Teacher-influencers: Social media and its influence on pre-service literacy teachers’ identities and practices as future educators

• In Event: Beyond the Mandate: Shaping Responsive, Reflective Literacy Educators in a Policy-Driven Landscape

Abstract

Social media is an ever-present component of pre-service teachers’ daily lives, yet its role in shaping their literacy identities and instructional practices remains underexplored. Content analysis shows how PSTs engage with social media as they develop teacher identities. Preliminary findings suggest PSTs accessed social media seeking connections and educational resources. These findings raise important questions about how teacher education programs might support PSTs in critically and purposefully navigating social media as a professional learning tool.

Authors

• Kimberly O Smith, Mississippi State University

• Hannah Elizabeth Dietrich, University of Houston - Clear lake

• carrie scheckelhoff, Otterbein University

• Stephanie M Lemley, Mississippi State University