Location
Digital Teacher Education (Session 5 Breakouts)
Proposal Track
Research Project
Session Format
Presentation
Abstract
Critical pedagogy has the power to transform learning experiences for all students, but also create seismic impacts on the futures of students; however, critical approaches to designing and implementing instruction in which digital technologies are integrated eludes many elementary teachers. Pedagogy is formed and evolves a lifetime of experiences and is never fully mastered. To understand how certain elementary teachers develop critical digital pedagogy, it was imperative to tell their stories. The purpose of this study was to describe the life stories of two elementary teachers who utilized critical digital approaches in their instruction. Each participant participated in an life story interview, extended classroom observation, interview about digital teaching artifacts, and a follow-up interview. The narratives were constructed utilizing a critical events analysis. Findings were presented within the theoretical lenses of NLG’s (1996) pedagogy of multiliteracies framework and Britzman’s (2003) dialogic theory of teacher practice. It was found that elementary teachers develop their critical pedagogical design with digital technologies across their careers and lifetimes. These experiences are ripe with personal and professional dialogue that they must negotiate and critically understand. Teachers must actively respond to this dialogue in ways that facilitate their design of transformative learning experiences for all students.
Keywords
elementary, digital, pedagogy, critical, narrative
Professional Bio
Dr. Aaron R. Gierhart is an Assistant Professor of Elementary Education at Columbus State University in Columbus, GA. He taught in the Illinois public schools for 11 years. Dr. Gierhart's research interests center around the (critical) digital pedagogy of elementary teachers and elementary pre-service teaching candidates. He lives in Columbus, GA, with his wife and two daughters.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Gierhart, Aaron R., "Responding to the Dialogue: Critical Digital Pedagogy of Elementary Teachers" (2020). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 71.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2020/2020/71
Included in
Responding to the Dialogue: Critical Digital Pedagogy of Elementary Teachers
Digital Teacher Education (Session 5 Breakouts)
Critical pedagogy has the power to transform learning experiences for all students, but also create seismic impacts on the futures of students; however, critical approaches to designing and implementing instruction in which digital technologies are integrated eludes many elementary teachers. Pedagogy is formed and evolves a lifetime of experiences and is never fully mastered. To understand how certain elementary teachers develop critical digital pedagogy, it was imperative to tell their stories. The purpose of this study was to describe the life stories of two elementary teachers who utilized critical digital approaches in their instruction. Each participant participated in an life story interview, extended classroom observation, interview about digital teaching artifacts, and a follow-up interview. The narratives were constructed utilizing a critical events analysis. Findings were presented within the theoretical lenses of NLG’s (1996) pedagogy of multiliteracies framework and Britzman’s (2003) dialogic theory of teacher practice. It was found that elementary teachers develop their critical pedagogical design with digital technologies across their careers and lifetimes. These experiences are ripe with personal and professional dialogue that they must negotiate and critically understand. Teachers must actively respond to this dialogue in ways that facilitate their design of transformative learning experiences for all students.
