Teachers’ perspective concerning multicultural education to support Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Purpose This study aims to investigate Indonesian school teachers’ perceptions and pedagogical practices concerning multicultural education, with a particular focus on their alignment with global education frameworks, notably the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It seeks to assess the depth and coherence of teachers’ understandings, as well as the extent to which their instructional practices embody principles of global citizenship and intercultural competence. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative content analysis was conducted based on semistructured interviews with 55 teachers representing diverse school levels and institutional types. The interviews examined teachers’ conceptual frameworks, classroom strategies and awareness of global education objectives. Data were thematically coded and analyzed inductively to identify convergent and divergent patterns in perceptions and practices. Findings The analysis reveals that teachers generally articulate positive orientations toward multicultural education, prioritizing respect for diversity and the promotion of inclusivity. Nevertheless, their conceptual understandings exhibit considerable variation and often lack critical depth, leading to fragmented and inconsistent implementation in classroom settings. Pedagogical practices are shaped by curricular relevance, institutional support and the availability of resources. While explicit references to the SDGs are limited, many practices implicitly reflect the aims of SDG 4.7, which advocates education for global citizenship, cultural awareness and sustainable development. Originality/value This study advances the discourse on multicultural education in the Indonesian context by bridging it with global education imperatives. It offers novel empirical insights into the disjunction between policy aspirations and pedagogical realities, highlighting the urgent need for the systematic integration of multicultural and global competencies into teacher education, curriculum design and educational policy to achieve more coherent and equitable implementation. Unlike prior Indonesian studies, which tend to overlook teachers’ lived experiences, rarely provide explicit alignment with SDG 4.7 and often lack observation-based triangulation, this study directly addresses these gaps to make its contribution both explicit and empirically verifiable.