Will I Be Molded or Crushed? Artistic Representations of Student Teacher Identities and Emotions

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 5
  In Poster Session: Exploring Dynamic Uses of Arts-Based Inquiry (San Diego)

Abstract

This paper reports on the findings from a cross-institutional study of how arts-based reflection helped teacher candidates to identify and express their thoughts, feelings, and actions regarding the process of learning to teach. Inspired by PostSecret (Warren, 2005), teacher candidates created anonymous artwork in response to prompts around emergent teacher identity. Through their artwork, candidates highlighted perceived dissonance between their teacher preparation program and K-12 school settings. Additionally, when selecting one piece of art as inspiration for a written reflection, teacher candidates gravitated toward the artwork that provided emotional windows and mirrors (Souto-Manning et. al., 2018) into their own experiences. This study holds significance for recognizing and responding meaningfully to the difficult emotional and identity work of student teaching.

Authors

• Laura M Kennedy, Northern Michigan University

• Kaitlin I Glause, Millikin University