Developing and Enacting Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: Voices of New Teachers of Color

ABSTRACT

A group of preservice and first year teachers share their experiences as new teachers of Color entering the profession in urban public schools. Specifically, these novice teachers discuss the transition from an urban education teacher preparation program into the classroom and their successes and challenges enacting culturally relevant pedagogy. Findings showcase understanding self, community, and collaboration among critical pedagogues and navigating theory and practice as emergent themes. These new teachers speak to the journey of becoming the teachers they want to become and the challenges they encounter in public K-12 schools. Implications are presented to highlight the power and passion of these new teachers and how we, as critical scholars, must learn from them and work with them as we seek to disrupt the dominant, middle class, white discourse in teacher education programs and educational research.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Noah E. Borrero

Noah E. Borrero is an associate professor of Teacher Education at the University of San Francisco (USF) where he developed the Master's program in Urban Education and Social Justice. He teaches courses in bilingual education, critical pedagogy, and action research. Prior to teaching at USF, he was a high school teacher.

Esther Flores

Esther Flores is a history teacher at La Cuesta Continuation High School in Santa Barbara, CA, where she seeks to develop students’ passion for learning and justice. Through a curriculum that is rigorous, critical, asset-based, and linguistically validating, Esther seeks to create a humanizing and transformative space inside and beyond the classroom.

Gabriel de la Cruz

Gabriel de la Cruz is currently a teacher at Thurgood Marshall Academic High School in the Bayview district of San Francisco, CA. He teaches social studies courses in modern world history, U.S. history, hip-hop history, and ethnic studies.