Exploring the Nature of Teacher Educator Attitudes and Engagement Within an Anti-Bias Community of Practice

• In Event: Teacher Learning: Belonging, Becoming, and Believing

Abstract

Teacher preparation institutions (TPIs) serve as a space where teacher candidates (TCs) can develop beliefs, attitudes, and practices around anti-bias education. A necessary first step to having a workforce of anti-bias educators is to prepare teacher educators (TEs) to effectively train TCs. In this study, we formed a community of practice (CoP) of TEs from across one state to participate in an anti-bias teacher education workshop, which they would then implement with their TCs. We explored the ways in which TEs’ personal and professional experiences influence their engagement and (dis)comfort with the workshop content and interactions with fellow CoP members. We share implications for future anti-bias teacher education and ways to most effectively prepare TEs for this work.

Authors

• Charlotte DeHaven Blain, University of Virginia

• Ariel Cornett, Georgia Southern University

• Judy Paulick, University of Virginia