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Looking through the philosophical lens of love, this study seeks a deeper understanding and appreciation of how postsecondary social justice educators use storytelling, in the context of critical peace education, to create social change. This research explores the guiding question of how storytelling is used to encourage social change and to inspire action toward the goal of greater social justice. The argument for the importance of this research is located within the crisis of neoliberalism, where the very tenets of democratic education are being challenged by an educational agenda that favors standards-based learning and employment training over the critical and analytical thinking skills required for democracy to flourish. The results of this study identify storytelling as a method of ideology critique, and locate it within a larger process of loving praxis. A theoretical model of loving praxis is offered to explain how postsecondary social justice educators engage story as an action that leads to the goal of social justice. The steps in the model describe how valuing the common good motivates social justice educators to take action through storytelling, toward the outcome of building transformation, voice, and agency within students as a means to build greater social justice. The sense of possibility that is cultivated in this process re-engages the cycle by validating the value of and hope for the common good.

Self-direction is the process by which individuals collaborate in the construction of meaningful learning objectives and use internal and external controls to meet those objectives. In professional contexts, self-direction is seen as an increasingly important skill for engagement in complex organizations and industries. Modern innovations in program development for adult learners, therefore, should address learners’ needs for self-motivation, self-monitoring, and self-management. Social learning contexts—such as online class discussion forums—have emerged as potentially democratic spaces in online learning. Yet evaluation methods for assessing online discussion have not considered the ways in which student-introduced goals influence how quality is operationalized and studied. This research attempted to understand if, when, and how adult learners leverage online course discussions as a space to introduce and moderate their own learning and professional goals. The study used activity systems analysis as a framework for assessing self-direction within a complex social learning environment. A sample drawn from three sections of an online Research Design course was observed, surveyed, and interviewed to develop a visual map and narrative description of their perceptions of a discussion activity system. A cross-case analysis of these maps was used to define five systemic tensions that prevented students from aligning their goals with the instructor-designed activities. When faced with these tensions, students either subjugated their own goals to an instructor’s explicit goals, or else introduced one of eight mediating behaviors associated with self-directed learning. The study yielded five emergent hypotheses that require further investigation: (1) that self-directed learning is not inherent, even among Millennial learners, (2) that self-directed learning is collaborative, (3) that goals for interaction in social learning environments are not universal, (4) that goals must be negotiated, explicit, and activity bound, and (5) that self-directed learning may be not be an observable phenomenon.

Because the first year of university education is for students a concentrated point of turbulence (in the form of failing, dropping out, changing courses or degrees, making changes in future plans and present priorities, and suffering anxieties about the same), it has been the focus of much study by education specialists, along the lines of "What are we doing wrong?" and "How can we do better?" "The teflon degree" is a metaphor derived from the image of a mess-preventing armour plating. The assumption that turbulence in the first year is naturally a bad thing fits by extension with an idea that turbulence, mess, and so on are to be avoided. Better than avoidance would be the construction of a system which would make it impossible for such things to happen. "The teflon degree" is a fantasy of a program of study that one can embark on, knowing what one will do and how one will do it, and then slide through, essentially unchanged, "augmented" by the acquisition of skills and qualifications. This thesis is a critique of the conceptual underpinnings of such an ideal. It is also an evocation of the qualities in university education which are obscured or harmed by the pursuit of such an ideal, foremost among them being love. I argue that love is not a sentimental afterthought, but an essential component of all genuine learning. This critique is carried out through the conceptual framework established by the work of Gregory Bateson in cybernetics. The empirical component of the thesis is drawn from interviews with individual students; these are intended both to illustrate and to make concrete the theoretical concerns which are its primary focus. With Bateson, both an anthropologist and a philosopher, as my central theorist, I have drawn on both anthropological and philosophical texts in the development of my argument, including Buber, Durkheim, Gaita, Hegel, Murdoch, Sartre, Serres, Simmel, and Weber.

