Date of Award
August 2020
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Cultural Foundations of Education
Advisor(s)
Alan Foley
Keywords
dispositions, pre-service teachers, teacher education
Subject Categories
Education
Abstract
This qualitative study explores the connection of dis/ability and dispositions in teacher education. Although dispositions have been part of contemporary teacher education discourse for over thirty years, their continued ambiguity is a source of debate and contestation (e.g., Diez, 2007; Katz & Rath, 1985; Osguthorpe, 2013; Warren, 2018). Existing literature examining dispositions and dis/ability focuses on the dispositions and attitudes teachers have and/or need to teach students with disabilities (e.g., Campbell et. al., 2003; Castello & Boyle, 2013; De Boer et. al., 2011; Killoran et. al., 2014; McCray & McHatton, 2011; Mueller & Hindin, 2011; Taylor & Ringlaben, 2012; Woodcock, 2013; Woolfson & Brady, 2009). This study focuses on how teacher educators employ dispositions in their interactions with disabled teacher candidates.
This study used a Comparative Case Study (CCS) framework for the research design that included eight semi-structured interviews with teacher education faculty, document analysis of dispositions artifacts, and autoethnography (Bartlett & Vavrus, 2017). It traces the layers of influence that dispositions assessments have in teacher education. Findings from this study suggest that dis/ability is not considered as an aspect of diversity in teacher education. Teacher educators have varied views on the definition, use, and purpose of dispositions in their programs; however, dispositions illuminate the qualities of the normative teacher, which then is employed to determine who should become a teacher. When teacher candidates’ body-minds do not fit the norm as imagined by their instructors, dispositions are operationalized to cast doubt upon these teacher candidates’ abilities.
Access
Open Access
Recommended Citation
Roquemore, Katie, "Dispositions and Dis/ability in Teacher Education: Teacher Educator Perspectives" (2020). Dissertations - ALL. 1264.
https://surface.syr.edu/etd/1264
