Developing Future Teacher Activists: A Mixed-Methods Analysis of Preservice Teacher Politicization

• In Event: Teacher Activism for the Profession

Abstract

Recently, there have been growing calls for teacher education programs to take responsibility for disrupting educational inequity. Drawing on social psychology, this mixed-methods study investigates 11 preservice teachers’ (PST) process of developing a politicized collective identity as Future Teacher Activists (FTA), an identity that positions them to disrupt racism and oppression. We found that coursework on the social context of schooling, conversations with peers and family, and catalytic events, like COVID-19 and racial justice protests, were sites for politicized FTA identity development. Though all PST showed progress, few fully embodied the FTA identity after only six months, indicating that PST need ongoing opportunities for identity development. We offer recommendations for research, policy, and practice to support politicized FTA identity development.

Authors

• Sophia Seifert, Temple University

• Sidra Sheikh, Temple University

• Julie Whalen McIntyre, Temple University