Despite the rapid expansion of and investment in urban residency programs, a key tenet of the residency model—that they prepare teachers for targeted urban settings—remains largely unexamined. Although some might argue that a “good teacher” can transcend contexts—we ask in this issue whether there may be particular features of the setting or context that are important for new teachers to learn about. In the papers in our special issue, the authors examine more closely what kind of preparation may be necessary for specific contexts. This themed issue features scholarship that examines efforts to prepare teachers for clinical practice in particular contexts. The articles share evidence from three residency programs (each engaged in systematic data collection) on opposite sides of the US to point to features of the context that may matter for teaching; the design of opportunities to learn in these programs; and data that sheds light upon these questions. Given recent findings about the strong retention of graduates of ‘context-specific programs’ these examinations not only provide insight into the promise of urban residency programs but also serve as a call for programs to be epecially clear about the specific features of the setting that may matter for teaching.
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