Examining Intersectionality of Race and Language: Microaggressions Encountered by International Teacher Candidates During Their Internship

• In Event: Roundtable Session 11
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Analysis of International Education Issues

Abstract

Drawing on data from a year-long interviews and ethnographic field notes with non-native English speaking (NNES) teacher candidates with Chinese and Korean backgrounds, this paper explores those teacher candidates’ experiences of micro-aggressions during their field experiences in the U.S. K-12 school context. Using the theoretical framework of micro-aggressions and counter-stories, this study illustrates what they recognize (or do not recognize), and how they interpret their racialized experiences. Further, this paper considers how the racialized experiences of these teacher candidates expand the framework of micro-aggressions encountered by teachers of color in a professional setting. In concluding, the author draws implications for the needs of all teacher candidates.

Author

• Jihea Kang, Michigan State University