Invested Stayers

Terri L. Rodriguez, PhD, is professor of education at the College of St. Benedict & St. John’s University. Her work focuses on teacher preparation for diversity, equity, and social justice.Heidi L. Hallman, PhD, is professor of English education in the Department of Curriculum and Teaching at the University of Kansas. Her research focuses on how prospective teachers are prepared to teach in diverse school contexts.Kristen Pastore-Capuana, PhD, is assistant professor of English education in the English Department at Buffalo State College. She is the assistant director of the Western New York Network of English Teachers (WNYNET).

Invested Stayers, edited by Rodriquez (College of St. Benedict and St. John’s Univ.), Hallman (Univ. of Kansas), and Pastore-Capuana (Buffalo State College, SUNY), examines three landscapes (social, political, and discipline-specific) through the lens of multiple teachers and university faculty to provide a variety of examples of why teachers stay in education. The text does not provide a central list of ideas that one can apply to his or her specific context; however, themes emerge throughout. One is the idea of mutual benefit for the mentor and mentee and how their roles can shift over time. A second theme focuses on teachers empowered to make change, whether for a particular population of students (e.g., emergent bilingual) or against a system of injustice. A third theme considers creating relationships to mitigate a sense of isolation. . . the individual chapters can be read independently, and the literature that supports the research is excellent. Overall, this is an interesting examination of how teachers can thrive in challenging times prior to the impact of COVID-19 and could be helpful for teacher education programs. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty.

• Foreword by Shelbie WitteIntroduction by Terri L. Rodriguez, Heidi L. Hallman, and Kristen Pastore-CapuanaSection I: Social LandscapesChapter 1: Do More, Think Again, Keep Learning: Advocating for Refugee and Immigrant English Learners Through Social Justice Teaching by Terri L. Rodriguez and Lauren Thoma ErgenChapter 2: Reciprocity for CriticallycConscious Language Teacher Education by Allison J. Spenader and Leah Shepard-CareyChapter 3: Lessons forSpecial Education Teachers toPersist and Thrive by Shelley Neilsen Gatti, Martin Odima Jr., Deeqaifrah Hussein, and L. Lynn Stansberry BrusnahanChapter 4: Rowing Together in the Same Direction: How Entwined Symbiosis Empowers Teachers at all Levels to Embrace Culturally Responsive Teaching by Katharine Covino, Garrett Zecker, and Hannah M. BrittenSection II: Political LandscapesChapter 5: Ongoing Transformation: Exploring the Chronologies of Becoming a Teacher by Margaret Flynn and Heidi L. HallmanChapter 6: Beyond Reacting: One New Teacher’s Re-envisioning of Top-Down Accountability Initiatives by Meghan A. Kessler and Arpan PatelChapter 7: Growing to Thrive: The Story of Two Colleagues Prospering in an Era of Standards-based Education by Eric D. Moffa and Toni M. PolingChapter 8: Sustaining Our Voices: Critical Collaboration Through English Teacher Communities of Practice by Kristen Pastore-Capuana and Deborah BertlesmanSection III: Disciplinary LandscapesChapter 9: Persisting in Teaching with a New Vision of Science Education by Elizabeth Xeng de los Santos, Candice Guy-Gaytán, and Sylvia ScogginChapter 10: An Innovative Approach to Improve College Readiness in Mathematics: A Collaborative Project by A. Susan Gay, Christopher W. Carter, and Carrie L. La VoyChapter 11: Using Digital Spaces to Foster and Sustain an Informal Professional Learning Community by Joe O’Brien, Brian Bechard, Kori Green, and Nick LawrenceChapter 12: Hope as the Catalyst to Thrive in the Profession by Elizabeth Yomantas and Sarah RosenthalAbout the Contributors