The purpose of this study is threefold. First, it is to clarify the construct, parental involvement, by examining its different dimensions both theoretically and empirically. The second purpose is to identify important family factors and institutional factors that affect parental involvement. Finally, this study examines how students' learning outcomes are related to different dimensions of parental involvement. A conceptual framework is proposed that indicates the relationships between school factors, family factors, parental involvement and students' learning outcomes. The construct of "capital" is used as an explanatory tool within this framework. The research was conducted in two phases. Data were collected as part of a larger project which studied the effectiveness of elementary schools in British Columbia (Willms, 1992). Phase I of the study was conducted in 1994. Questionnaires were sent to a population of fifteen hundred B.C. elementary school principals. A total of 831 school administrators returned the questionnaires. Phase II of the study was conducted in 1995. Forty-nine schools were sampled strategically according to the variability of parents' socioeconomic backgrounds. A total of 404 teachers and 1042 fifth-grade students completed questionnaires. Hierarchical Linear Modelling was then used to explore the nature and impact of parental involvement. The extent of parental involvement in grade 5 was generally low in B.C. elementary schools. Levels of parental involvement did not vary substantially among schools; therefore, it was difficult to identify schools which could induce particularly high or low levels of involvement. In exploring the barriers and facilitators of parental involvement, evidence from this study suggests that substantial decentralization of instructional activities, and positive teacher attitudes and practices enhance parental involvement. Another important school factor is the nurturing of social capital within the school. The findings indicate that a positive social climate is a major determinant of parental involvement. An important home factor is cultural capital provided by parents. The results suggest that cultural capital rather than economic capital determines the levels of parental involvement in education. The effects of different types of parental involvement on students' learning outcomes were relatively weak in this study. Home-based involvement was not generally effective for improving children's learning, and school-based involvement had a small positive effect on student's self-esteem but was negatively related to student academic achievement. It appears that parental involvement tended to be reactive rather than proactive. Parents with children at risk academically and socially were more likely to be involved. Yet the study has demonstrated that investment of educational time and monitoring of peer activities were possible intervening variables through which parents could indirectly affect students' learning outcomes. In the conceptual framework of this study, learning outcomes was viewed as a function of the availability of: economic capital, cultural capital and social capital. Among these major forms of resources, social capital nurtured by the school was the most powerful determinant of students' self-esteem. Cultural capital and economic capital had a moderate effect on both students' self-esteem and academic achievement, but their contribution varied from one cognitive characteristic to another. These results provide substantial evidence to support the integration of Coleman's social capital thesis and Bourdieu's cultural capital thesis. An inclusive model, which emphasizes the inclusion of resources from family, school, and community, appears to be the most promising avenue for improving children's learning.

Because the first year of university education is for students a concentrated point of turbulence (in the form of failing, dropping out, changing courses or degrees, making changes in future plans and present priorities, and suffering anxieties about the same), it has been the focus of much study by education specialists, along the lines of "What are we doing wrong?" and "How can we do better?" "The teflon degree" is a metaphor derived from the image of a mess-preventing armour plating. The assumption that turbulence in the first year is naturally a bad thing fits by extension with an idea that turbulence, mess, and so on are to be avoided. Better than avoidance would be the construction of a system which would make it impossible for such things to happen. "The teflon degree" is a fantasy of a program of study that one can embark on, knowing what one will do and how one will do it, and then slide through, essentially unchanged, "augmented" by the acquisition of skills and qualifications. This thesis is a critique of the conceptual underpinnings of such an ideal. It is also an evocation of the qualities in university education which are obscured or harmed by the pursuit of such an ideal, foremost among them being love. I argue that love is not a sentimental afterthought, but an essential component of all genuine learning. This critique is carried out through the conceptual framework established by the work of Gregory Bateson in cybernetics. The empirical component of the thesis is drawn from interviews with individual students; these are intended both to illustrate and to make concrete the theoretical concerns which are its primary focus. With Bateson, both an anthropologist and a philosopher, as my central theorist, I have drawn on both anthropological and philosophical texts in the development of my argument, including Buber, Durkheim, Gaita, Hegel, Murdoch, Sartre, Serres, Simmel, and Weber.

