Aggressive and Tender Navigations: Teacher Educators Confront Whiteness in Their Practice

Abstract

Although attention has been focused on transforming preservice teachers’ beliefs and developing practice with antiracist pedagogy, this study suggests that similar attention should be paid to teacher educators’ beliefs and practice. This article combines self-study of teacher education practices and focus group research to examine three elementary-level teacher educators’ treatment of antiracist pedagogy. The findings paint a frank portrait of what happens when scholars fail to interrogate whiteness in teacher education. Lessons learned from the authors’ struggle may provide illumination for teacher educators grappling with similar challenges.