from your college. Participation is anonymous and all information will be treated with strictest confidentiality. Permission to carry out research in state schools has already been obtained from the Ministry of Education. (please see attached). Given the increase in cultural diversity in Malta, teachers’ participation can help make this research successful. There is hope that the results of this research can inform educators and provide more insight into enhancing the wellbeing of students. If you have any queries or require any clarifications please do not hesitate to contact me by email on [email protected]. Thank you for your time and cooperation. Marija Vella B.A. (Hons)(Melit.)


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Appendix D: Email to the Head of School


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To the Head of School, My name is Marija Vella and I am currently reading for a Masters in Transcultural Counselling at the University of Malta in collaboration with the University of New Orleans, U.S My dissertation involves investigating the perceived multicultural awareness, knowledge and skills among primary and secondary school teachers in state schools in Malta. I would, therefore, like to invite teachers from state primary and secondary schools to take part in a survey. Participation is anonymous and all information will be treated with strictest confidentiality. Also, attached please find the Request for Research in State Schools. Given the increase in cultural diversity in Malta, teachers’ participation can help make this research successful. There is hope that the results of this research can inform educators and provide more insight into enhancing the wellbeing of students. It would be greatly appreciated if you could kindly forward the attached letter, which includes a link to the online survey, to all teachers on your mail list. If you have any queries or require any clarifications please do not hesitate to contact me by email on [email protected]. Thank you for your time and cooperation. Marija Vella B.A. (Hons)(Melit.)


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Appendix E: Letter for Teachers


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Dear Primary and Secondary School teachers, My name is Marija Vella and I am currently reading for a Masters in Transcultural Counselling at the University of Malta in collaboration with the University of New Orleans, U.S My dissertation involves investigating the perceived multicultural competence (awareness, knowledge and skills) among primary and secondary school teachers in state schools in Malta. I would, therefore, like to invite teachers from state primary and secondary schools to take part in a survey. Participation is anonymous and all information will be treated with strictest confidentiality. The survey will only take 10 minutes of your time and can be accessed from the following link:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SNMV3JX

Please submit the survey by not later than 28th January, 2015. Given the increase in cultural diversity in Malta, your participation can help make this research successful. There is hope that the results of this research can inform educators and provide more insight into enhancing the wellbeing of students. If you have any queries or require any clarifications, or would like to view the results later on, please do not hesitate to contact me by email on [email protected]. Thank you for your time and cooperation. Marija Vella B.A. (Hons)(Melit.)


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Appendix F: Tables


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Table F1

Decomposition of the Sample Demographics

Frequency Percentage

Gender Female Male

143 48

74.9 25.1

Religious/Spiritual Affiliation Christian Other

179 12

93.7 6.3

Age group 21-30 31-40 41-54 55+

54 72 45 20

28.3 37.7 23.6 10.5

Number of years teaching 0-5years 6-10years 11-19years 20+ years

36 44 68 43

18.8 23.0 35.6 22.5

Primary school teachers Secondary school teachers

83 108

43.5 56.5

Multicultural Education Course Yes No

23 168

12.0 88.0


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Glossary

Awareness: Awareness is one of the multicultural competencies identified by Sue et

al. (1992). Awareness refers to a set of opinions, attitudes and assumptions that

provide one with the ability to compare and contrast alternative viewpoints in a

variety of cultural settings.

Colleges: Maltese state schools are aggregated into ten different colleges, each

college having its own primary and secondary schools.

Collaboration: Refers to the style of interaction within the consultation process. It

refers to how people interact and work in a team to resolve an issue.

Consultation: Refers to a process of problem-solving by consulting with teachers

and parents.

Cultural diversity: Refers to how people differ in terms of age, gender, sexual

orientation, religion, physical ability or disability, and other characteristics.

Cultural Encapsulation: Refers to the way one is encapsulated in his/her own

worldview, which leads to a negation of the culture of the “other” and a lack of

understanding of another’s cultural background and psychosocial experiences.


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Culture: Culture is a set of integrated patterns for behaviour that includes thoughts,

communications, languages, beliefs, religion, values, customs, rituals, relationships,

norms, and expected behaviour, that distinguishes one group of people from another.

Culture is transmitted from one generation to the next.

Cultural Identity: Aspects of cultural identity include age, language, nationality,

race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic class, and ability.

Cultural Identity Development: Refers to one’s sense of belonging to a cultural

group, and one’s attitudes towards people belonging to a different cultural group.

Cultural identity models are - for those belonging to a dominant cultural group, and

for those belonging to the minority group - describe different states one goes

through, from an ethnocentric framework to a more ethnorelativist one.

Equity: The elimination of systemic barriers, oppression and unfair treatment, to

create a culturally responsive climate of inclusion.

Ethnicity: A group of people distinguished from others because of national origin or

distinctive cultural patterns.

Ethnocentrism: Refers to the way one interprets the culture of the “other” from

his/her own cultural worldview.


161

Ethnorelativism: Refers to the ability to understand and interpret a culture from the

worldview of the “other”.

Inclusion: Refers to the acceptance of all students, by responding positively to pupil

diversity and viewing individual differences as opportunities. Inclusion of all fosters

a sense of equity.

Integration: Berry (2003) defines integration as the way a person from the minority

group maintains his/her original culture whilst taking an interest in learning and

participating in the dominant culture. Whilst integration can be positive, he argues

that it is only successful if the dominant culture is open and inclusive.

Knowledge: One of the multicultural competencies identified by Sue et al. (1992). It

refers to factual information that helps one better understand other people from

different cultures from an ethnorelativist perspective. Knowledge is imperative to

enhance awareness and skill.

Microaggression: Microaggressions are interactions that communicate hostile and

negative slights to people from different cultures. They occur daily, very often in an

unconscious manner, and manifest themselves in the form of subtle gestures, tones,

looks, behaviours and statements. Microaggressions are detrimental to a person’s

wellbeing as they create and perpetuate inequities.


162

Multicultural Competence: The concept of ‘Multicultural Competence’ was

established by Sue et al. (1992) specifically for the counselling profession. Three

dimensions were identified: Awareness, Knowledge and Skills. These refer to a

person’s ability to be aware of one’s own cultural assumptions, values and biases; to

understand the world from the cultural perspective of the other; and to develop

appropriate intervention strategies and technique.

Multicultural Teaching: The aim of multicultural teaching is to create equitable

opportunity for students from different cultural backgrounds. Students are

encouraged to acquire the knowledge, attitudes, and skills to function effectively in a

pluralistic society and to nurture a sense of a civic engagement and critical

consciousness.

Perception: For the purpose of this study, perception refers to one’s understanding

and interpretation of a situation.

Pluralism: No one society has just one culture. Pluralism refers to different ethnic,

racial, religious, and social groups coexisting and relating to each other in one

society.

Prejudice: Refers to the faulty negative assumptions and unconscious attitudes,

feeling and beliefs one has about another cultural group, such that cultural

differences are not accepted and considered inferior.


163

Racism: Refers to prejudice and discrimination on basis of race, i.e. differences and

similarities in biological traits such as skin colour, and the belief that some races are

better than others.

Skills: One of the multicultural competencies identified by Sue et al. (1992). Refers

to the translation of awareness and knowledge into demonstrated behaviours (skills),

to develop culturally appropriate intervention strategies and techniques.

Social Advocacy: Refers to the way in which a counsellor responds to the challenges

of the client. This includes becoming aware of external factors that negatively affect

client wellbeing; collaborating with organizations and institutions that seek political,

social and economic change; and acting as change agents to challenge systemic

inequities.

Social Justice: Refers to the way one uses social advocacy to address inequitable

social, political and economic conditions that hinder academic, career and personal

and social development, of individuals, families and communities.

Teacher: Refers to state primary and secondary school teachers providing

educational services to children in year I up to Form 5. For the purpose of this

research, a teacher does not include Principals, Heads of School, Assistant Heads,

Kindergarten teachers or Learning Support Assistants.


164

Transcultural: Refers to the combination of elements of more than one culture.

Transcultural Counsellor: This study uses the terms counsellor and transcultural

counsellor interchangeably. The transcultural counsellor has multicultural

competence and, while serving individuals, families and groups, is also a social

advocate, collaborating in transdisciplinary teams to challenge systemic inequities.

Xenophobia: Refers to the fear of that which is unknown and different from oneself,

particularly on the basis of race.


165

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