The palimpsest layers of pre-service teachers’ literacy autobiographies

Abstract

In this article, we examine three literacy autobiographies written by pre-service teachers. Narratives are seen as not just stories relating a set of facts, but rather a means by which individuals interpret their experience. Literacy autobiographies are a reflective and interpretive account of one's development as a literate being. Using the tools of narrative analysis, we (a) examine these stories to understand the processes of literacy development through the experiences of learners' storied lives; (b) seek to understand the impact that teachers' literacy journeys have on their view of literacy and literacy education; and (c) explore what these literacy autobiographies reveal about the contributions of teacher reflection to pre-service teacher education. Our analysis points to the importance of personal relationships in the development of literacy, providing the context within which literacy practices give meaning to the literacy events active in the narrators' lives. We also note a persistent view of traditional forms of literacy in contrast to pre-service teachers' involvement in multiliteracies, and argue that this gap needs to be addressed in order to prepare teachers for the twenty-first century classroom. We also consider how reflection can be a more intentional aspect of pre-service teacher education to enhance pedagogy and learning.

“My literacies expand over two languages”: Language and literacy autobiographies as justice‐oriented teacher education

“…The use of the LA in university classrooms is not new. A majority of work has examined LAs in writing and composition courses for undergraduate students (Schmertz, 2018; Scott, 1997; Sharkey, 2004; Steinman, 2007), and additional research has explored LAs within teacher education courses (Bokhorst‐Heng et al, 2014; Brown, 1999; Burke et al, 2019; Kist, 2017). Scholars have identified such assignments as LAs (McCrary, 2005; Steinman, 2007), language portraits (Busch, 2012), literacy narratives (Scott, 1997), digital LAs (McTavish & Filipenko, 2016), multimodal memoirs (Kist, 2017), and racial LAs (Sealey‐Ruiz, 2011).…”