I love to flip the pages”: Preservice teachers and new literacies within a field experience

Abstract

It is sometimes assumed that “digital natives” will more easily integrate new literacies into their classrooms once they begin their careers. This study followed preservice teachers at the junior level who were taking part in a year-long field experience set in an urban high school. This field experience was set in the context of an English education methods course focusing on integrating new literacies into the English classroom. Interviews, blog posts, and survey responses suggest that many of the preservice teachers (born around 1990) expressed some of the same traditional views about using technology as teachers of an older generation. With some exceptions, most of the preservice teachers saw new literacies as best used to motivate students to learn traditional content.

Reference

Kist, W., & Pytash, K. E. (2015). "I love to flip the pages": Preservice teachers and new literacies within a field experience. English Education, 47(2), 131-167.

Journal

English Education

Analysis

Is this article part of a larger project or series of studies?

Does this study draw on a large, preexisting data set?

Research Approach

none stated
Qualitiative

Geographic Setting

United States

Institutional Context

University based

Certification Level

Secondary

Programatic Focus

New literacies

Research Location Context

field-based methods course
Literacy methods course
Secondary school

Preservice Participants

Undergraduates (university based program)

Preservice Sample Size

Duration of Data Collection

1 year

Data Sources

Blog
Focus group discussions
Focus group interviews
in class reflections
Reading Responses

Data Analysis Tools

Constant comparative analysis

Researcher Positionality

inside (staying their own students)
Inside (studying their own practices)

Research Questions

“What will preservice teachers’ perceptions be of the literacy practices taking place in the high school English classrooms, especially in light of being immersed in studying the concepts both of new literacies and New Literacy Studies for an entire year in our methods courses?
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes