Research paperThe emotional work of being a teacher educator and persisting through a pandemic
Section snippets
Introduction and purpose
Clinical practice, situated in prek-12 schools (ages 3 through 18) with mentored and supervised experience as learning opportunities for teacher candidates, is often described as a key aspect in the process of learning to teach (AACTE, 2018; Darling-Hammond, 2014). Scholars describe powerful teacher education existing in clinical practice involving partnerships among schools and universities (Darling-Hammond, 2006; Jacobs & Burns, 2021). The complex, layered work of teaching and teacher
Theoretical perspectives
Our collaborative self-study was framed through theories connected to communities of practice (Lieberman & Miller, 2008; Wenger, 1998) and complexity (Davis & Sumara, 2006) by studying interactions across social networks. With added attention to the boundary crossing work (Akkerman & Bakker, 2011) of teacher educators working in clinical sites, we examine the role of boundary-spanners, such as teacher educators working in school and university contexts simultaneously, and explore the complexity
Collaborative self-study mode of inquiry
Having an interest in the professional development of teacher educators and clinical supervision practice (Butler et al., 2014; Goodwin & Kosnik, 2013), we studied experiences as new and veteran university liaisons. We formalized collaborative self-study to both study our practice as “improvement-aimed” (Bullough & Pinnegar, 2007; Loughran, 2007) and uncover key experiences of identity development as a teacher educator.
We engaged in collaborative self-study (Louie, Drevdahl, Purdy, & Stackman,
Findings: emotional work of persisting as a teacher educator builds on a foundation of relational care
Data sources highlighted the emotional work of persisting as a clinical teacher educator and boundary crosser. Each of us indicated moments of isolation, despair, worry, and even hope in our experiences across three years serving as university liaisons. Vulnerability was a dynamic within our collaborative self-study group, and we created a space where we realized the importance of sharing our practice to validate experiences and grow as professionals so that our preservice teachers might also
Discussion and implications
Our collaborative self-study investigated the emotional work of persisting as a teacher educator through a global pandemic and highlighted the importance of community support in teacher educator identity development. When our worlds became even more uncertain, the emotional work of persisting as a teacher educator in a pandemic caused us to negotiate multiple tensions in our work. We were supporting teacher candidates and each other, and we noted our development as teacher educators alongside
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