The Paradox of Teaching for Social Justice: Interest Convergence in Early-Career Educators

There is a growing emphasis on social justice pedagogy as a predominantly White teacher labor force infiltrates classrooms in urban schools. Using critical race theory (CRT)—and the construct of interest convergence—this study examines how White teachers working in an urban school apply and enact te...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inUrban education (Beverly Hills, Calif.) Vol. 58; no. 2; pp. 312 - 337
Main Author French, Kate Rollert
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.02.2023
SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects
Beginning Teachers
Classrooms
Critical Race Theory
Labor force
Middle School Teachers
Social Justice
Teacher Behavior
Teachers
Teaching
Teaching Methods
Urban areas
Urban Schools
Whites
critical race theory
urban education
social justice teaching
novice teachers
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Summary:There is a growing emphasis on social justice pedagogy as a predominantly White teacher labor force infiltrates classrooms in urban schools. Using critical race theory (CRT)—and the construct of interest convergence—this study examines how White teachers working in an urban school apply and enact teaching for social justice during their first year in the classroom as teachers of record. Findings suggest that the behaviors of new teachers misalign with true intentions of teaching for social justice and instead assuage teachers’ perceptions of teaching for social justice to benefit personal and professional interests.
ISSN:0042-0859
1552-8340
DOI:10.1177/0042085919850259