New Teachers Talk About the Relevancy of Social Foundations: On the Path to Becoming “Highly Qualified” Teachers
Julie H. Carter, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, The School of Education
Abstract
Educational policy debates around the definitions of, and prescriptions for, the development of qualified teachers have long ignored the role that social foundations can play in equipping new teachers for their roles in urban classrooms. This study examines the voices of a set of urban teachers who have used their social foundations course to “think through” the urban educational terrain. Findings from these iterations indicate three themes for how new teachers articulate the relevancy of social foundations. Both prospective and practicing new teachers argue that social foundations not only inform their thinking about the work of teaching and their understanding of the context of that work in urban schools, but they facilitate decision making around issues of practice. The most important finding is that teachers say it is social foundations coursework that helps them to place themselves within current debates about what defines a “highly qualified teacher.”