Description
Book SynopsisThis work portrays three elementary classrooms from a feminist perspective. It demonstrates the complexity of issues that teachers face over the challenges of gender and identity issues. The life stories of the three teachers help to illustrate diverse situations.
Trade ReviewThe great power of this generous, detailed, and illuminating portrait of three elementary school teachers at work is its interweaving of vivid pictures of daily life in classrooms with trenchant discussions of pressing issues in contemporary feminist theory. As the struggles and triumphs of her teachers come alive, so too do the contradictions we all live with as we try to create classrooms that serve all of our students. This book helps show us how models of feminist education actually work. -- Frances A. Maher, Wheaton College, co-author of The Feminist Classroom
Here is an erudite and thoughtful addressing of complex education problems, contemporary educational issues, and ground breaking concepts for teaching practice. * Wisconsin Bookwatch *
When Carla Rensenbrink set out to study feminist teaching, she sought teachers who would challenge her own unquestioned assumptions—about feminism and about teaching. The result is case studies of three encounters: with Lucy (most like herself), Rosemary (a lesbian), and Marcia (African American). Each is written partly as a window into a rich classroom world. Then, in each, Carla stops, the window glass becomes a mirror, and she reflects on her own reactions and responses. Thanks to her honesty, as a reader I too was led to consider the limits of my own beliefs, once again and in new ways. -- Courtney Cazden, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Table of ContentsChapter 1 Feminism and Teaching Chapter 2 Lucy: A Search for Identity Chapter 3 Rosemary: Finding a Political Voice Chapter 4 Marcia: A Sense of Community Chapter 5 Three Teachers Chapter 6 Appendix A: Preliminary Interview Chapter 7 Appendix B: Interview Guides Chapter 8 Appendix C: Data Collection
