Navigating the Role of Teacher Educators in the Field: The Case for Increased Community Support

Abstract

This chapter provides a look at the experiences of two Teacher Educators in the Field (TEFs) as they work to shift writing instruction in suburban districts across the Houston metroplex. A review of the literature on most promising practices for literacy educators is provided along with narrative interspersion of restoried enactments of TEFs in public education systems serving students in grades 6–12. Our planned and lived experiences were often dissonant due to the complexity of increasingly diverse demographic populations in fast-growing districts who struggled to shift the focus of instruction in correlation to audience. Our stories present focused reflection on the need for additional supports geared toward teacher development, TEF retention, and consistent engagement from campus and district-level administrators.

Citation

Carr, D. and Auzenne-Curl, C.T. (2021), "Navigating the Role of Teacher Educators in the Field: The Case for Increased Community Support", Auzenne-Curl, C.T. and Craig, C.J. (Ed.) Developing Knowledge Communities through Partnerships for Literacy (Advances in Research on Teaching, Vol. 37), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 79-96. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-368720210000037005