There is an expectation that teachers are, and will be, transformers of society as they prepare young people to deal with an ever-changing world. While the importance of this role has never been greater, the status and respect once enjoyed by teachers has declined over recent years. Diminishing status and negative stereotypes have in turn contributed to a growing teacher shortage crisis, worldwide. Home economists, as one group of increasingly scarce teachers, have carried their share of negative stereotyping, led by tired cliches such as cookers and sewers and stitchers and stirrers. This book encourages rethinking of home economics and home economics teaching by providing insights into the embodied pedagogy of teachers who refuse to live by tired cliches. It explores ways in which these teachers engage in fun and pleasure, demonstrating that transformative moments are part of their classroom culture. This re-thinking offers challenges not only for home economics teachers, their profession and home economics as a cultural practice, but for the broader teaching community engaged in embodied pedagogy, thereby providing a paradigm shift for re-thinking the status and perceptions of teachers and teacher professionalism.

Author Biography

Donna Pendergast is a lecturer at The University of Queensland. She has taught in secondary schools, senior colleges, technical and further education institutes and universities. She has also worked as a consultant to industry and professional associations. Dr Pendergast has been a King and Amy O'Malley scholar and is currently a Research Fellow of the Kappa Omicron Nu Honor Society in the United States of America.