"One Good Lesson": Reimagining Field Experiences as Communities of Practice

• In Event: 61.047 - Communities of Practice in Place-Based, Field-Based, and University-Based Programs

Abstract

This case-study examines the experiences of preservice teachers during a teaching writing course that aligned course-work and field-based practice by utilizing Wenger’s (1998, 2010) community of practice model (CoP), which positioned preservice teachers as meaning-making entities for whom social worlds are a resource for constituting identities as practitioners. Guiding questions are: How does a CoP model for field experiences contribute to identity development? and How does the CoP model support preservice teachers’ understanding of teaching (writing)? An analysis of participant reflections, interviews, observations, and artifacts illustrate the process of the CoP and reveal that participation in a CoP invited collaboration, contribution, and dialogue; reified participation and accountability in the field; and developed teaching repertoires through identity development and re-alignment.

Authors

• Latrise Johnson, The University of Alabama

• Elizabeth P. Eubanks, The University of Alabama