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This qualitative case study explores the reflections of first-year teachers in relation to their preparation to become teachers. Each teacher graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the same teacher education program within a university that is designated as an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) located in a midwestern city in the United States. The teachers were employed in nearby urban schools serving students from low-income communities. Implications from this study are intended to provide guidance to HBCUs located in urban regions. However, it is also hoped that predominantly white institutions (PWI) in urban areas will also find the implications of this study useful. The teachers in this study expressed feeling underprepared to handle challenges associated with classroom management (Kwok, 2021; Milner, 2014). Consistently, teachers expressed the wish for increased time in field experiences during their undergraduate years to help prepare them for the real-world context of teaching (Anthony et al., 2015; Camacho & Parham, 2019; Kwok, 2019).
Two theoretical lenses guided the research. Critical pedagogy (McLaren, 2016) was used to critique inequities and systems of power that underlie the context of urban education and historical need for HBCUs. Cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) (Cole & Engeström, 1993; Engeström 1987) provided a framework to understand ways in which the teachers experienced conflict and collaboration with fellow teachers, administration at their school, as well as university faculty from the teacher education program where they graduated. Understanding these interactions sheds light on the learning and development of teachers as their views of teaching are reshaped through experience (Engeström, & Sannino, 2010). The study was guided by the following question:
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In what ways did participation in the teacher education program impact the views and practices of the beginning teachers?
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What areas of conflict and collaboration emerged during the beginning teacher’s first year of teaching?
Beginning teachers in urban schools frequently feel that they have insufficient classroom management strategies (Milner, 2014). This article presents an argument for teacher education programs to adopt restorative justice in classroom management (Milner et al., 2019) combined with comprehensive instruction of classroom management strategies (Kwok, 2021). It is critical to address adequate field experiences within urban teacher preparation programs in relation to classroom management so that teachers who graduate from these programs feel adequately prepared for “real-world” challenges (Kwok, 2019). Once first-year teachers are in the school setting, mentoring programs are then vital in helping the novice educators overcome challenges.