From Appreciating to Disrupting: Interrogating Equity-Centered Syllabi for Middle Grades Teacher Preparation

Abstract

The researchers used Gorski’s continuum of five approaches to multicultural education—which extends from conservative to liberal and then critical—to analyze 40 syllabi from required or elective courses for candidates seeking licensure to teach in the middle grades (grades 4–9). While the researchers found evidence of all five approaches within the syllabi, most syllabi fell under the liberal approach, emphasizing the understanding of individual learners and cultural responsiveness as the purpose of equity-based work. Following syllabi coding, the researchers conducted nine semi-structured interviews to member-check and analyze to what extent respondents perceived their syllabi as matching their instruction. In addition, the researchers identified four factors for limiting equity-orientations in the syllabi and in teaching the courses themselves: national and state standards, institutional requirements, sociopolitical context, and individual knowledge. While the researchers identified strengths in equity-oriented middle level teacher preparation syllabi, they also illuminate the need to move the focus in syllabi more consistently from appreciating diversity to disrupting oppressive systems.