The big picture: Looking across fields

Throughout the chapters in this book, we have described Ian’s more prominent classroom practices, such as building relationships with students, using creative, science-based activities in mathematics, and working with students individually. In this final chapter, we return to the broad research questions we outlined in chapter one. Although we have discussed findings for the more narrow, field-specific questions in chapters two through seven, in this chapter we look at the findings across fields. Using the structure/agency dialectic, we review the pat-terns longitudinally using a macroperspective. We elaborate on themes within the bigger picture by looking across the smaller, mesolevel findings illustrated in previous chapters. Additionally, we evaluate the study using Guba and Lincoln’s (1989) authenticity criteria. We conclude with implications for teacher educators and policymakers in urban districts.