Testimonios of Latino Male Preservice Teachers as Models for Caring and Bilingualism

Abstract

This qualitative study of three Latino male preservice teachers in a bilingual education preparation program centers on the use of testimonio as a methodology to give voice to the complex experiences of young Latinos as they navigate their way through career choices and college. While work on male teachers has historically focused on white men and more recently black men, Latinos represent a very large ethnic population in the United States with varied histories, cultural practices, and linguistic practices. While caring has been conflated as a practice of female teachers, the young men in this study illustrate an ethic of care that is more complex than that of affect. Their care is directly tied to their willingness to pay forward their learning and experiences to other Latino children by way of teaching in bilingual programs. The findings of this research illustrate the complex terrain that these young men navigate as they decide on a career in a historically white and female profession. This study offers implications for in-service teachers and their role in cultivating the next generation of male teachers. For universities and colleges of education, this study offers insight into the institutional challenges and support systems these Latino men must circumnavigate.