Problem: The high attrition rate among teachers poses significant challenges for schools (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2019; Covay Minor et al., 2019; Hammonds, 2017; Ingersoll & Strong, 2011; Kamrath & Bradford, 2020; Ryu & Jinnai, 2021), particularly in urban settings with diverse student populations (Carver-Thomas &…

This study examined how the concept of social justice was operationalized in the university coursework of students enrolled in an urban teacher residency program that aims to diversify the teaching corps and prepare secondary STEM teachers for urban classroom environments. Based on analysis of 39 syllabi and interviews with nine faculty members,…

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework was established as a comprehensive, equitable approach for addressing urban students' academic, behavioral, and social-emotional needs. Still, confusion surrounded its implementation. On returning to in-person instruction, urban educators have been challenged to…

East St. Louis educators provide critical counter-narratives to Jonathan Kozol's depiction of teaching and learning in East St. Louis, Illinois in "Savage Inequalities." Teachers, educators, and administrators provide a complex view of urban schooling beyond deficiency, inadequacy, and despair. Findings highlight educators' voices as…

The teacher shortage currently plaguing the United States is exacerbated in the urban context. One particular model being adopted in urban school districts to address the teacher shortage and issues of educational equity is the urban teacher residency (UTR) model. The UTR model employs a collaboration between institutions of higher education…

Drawing from the experiences and reflections of new urban educators, this study examines how teachers undergo their first year of teaching on account of their student teaching. Using "Situated Learning Theory"--with an emphasis on legitimate peripheral participation--this study explores how sociocultural and contextual elements of…

Available evidence suggests that inequities exist in the distribution of qualified teachers within high-poverty urban schools, and further, that such inequities adversely affect student achievement in these schools. This paper highlights the role of teacher education in addressing this challenge by describing the findings of a study of the…

Teacher attrition rates are high in urban schools, particularly for new science teachers. Little research has addressed how science teachers can be prepared to effectively bridge the divide between preparation and urban teaching. We utilized the theoretical frameworks of social justice, identity, and structure-agency to investigate this…

This article explores the dynamic structures of emotions used by former urban teachers as they negotiated the challenges of the profession. Drawing from a national sample of 25 former urban teachers, this article looks closely at the lives of two teachers who taught in urban intensive school districts. Specifically, the piece captures the…

In efforts to better prepare students for a technology-driven workforce, many states and districts have pushed for clustered teaching of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in K-12 schools, yet science and mathematics remain the cornerstones upon which broader opportunities in STEM education are built. Teachers serve as…

Urban agricultural educators face a number of unique challenges in performing their job duties. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to understand the essence of urban agricultural educators' meaning in their work by exploring their lived experiences. In this study, the essence emerged in the form of a metaphor: A Black Swan. The black swan…

The author draws from critical Whiteness studies and the sociological imagination to show how three White preservice teachers in an urban education program used personal experiences with racial privilege to understand structural racism. These stories depart from portrayals of race-evasive White teachers who struggle to engage with critical…

The teacher preparation programs at University of Central Florida graduates approximately 1,000 prospective teachers annually. They are well prepared for teaching positions in the schools that look like the suburban, middle class ones which most of the teacher candidates attended. They have not been as well prepared for the Title I schools that…

The current narrative surrounding urban education, while incomplete, often focuses on concerns related to student achievement, failing schools, and teacher quality. This article targets teacher preparation as one response to these challenges and investigates the extent to which liberal arts colleges and universities are involved in this work. The…

This article reports on urban elementary teachers' understandings of cultural relevancy and the practices they enacted after a professional development on culturally relevant education (CRE) and cognitive apprenticeship. Focus group interviews support that participating teachers understood some principles of CRE but did not always match the theory…