In this article, co-written by a teacher and a professor, the authors examine possible explanations for why Adam (first author), a New York City public school special educator, failed the edTPA, a teacher performance assessment required by all candidates for state certification. Adam completed a yearlong teaching residency where he was the special…

Previous research has shown that professional communities have the potential to be a powerful lever for continuous improvement in school settings. This research seeks to extend previous research by investigating the indicators of professional community that influence science teaching practice. This study took place in a network of urban…

K-12 teachers who write about their daily work on blogs and other social media platforms share local knowledge and wisdom from the immediate view of the classroom. These first-hand retellings of everyday classroom life offer a unique critique of educational policy from the teachers' perspective. Reporting on the analysis of 14 public-facing blogs…

This case study explores an urban secondary literacy teacher's involvement in communities of inquiry over time. I draw on data from a multiyear study that documented the intellectual work of a community of teacher candidates I worked with as an instructor in a literacy methods course and cofounder of an inquiry community they participated in…

Technology use in high-minority, low-income middle school ELA classrooms is defined by traditional instructional practices (Applebee & Langer, 2013; Attewell, 2001; Boser, 2013; Cuban, 2001; Lankshear & Knobel, 2008), barriers to access (O'Dwyer et al., 2005; Purcell et al., 2013; Warschauer & Matuchniak, 2010), and inequalities in use…

This qualitative, multicase study examined the support, instruction, coursework, discussions, field and clinical experiences, and critical reflection that took place within a precollegiate Urban Teaching Academy (UTA) magnet program located in a southeastern school district. Two major themes emerged with sub-themes undergirding each. The first…

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…

This ethnodrama communicates the lived experience of an outstanding teacher of English who worked in the Chicago Public Schools for more than 20 years. Excerpts from three semi-structured interviews have been constructed into a one-woman show that uses music, dance, and the art of theater to convey the spiritual beauty of ambitious, urban teaching…

Purpose: We examine how uncertainty, both about students and the context in which they are taught, remains a persistent condition of teachers' work in high-poverty, urban schools. We describe six schools' organizational responses to these uncertainties, analyze how these responses reflect open- versus closed-system approaches, and examine how this…

Co-teaching has been used to address access and accountability mandates for students with disabilities. Despite research regarding elements needed for co-teaching success, research shows mixed results regarding co-teaching effectiveness as it relates to student achievement. Given that teachers are the most influential school-related factor…

This article addresses a unique effort to implement a summer residential program that identifies and inspires potential educators by reaching down the pipeline to academically talented high school students. The primary goal of the program was to introduce participants to various dimensions of urban teaching. The research and evaluation for the…

Urban teacher residency (UTR) programs have been widely endorsed (National Education Association, 2014; Thorpe, 2014), yet the body of literature on these programs has not definitively identified the benefits of UTRs over and above traditional teacher education programs--if any exist. The current study explored how faculty and staff working in one…

It has been a year since Sarah and Brian traveled to Malmo, Sweden, as part of a fellowship through their U.S. teacher preparation program. Their experience was unique and life changing, not only because it occurred in another country but because they completed their student teaching in a paired format. They planned and implemented all of their…

In the last ten years, education reform in this country has led to keen emphasis on student achievement at every level. Since then, many research studies have been dedicated to closing the student achievement gap through the examination of teacher training & development. Research has also incited awareness in the value of "emotional…

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact that induction programs have on self-efficacy of new teachers in urban, Midwestern high schools. Because induction programs have been used to measure elements of new teacher self-efficacy, it remains important to study this topic, and explore the information in an urban setting where self-efficacy…