Refining Social Justice Commitments through Collaborative Inquiry: Key Rewards and Challenges for Teacher Educators

Since Fall 2001, the faculty and leaders of the Teacher Education Program (TEP) at the University of California, Los Angeles, have participated in a collaborative inquiry project. This five-year research endeavor provides opportunities for teacher educators, assisted by university researchers, to study their own practice. This paper presents an overview of the TEP faculty's collaborative inquiry experience and then pinpoints implications for other teacher educators. Findings indicate that, while not easy, engaging in collaborative inquiry characterized by critical reflection, critical dialogue, and community building can position teacher educators to be thoughtful and influential change agents within universities and K-12 schools. (Contains 6 notes.)