The purpose of this study is threefold. First, it is to clarify the construct, parental involvement, by examining its different dimensions both theoretically and empirically. The second purpose is to identify important family factors and institutional factors that affect parental involvement. Finally, this study examines how students' learning outcomes are related to different dimensions of parental involvement. A conceptual framework is proposed that indicates the relationships between school factors, family factors, parental involvement and students' learning outcomes. The construct of "capital" is used as an explanatory tool within this framework. The research was conducted in two phases. Data were collected as part of a larger project which studied the effectiveness of elementary schools in British Columbia (Willms, 1992). Phase I of the study was conducted in 1994. Questionnaires were sent to a population of fifteen hundred B.C. elementary school principals. A total of 831 school administrators returned the questionnaires. Phase II of the study was conducted in 1995. Forty-nine schools were sampled strategically according to the variability of parents' socioeconomic backgrounds. A total of 404 teachers and 1042 fifth-grade students completed questionnaires. Hierarchical Linear Modelling was then used to explore the nature and impact of parental involvement. The extent of parental involvement in grade 5 was generally low in B.C. elementary schools. Levels of parental involvement did not vary substantially among schools; therefore, it was difficult to identify schools which could induce particularly high or low levels of involvement. In exploring the barriers and facilitators of parental involvement, evidence from this study suggests that substantial decentralization of instructional activities, and positive teacher attitudes and practices enhance parental involvement. Another important school factor is the nurturing of social capital within the school. The findings indicate that a positive social climate is a major determinant of parental involvement. An important home factor is cultural capital provided by parents. The results suggest that cultural capital rather than economic capital determines the levels of parental involvement in education. The effects of different types of parental involvement on students' learning outcomes were relatively weak in this study. Home-based involvement was not generally effective for improving children's learning, and school-based involvement had a small positive effect on student's self-esteem but was negatively related to student academic achievement. It appears that parental involvement tended to be reactive rather than proactive. Parents with children at risk academically and socially were more likely to be involved. Yet the study has demonstrated that investment of educational time and monitoring of peer activities were possible intervening variables through which parents could indirectly affect students' learning outcomes. In the conceptual framework of this study, learning outcomes was viewed as a function of the availability of: economic capital, cultural capital and social capital. Among these major forms of resources, social capital nurtured by the school was the most powerful determinant of students' self-esteem. Cultural capital and economic capital had a moderate effect on both students' self-esteem and academic achievement, but their contribution varied from one cognitive characteristic to another. These results provide substantial evidence to support the integration of Coleman's social capital thesis and Bourdieu's cultural capital thesis. An inclusive model, which emphasizes the inclusion of resources from family, school, and community, appears to be the most promising avenue for improving children's learning. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate

School-based social and emotional learning (SEL) interventions have the potential to promote healthy development among children, including social and emotion regulation and academic achievement. Higher levels of implementation quality are associated with greater student outcomes compelling research to identify factors that contribute to successful implementation. Social validity refers to the social significance of an intervention and is thought to improve the uptake of interventions. The ecological model of teacher implementation proposes that individual and contextual factors influence social validity. The present study used a mixed-method design to examine how teacher and school factors were associated with the social validity of SEL interventions. Participants included 112 PK-5 teachers who completed an online survey about their perceptions of social validity of SEL interventions, their demographics, SEL beliefs, self-efficacy, stress level, multicultural competence (MCC), school climate, school location, and proportions of students and teachers of color. Participants responded to four open-ended questions regarding their perceptions of SEL interventions. Structural equation modeling was used to test model fit and estimate relationships between variables. Teacher SEL Competence (indicated by SEL beliefs, self-efficacy, and MCC), School Diversity (indicated by location, proportions of students and teachers of color), stress level, race/ethnicity, and school climate were examined in their association with the social validity (i.e., acceptability, willingness, perceived effectiveness, and disruption) of SEL interventions. Thematic analysis was used to extract common themes from qualitative data and expand the understanding of teachers’ perceptions about SEL interventions. Quantitative and qualitative results showed that teacher and school factors were significantly associated with social validity. Overall, teachers reported positive perceptions about SEL interventions; particularly, teachers with higher SEL competence perceived SEL interventions to be more acceptable and effective and were more willing to engage in them. Teachers with higher stress levels also perceived SEL interventions as more acceptable, suggesting they may think SEL interventions can improve both student behavior and teacher well-being. On the other hand, teachers with more years of teaching experience perceived SEL interventions as more disruptive to classroom routines. This may point to barriers in school settings such as lack of time for non-academic activities. Notably, teachers of color also perceived SEL interventions to be more disruptive, and teachers working in more diverse schools rated SEL interventions to be less acceptable. Teachers noted that SEL interventions should be customized to students’ context and reality. Teachers of color and those working in diverse schools may be more aware of the lack of cultural responsiveness of SEL interventions, and therefore find them less socially valid. Providing trainings and supports that develop teacher SEL competence can significantly increase social validity and, consequently, engagement in interventions. It is also important to promote teachers’ MCC and infuse multicultural considerations into school practices. Research on intervention development, evaluation, and dissemination should account for cultural diversity as well as investigate adaptations to improve implementation quality, sustainability, and student outcomes. Advancing SEL interventions in these areas has the potential to promote a healthier development among students particularly those from diverse communities.

