Hospitality and Emotional Safety in Intercultural Distance Learning: Strategies for Inclusive Music Pedagogy

VISUALISING TEACHER ANXIETY AND IDENTITY IN THE SOUTH KOREAN CONTEXT

In South Korea, elementary school teachers are increasingly experiencing anxiety due to intensified emotional labor, heightened parental expectations, and shifting sociocultural perceptions of the teaching profession. While prior research has examined teacher stress from psychological and institutional perspectives, less attention has been given to how anxiety is expressed and interpreted through multimodal and reflective practices within specific sociocultural contexts. This study explores how teachers visualize and reflect upon their anxiety through art-based expression and dialogue, and how these processes relate to their professional identity. Adopting a qualitative multimodal design, the study integrates narrative inquiry, visual analysis, and dialogic interaction. Four in-service elementary school teachers participated in structured art-based activities and reflective dialogues. Data were collected from visual artworks, reflective writings, and recorded dialogues, and analyzed using thematic analysis with multimodal integration. The findings indicate that participants’ anxiety is shaped by external expectations, emotional suppression, and identity-related tensions. The limitations of this study include the small sample size (n = 4) and the exploratory nature of the research, both of which limit the transferability of the findings.  Therefore, the interpretations presented here should be understood as context-specific insights rather than generalizable conclusions. Art-based expression functioned as a reflective medium, enabling participants to externalize and reinterpret their emotional experiences, while dialogue facilitated shared understanding and relational meaning-making. Rather than generalizing beyond the study context, the findings provide insight into how anxiety is experienced and negotiated within a specific sociocultural setting. This study contributes methodologically by demonstrating the value of integrating visual and dialogic approaches in qualitative research on emotional and identity-related phenomena. It also suggests implications for teacher education and professional development by highlighting the importance of reflective and expressive practices.

Attadib: Journal of Elementary Education

Teaching Across Cultures in Music: Rethinking Authenticity and Practice in Initial Teacher Education

In contexts of growing social polarisation and cultural complexity, tertiary educators are increasingly called upon to move beyond celebratory multiculturalism towards critically informed intercultural praxis in preparing students for 21st-century classrooms. Drawing on a sustained transnational collaboration between Australia and Spain within initial teacher education, this paper adopts a collaborative autoethnographic approach to critically reflect on our pedagogical practices and their implications for culturally responsive music education. We examine how intercultural musical encounters, particularly those involving culture bearers, can foster cultural competence and critical reflection among pre-service teachers, while also generating tensions related to knowledge, cultural ownership, authenticity, and appropriation. Building on these reflections, we reconceptualise authenticity as a relational and dialogic process, co-constructed through interaction, mediation, and context-sensitive engagement. We propose a conceptual framework grounded in three interrelated dimensions: collaborative partnerships, relational authenticity, and dialogic mediation through educator facilitation. Together, these principles offer an ethically informed and pedagogically grounded approach to intercultural music education that moves beyond representation towards sustained, meaningful engagement with cultural diversity. By foregrounding the role of the educator as a cultural mediator and drawing on insights generated through sustained intercultural practice and prior research, this paper contributes to ongoing debates on belonging, inclusion, and the development of culturally responsive practices in contemporary music teacher education.

Bridging Cultures through Reflection: Metacognitive Approaches of Multicultural EFL Learners

This study aims to examine how EFL students from diverse cultural backgrounds manage their learning processes through metacognitive awareness and self-reflection in a multicultural academic setting. The importance of cross-cultural communicative competence in English language acquisition is increasing, rendering students' ability to regulate their cognition, learning strategies, and emotional responses crucial for achieving academic success. This study employed a phenomenological approach with eleven students from the English Language Education Study Program at Universitas Megarezky. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and later analyzed using thematic analysis technique. The findings found four principal themes: Self-awareness, Strategic regulation, Cultural adaptation, and Competence transformation These findings emphasize the importance of integrating metacognitive and reflection-based learning practices into the EFL curriculum to enhance students' intercultural competence, emotional resilience, and learning independence. This research provides theoretical contributions to the study of metacognitive learning and cross-cultural communication, as well as practical implications for educators designing globally responsive English language learning.

Strategies of Bridging the Gap Created by Antipathy

This study, titled “Strategies of Bridging the Gap Created by Antipathy”, examined how values-based educational strategies help address negative attitudes, emotional distance, and disengagement among students in school settings. The study aimed to identify effective situational, relational, and contextual strategies that promote empathy, respect, cooperation, and positive relationships within the educational environment. A qualitative research design was employed using in-depth interviews with twenty-seven teacher participants from Lakandula High School who were selected through purposive sampling. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis to determine recurring patterns and themes. The findings revealed that teachers recognized the significant role of values education in fostering holistic student development, promoting positive school culture, and reducing antipathy among learners. Teachers emphasized strategies such as integrating values education across subject areas, modeling ethical behavior, encouraging empathy and respect, adapting instruction to learners’ diverse needs, and creating safe and inclusive classroom environments. The study further highlighted the importance of collaboration among teachers, parents, and school administrators in strengthening values formation. The study concluded that a holistic and values-driven approach is essential in bridging antipathy in schools. It underscores the importance of integrating moral formation with academic learning to cultivate compassionate, respectful, and socially responsible individuals.

Collaborative Learning Effectiveness in Thai Classrooms: A Cultural Psychology Perspective

Collaborative learning has been widely recognized as an effective pedagogical approach for enhancing student engagement, critical thinking, and academic achievement. However, its effectiveness may vary across cultural contexts. This study examines the effectiveness of collaborative learning in Thai classrooms through a cultural psychology perspective. Drawing on sociocultural theory and cultural dimensions, the study explores how collectivist values, power distance, and interpersonal norms influence students’ participation, interaction, and learning outcomes in group-based learning environments. A mixed-method approach was employed, combining survey data from 280 secondary and undergraduate students with classroom observations and interviews. The findings indicate that collaborative learning is generally effective in promoting engagement and social cohesion, but its impact on critical thinking and individual accountability is moderated by cultural factors. Students tend to prioritize harmony and group consensus, which may limit open disagreement and deep cognitive conflict. The study contributes to the literature by contextualizing collaborative learning within Southeast Asian cultural settings and offers practical implications for designing culturally responsive pedagogy.