Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) has gained significant attention across diverse school environments in justice by supporting students from culturally underrepresented groups. However, how teachers develop their agency toward inclusive practices and what influences the agency developed have been undertheorized and underexplored. This study aims to identify factors that support teachers’ initial enactment of CRT and what strengthens or weakens the positive agency developed. This study is guided by a grounded theory approach. Sixteen in-service teachers’ semi-structured interview transcripts were analyzed using the constant comparative method. Four themes emerged from each of the research questions. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed to better support in- and pre-service teachers’ growth toward becoming social justice-oriented change agents with CRT practices.
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