Learning, and potentially thought itself, is an inherently social process, whether directly from other humans, such as teachers, parents, or mentors, or indirectly from the artifacts other humans create. However, the social nature of the learning process doesn't come without its social learning, as opposed to cognitive learning, challenges. Sometimes we disagree with, offend, or otherwise harm one another in the learning process, or simply don't know one another enough to engage with and understand each other. How does social development, and specifically the development of dyadic teacher-student relationships impact individuals' learning processes? Here, I apply a multivariate time-series approach to understand how teacher-student dyads, randomly assigned to partners they know or have never met, differ in their nonverbal communication behavior, and how these differences impact student learning processes. Through a custom-built online portal, open-source computer vision software, and a newly-derived state-of-the-art multivariate time series analysis, I show how teacher-student dyads from an undergraduate institution benefit from familiarity, nonverbal coordination, and their development, and how this development improves students' scientific reasoning performance. I also show how the degree of nonverbal coordination that enables high performance in the reasoning tasks develops over as little as 10—15 minutes of dedicated face-to-face interaction. Three implications of the work are highlighted. First, the results imply that social interaction processes are crucial to individual reasoning in face-to-face online contexts. Second, a potentially necessary route to improving STEM education at the undergraduate level may be more dedicated face-to-face time between students and their instructors. Finally, the step-by-step guide provided by the work to apply multivariate techniques to non-stationary diachronic processes illuminates the value of combining evolutionary correspondence analysis with locally stationary vector autoregression. The combination of methods reduces the complexity of high-dimensional datasets to explanatory latent factors, and then quantifies the linear predictability of each original dimension on all of the others within each explanatory latent factor. In the current analysis, I identify familiarity and affect-attention tradeoff effects as the two most explanatory latent factors, and quantify how both familiarity, and the tradeoff between affective and attentive signalling between the dyads evolves over the course of 20-25 minute teacher-student interactions. Thus, beyond the implications for dyadic reasoning and STEM learning processes, the methodological implications could be applied to any high-dimensional diachronic processes, such as two bodies, or brains, interacting in other teacher-student contexts, as well as parent-child, therapist-client, and manager-employee environments in order to simplify the complexity of social interactions and uncover their impacts on individual change processes.

The purpose of this study was to ascertain student and teacher perceptions of the environment in which student learning takes place and their perceptions of how it has helped them in the cognitive and social domains. Data collected were through student and teacher perception surveys, student and teacher perception questionnaires, classroom observations, student focus group discussions, and teacher interviews. Themes that emerged from the data sources were student interactions, students' autonomy in personalizing their learning space, teacher perceptions of comfort in the classroom, and student perceptions of comfort in the classroom. The findings of this study point to four recommendations for educational leaders to ensure the effective implementation of new and dynamic learning spaces: (1) consult and support teacher and students, (2) provide professional development, (3) visit campuses and other learning spaces, and (4) add color. In order for real change to take place, teachers need to enquire about and embrace student preferences and allow for the discomfort that will be present when trying something new. Teachers must be willing to relinquish control of the learning experience for the student in order to allow for possibilities in personalized learning on the part of the student. They must risk initial failure in order to allow for greater successes in the long run.