This study explores how cultural inquiry was integrated into a third-year Persian class via printed texts, film, WebQuests and PowerPoint presentations, and how that cultural inquiry was made sense of and understood by the students in the course. Specifically, this qualitative study addresses two research questions: 1. How do students experience the cultural inquiry pedagogy? 2. How do students' understandings about Persian culture develop? The study’s participants were four college students in a fifth semester Persian language course at a large southwestern university during fall of 2009. Students were exposed to two sets of cultural integration including two films and WebQuest activities. The collected data included a demographic questionnaire, classroom observations, individual interviews and students’ reflective journals. Data were analyzed using Constant Comparative Method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). A major finding of this study was that that in all four cases, participants felt they benefited from the content presented through multimedia and technology and the knowledge they gained through the cultural inquiry activities contributed to the development of their cultural awareness. In addition, the development of learners’ cultural knowledge and awareness was another important finding of this study. The study also revealed the deconstruction of some of the stereotypes that students brought with them to the classroom. Through the cultural inquiry pedagogy and exposure to different types of texts and group discussions, some of these stereotypes were deconstructed and new ideas were formulated. Another important finding of the study was the importance of utilizing cultural inquiry pedagogy. This study showed in particular the crucial role of group discussions, the importance of pre- and post- viewing activities related to filmic texts and WebQuest activities as benefiting the students most in their cultural inquiry. The study’s findings have implications for educators and curriculum developers to understand better the kinds of experiences and opportunities students have when they are engaged in cultural inquiry activities and are exposed to multimedia and technology, which contribute to the development of their cultural knowledge and awareness. / text

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Mary C. Kingery-Page / Chester I. Lewis Reflection Square Park in Downtown Wichita, Kansas commemorates the life of Chester I. Lewis, president of the Wichita Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1958 and leader of the Dockum Drugstore Sit-In of 1958, the first successful sit-in of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. In its current condition, the reflection park is underutilized and often subject to vandalism. As a historically significant park, it is important to the community of Wichita to maintain the integrity of the meaning of the site while simultaneously improving the physical design. The purpose of this project is to provide a redesign of the historically significant Chester I. Lewis Reflection Square Park which reflects the implication of the reflection park as a culturally inclusive and historically significant downtown space. Access to culturally and socially inclusive outdoor spaces is imperative to providing opportunity for people of all different backgrounds to personally connect to the space. While the goal of this project is to design inclusive spaces, the author recognizes inclusiveness in a space is interpreted by and culturally dependent on the user of the space (Kemmis, S., & McTaggart, R. 2000). The author conducted research through a cyclical process of engagement meetings with stakeholders, one-on-one interviews with Wichita community members, and design proposals for Lewis Park. Content analysis was performed on data from meetings and interviews to inform a set of guidelines to redesign Lewis Park. Theories of cultural interpretation were also explored to recognize how to integrate different audiences into one culturally inclusive outdoor space (Ulrich 1986). Findings include guidelines guided by community input for designing Lewis Park as a culturally inclusive outdoor space and a theoretical design proposal for stakeholders and the City of Wichita to consider. The redesign of the reflection park was driven by the aspiration to reflect the cultures of Wichita’s ethnically and racially diverse communities in the contemporary context of dialogue on race and memorials in public space.

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