ABSTRACT
Decades of research have contributed to the identification of effective practices for teachers in the area of English language arts. We know what works, and we know much about what does not work. Educators at all levels are familiar with how schools perpetuate social inequities, and English teachers understand the ways that language and literacies reproduce existing power relations inside and outside of academic institutions. It is evident that, despite the dedication of generations of English teachers, teacher educators, researchers, and policymakers, English instruction and assessment remains persistently resistant to reform. How can so much knowledge and experience result in so little change?
This chapter explores the dynamics that affect the intersecting roles of educators as agents of state and agents of change (Judge, 1995), and how these sometimes conflicting roles contribute to the transformative potential of English language arts instruction in schools. We will trace the preparation and induction of English teachers, as well as teacher education faculty and scholars, and consider how education policy and school culture serve as forces that contour classroom practices. And threaded through this discussion is the impact of English language arts on the lives of learners, whose futures are, in part, shaped by the identities that are constructed through experiences of language and schooling. Finally, we will present principles and strategies to guide substantive and lasting change toward justice. Such efforts can be built on collaborations of teachers, school leaders, teacher educators, and policymakers engaged in participatory policy analysis, development, and implementation.
