Social Justice in Teacher Education: A Qualitative Content Analysis of NCATE Conceptual Frameworks

A review of theoretical or conceptual writing on teacher education reveals numerous examples of the term “social justice” in discussions of preservice preparation. Despite this widespread use, little research documents if and how teacher education programs utilize the concept in their programs. This study examines how institutions that included “social justice” within their NCATE accreditation documents used the term in their articulation of program practices, goals, and values. Based on an extensive qualitative content analysis of NCATE conceptual frameworks, the authors assert that the social justice reform agenda is only weakly represented in accreditation artifacts and that there is little consensus on the enactment of social justice in teacher education, even among those programs that invoke the terminology.     

Working an Academically Rigorous,Multicultural Program

In 1997 the California State University Monterey Bay Master of Arts in Education program began accepting students with the explicit intent of offering an academically challenging curriculum that grounds teacher-leaders in multicultural social justice education. By 2003, the program had successfully attracted and graduated a student population that is as racially and ethnically diverse as the state of California. As eight faculty members who designed and implemented this program, writing from a position of “insider knowledge” regarding how it functioned on a day-to-day basis, we show how culturally and linguistically diverse students, many of whom have been underprepared for rigorous academic work, can attain high levels of academic excellence in a challenging and supportive context. In addition, we explore the tensions and realities of doing this work, especially in a state university context that is experiencing decreased funding that jeopardizes programs such as this one. We write so that our work is not forgotten but rather narrates what is possible.     

A Disability Studies Perspective on the Bush Education Agenda: The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 1

Our educational system is undergoing great scrutiny. The success of our nation's schools and their students is under serious evaluation and interpretation. Currently, one of the most visible and pertinent “political products” impacting our schools and students is the federal legislation No Child Left Behind (2002) Cohen, M. 2002. Implementing Title 1 standards, assessments and accountability: Lessons from the past, challenges for the future. Paper presented at the Thomas B. Fordham Conference: No Child Left Behind: What will it take?. February2002, Washington, DC.  [Google Scholar]. Specific concerns arise around schools' ability to include students with disabilities, among other “disadvantaged groups,” in strategies for academic success. Disability Studies contends that the place and positioning of disability is fundamentally political. This article uses a Disability Studies lens to critique NCLB. The potential benefits, problematic areas, and dangerous aspects to schools, teachers, parents, students with disabilities, and the community at large are presented within this Disability Studies context.     

A Comparison of Limited-Information and Full-Information Methods in Mplus for Estimating Item Response Theory Parameters for Nonnormal Populations

In structural equation modeling software, either limited-information (bivariate proportions) or full-information item parameter estimation routines could be used for the 2-parameter item response theory (IRT) model. Limited-information methods assume the continuous variable underlying an item response is normally distributed. For skewed and platykurtic latent variable distributions, 3 methods were compared in Mplus: limited information, full information integrating over a normal distribution, and full information integrating over the known underlying distribution. Interfactor correlation estimates were similar for all 3 estimation methods. For the platykurtic distribution, estimation method made little difference for the item parameter estimates. When the latent variable was negatively skewed, for the most discriminating easy or difficult items, limited-information estimates of both parameters were considerably biased. Full-information estimates obtained by marginalizing over a normal distribution were somewhat biased. Full-information estimates obtained by integrating over the true latent distribution were essentially unbiased. For the a parameters, standard errors were larger for the limited-information estimates when the bias was positive but smaller when the bias was negative. For the d parameters, standard errors were larger for the limited-information estimates of the easiest, most discriminating items. Otherwise, they were generally similar for the limited- and full-information estimates. Sample size did not substantially impact the differences between the estimation methods; limited information did not gain an advantage for smaller samples.     

Before Student Teaching: How Undergraduate Students in Early Childhood Teacher Preparation Programs Describe Their Early Classroom-Based Experience

Classroom-based experiences, alternatively known as practica, are an integral component of undergraduate teacher preparation programs, which provide students essential opportunities to apply knowledge in practice. Though much is known about student teaching, much less is known about students’ earlier classroom-based experiences. This qualitative study explores how early childhood care and education students describe their early classroom-based experience. Thirty-four students enrolled in a teacher preparation program participated in interviews, submitted journals, and responded to survey questions about their early classroom-based experience. Results are presented in terms of how students talk about their experiences—belonging or not belonging in the classroom—and what students talk about when discussing their experiences, including communication, support, freedom, new learning, and “the children.” These themes are discussed in terms of students’ experiences in the classroom and implications for undergraduate teacher preparation in early childhood education.     

Developing Teachers' Classroom Interactions: A Description of a Video Review Process for Early Childhood Education Students

This article describes a video review process for providing feedback to students and documents students' teaching practices using the CLASS in a practicum course and student teaching. Students videotaped themselves in their field-based settings and then met with the course instructors and classmates in small groups to review strengths and challenges of their teaching using the CLASS framework of teacher–child interactions. These videos were also coded by trained CLASS observers across 10 dimensions in the areas of emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support. Results from preservice teachers' CLASS ratings indicate a pattern similar to national data sets using the CLASS, higher scores in the emotional support and classroom organization domains than in the domain of instructional support. Also, findings from the current study revealed that CLASS scores declined from students' practicum placement to the end of student teaching in the domain of emotional support and specifically in the dimensions of regard for student perspectives and behavior management. The process of using videos for providing feedback in field-based experiences is discussed as well as implications for teacher development in light of students' CLASS scores and changes in CLASS scores.     

BEING A CONSTRUCTIVIST TEACHER EDUCATOR: AN INVITATION FOR DIALOGUE

This article is part of a larger exploratory study that followed preservice early childhood teachers through their program and into their first year of practice, giving voice to their understandings of quality teaching and learning, and insight into the ways their preservice program prepared them for the challenges of teaching in diverse settings. Analyses of our graduates’ first-year interviews revealed participants’ perceptions on those elements of the program which best guided their decisions in practice, such as reflective thinking about their daily work and child observation and inquiry. Findings support the importance of engaging in differentiated instruction, reflective practice, and collaboration through a variety of experiences in the field, and illuminate everyday practices that bring richness to teaching and learning in early childhood education. Emergent questions about the best ways to provide quality early childhood teacher preparation are discussed in relation to the dilemmas early childhood teachers face in the current educational landscape.     

Moving forward in inclusive education research

This paper aims to address conceptual and methodological challenges of doing research in the field of inclusive education and revisit school effectiveness research literature to inform future research. First, we present the rationale for inclusive education and briefly review the evolution of special needs education. Then, we discuss limitations of current research on inclusive education. Next, we present school- and classroom-level findings of school effectiveness research to highlight how it can influence the inclusive education research agenda. We conclude by presenting future directions for research.