Framed by insights from critical human geography, political economy, and educational studies, this dissertation offers a critique of the contemporary education reform movement in the United States (hereafter U.S.). The overarching argument made here is that the powerfully positioned individuals and groups at the head of this movement have been less motivated by a desire to actually pursue social justice than by the political expediency that comes with appearing to be doing so. The three papers that follow speak to the existing critical literature on public schooling in the U.S., which argues that the perpetual discussion about how to 'fix' the U.S.'s educational system should be seen as an attempt by its powerfully positioned interlocutors to collapse popular discontent with a variety of persistent social injustices into a focused dissatisfaction with the public schools. This literature has also argued that although the public education system in the U.S. is indeed quite inequitable as it presently exists, and thus an appropriate target for transformation, the education reform movement's efforts to that end have actually reproduced many of the social and pedagogical causes of educational inequity. This dissertation builds on the literature just summarized by demonstrating that the rhetoric of the individuals and groups associated with the education reform movement coalesces around a spatial discourse through which the causes of a variety of social ills are presented as endogenous to the spaces inhabited by the individuals and groups that suffer them with the greatest frequency and intensity. Further, the artificially discrete, enclosed spaces conjured in the name of education reform are enrolled as part of a broader project of legitimizing coercive, individualizing, and competitive-rather than supportive, dialogic, collaborative-forms of pedagogy, and governance more generally.

This thesis defends a conception of equality of opportunity. It comes in two parts. The first part elaborates the conception. It begins by clarifying the concept of equality of opportunity, showing it to be made up of four basic elements: a distributive pattern, a set of subjects, an opportunity obstacle and a distributive object. The conception I build from these elements explains the value of the distributive pattern, equality, in terms of a concern for fairness, takes persons as its subject and takes well-being as its object. The conception presented is partial, rather than comprehensive, in that it does not include a detailed account of an opportunity obstacle. The conception of equality of opportunity that I present can also be characterised as a luck egalitarian principle. My aim in elaborating the conception is to show that it has intuitive appeal; it constitutes a pro tanto moral principle. The second part of the thesis examines the implications of luck egalitarianism in two contexts. It begins by examining the context of gifts, arguing that although luck egalitarianism is highly restrictive with respect to the freedom to give this only confirms that it is a merely pro tanto moral principle. It continues by examining the context of markets, arguing that luck egalitarianism makes intuitively correct judgments in several specified cases. My aim in applying luck egalitarianism is to show that its implications do not give us reason to reject its initial intuitive appeal. I examine luck egalitarianism generally, rather then the partial conception I elaborate, to allow for the possibility that my earlier arguments are wrong in some respect. Overall, I hope the arguments presented provide reasons to accept the conception presented as morally valuable.

LL.M. (Labour Law) / According to Davies and Freedland, “the relation between an employer and an isolated employee or worker is typically a relation between a bearer of power and one who is not a bearer of power”. In other words, the employment relationship is characterised by an imbalance of power and is inherently unjust if employees do not act collectively. Labour law, from a social justice perspective, serves as “a tool to further the interests of social justice” for employees and serves to equalise the balance of power in the relationship between the employer and employees. From a social justice perspective, trade unions and trade union representatives fulfil a vital function as “a primary vehicle through which to achieve social justice” in the workplace. According to Du Toit, it is only when employees act collectively, through trade unions and their representatives, that employees can counteract the bargaining power of the employer. Therefore, the existence of trade unions and their representatives is linked to the realisation of social justice and, it could be argued, the fulfilment of the right to fair labour practices, which is enshrined in section 23(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 ...

This thesis probes the land (in)justice in Hong Kong by presenting an archival research which contributes to the inter-disciplinary scholarship of legal geography. It conceptualises the leasehold land system as the legal mechanism in the land (re)development regime and politicises the understanding of land (in)justice by explaining how it is produced and reproduced by the legal mechanism. Drawing on critical realism, Dikeç's spatial dialectics of injustice, Lefebvre's concrete abstraction and several concepts in legal geography, this thesis proposes "spatio-legal dialectics of land (in)justice" as the theoretical framework. Reconstructing the historical geography of this former British colony, through the lens of scalar politics, demonstrates that the legal system and land development have been inextricably intertwined in Hong Kong. Through the legal technicalities of land leases, the Colonial Government transformed the territory of Hong Kong into an exploitable land property, and thus secured the absolute control of land and the effective governance of the society. The expiry problem of the land lease placed the future of Hong Kong as a diplomatic question between China and Britain. The "Tin Shui Wai Myth", situated in the 1980s, reflected the frictions between the two countries. The "Myth" is not only related to the production of the spatiality of injustice as a new town but also associated with the production of the injustice of spatiality because of some legal changes. These legal changes, related to land lease and urban infrastructure, evolved after the Sino-British Negotiation and led the land (re)development regime to be more hegemonic. Understanding Hong Kong as a property jurisdiction, the current problematic of land injustice, under the new constitutional order of the Chinese sovereignty, is elaborated by the thesis of complete exploitation with the concept of urban land nexus. This thesis empirically interprets the mutual constitution of law and urban development, and conceptually engages in the academic debates about (in)justice, law and urban spatiality.

Thesis advisor: Marilyn Cochran-Smith / In this critical ethnography I examined Teach First, the U.K. teacher education program modeled after Teach For America (TFA). Teach First described itself as "a unique business-led programme dedicated to addressing educational disadvantage by placing elite graduates in the schools that need them most" (Teach First, 2010). Teach First was thus problematically positioned at the crossroads of both neoliberal and progressive ideologies. My research addressed this problem by uncovering Teach First's theory of teacher education for social justice by applying a framework developed by Marilyn Cochran-Smith (2010) to interviews, observations, and artifacts that I collected at the 2008 Teach First Summer Institute. I then critiqued this theory using the tools of "Policy Sociology," a British research tradition that examines the political, ideological, and economic assumptions that drive education policy. My research led me to identify Teach First as a "progressive neoliberal" (Lahann and Reagan, in press) organization which is driven entirely by a theory of teacher education for social justice based on the idea of justice as distribution. This theory explains why the staff of Teach First appreciated the organization to have a mission of social justice while at the same time endorsing and promoting neoliberal policies which conflict with many theories of teacher education for social justice that draw from theories of justice as recognition. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2010. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Thesis advisor: Thomas J. Massaro / There is a substantial and growing corpus of literature that describes, with convincing statistics and analysis, globalization as the greatest achievement in the history of our modern world and that it has brought the greatest degree of prosperity and economic growth to poor countries. However, seen from the perspective of the poor and the marginalized, the current globalization has not helped them to end their misery and marginalization; indeed in most cases it has actually worsened their situation. The Christian community cannot remain an idle spectator of this unjust, inhuman and sinful global reality. Analyzed from a Christian theological perspective, it is not only an economic issue but also a moral issue. It is a social sin to violate human dignity, to commodify human labor, and to marginalize the poor. Based on the teachings of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences, the Catholic Bishops Conference of India and some prominent Asian theologians, I contend that dialogue with other faith traditions, cultures and the poor must be an essential part of her mission of humanizing the current globalization. I argue that the Church in India should avoid the presumption that she already possesses a vision of the common good adequate to the Indian society. While remaining committed to gospel values, the Church must be an open-minded listening and learning. / Thesis (STD) — Boston College, 2011. / Submitted to: Boston College. School of Theology and Ministry. / Discipline: Sacred Theology.

Thesis advisor: Ana M. Martínez Alemán / The contemporary American women's college boasts an illustrious history of providing superior education for women, one that leads to significantly more positive educational outcomes for women than a coeducation college experience (including graduate degree attainment, persistence in science and mathematics, and achievement of high-level positions in many career fields). Recently, a small but vocal group of students who identify as transgender and who are living as male, genderqueer, or transitioning to live as male have emerged as a visible sub-population in many highly selective women's colleges. In this qualitative, phenomenological study of the perceptions of student affairs administrators (n=31) regarding their perceptions of and experiences working with transgender students, these key facilitators of student growth and development expressed beliefs and actions that characterized them almost uniformly as supporters of transgender students. A smaller subset of participants (advocates) took decisive and change-oriented action on their campuses, resulting in a shift of policy and practice. The data indicated that there appeared to be coherence between these two identities and adherence to a philosophy of feminist and/or womanist identity and practices. By effectively navigating what one participant named `discourses of discomfort' about transgender students on campus, participants demonstrated professional identities typified by an ethics of care and social justice in their work, as well as demonstrating practices that were defined by normalizing belonging for transgender students. Implications for practice include continued attention to advancing social justice at women's colleges, enhancement of learning and teaching about transgender lives and identities at women's colleges, and increased commitment to trans-formation of coeducational college environments. Further research about transgender students' experiences at women's colleges, as alumni of women's colleges, and the effects of policy implementation regarding transgender students at women's colleges is warranted. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Administration and Higher Education.

Thesis advisor: Larry H. Ludlow / Teacher preparation programs face an urgent call to prepare high-quality and "highly qualified" teachers who teach all students in an increasingly culturally, racially, ethnically, and linguistically diverse student population, and who work toward closing the achievement gap that separates students along these demographic lines. In response, and as part of the current accountability context, there has been greater focus on outcomes in teacher education. Along different lines, also in response to these challenges, there has been an increase in social justice-oriented teacher preparation programs. This dissertation operates within both of these contexts. Specifically, this dissertation examines one of the many outcomes of teacher education for social justice: teacher candidates' changing beliefs about teaching for social justice and the factors that may or may not be related to their change. Using primarily Rasch rating scale and multiple regression analyses, this dissertation examines longitudinal survey data from two cohorts of undergraduate teacher candidates (N=134) who completed the same social justice-oriented teacher education program. By investigating two cohorts of teacher candidates at the time of entry into the teacher education program and again when they graduated four years later, this study investigated individuals in the aggregate, variability within and across cohorts, and change across time. In addition, this research sought to untangle and identify whether reported experiences and perceptions before and during formal teacher education are related to beliefs about and commitment to teaching for social justice. Findings suggest that from the time of entry to graduation, candidates' beliefs about teaching for social justice were significantly more aligned with the concepts and principles endorsed by the teacher preparation program. Additionally, at particular points in time and across time, there were identifiable perceptions and experiences related to their beliefs about teaching for social justice. In particular, the location of the student teaching experience and candidates' perceptions of their teacher education faculty were significant predictors of their beliefs about teaching for social justice. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2011. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation.

Thesis advisor: Richard M. Jackson / The diversity of the student population in K-12 settings has steadily increased over the past few decades. While students who are of a racial/ethnic minority background have increased (Villegas & Lucas, 2007), teachers are increasingly young, female, and white (Goldenberg, 2008; NCES, 2013). In acknowledging these demographic discrepancies between teachers and students, many studies and reports have put forward an array of frameworks that teachers can employ in their practice to address diversity. Among these frameworks are Teaching for Social Justice (TSJ) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This dissertation seeks to examine the potential relationship among the two frameworks as viewed by undergraduate teacher candidates as they develop their dispositions for teaching diverse learners through a 17-week course attached to a one-day-per-week pre-practicum experience. This multi-case study examined how the beliefs of 19 participants regarding TSJ and UDL changed over the course of a 6-month study within the context of a course. This study investigated how these participants connected UDL and social justice as a cohesive framework for addressing diversity in the classroom. Using daily and weekly journals, online discussion forums, and pre- and post- surveys, this study analyzed all 19 participants to identify four representative cases. Findings from this study reveal that most participants were impacted by the course to the extent that they were able to identify the importance of aspects of social justice in the practice of an educator. Fewer participants were able to identify the role of UDL in the classroom. Only one participant viewed social justice and UDL as a cohesive framework for impacting classroom practice. Analysis of the representative case studies suggests that participants at this level of development may need more time to engage in complicated abstract concepts. They may also need course-attached field placements in classrooms that align with the mission and vision of the preparation program, consistency in messaging through the duration of a preparation program, and differentiated supports based on their background experiences. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2015. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Thesis advisor: Marilyn Cochran-Smith / Since the 1990s, many countries have used accountability mechanisms in teacher preparation. Aligned with this trend, the Chilean Ministry of Education has created national policies, which include national standards and an exit test for student teachers, grants for teacher education programs, and university scholarships for prospective teachers. These policies have been implemented in Chile, within the context of high social segregation and inequality, where accountability and deregulation work together. The purpose of this study is to explore how teaching and teacher education are constructed in national teacher education policy and university-based programs in Chile by unpacking assumptions about teaching, teacher education, and justice using frame analysis. This study analyzes national policy documents related to initial teacher education in Chile as well as semi-structured interviews and university and course documents from two teacher preparation programs. This dissertation argues that the influence of Chile’s national teacher education policies on local teacher preparation programs was not uniform across the programs. Rather both national and local frames were influenced by international organizations and universities. This overarching argument is based on four related propositions: 1) teacher preparation programs have different conceptions of practice-based teacher education and teaching while they have similar conceptions of justice; 2) the differences among faculties’ conceptions are shaped by different narratives, based on participants’ view of themselves and their programs, conceptions of teaching knowledge, participation in policies, and alignment and articulation; 3) national policies and teacher preparation programs have different conceptions of teaching and teacher education, but they have similar conceptions of justice; and, 4) Chilean national policies are influenced by international discourses even though they use different narratives to promote their changes. This study has implications for research, policy, practice, and activism. Building on the study’s findings, I constructed a framework that expands the notion of the policy web, incorporating the connection between local and international discourses in teacher education. This framework also identifies four dimensions that shape university’s faculty conceptions and explain the differences among programs. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.