Minoritized Pre-service Teachers' Negotiated Border Crossings

This study examined how five minoritized female pre-service teachers negotiated their border crossing from learning to teach science to science teaching for the first time (microteaching) within the context of an elementary science teaching methods course. Perspectives from the border crossing literature guided this study and helped in addressing the nature of the negotiated meanings as the five pre-service teachers navigated their transitions from learning to teach science to teaching science for the first time. Analysis of data revealed three negotiated meanings that underscored participants' border crossings: (1) expectations for an effective science teacher, (2) expectations for student learning, and (3) expectations for an equity-based science learning environment. Implications include the need (1) for past science learning experiences to be identified and examined within the contexts of teacher education programs by providing suitable supportive environments for reflection and understanding and (2) to investigate minoritized pre-service teachers' past science learning experiences and how these experiences act to influence their perceptions of learning to teach science especially when they transition to teaching science for the first time and in the future.

Automated summary

This study examined the border crossing process of five minoritized female pre-service teachers as they transitioned from learning to teach science to teaching science for the first time. The analysis revealed three negotiated meanings that underscored the participants' border crossings: expectations for an effective science teacher, expectations for student learning, and expectations for an equity-based science learning environment. The implications include the need to identify and examine past science learning experiences within teacher education programs and to investigate how these experiences influence perceptions of learning to teach science.