Thesis (Ph.D.)--Kent State University, 2008. / Title from OhioLINK ETD abstract webpage (viewed Feb. 2, 2010) Advisor: Mark Bracher. Keywords: Literature; Multiethnic; Pedagogy. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: Dr. Vivian Fueyo, Florida State University, College of Education, Dept. of Elementary and Early Childhood Education. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Feb. 24, 2003). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Ed.)--York University, 2000. Graduate Programme in Education. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-123). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ59169.

Thesis (M. Ed.)--York University, 2001. Graduate Programme in Education. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 234-238). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ71599.

Post-9/11, terrorism is an increasingly common spectacle. Daily, its news has become embedded into the fabric of contemporary life. But as wars fighting terrorism fail to cease the reproduction of such extraordinary violence, what role should education play to expand the freedom from terror? Mired in a perpetual terrorist dialectic, how should citizens of an interdependent world be cultivated? Particularly novel is the emergence of a pedagogical discourse that holds education as both a cause of and cure for terrorism. Presupposing poverty a main source of discontent and schooling a crucial vehicle to social mobility, governments increasingly employ education to ‘counter’ terrorism. Growing numbers of terrorists are being ‘re-educated’ for de-radicalization and social reintegration. Few studies have focused on the interrelations between education and terrorism; of those that have, the deeper theoretical questions have gone largely unasked. Problematizing the dominant discourses of terrorism and the use of education to combat the hearts and minds of terrorists, this thesis seeks to ground the pedagogical expansion of the freedom from terror on a more robust conceptual framework. With the aim to reexamine the interrelationship between terrorism and education, and conceptualize how the latter expands the freedom from the former, the methodology is interdisciplinary and ultimately philosophical. Each approach to understanding terrorism, from political economy to history to sociology, is briefly adopted before being undermined by the next. Through such a Socratic method, each discourse is betrayed by the exposition of internal contradictions and conceptual inadequacies. Because the scientific method fails to address questions concerning what terrorism is, who terrorists are, why the freedom from terror is justifiable, and how education can expand such freedom, the use of philosophical critique and reasoning is essential to conceptualizing pedagogical answers to the problem of terror. Paradoxical and insufficient, conventional discourses of terrorism and counterterrorism fail to address the fundamental problem in such misrecognitions and miscommunications. Found crucial to the perpetuation of the cycle of terror are the monological formulations of absolute moral principles and the sociological reproduction of fundamentalist attitudes and behaviors. Such a conceptual framework implicates the recognition of terror in human interactions ranging from the social to the political. To transform such terroristic dispositions requires meaningful interchange between those with different mentalities and practices. Through sharing narratives and not only criticism, interlocutors can enhance their epistemological and moral capabilities to imagine and pursue different beings and doings. Thus, fostering intercultural dialogue and building interdependency are essential to cultivating the freedom from terror through pedagogical means. From studies on ‘homeland security’ to ‘re-education’ programs for captured ‘enemy combatants’, the governmental deployment of education to counter terrorism warrants more thought and research. Reinterpreting the discourse of terrorism provides a substantively new framework for educational research and imperatives, particularly the cultivation of intercultural learning. This thesis provides justification for such an intercultural education, an emancipating process that cultivates visions of a different world, one free of terror. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

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In this paper, students' bilingualism and multicultural experiences are examined as cognitive resources for mathematization. Capitalizing on the view of language as action, and on students' familiarity with certain experiences through direct participation, the study includes a conceptual framework, never used with bilingual mathematics learners, to investigate how bilingual students organize and coordinate actions to solve mathematical problems about familiar and unfamiliar experiences in English and Spanish. The study used a research methodology to investigate two questions: (a) How do bilingual students' mathematize familiar experience problems and unfamiliar experience problems in Spanish and English? (b) What do differences and similarities in bilingual students' mathematization across problems and languages reveal about experience and bilingualism as cognitive resources? Findings show important differences. In problems about familiar experiences, students generated more productive actions, more reflective actions, and less unproductive actions than in problems about unfamiliar experience. As for the bilingualism, students used Spanish and English differently. When solving problems in Spanish, they framed actions more socially by including partners or sharing the action with partners, whereas in English they framed actions more individually, more depersonalized, excluding partners and instead relying on words in problems to justify their individual actions. This suggests that reinventing mathematics and themselves as mathematical thinkers is part of using their bilingualism and experiences as cognitive tools, and attention to how they use each language for each type of problem can reveal substantial knowledge about how bilinguals learn mathematics. / text

<p> The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Hispanic mothers of primary grade students with regard to the home and school relationship. The Hispanic population accounted for over half of the growth of the total U.S. population between 2000 and 2010 (Ennis, Rios-Vargas, &amp; Albert, 2011), and Hispanic enrollment in schools increased from 15% to 20% of total enrollment in the U.S. (U.S. Census Bureau, 2013). With an increasing number of Hispanic students in U.S. public schools, it is important to understand how mothers of Hispanic students view education, schools, and teachers. </p><p> This study included three focus groups and seven in-depth individual interviews. Participants described their individual experiences with and perceptions of their interactions with school administrators, staff, and teachers; their relationships with their child's school, staff, and teachers; and how they work with and help their child with school related issues. Three primary themes emerged: (a) Affective Responses, (b) Relationships, and (c) Mothers' Engagement and Advocacy with the Teaching and Learning Process. Each mother's story gave a voice to the disconnect felt between their Hispanic homes and the American school. The mothers shared feelings of trust, fear, communication gaps, confusion, and frustration as they described their lived experiences. </p><p> The overall aim of this study was to contribute to the field of education by providing useful suggestions to enhance the home and school relationship. Some of the suggestions included: holding a monthly or bi-monthly forum for mothers to voice concerns, coordinating Hispanic bilingual mothers to serve as volunteers for the school year, providing homework examples and instructions in Spanish, and offering tutoring classes to specifically teach Hispanic mothers how to help their children with school at home. Literature supports a dissonance between the dominant school culture and the Hispanic home culture with neither side understanding the values and norms of the other (Wortham, Murillo, &amp; Hamann, 2002). This research may be used to provide strategies for schools to communicate effectively with Hispanic mothers and increase their engagement in both the school and their child's education.</p>

At a time when schools are becoming increasingly diverse in composition, this study explored five student teachers' perspectives on the changing role of teachers in a multicultural society. By using a constructivist framework and qualitative methodologies, interviews were conducted with student teachers in a Canadian elementary teacher education program. Two data sets consisting of one-on-one interviews were collected. The first set was collected after students had completed a thirteen week practicum. The second set was conducted after the student teachers had completed program requirements and had graduated from university with an education degree. Students' conceptualizations of the teacher's role in culturally diverse classrooms are described in six categories: bridging gaps in knowledge; being proactive as a role model; nurturing self-esteem and personal pride in heritage; focusing on care, respect, and acceptance; creating a safe and inclusive environment; resisting the lure of assimilation and the status quo. Life experiences which were influential in the formation of the students' conceptualizations are also described and organized by theme. The results of the study demonstrate that conceptualizations traversed a range of philosophical arguments outlined by theorists, and students' beliefs reflect key elements of conceptions portrayed in the approaches used to meet the needs of culturally diverse classrooms described in the literature. The findings underscore the need for multicultural theory in teacher education and for a pedagogical approach which encourages students to become reflective practitioners who are able to examine and critique personal beliefs in relation to the evolving needs of a multicultural society.