The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Reflections on an Urban School Experience

• In Event: Preservice Teachers' Experiences in Community-Based Field Experiences to Expand Asset Thinking

Abstract

The attitudes and perceptions of urban education by pre-service teachers are mostly negative. These perceptions are, by in large, influenced by the race and socio-economic status of students in urban schools. One method of improving future teachers' attitudes toward diverse students and urban settings has been direct exposure and interaction through field experiences. In Spring 2017, a group of 14 pre-service STEM teachers participated in a one-week urban immersion experience. During the experience, participants kept daily journals, responded to specific prompts, completed a retrospective pre-post survey, and created a digital story. All participants reported the experience increased their understanding of the unfamiliar environment and said they felt more confident in their ability to work with diverse students.

Authors

• Lynne Masel Walters, Texas A&M University

• Martha Robison Green, Texas A&M University

• Jennifer G. Whitfield, Texas A&M University - College Station

• Dawn R. Parker, Texas A&M University

• Flora J Harmon, Texas A&M University - College Station