Exploring intercultural capital through Greek teachers’ narratives

SPYRIDOULA GIAKI, EUGENIA ARVANITIS

Abstract

This article focuses on the narratives of two Greek teachers working in public elementary schools. The research seeks to examine the teachers' life experiences in relation to the factors that constitute intercultural capital. Intercultural capital theory draws on Bourdieu's framework of capital and interprets the experiences of personal and professional developing during the various stages of life. This type of theorizing allows for teachers’ narratives to be viewed as a source of professional development and agency. Narrators focus on the primary habitus built on family capital resources and the secondary professional habitus based on educators' practice. Our data suggests that intercultural capital can server as a resource for the educators’ professional development and individual advancement. Teachers who can draw on a rich cultural heritage derived from a supportive family environment are more likely to accumulate highly valuable and widely transferable varieties of intercultural capital depending on their level of social integration.

Keywords

Life narratives, educators, intercultural capital, habitus

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References

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.26220/mje.4009

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