Abstract:

Due to significant migration (war or economic), Slovakia is also experiencing an increase in pupils from different cultural backgrounds. There is a growing need to prepare future teachers for this reality. The need for multicultural competence of teachers is also emphasized by foreign authors (Güven et al., 2022; McAllister & Irvine, 2000). However, there are few studies focusing on the links between multicultural competence and teachers' self-esteem. Self-esteem in teachers itself is an issue that has been studied in various contexts, particularly with an emphasis on its significant impact on teachers' work (Khan et al., 2015; Glotova &Wilhelm, 2014; Tabassum & Ali, 2012). The link between teachers' multicultural competence and self-regulated learning in student teachers is demonstrated by the study of Hladik et. al. al (2012). It shows that teacher's self-esteem is an important intrinsic factor acting on their pedagogical competence. This research study focuses on the correlation between the variables of multicultural competence (awareness, skill, knowledge) and self-esteem in preservice teachers. The research sample consisted of 120 undergraduate students of pre-primary and primary education. The research instruments used were: the Multicultural Competence Scale for Prospective Teachers (Erdem, 2020) with subscales: awareness, skill and knowledge and the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (RSES) (in Slovak adaptation Halama & Bieščad, 2006), measuring overall self-esteem scores. The results of the correlation analysis indicate weak significant positive relationships between the subscales of multicultural competence and teachers' overall self-esteem (0.20-0.24). When analyzing the descriptive indicators of the self-esteem of prospective teachers as well as the subscales of multicultural competence, some individuals show a need for further development of their multicultural competence as well as their self-esteem as part of their undergraduate studies.

Keywords:

Multicultural competence, self-esteem, prospective teachers.