Resident Teachers Take an Inquiry Stance

• In Event: Exploring Pedagogies for Developing a Critical Inquiry Stance to Teaching

Abstract

Alternative certification programs seek to bring qualified literacy teachers to underserved classrooms. To be successful at teaching children to read, teachers must develop more than content and pedagogy knowledge. This study explores the transformative inquiry of developing ‘resident’ teachers in their journey as they teach struggling readers in guided reading throughout various schools in Washington, D.C. Collaborative teams shared videotaped lessons, problem solved, and supported the development of teacher’s instructional practices and students’ reading abilities. This phenomenological research captures experiences, reflections and shifts in practice as teachers used guided reading groups as sites of inquiry. The findings inform teacher education initiatives intended to develop effective and reflective literacy teachers ready to positively impact student literacy and transform their urban classrooms.

Author

• Patricia Jean Crain de Galarce, Lesley University