Examining Teacher Identity Through a Culturally Responsive Lens: Learning From Multilingual Students

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 4
  In Roundtable Session: Teacher Development and Identity in Multicultural Contexts (Table 7)

Abstract

Teacher preparation programs must prioritize a deliberate emphasis on teacher identity to cultivate culturally responsive educators in the increasingly diverse US schools. Teacher identity refers to how teachers see themselves in the teaching and learning process, and it is shaped by cultural and societal contexts. To address the call to prepare more effective educators, our qualitative case study focused on two in-service teachers’ perceptions of teaching multilingual students and how their ideas of culturally responsive practices evolved after completing graduate coursework and a field experience of tutoring multilingual learners. Findings revealed a deepened awareness of how these experiences impacted their teacher identities and their convictions for inclusive practices.

Authors

• Katya Koubek, James Madison University

• Stephanie A. Wasta, James Madison University