ABSTRACT
Chapter 5, “More Than Mothers: Classroom Talk and the Negotiation of Relationships,” analyzes the role that classroom talk plays in the schooling of school-age mothers, focusing on how school-age mothers position themselves in the classroom and what that may reveal about school-age motherhood as a central, hybrid identity. This chapter also focuses on the interconnectedness of motherhood and other relational identities, specifically romantic partner, daughter, and friend. Themes of conflict, rage, and loss that characterized some of the focal participants’ relationships are explored. Finally, the chapter considers, on a theoretical level, how macro and micro discourses interact within classroom talk.
