Teacher Educator Identity: Emotional enactment and engagement in preparing teachers for diverse students

Abstract

Being an educator in the moments that are the most challenging and the most defining involves a deep understanding of human relationships, self-awareness, and ultimately, human interconnection. There is significant literature regarding understandings and related practices for teachers to meet the needs of diverse student learners in schools. However, specific knowledge regarding how teacher educators teach, facilitate, and coach such content is much less developed. This qualitative case study embeds elements of autoethnography to better understand how multiple teacher educators (acting as PLC leaders) developed elements of their own identity to teach and support equity-minded teacher candidates. Throughout the study it also became necessary to understand and theorize the influential dimensions of affective reflexivity and emotional labor within teacher educator enactments and engagements.