Supporting Aspiring Educator Learning and Teacher Identity Development in a Grow Your Own Teacher Program

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session 1
  In Roundtable Session: Antiracism in Teacher Education: Preparing Teachers to Confront and Realize Justice Commitments

Abstract

This qualitative study examined the professional identity development of graduates of a Grow Your Own (GYO) pre-educator program partnered between a university-based teacher education program and schools in a southern state of the U.S. Interviews and analysis of documents and artifacts revealed that the integrated learning that combined academic knowledge and field experiences afforded by the GYO allowed participants to understand what it entailed to be a teacher in authentic classroom settings while exploring their emerging teacher identities as peripheral yet legitimate members of the teaching community of practice. Their situated learning was supported by a strong mentorship and collaborative partnerships among high schools, universities, and the community. Implications for strengthening school-university partnerships in teacher preparation were discussed.

Authors

• Yiting Chu, University of Louisiana at Monroe

• Amy Weems, University of Louisiana at Monroe