“Engagement and Autonomy for My Students”: Developing Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy Through Cross-Cultural Book Clubs

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 5:25 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: School and Teaching Renewal on Multicultural Practices (Table 1)

Abstract

Our primary purpose was to examine the development of teacher candidates’ culturally sustaining pedagogical stances while engaging in cross-cultural book clubs with other teacher candidates from diverse regions in the U.S. We applied critical ethnography in examination of teacher candidates’ experiences throughout book club events, including synchronous and asynchronous discussions, utilizing multicultural young adult literature. We recruited twenty-five teacher candidates from two diverse regions in the US to participate, a southwestern and southeastern state. Self-identified participant demographics include: 11 Latina/x, 2 Asian females, 10 White females, 1 Latino/x male and 1 White male. Teacher candidates developed cultural competence and a culturally sustaining pedagogy stance, while also recognizing and critiquing educational and social inequities.

Authors

• Susan V. Bennett, University of South Florida - St. Petersburg

• Steven Hart, California State University - Fresno

• Monica T. Billen, California State University - Fresno