Page 15 - Diversity in Action

Introduction: Diversity in Action

This is the general premise on which the inter-university project DivA: Di-
versity in Action was conceived. The project aimed to develop innovative
online pedagogies, based on active, experiential learning and participatory
methods which would give pre-service teachers the opportunity to engage
in cross-border encounters, exposing them to linguistic and cultural diver-
sity during their studies. It was clear that, rather than merely promoting or
discussing diversity in teacher education, it was crucial to develop innova-
tive teaching practices that facilitate the negotiation of complex academic
content while drawing on participants’ experiences with different languages
and cultures.
One of the project’s goals was to bring together teacher education profes-
sors, researchers, and practitioners for both in-person and online meetings at
various partner institutions, where they could share and discuss knowledge
and experiences in multilingual education. These gatherings also included
visits to schools and cultural institutions.
A further key goal was to design and pilot a Massive Open Online Course
(MOOC) – an open-source, asynchronous professional development pro-
gramme intended to help pre-service and in-service teachers effectively
work in linguistically and culturally diverse classrooms. During the MOOC
pilot phase, students from partner universities collaborated both online and
face-to-face, engaging in various topics related to languages and cultures,
including multilingual teaching strategies, storytelling, and drama. To ex-
tend the project’s impact, multiplier events were organised to disseminate
its findings and experiences, reaching a broader audience that included pre-
service and in-service teachers, school principals, researchers, practitioners,
educational policymakers, as well as parents and other interested members
of the public.
The institutions involved in the DivA project were the University of Pri-
morska (Slovenia), the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano (Italy), the Univer-
sity of Pula (Croatia), the University College of Teacher Education of Vienna
(Austria), and the University of Trento (Italy). These institutions share a com-
mon interest in developing approaches to teaching in linguistically and cul-
turally diverse environments. Working in multilingual and multicultural en-
vironments, they recognise the need for teachers to have specific skills and
competences to deal effectively with diversity in its broadest sense. This in-
cludes supporting efforts to combat stereotypes, promote understanding,
foster tolerance, and encourage non-discrimination. The educational land-
scapes within the DivA project contexts are further explored in the next sec-
tion.

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