A Critical Inquiry into the Status of Social Justice Education in the Teacher Education Programme of the Division of Teacher Education and Educational Administration of the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College in St Lucia.

Over the years, successive St Lucian governments have embarked upon a number of reforms to improve the academic performance of all students. In that regard, the attainment of equity remains one of the main aspirational goals of the education system. Teachers are central to these reforms since they are at the forefront of educational work. The manner in which teachers are oriented during their pre-service training influences their teaching. Social justice teacher education which orients teachers to reflect on pedagogical and systemic issues that impact on student achievement is essential in preparing them to develop the skills, behaviours and predispositions fundamental to working for equity.
Drawing from qualitative research techniques, specifically, auto-ethnography, documentary research and critical theory, this study examines the pre-service teacher education curriculum used at the Division of Teacher Education and Educational Administration of the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College in St Lucia in order to determine whether student teachers are oriented to teaching practices that facilitate social justice and equity. The answer to that question emerged from critical analyses of data obtained from the wealth of my knowledge and experiences, related curriculum documents and from interviews with three faculty members and four student teachers.
The findings from my research indicate that the curriculum to which the student teachers are exposed is not underpinned by a philosophy of social justice and consequently student teachers of the Division of Teacher Education and Educational Administration of the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College are not oriented to socially just teaching. My findings also suggest that, despite the absence of a social justice agenda, there is openness among some staff and students of the Division to the inclusion of social justice in the teacher preparation curriculum.