Decentering teacher voice - And stance? Teacher candidates’ explicit and implicit disclosure in social studies discussions

How teachers can best facilitate student-centered discussions on open socio-political issues, while navigating their own stances, remains contested in scholarship and practice. Experienced teachers often state neutral stances but implement them inconsistently, while limited research examines teacher candidates' approaches and practices. This qualitative study draws from online classroom recordings, video-stimulated interviews, and written reflections to examine candidates' beliefs, goals, and practices of stance-sharing. Findings show candidates’ implicit disclosure patterns were frequent and related to tensions with teaching role, goals, and content. We offer implications to support teacher education research, pedagogy, and K-12 practice with the complexities of discussion facilitation.