Tara Star Johnson

Assistant Professor
English Education
Departments of English & Curriculum and Instruction

Research

Research interests include the intersections among race, class, gender, and sexuality in education. Attention is focused on teacher-student relationships and teacher embodiment, viewing both through a feminist and poststructural epistemological lens.

Education

Ph.D.	University of Georgia, 2005, Language Education
M.A.	University of Georgia, 2001, English Education
B.A.	Grand Valley State University, 1993, English

Selected Publications

• Johnson, T. S. (2009).  Performing “teacher”:  Case study of a National Board Certified teacher.  English Education, 41(2) 158-176.

• Johnson, T. S. (2008). From teacher to lover:  Sex scandals in the classroom. New York: Peter Lang.

• Johnson, T. S. (2008).  Qualitative research in question:  A narrative of disciplinary power with/in the IRB.  Qualitative Inquiry, 14(2), 212-232.

• Johnson, T. S. (2006). Performing a/ sexual teacher: The Cartesian duality in education. The Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, 28, 253-256.

• Johnson, T. S. (2005). The "problem" of bodies and desires in teaching. Teaching Education, 16(2), 131-149.

• Johnson, T. S., Bruce, M., Graham, P., Oliver, S., Oppong, N., Park, S., & Mansberger, D. (2005). Giving Tree Teachers: Women and the National Board certification process. Feminist Teacher, 15(3), 234-249.

• Johnson, T. S. (2004). "I secretly relished that delicious feeling of excitement": A rhizoanalysis of teacher-student attraction. Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education, 8(2), 83-95.

• Johnson, T. S. (2004). "It's pointless to deny that that dynamic that is there": Sexual tensions in secondary classrooms. English Education, 37(1), 5-2

Courses Taught

ENGL 238	Introduction to Fiction
EDCI 422	Teaching English in Teaching English in Secondary Schools
EDCI 434	Teaching English in the Junior High/Middle School
EDCI 498F	Supervised Teaching of English Education
EDCI 502	Reading in Middle/Secondary Schools
EDCI 613	Teaching Bodies: A Gendered Perspective of the Language Arts Classroom

Professional Experience

2006-Present	Assistant Professor of English Education English & Curriculum and Instruction College of Education, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
2005-2006	Temporary Full-Time Assistant Professor Department of Curriculum, Foundations, and Reading Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA
2000-2005	Research Assistant University of Georgia, Athens, GA
2000-2003	Teaching Assistant Department of Language and Literacy Education College of Education, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
1994-2000	English & Science Teacher, 9th-12th grades Newaygo High School, Newaygo Public Schools, Newaygo, MI
1990-1993	Writing Tutor The Writing Center, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI