Curricular Connections: Using Critical Cosmopolitanism to Globally Situate Multicultural Education in Teacher Preparation Courses

Abstract

Globally-minded teachers often beget globally-minded students. The same relationship seems to hold true for multiculturalism; teachers who are committed to multiculturalism often nudge students toward the same commitment. Global citizenship and multicultural education share a strong bond. Yet, in the field of social studies teacher preparation, the bond between global competencies and multiculturalism often seems permeable and quite fragile. In the context of multicultural education in the United States, teachers engage with issues of privilege, power, and oppression but with a heavy US-centric focus. The article contends that the predominant United States’ focus of multiculturalism limits the opportunities to engage the global: global competencies, global voices, and global citizenship. The article seeks to wed multiculturalism and global education. It does so by introducing and explaining Critical Cosmopolitan Theory (Author, 2013), which is a theoretical framework to guide the preparation of globally competent and culturally responsive teacher candidates. Utilizing findings from an artifact analysis study of teacher candidates (n=51), the article discusses ways to assist teacher candidates in their development of becoming Critically Cosmopolitan citizens who embrace social justice by being informed by the global and multicultural.