Examining the Intersection of Social Justice and State Standards with Elementary Preservice Teachers

Abstract

ABSTRACT This investigation considered the social justice perspectives and coursework of 19 preservice teachers enrolled in an elementary education program. An elementary education course required students to complete a social justice project on a current issue in education and design a lesson for their future classrooms that met a state standard. Upon completion of the project, students completed a personal reflection and engaged in a class discussion on social justice education. Three categories of projects were identified through an inductive and deductive thematic analysis. Some participants created lesson plans on their topic but ignored social justice; some participants created lesson plans infused with social justice that contradicted their personal views, and some participants created social justice lesson plans that aligned with their personal views. The analysis exposed gaps between participants’ perceptions of themselves and how they would integrate social justice topics into their classrooms. Most participants viewed themselves as social justice educators, but their social justice values did not translate into anticipated actions. Implications for teacher education are discussed.