Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Life Histories Of Latino/A Teacher Candidates, Mary L. Gomez, Terri L. Rodriguez, Vonzell Agosto

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications

Background/Context: In this article, we explore the life histories of two Latino/a prospective elementary teachers in a large Midwestern university; examine their knowledge, strengths, and needs as teachers; and consider how teacher educators might capitalize on these. We explore how these prospective teachers’ prior family, home, K–12 schooling, and university experiences have forged their identities and affected how they think about campus peers and classroom colleagues, and their obligations to their students.

Research Questions: In analyzing these life histories, we ask: What knowledge, strengths, and needs do Latino/a teacher candidates bring to campus when enrolling in teacher education, and how …

Who Are Latino/A Prospective Teachers And What Do They Bring To U.S. Schools?, Mary L. Gomez, Terri L. Rodriguez, Vonzell Agosto

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications

In this article, the authors draw on life-history methods to investigate the family, school, university, and teacher education experiences of three Latino teacher candidates in a large, midwestern, research-oriented university in the United States. They show how in university social experiences and in teacher education classes and field experiences, these young men often felt misinterpreted in interactions with white females in particular. Also evident is their strong desire to make personal connections with youth and families they teach. The authors offer suggestions for how teacher educators can be more responsive to prospective male elementary teachers and teacher candidates of color.

Teacher Capacity And Social Justice In Teacher Education, Carl A. Grant, Vonzell Agosto

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications

In this chapter we discuss social justice and teacher capacity, an amalgam of teachers’ knowledge, skills and dispositions, by posing and answering three questions. How should education professionals define the concept of social justice? What is the relationship between teacher capacity and social justice? What are teacher educators doing in scholarship and practice to bring about social justice? Our purpose is to provide teacher educators with an overview of the concepts of social justice and teacher capacity, so they may understand the relationship between the two and consider how well they are contributing to Horace Mann’s vision of education as …