Faculty Profiles: Natalie Becker
Assistant Professor Natalie Becker
Bachelor's Degree, major
B.A., History, Carleton College
Master’s Degree, major
M.A., Latin American Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison
M.A., Educational Policy Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Doctoral Degree, research area, conferring institution
Ph.D., Educational Policy Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison,
Favorite Quote:
“And then he thought that being with Christopher Robin was a very good think to do, and having Piglet near was a very friendly thing to have; and so, when he had thought it all out, he said, ‘What I like best in the whole world is Me and Piglet going to see You, and You saying 'What about a little something?' and Me saying, 'Well, I shouldn't mind a little something, should you, Piglet,' and it being a hummy sort of day outside, and birds singing.” – A.A. Milne’s House on Pooh Corner
Area of research:
How and why people behave the way they do in schools. I do this through sustained observation, taking notes, interviewing, looking at how organizational elements of schools affect how and why people act in them, and how in turn the behavior of people affect the schools in which they act.
My dissertation looked at family-school relationships. One interesting finding in the dissertation was how school secretaries affect the school. I make the argument that the front office is a social system in and of itself. School secretaries are a big part of that. Their knowledge about students is rarely tapped in a formal way, but it is informally tapped daily. School secretaries are the gatekeepers to the school, and they frequently mediate between kids, parents and teachers
Selected publications:
Becker, N.C. (2003) [Review of P.W. Cookson & K. Berger, Expect miracles: Charter schools and the politics of hope and despair.] Contemporary Sociology, 32 (5), 641-642
Stambach, A. & Becker, N.C. (2006). Finding the old in the new: On race and class in U.S. charter school debates. Race, Ethnicity & Education 9 (2), 159-182.
Becker, N.C. (in progress). School leadership practices in an era of choice and accountability: Managing the demand for liberty and equity in two US public elementary schools.
Becker, N.C. (in progress). The custodial obligations of the school organization and their impact on family-school relationships.
Echeverria, B., Becker, N.C., & Page, R.N. (in progress). Science education & religion: Never the twain shall meet?
Becker, N., Echeverria, B., and Page, R. (in press). Science, religion, and education: The study of life. In H. Varenne,E. Gordon, and L. Lin (Eds.). Theoretical perspectives on comprehensive education: The way forward. Lewiston, NY: The Edwin Mellen Press.
How I discovered my professional passion:
It was not a straight shot. I went to a small liberal arts college. Then I graduated, and I panicked. A family friend started a charter school and offered me a job as a teacher. I got hooked on education. I taught as a 22-year-old, uncertified teacher in a friend’s charter school in Northern Wisconsin.
It was fascinating, exhausting and intimidating. We crafted a program from scratch. It got me very interested in studying education and the need for good credentialing.
Only at UCR’s GSOE do you find:
A deep commitment to taking the experiences of practicing educators and connecting them in meaningful ways with scholarship on education and schools. I’ve been very impressed with the quality of teaching in the GSOE.
Why being at UCR’s GSOE is a good place for me to carry out my research:
There are people here doing similar work. There are mentors here, people who come from the same tradition. We have the opportunity to think about how the United States is emerging by looking at the Riverside community that surrounds us.
What I like about being at GSOE:
The excellent, supportive faculty, both personally and professionally. I like that it’s relatively small and manageable, although I support that it’s growing. I really like working with educators. I really like teaching.
What reading do you keep on your nightstand?
The New Yorker
The New York Times
I love biographies. I just finished reading and comparing the autobiographies of Barack Obama and Clarence Thomas. Both had to struggle with self-identity and how to craft a social and cultural identity through and, in some instances against, existing cultural narratives.
How my students have influenced – and inspired – me:
The have forced me to think about how education is relevant for people who are practicing educators.
The best question a student asked me:
I recently had a student ask me why it was that the content of my courses had simultaneously clarified what it was about her teaching experience in US public education that had left her troubled and confused the clarity she once held about how to “fix” US schools.
Leisure activities:
I have a 4-year-old daughter, Ruby. My husband and I garden. We enjoy family life, fixing up and remodeling old homes, antiques.
Favorite book as a child?
A biography of Helen Keller