Using a mixed-methods approach in classroom research to investigate challenges and issues of culture with beginning teachers in schools

This report describes the methods used in an exploration of the challenges and issues faced by Teach First teachers in their first year of teaching in a culturally diverse school, and the strategies they employ to overcome them. Using a mixed-methods tactic, both qualitative and quantitative data are collected, focusing on the perspectives of the teachers over the course of the academic year. Data collection and analysis were closely integrated to provide a more focused route as the project continued. Three common themes emerged: first, there is evidence from all data sets that cultural challenges exist for the participants, and that they have developed strategies for overcoming them during the course of the year. Second, the cultural gap is not necessarily seen as one between staff and pupils, but exists more between curriculum and pupils. Third, while cultural differences have caused problems for the participants, they have come to recognise that although they cannot change the whole culture of the school and its pupils, they can make a difference in class.