"But Will It Work With Real Students?": Scenarios for Teaching Secondary English Language Arts

Pedagogical narratives written by secondary teachers and thoughtful responses to these narratives by experienced teachers and teacher educators form the heart of this text. Alsup and Bush also include concise summaries of related theory and research and controversies in the field, through annotated bibliographies for continued reading, discussion questions, and suggested learning activities for preservice teachers.

Beginning with narratives about teaching literature, writing, language/grammar, second language learners in the English classroom, management, discipline, technology, and standardized testing, the authors contextualize these stories within the larger discipline of secondary English language arts teaching and provide a framework for teacher professional identity development by prompting continued thinking about curricular choices, teaching philosophies, and personal pedagogies.

Alsup and Bush include a final chapter describing how a secondary English teacher can use narrative action research in his or her class to become a critically reflective practitioner.