Transformative learning theory (TLT) describes the process of reframing discriminative, untenable worldviews with a more inclusive, permeable, and reflective epistemology. Although TLT has been around for more than 50 years, few studies empirically engage critical theoretical frameworks to move beyond personal learning to identify the impacts of transformation on society. Through a critical race theory (CRT) framework, this study analyzed how the participants' socio-cultural identities (race, class, gender, sexuality, and heritage language) impacted the transformative learning of eight study-abroad students from a medium-sized, rural Midwestern university. Focusing on the extent to which the participants experienced the elements of transformative learning during a month-long study-abroad experience in Spain, this project explored what the experience of traveling to an "other" place and experiencing "otherness" had on transformative learning. This qualitative study drew from extensive ethnographic observations, photo analysis, and informal, semi-formal, and focus-group interviews. During the study, the researcher analyzed data to construct codes and categories for further analysis, incorporating multiple member-checks to promote the narratives of the participants. Following data collection, the researcher used constructivist grounded theory to further scrutinize the data searching for salient themes and patterns connected to the research questions. Race and class privilege (or marginalization) had an impact on the study-abroad participants' worldviews and transformative learning. Participants from backgrounds of racial and class privilege experienced transformations that were deeply engaging on a personal level, but were not motivated toward more justified beliefs or action toward others. In contrast, participants from backgrounds of lesser socio-cultural privilege demonstrated increased critical social reflection and transformative outcomes, both personal and social. These findings led the researcher to question if there might be more effective avenues toward critical social transformation than the pedagogy of the privileged of travel for transformation.

abstract: Abstract On a daily basis I am bombarded with images in every walk of life. I encounter images crossing my path constantly through media such as the internet, television, magazines, radio, social media, even in the grocery store line on screens intended to capture our attention. As I drive down the roadways, I am invaded by images that at times can be distracting with their dazzling displays, attempting to get our attention and get us to consume their product or service or understand a historical meaning. In this dissertation I intend on looking at murals and two social studies textbooks to focus types of media; then construct an argument about how these media impact social studies curricula in the communities in which they are located taking into consideration race, social class, language, location, and culture. The intent is to critically analyze traditional curricula and curricula found in public pedagogy in communities located on the borderlands. I also asked local high school-aged students, teachers, artists, and activists from both sides of the border analyze the images through photo elicitation and traditional interviews. Students were interviewed with a focus on interpreted meanings of images presented. Teachers and artists were interviewed to discover their intended meanings as displayed through their production and circulation of intended meanings via lessons and the images they select or create. Activists were interviewed to discover local history, images, and history of the educational space where the artwork and schools are located. I used these data to create an argument as to how these forms of media impacts school curricula in the areas on both sides of the United States/Mexico border. The study was conducted in border cities El Paso, Texas and Juarez, Chihuahua. The ultimate goal was to look at how academics and curricula developers can use this information to decolonize curricula in the field of curricula studies. Moreover, this information can be used to create decolonized ideologies in curricula that can be used at the school sites to promote diversity and social justice for students in their schooling experience. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Curriculum and Instruction 2018

