Publication Date
8-2022
Abstract
This case study of two fourth-grade teachers explored teachers’ literacy instructional practices and perceptions of their professional agency during the hybrid synchronous teaching of the COVID-19 pandemic. In anticipation of the challenges of hybrid synchronous instruction, these teachers combined their classes to co-teach 39 students. Analysis of observation and interview data showed that the co-teachers acted as adaptive experts. They reflected on challenges such as maintaining students’ focus, developing rapport, and gaining active participation. Their collaborative reflection informed adaptations to increase students’ access to learning by employing multiple modalities, developing community, and enacting inclusive practices. Teachers also supported students’ agency by engaging students’ voices to encourage participation. Conditions that supported teachers to exercise agency included trust between the teachers and with the administrators, teachers’ voices and choices being valued, and the ability to enact their ideas. Findings suggest characteristics of agency that can be leveraged for teachers to enact adaptive expertise.
Recommended Citation
Reichenberg, J. S. (2022). Teacher Agency as a Route to Adaptive Expertise: Relational, Informed, and Reflective Action. Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts, 61 (2). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/reading_horizons/vol61/iss2/4
