Desafíos y necesidades en la formación inicial de docentes multigrado en México: hacia un modelo pertinente para contextos rurales

In Mexico, more than one-third of all elementary education schools operate under the multigrade modality. It is necessary to develop curriculum designs that provide elements for teachers to improve their performance when providing educational services in this modality. One alternative is to recover experiences and knowledge from in-service teachers as a source for curriculum design. This exploratory cross-sectional study aims to identify the topics that, from the perspective of multigrade school teachers, should be included in initial teacher training processes. To achieve this purpose, in 2020 a survey was administered to 3,002 teachers from different states. The results show three groups of topics considered essential for training in multigrade contexts: teaching practice, curriculum and scientific and technical knowledge; school management; and student and context characteristics. Additionally, desirable conditions for the development of teacher training processes were identified.