Preparing and supporting beginning teachers for the challenges of teaching in urban primary schools

Teacher educators, researchers, and policy makers wonder how to prepare teachers for teaching in urban environments. The literature on urban teaching mainly focuses on teaching children from low socioeconomic status (SES) and/or culturally diverse backgrounds. In many European cities, however, schools are populated by both children from relatively high and from low SES backgrounds. This chapter provides an overview of the challenges that (beginning) teachers face in urban schools with different student populations. Then, the chapter discusses how beginning teachers can be adequately prepared and supported for these challenges. It is argued that beginning teachers at urban primary schools experience various “urban-related” problems, but that the nature of these problems is related to the specific student populations of their schools. Furthermore, adequate preparation and support through which teachers learn how to manage the issues associated with urban teaching can transform these issues from problems into challenges, which energize and motivate teachers. Therefore, it is important that initial teacher education and teacher support programs address the various problems that teachers may be confronted with when they start teaching at urban schools. The insights from this chapter can be used to articulate policies at the school and national level needed to develop adequate preparation and support for beginning urban teachers.