This article describes context-based professional development (PD) for cultural diversity in a Portuguese school cluster, and discusses how it supports change for justice and equity. Teachers felt the importance of PD and showed willingness and interest to learn. Several teacher learning opportunities were mapped out such as formal workshops, starting small collaborations and teachers’ self-directed informal learning activities. Yet, a rather fragmented character of PD seemed to emerge in terms of content on cultural diversity and forms of learning. Conflicting agendas, scattered teacher collaboration and commitment, and little student and community involvement in planned PD were found. Furthermore, there seemed to be tensions between current PD and teachers’ needs and circumstances; teachers wished for more specific information and pedagogical solutions, more collaboration and more organisational support in PD. Applying a critical multicultural perspective, it is discussed that although the current constellation of PD is a potential start, it might still contribute to teachers’ conceptual confusion and pedagogical insecurities on the field of cultural diversity. It is suggested that criticality towards PD frames is needed to re-centre cultural diversity on the premises of justice, as well as teacher support, and conscious learning with and from students, families and communities.

This qualitative case study examined two pre-service teachers’ learning experiences in relation to encountering modelling culturally responsive teaching (CRT) in a multicultural education course. Using Constant Comparison Approach, the researchers searched for evidence of observing aspects of modelling in the course, and described the pre-service teachers’ learning experiences that occurred in relation to this observation, as well as the possible transformation they went through. The study revealed that the critical, justice-oriented teacher education course that implemented modelling CRT activities and behavior seemed to help pre-service teachers to transform and extend their conceptual knowledge of CRT, critically reflect and reconstruct prior knowledge, and connect these experiences to future teaching practice. Based on the data, a framework for modelling CRT in teacher education is delineated. Implications for teacher education are addressed.

Due to globalisation and migration, multilingualism has become both a reality and an aim of education systems across Europe, affecting how language education is shaped. To improve the ways in which schools cater for language education in diverse settings, research is required on the potentials of multilingualism in order to design curricula that foster skills in different languages. This paper aims at identifying and explaining research priorities in the field of multilingualism and language education in a cross-national perspective. It draws on data from a survey with 298 expert participants in five European countries (Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain) who ranked pre-identified research topics in relation to their perceived urgency. Results show that experts identified ‘effectiveness of multilingual support in regular lessons’, ‘features of multilingual didactics’ and ‘effectiveness of literacy support in home languages on the development of academic language skills in the majority language’ as having the highest research priority overall. However, these results vary across national settings investigated. While the German, Dutch and Portuguese respondents attributed urgency to research on academic language skills, other issues were rated higher in the Spanish and Italian research contexts. The advantages and limitations of conducting cross-national research are also addressed.

This study examined teaching practices developed by teachers to respond to linguistic diversity in a Portuguese case study. We analysed the position that students’ languages received in the classroom, and what these practices revealed about teachers’ awareness of multilingual pedagogies, a step to social justice. Three main strategies emerged: promoting Portuguese without involving students’ languages, using a common language (English) as lingua franca, using students’ languages. These strategies appeared in a dynamic way as teachers tried to satisfy the aims of developing the language of schooling, communicating with students and valuing students’ linguistic identities. Prioritising Portuguese language dominated, and the strategies were enacted through monolingual views, indicating little awareness of multilingual pedagogies. Thus, the need to support teachers in transforming practices in multilingual classrooms is emphasised.