Mexican-American preservice teachers and the intransigency of the elementary school curriculum

Perhaps the intense focus on the lack of minority teachers in the US has ob structed the study of those students of color who do enter teacher educatio n programs. In particular, few research studies examine Mexican-American pr eservice teachers and their negotiation of the learning-to-teach process. T his study addresses how Mexican-American student teachers "use" their ethni city during student teaching. For instance, do Mexican-American teachers ex press their cultural knowledge in lesson planning and implementation? Semi- structured interviews with four Mexican-American student teachers revealed little ethnic expression, even when teaching Mexican-American children. Imp lications for teacher education programs are also discussed. (C) 1999 Elsev ier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.