Chapter 16: The Complexities Around Religious Freedom, Positionalities, and K–12 Schools: A Narrative Self-Study of International and U.S. Teachers

In this narrative chapter, we unpack our experiences as U.S. and international school teachers. We weave together our stories while also folding back layers of the complexities around religious freedom, positionalities, and K–12 schools. This chapter offers a reading for both teacher candidates and classroom teachers as they think about how varied and complex the teaching experience might be for educators in a cultural and geographic location different from their own K–12 and teacher education experience. First, we provide a narrative overview of our positionalities and a brief summary of the literature related to religion and teaching. Second, we narrate a qualitative interview self-study wherein we look at our experiences around religion, particularly as these experiences relate to the formal and hidden curriculum and the dissonance around teaching as international teachers in highly religious spaces. Finally, we offer a discussion of the themes we found and implications for teacher candidates and classroom teachers.