There is increasing interest on the part of ESL educators in the inclusion of contemporary, global issues in their classrooms. Theory about content-based ESL, as well as trends in education, generally, lend support to such enthusiasm. However, ESL educators may be erroneously assuming that their interest in this material is shared by their students. Global issues can also be controversial. Their inclusion in the classroom has the potential to create an uncomfortable, and therefore ineffective, learning atmosphere in a multicultural ESL setting. This qualitative case study examined the use of global issues as the content material in a university-based ESL advanced listening/ speaking class, from the perspective of ten students. A variety of data-gathering methods were employed: direct observation of whole-class sessions; observation and audio-recordings of small-group discussions; tape-recorded journals created by the subjects; audio-recordings of two interviews conducted with each subject. The study focused on three areas: awareness of/interest in global issues developed by the subjects while in their home countries; background experiences and interest in critical analysis developed by the subjects prior to the study; possible changes experienced by the subjects, both in comfort and interest in using global issues in the ESL classroom, during the study. The results indicate that the majority of the subjects entered the classroom with some exposure to several specific global issues. Most had little experience in analyzing the issues using the type of critical analysis common to American academic settings. Initially, most felt hesitant about publicly expressing opinions regarding controversial issues; this reluctance was alleviated by the end of the term. Interest in the material also increased for most subjects during the term. The primary difficulties were found to be related less to global issues and more to the activities performed while working with the subject matter. The study concludes that global issues may be better- suited to classroom activities requiring less public expression of individual ideas and opinions. It also recommends training for ESL educators in intercultural conflict resolution, to enable them to facilitate effective classroom discussion of controversial issues.

English language learners (ELLs) spend a majority of their instructional time in mainstream classrooms with mainstream teachers. Reading is an area with which many ELLs are challenged when placed within mainstream classrooms. Scaffolding has been identified as one of the best teaching practices for helping students read. ELL students in a local elementary school were struggling, and school personnel implemented scaffolding in an effort to address student needs. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine how personnel in one diversely populated school employed scaffolding to accommodate ELLs. Vygotsky's social constructivist theory informed the study. Research questions were designed to elicit the teachers' perceptions related to the use of scaffolding for ELLs and to examine the impact scaffolding had on ELLs reading performance. The perceptions of 14 out of 15 participating teachers were investigated via focus group interviews that were transcribed. Observation data were gathered to determine teachers' use of particular strategies. Hatch's method for coding and categorical analysis was used. Emerging themes included background knowledge, comprehension and evaluation. Participating teachers felt scaffolding strategies were crucial for building a solid foundation for ELL academic success. Pre and posttest scores in reading of 105 ELLs were analyzed using a paired samples t test. There were statistically significant gains in 13 of 15 performance indicators over the 3-month cycle of instruction. Implications for social change include strategies for classroom teachers and their administrators concerning scaffolding reading instruction with ELLs in order to help these students increase their reading performance levels.

The importance of multicultural counseling training received much attention for decades, however, studies on effective training focused on multicultural counseling training in a face-to-face environment with minimal focus on online training environments. These studies found that face-to-face interactions had the most impact on multicultural training. Therefore, the current study was an evaluation of online master's counseling students' and graduates' multicultural attitudes to determine the effectiveness of online multicultural training using Banks' transformative approach. The research questions focused on the significant difference in participants' recalled multicultural attitude scores (know, care, and act) before an online multicultural counseling course as compared to recalled multicultural attitude scores after an online multicultural counseling course as measured by the Multicultural Attitude Scale Questionnaire (MASQUE). A quantitative survey design was used with a convenience sample of 129 students enrolled in online counselor education programs to measure their multicultural attitude changes before and after a multicultural counseling course. Results were analyzed using MANCOVA with group designs and interpreted using a one-tailed F-test to determine if there were statistically significant differences in the multicultural attitude scores of students before and after completing an online multicultural counseling course. The results indicated a statistically significant difference in Knowledge scores (F(1, 112) = 59.23, p < .001) and Care scores (F(1, 112) = 73.57, p < .001) from before as compared to after taking the course. Ultimately, the results established the effectiveness and reputation of online counselor education programs and multicultural counseling training.

Educational disparities exist between English language learners (ELLs) and native English-speaking students. Evidence suggests that, by fourth grade, 35% of ELLs, compared to their native English-speaking peers, are behind in math, and 47% are behind in reading. There is also evidence to suggest that these lower achievement scores are impacted by teachers' perceptions of and expectations for ELL students. Guided by the theories of interpersonal expectancy and self-fulfilling prophecy, this study examined first grade teachers' perceptions of and expectations for their ELL students in a small southern U.S. town. Using a case study approach, data were collected through interviews, observations, and a qualitative questionnaire. Data were analyzed by comparing and contrasting emergent themes, with similar themes being combined as a method of data reduction. Findings from this study indicated that the teachers did not see their ELL students as inferior to their native English-speaking peers. Students were viewed as similarly capable as any other student in the classroom and are expected to reach the same level of achievement as their native English-speaking peers. Teachers generally expressed the need for more training to address ELL learning styles and communicate more effectively with parents. Teachers, administrators, and parents would be interested in the findings of this study, and this study may motivate teachers and administrators to consider how their perceptions of and expectations for ELL students are linked to effective and equitable curriculum and instruction for these students. The implication for social change is that examining equitable instruction of ELL students will enhance these students' chances to compete for good jobs and be productive citizens of the local community.

This study explored the perceptions of adult English language learners about the use of audience response systems (clickers) to facilitate communication in a classroom environment. In the early stages of second language acquisition, learners' receptive capabilities surpass expressive capabilities, often rendering them silent in their second language. Educational strategies and tools may be available to help English language learners communicate more effectively by enabling them to demonstrate their knowledge and express their opinions nonverbally. Many studies have been conducted with clickers, but none were found pertaining to adult English language learners. Second language acquisition theory provided the theoretical base for this research. In this Q-methodological study, adult English language learners enrolled in a computer skills course ranked statements about using clickers according to how closely they align with their personal perceptions. Factor analysis was performed to identify commonalities and patterns in perceptions. The findings support the view that second language acquisition theory influences how technology tools are perceived by English language learners. Adults with lower English language proficiency levels perceived the anonymity provided by clickers to be beneficial. Participants with beginning to intermediate levels of English proficiency perceived the clickers to be more valuable for communication than did those with lower levels of English proficiency. Results of this study may affect positive social change by leading to more effective instructional and assessment practices for adult English language learners and by fostering research into the viability of educational technology communication tools with all English language learners.

by James Reginald Jackson. / Typescript. / Ph. D. Florida State University 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 132-145).

ABSTRACT Although immigrants are an integral part of the nation's founding and history, it is unclear how they have been historically portrayed in children's and young adults' American trade books, especially at the turn of the 20th century. This study offers a critical and comparative analysis focusing on the historical evolution, depiction of immigrants, and authors' perspectives of selected trade books written during two peak United States immigration eras (1880-1930 and 1980-2010s). Utilizing a discourse analysis approach, this study examined how first-generation immigrants were portrayed in selected trade books and how various themes and representations may have affected students and the social studies curriculum. After studying 98 books, it was determined that in both peak immigration eras, first-generation immigrants were depicted as inferior to native-born Americans. Although the time period and countries of origin changed, the issues that immigrants faced and the problems they experienced were similar; first-generation immigrants were scorned, harshly criticized, and viewed as inferior not only by Americans, but also by fellow immigrants who were members of other cultures. Overall, the books left out the immigration experience, and were mostly tales of assimilation and mistreatment in the United States. Because children's ideas and understandings of people and cultural groups are formed by what they learn from others and by the media, it is important that books which portray immigrants and their experience provide accurate and meaningful representations of these individuals. Although many of these books reviewed in this study are considered classics and offer an immense amount of valuable information about historical events which can benefit the social studies curriculum, teachers should be wary of serious overt and covert criticism of ethnicities before introducing them in the classroom. There is a need for literature that sends positive messages about accepting those from other countries and that focuses on how first-generation immigrants helped shape America. Teachers should use trade books in the classroom as they can help children read about history. However, new books need to be written about immigrants. Future research should look into effective ways to use the existing body of trade book literature in the classroom, investigate if (and to what degree) trade books were or are used in schools, compare trade books' portrayal of immigrants to that of textbooks' portrayal, and examine how immigrants were portrayed during the time periods (1940-1970) not covered in this study.

Abstract not available