Preservice Teachers Making Sense of Racialized Experiences

• In Event: Thursday Roundtable Session 10:50 am
  In Roundtable Session: Teachers' of Color Educational Journeys and Identity Development (Table 38)

Abstract

As learners in teacher education, preservice teachers (PST) experience race, and are asked to interpret the meaning of race, as they develop their practice. Entering with multiple, intersectional racial identities, PST apply their racial experiential knowledge to interpret meaning for race. This study uses constructivist grounded theory and semi-structured interviews to examine how nine racially-diverse PSTs interpret and position themselves in relation to racialization occurring in their teacher education. Findings suggest that these preservice teachers are noticing race, positioning their racial understanding, and making sense of race as teacher education learners. These insights are significant regarding the ways teacher educators draw attention to race, integrate the racialized experiences of preservice teachers, and align racial meaning to equitable learning goals.

Author

• Nicholas D. Hagemann, Oregon State University