Exploration of teachers’ personal practical knowledge for teaching controversial public issues in elementary school classrooms

Abstract

This study explores teachers’ personal practical knowledge and curricular-instructional gatekeeping as they relate to the teaching of controversial issues in public elementary school settings, particularly the issue of immigration. The study took place in the urban setting of Houston and, using a case study design, documented how three elementary school teachers made curricular-instructional decisions by making use of their personal practical knowledge. Findings illuminate that personal practical knowledge plays a role in teacher’s curricular-instructional gate keeping in socially divisive contexts. And, the findings indicate that these three elementary school teachers make curricular-instructional decisions to effectively address controversial public issues in their classrooms through curriculum choosing, assignments creating, and conflict dialogue building.