In this essay, the authors argue that only by sharing their mistakes and uncertainty can they fully reflect on their own process as teachers, only by understanding their process can they begin to identify the many factors that contribute to classroom messes in the first place, and only by acknowledging the perpetual messiness of their practice can…

The majority of the teacher candidates in my methods classes come from a background that is different from the primarily African American students at my professional development school. Because these teacher candidates continue to be predominantly White middle-class females, the gap between their cultural comfort zone and their students' cultural…

This report includes quantitative information by individual urban school district for the 2006-2007 school year. Data includes: (1) Total Students; (2) Free/Reduced Price Lunch Eligible Students; (3) Students with Individual Educational Plans; (4) English Language Learners; (5) American Indian/Alaskan Native Students; (6) Asian/Pacific Islander…

Educational policy debates around the definitions of, and prescriptions for, the development of qualified teachers have long ignored the role that social foundations can play in equipping new teachers for their roles in urban classrooms (Butin, 2005a; 2005b; Cochran-Smith, 2004; Sirotnik, 1990). This article examines the voices of a set of urban…

This article describes introductory practices used to prepare future urban teachers to implement critical literacy strategies in their classrooms. Based in a teacher education program designed to prepare teachers for urban multicultural settings, the authors provide an overview of critical approaches to literacy instruction, a rationale for why…

How many teachers stay, especially in the schools that need them most? The question has attracted widespread attention as policymakers have recognized that expert teaching is the most important school-related factor in student achievement. Data show that poor and minority students assigned to ineffective teachers lag significantly behind their…

The Center for Teaching Quality (CTQ), in partnership with the Aspen Institute and the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), has been investigating the urban teacher residency (UTR) -- an innovative response to the longstanding challenges of how to recruit, prepare, and retain bright and capable teachers for…

Systemic, university-school-community partnerships characterize efforts by Georgia State University to enhance preparation of urban teachers and urban student success. A partnership with the Atlanta Housing Authority focuses on family education in mixed-income communities. Work with the National Parks Service's Martin Luther King, Jr., Center…

Teacher identity has been defined in different ways through different methodologies. In this paper, the author uses autobiographical information, based on his life as an urban teacher and teacher educator, to depict his journey, insights and experiences. In doing so, he synthesizes the personal, pedagogical, and political aspects of his identity…

The purpose of this study was to examine preservice teacher learning in an integrated course and field experience in an urban school-university partnership. Study participants included two cohorts of preservice teachers at a large, northeastern research university who were completing a semester-long experience of site-based coursework and…

A critical task for public school teachers is to build and maintain productive relationships with their students, especially to facilitate learning. That task is particularly important in preparing new teachers for urban schools because cultural differences between the majority of urban teachers and their students can complicate and impair those…

In this paper we share our approach and current progress in the development of a research- based recruitment instrument that will be used in selecting students for an initial preparation program. This instrument will facilitate the selection of future teachers of secondary mathematics who possess the potential to become high quality teachers…

The inability of American colleges and universities to produce teachers for America's urban classrooms has reached epidemic proportions. This article seeks to describe the legal effects of policies and laws designed to create conditions for highly qualified teaching professionals. Issues germane to the topic of urban teacher preparation and…

This article reports findings from a qualitative study of the complexities of introducing preservice teachers to critical pedagogies for urban teaching. The study documents students' reactions to a set of seminar and reflective writing experiences around depictions of urban teachers in popular culture--in particular, Pink Floyd's song "Another…

The society is violent, the urban neighborhoods are violent, and the schools are violent. People who want to teach in urban schools need to recognize the reality of the situation they will enter. Beginning teachers must recognize that preventing violence is an integral part of their legitimate work; the more effective they are at empowering…