Abstract
The new literacy studies (NLS) is a tradition of research that includes
ethnographic work on literacy that has many applications for classroom teachers.
The NLS include explorations of local literacies and critical literacy as well as the
notion of literacy itself. When teachers draw on the NLS, students are able to draw
on their practices in critical and transformative ways. However, NLS perspectives
have not been used to examine how teachers are prepared in pre-service programs
and the ways critical literacy practices develop. This paper examines how two pre-
service teachers learn to take up definitions of local literacies in their work with
students from racially, linguistically, and culturally diverse backgrounds in
practicum settings. They use approximations in literacy teaching to design
practices with students, demonstrating the process of becoming a teacher of
literacy. I conclude with recommendations for teacher educators who are
interested in supporting such approximations.