LEARNING THROUGH CULTURAL-CONTACT - A PROCESS ANALYSIS OF THE ACCULTURATION OF GERMAN BEGINNING TEACHERS IN MULTICULTURAL CLASSES

One of the aims of this qualitative longitudinal study focusing on nov ice teachers is the content-analytic reconstruction of the differences in individual changes triggered by continuous contact with students o f another cultural background in multicultural schools The underlying hypothesis is that the structure and direction of changes depends on t he young teacher's ability to cope both cognitively and affectively wi th incompatible cultural validities in their own behavior and in that of students of a different cultural background as well as on the inter cultural strategy chosen. The authors sketch the personal changes thro ugh cultural contact expected by the beginning teachers before startin g their practical training, the changes resulting from the experiences made during that time as they manifest themselves at the end of train ing phase, and those changes which could be detected in tutorially gui ded discussions of foreign cultural positions. The results show clear differences in the acculturation processes. By the majority, the incre ase in cognitive differentiation resulting from experiences made in de aling with cultural phenomena is regarded as an opportunity for person al change.