Constructing teachers' reading positions

Language in the form of texts is one of the main tools used in teaching. Texts thus contribute much to the construction of a conscious teaching self, especially through the ways teachers come to assume certain reading positions in relation to these texts. Importantly, learners tend to perceive themselves through the teachers' assumed reading positions of the texts. As a social practice, language has the ability to construct identities for teaching and learning through curriculum expectations of what classrooms texts will produce or not produce from the readers. Through teaching the texts, teachers construct meanings about self, 'others' and the social contexts within which they can position themselves. One way to understand some of these realms of meaning-making in classrooms through set-books is to explore both the psychic and the discursive social practices of teachers (Appel 1996). In this paper the reading practices of teachers are examined in relation to Kenya's prescribed secondary curriculum. In particular, I am interested in examining the role of language in mediating between the prescribed books and curriculum objectives as a form of teacher consciousness. Further I ask in what ways do the subconscious fantasies of the readers and the conflicts in the relationship between conscious and subconscious fears and desires play out in teaching practices and reflective conversations about practice?