Functional literacy in a constructivist key: A nontraditional student teacher’s apprenticeship in a rural elementary school
Abstract
Part of a special issue on moral imperatives in contentious times. The writers describe the experience of a nontraditional university undergraduate whose student teaching took place in a small, impoverished rural community in the Southwest. This student teacher's concrete ability to order information embodied her belief that students needed direction and order as part of their meaningful transactions with their worlds.
Reference
Smagorinsky, P., Sanford, A. D., & Konopak, B. (2006). Functional literacy in a constructivist key: A nontraditional student teacher's apprenticeship in a rural elementary school. Teacher Education Quarterly, 33(4), 93-109
Journal
Teacher Education Quarterly
Analysis
Is this article part of a larger project or series of studies?
no
Does this study draw on a large, preexisting data set?
no
Research Approach
- Socio-cultural theory (Wenger 1998, Vygotsky 1978)
Geographic Setting
- Southwestern United States
Institutional Context
Certification Level
Programatic Focus
Research Location Context
- field placements (not related to methods courses)
Preservice Participants
- undergraduates in a Reading Methods course
Preservice Sample Size
Other Participant Data
- Cooperating teachers
- University Supervisor(s)
Duration of Data Collection
Data Sources
Data Analysis Tools
- Case study analysis
- Coding (descriptive)
Researcher Positionality
- inside (staying their own students)
Research Questions
Our study is thus concerned with the pedagogi cal tools through which Sandy carried out her instruction and worked to achieve her broader goals for her students.
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes