Thesis (Ph. D.)--Illinois State University, 1981. / Title from title page screen, viewed March 18, 2005. Dissertation Committee: Creta Sabine (chair), Clinton Bunke, Ronald Halinski, Alan Dillingham, Sally Pancrazio. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 127-133) and abstract. Also available in print.

I have chosen to conduct an intuitive inquiry into the relationship between a pedagogical focus on epistemological stretching and transformative sustainability learning. The study contributes to theoretical and practical knowledge of teaching and learning about and within the realm of transformative sustainability learning, and contributes to a deepened understanding of epistemological stretching as a pedagogical orientation. Specifically, I have investigated the implications of epistemological stretching as a focal point for teaching and learning for students in ENVS 811: Multiple Ways of Knowing in Environmental Decision Making, a graduate level course in the School of Environment and Sustainability (SENS) at the University of Saskatchewan. Using the 5 cycles of Intuitive Inquiry, this research records and interprets accounts of eight students who participated in ENVS 811. The course is oriented around critical examination of human-nature relations with an emphasis on epistemology. The goal for this research is to investigate the ways in which a focus on epistemological stretching can enable three things: (1) prepare students to engage in interdisciplinary and sustainability knowledge creation; (2) help alleviate the epistemic incongruence in resource co-management arrangements; and (3) bring multiple ways of knowing to bear on complex environmental issues. This research is focused on answering three questions: 1. In what ways can a focus on epistemology help enable perspective transformation implicit in a transformative learning experience? 2. In what ways can educating for epistemological stretching result in new ways of thinking, valuing, doing? 3. In what ways can epistemological stretching help students engage in more effective and ethically appropriate ways with Indigenous peoples and their knowledges? This research concludes that epistemological stretching can contribute to transformative sustainability pedagogy in meaningful ways and develops 5 lenses for describing the conceptual spaces in which learning occurs: acknowledgement and deconstruction of power, relationship reconceptualization, change in perspective and action, worldview bridging, and validation of previously held views.

This study focuses on investigating the changes in perception among students and teachers towards plants and animals after being exposed in classroom or school environments. It also examines how students view plants and animals as pets in the classroom and how teachers consider these organisms as learning tools. These exposures to uncommon plants (Monstera species) and animals (snakes, tortoises, spiders, and fish) are through access to a unique plant and animal facility at the school. To examine the effects of experiences with plants and animals on students and teachers, a Google survey was conducted, comprising a mix of multiple-choice questions (to quantify the effects) and open-ended questions (to allow freedom of expression). This survey targeted students and teachers who had access to the plant and animal facility for at least two years. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected to quantify the effects on a large scale and to uncover the reasons behind these effects using content analysis. The results indicated that both groups exhibited changes in attitude, although the nature of the change varied depending on the type of organisms. These findings highlight the critical role of social interaction and experiences in shifting students and teachers perceptions, reflecting a key component of the learning process as outlined in Vygotsky's theory of cognitive development. Another major finding reveals that teachers recognize the educational benefits of hands-on learning with animals, supported by Dewey's experiential learning theory, while students show a preference for animals over plants due to their more active engagement with animals. Finally, the results were discussed to elucidate the broader educational implications of integrating plants and animals into teaching and the overall perceptions of plants and animals as educational resources.

"Family and school cooperation in child integration / inclusion" identifies the quality of cooperation between primary schools and families of children with special educational needs and its impact on the perception of integration or inclusion. It examines the differences in attitudes towards to l educational needs in primary schools in the certain wiev of disadvantaged children teachers'care, assistants and parents on integration and inclusion in general and in specific cases and aspects of school and family disadvantaged children. According to the current trend, parents can decide about education of their child with specific needs in an ordinary primary school with increased teacherścare, possibly with the support of a teaching assistant, usually according to a prepared individual curriculum because pupils with special educational need have to get individual speed, knowledge and skills often do not have the same level like other students in the classroom. Quality of special care is highly influenced by cooperation among teachers, assistants and parents.

"Family and school cooperation in child integration / inclusion" identifies the quality of cooperation between primary schools and families of children with special educational needs and its impact on the perception of integration or inclusion. It examines the differences in attitudes towards to l educational needs in primary schools in the certain wiev of disadvantaged children teachers'care, assistants and parents on integration and inclusion in general and in specific cases and aspects of school and family disadvantaged children. According to the current trend, parents can decide about education of their child with specific needs in an ordinary primary school with increased teacherścare, possibly with the support of a teaching assistant, usually according to a prepared individual curriculum because pupils with special educational need have to get individual speed, knowledge and skills often do not have the same level like other students in the classroom. Quality of special care is highly influenced by cooperation among teachers, assistants and parents.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of the three (3) extant Environmental Education Centres of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education and Culture (KZNDEC) as contributors to the environmental learning, and to education, in KwaZulu-Natal. In the process, it is an exploratory response as to how better the Centres can answer the call of the Reconstruction and Development Programme to "empower all communities to act on environmental issues" (African National Congress 1994:40). The research traces the history, the philosophical background and functions of environmental education, of environmental education centres, and of personnel employed at environmental educators, in the ex-Natal Education Department and in its successor, the KZNDEC. The researcher recommends that environmental education centres should become "agents of change" in the wider environment, and in the educational processes, of the communities of which they are a part. The study suggests methods by which people's lives at a "deep rural" level may be improved by helping restore the balance of "the three pillars of sustainable development - economic, social and environmental - and [in the process, having a positive] focus on poverty eradication" (WSSD 2002). The centres, the researcher contends, can become more effective agents of the KZNDEC for the protection of the environment "for the benefit of present and future generations" (Constitutional Assembly 1996:11). / Educational Studies / M.Ed.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of the three (3) extant Environmental Education Centres of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education and Culture (KZNDEC) as contributors to the environmental learning, and to education, in KwaZulu-Natal. In the process, it is an exploratory response as to how better the Centres can answer the call of the Reconstruction and Development Programme to "empower all communities to act on environmental issues" (African National Congress 1994:40). The research traces the history, the philosophical background and functions of environmental education, of environmental education centres, and of personnel employed at environmental educators, in the ex-Natal Education Department and in its successor, the KZNDEC. The researcher recommends that environmental education centres should become "agents of change" in the wider environment, and in the educational processes, of the communities of which they are a part. The study suggests methods by which people's lives at a "deep rural" level may be improved by helping restore the balance of "the three pillars of sustainable development - economic, social and environmental - and [in the process, having a positive] focus on poverty eradication" (WSSD 2002). The centres, the researcher contends, can become more effective agents of the KZNDEC for the protection of the environment "for the benefit of present and future generations" (Constitutional Assembly 1996:11). / Educational Studies / M.Ed.

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