Charting “Unexplored Territory” in the Social Foundations: Pedagogical Practice in Urban Teacher Education

Abstract

In this article, I portray undergraduate education students at an urban, inclusive university participating in the process of defining their emerging philosophies of education. Excerpts from student writing demonstrate that, in a course organized around key essential questions, double-entry journals, and students' consideration of their educational autobiographies (in a classroom that valued critical inquiry and collaboration), students developed personal philosophy statements that were coherent, thoughtful, self-confident, and revealed a sense of personal and political efficacy in the context of urban, public schooling. These philosophy statements signify that, over the course of the semester, students were able to formulate clear and strong positions on education, and perhaps most important, express a commitment to participate in the reform of urban schools for all children.