Fostering Activism in Teacher Education

Drawing on interview and observation data of five ELA teacher educators, this book highlights the ways teacher educators make activism part of their preparation of future teachers and provides snapshots of four themes—centering students, framing courses, explicit assignments, and self-care and navigating political contexts. The book shines a light on both how teacher educators enact activism and the ways they talk about their work. The audience for this book includes ELA teacher educators, as well as teacher education more broadly, pre-service and in-service teachers, and others interested in exploring activism in education. Given our current socio-political context, specifically the onslaught of legislative efforts to prohibit equity-focused education and any discussions of the complicated and harmful history of the U.S., many educators need support in deciding how and where to incorporate activism into their teaching. Such efforts require careful negotiation of contexts and legislative and other parameters. By providing readers specific examples from educators who implement activism, including the ways they involve their students in activist endeavors, the book offers empirically based examples of activist teaching, reminds others that they are not alone in doing this work, and explores ways to frame and implement activist teaching practices. This is an excellent resource for teacher educators who want to incorporate activism into their work. It is particularly beneficial for ELA teacher educators in both pre-service teacher and graduate courses, as well as teacher education courses that focus on critical literacy, critical pedagogy, civic engagement, equity, and diversity.