“I Prioritized My Relationship With Her Instead of . . . the Student”: Framing Micro-Changes in Student Teaching

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Abstract

This paper investigated how preservice English teachers in their student teaching semester framed changes they made in their mentors’ classrooms to better align with their justice- and equity-oriented values. The study sample included five self-selected undergraduate and graduate preservice English teachers who agreed to meet biweekly to discuss dilemmas they experienced, plan changes, and reflect on their actions. Qualitative analysis of data collected – pre- and post-study interviews, meeting recordings, and self-selected artifacts of teaching practice from participants – yielded differences in how the English student teachers framed changes they saw as rooted in professional relationships as opposed to policies. These findings are significant for considering the professional micropolitical literacies student teachers develop for discretionary spaces.

Author

• Christopher Kingsland, University of Michigan