This qualitative study investigated online instructors’ perceptions of cultural diversity in the online classroom and the challenges encountered by instructors of online courses as they incorporate multicultural learning content into the online learning environment. An associated goal of the study was to explore the instructional strategies that online instructors employ to create conducive online learning environments that value cultural differences and educational experiences of students in online classrooms. The study drew on Bennett’s (2001) framework of multicultural research that explored cultural issues and how they affect teaching and learning process in the face-to-face classroom. Fifty instructors of online courses from three universities in the northeastern part of the United States participated in the study. The findings pointed to four themes, namely that: (a) differential perceptions of cultural diversity exist among instructors of online courses; (b) perceptions of cultural diversity depend on the academic disciplines taught by instructors; (c) a variety of instructional strategies—collaborative online learning activities, incorporating multicultural learning activities and global learning content, using cultural awareness project, addressing the impact of multicultural education—support cultural diversity in the online environment; and (d) there are significant challenges associated with promoting cultural diversity in online teaching and learning.

This study examines the factors that helped Ghanaian-born immigrant students to strategize how to combine their multiple worlds of families, schools, teachers, and peers to affect academic engagement within contexts of school and classroom situations. It also explored teachers’ perception and understanding of the sociocultural and past educational experiences of immigrant students from Ghana.

This study examines the way in which 15-year-old 9th and 10th grade Trindiadian bidialectal adolescent youth self-identified linguistically on the 2009 PISA literacy assessment and explores their reading, math, and science literacy performance based on their self-identification as native English and non-native English speaking students.