The postmodern organisation and its leaders are faced with relentless turbulence and change and a compelling economic drive for success. The recent exponential rise in the popularity of coaching can be ascribed to the business need for the development of leadership bench-strength. Appreciative inquiry (AI) claims to be a source of untapped strength for organisations in the postmodern world and a source of sustainable solutions and genesis for energy. However, the scarcity of evidence of coaching linked to a postmodern stance, incorporating AI principles, as well as using group-based coaching methods, provided an opportunity for this study to respond to the challenges and contribute to the theory and practice of leadership coaching in the organisational setting by investigating the transformative effects of a postmodern group-based leadership coaching programme (LCP) on leaders’ personal and professional perspectives. The premises suggest that postmodern group-based coaching is a practical and cost-effective methodology in multi-cultural international organisations. Furthermore, postmodern coaching in groups can transform the personal and professional perspectives of leaders, specifically in transforming future plans, goal-directedness, confidence, resilience, hope, subjective well-being and empowerment as a leader, as well as broadening life outlooks. Key transformative themes were identified: self-knowledge, appreciation of others, broader vision, self-control and work-life integration. This applied study has made a valuable contribution to the body of research in the area of postmodern and group-based coaching. Replication of the study in other industries, setting and with different levels of leadership, training of postmodern coaches and robust follow-up coaching were identified as opportunities for further exploration. / Industrial & Organisational Psychology / D.Lit. et Phil. (Industrial Psychology)

The postmodern organisation and its leaders are faced with relentless turbulence and change and a compelling economic drive for success. The recent exponential rise in the popularity of coaching can be ascribed to the business need for the development of leadership bench-strength. Appreciative inquiry (AI) claims to be a source of untapped strength for organisations in the postmodern world and a source of sustainable solutions and genesis for energy. However, the scarcity of evidence of coaching linked to a postmodern stance, incorporating AI principles, as well as using group-based coaching methods, provided an opportunity for this study to respond to the challenges and contribute to the theory and practice of leadership coaching in the organisational setting by investigating the transformative effects of a postmodern group-based leadership coaching programme (LCP) on leaders’ personal and professional perspectives. The premises suggest that postmodern group-based coaching is a practical and cost-effective methodology in multi-cultural international organisations. Furthermore, postmodern coaching in groups can transform the personal and professional perspectives of leaders, specifically in transforming future plans, goal-directedness, confidence, resilience, hope, subjective well-being and empowerment as a leader, as well as broadening life outlooks. Key transformative themes were identified: self-knowledge, appreciation of others, broader vision, self-control and work-life integration. This applied study has made a valuable contribution to the body of research in the area of postmodern and group-based coaching. Replication of the study in other industries, setting and with different levels of leadership, training of postmodern coaches and robust follow-up coaching were identified as opportunities for further exploration. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / D.Lit. et Phil. (Industrial Psychology)

Background: People who use illegal drugs are disproportionately affected by HIV and hepatitis C, stigmatization and social exclusion. Health inequities are worsened by drug policy of criminalization, which thwarts health promotion efforts and hinders access to services. To address these inequities, people who use drugs are increasingly included in decisions that affect them by sitting on policy, service delivery and research committees. This study addressed a gap in understanding how power inequities are transformed in committees where people who use drugs are at the table. Methods: In partnership with the Drug Users Advocacy League and the Society of Living Illicit Drugs Users, this participatory critical emancipatory inquiry explored power relations in four committees in Ontario and BC. Data were collected in 2013 through meeting observations, interviews, demographics surveys and document reviews. Data analysis was guided by theoretical frameworks grounded in critical theory and transformative learning theory. Results: Findings confirmed striking socioeconomic inequities between people who use drugs and others at the table. Inconsistent measures were taken by committees to alleviate barriers to inclusion. Despite openness to inclusion, committee members tended to underestimate people who use drugs. The presence of local organizations of people who use drugs ensured a more democratic selection of their representatives to sit on committees. Once at the table, creating a safe space entailed building trust, authentic relationships, relational and reflective dialogue, and skilled facilitation. Democratic practices of negotiated relationships and consensus-based decision-making enhanced meaningful inclusion. A structural environment in which drug policy criminalizes people who use illegal drugs hindered capacity to transform power inequities by feeding stigma, which worsens health and social inequities. Committees were committed to inclusion of people who use drugs though capacity to do so varied due to budgetary and human resources constraints. Study limitations, practice implications and future research directions are offered. / Graduate / 0700 / 0680 / lynnebel@uvic.ca

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Leadership development is an essential and valuable tool for capacitating police leaders in the South African Police Service to deal with the diverse challenges that they face in the policing environment. There seem to be a need for leadership development processes that can stimulate change, and for perspective transformation to enable police leaders to find alternative ways of dealing with the challenges experienced in their working environment. This thesis explored transformative learning as a tool to enhance the leadership development processes of police leaders. The essential elements of transformative learning are: centrality of experience; critical thinking; rational discourse; and policy praxis. Theory development were chosen as best to carefully construct the foundational argument through non-empirical literary-based sources, in which the literature itself became the database towards theoretical formulation in this non-empirical study. The alignment and integration of the elements of transformative learning were explored as a strategy to capacitate police leaders to: reflect on past experiences; think critically about ways of dealing with policing challenges based on experiences; discuss these challenges with other police leaders; and act on reflections made during leadership development processes. The study is limited to the analysis of the status of leadership development in the South African Police Service, which was the context of this study. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Leierskapsontwikkeling is ‘n essensiële en waardevolle hulpmiddel om leiers in die Suid-Afrikaanse Polisiediens te bemagtig om die uiteenlopende uitdagings waarmee hulle te kampe het, beter te hanteer. Dit blyk egter dat daar ‘n behoefte is vir leierskapsontwikkelingprosesse wat intrinsieke verandering en ‘n paradigmaskuif vir polisieleiers te weeg kan bring en wat hulle in staat kan stel om die uitdagings binne hul beroepsveld meer doeltreffend te hanteer. Hierdie tesis ondersoek transformatiewe leerteorie as ‘n instrument om leierskapsontwikkeling van polisieleiers te bevorder. Die hoofelemente van transformatiewe leerteorie is: sentralisering van ondervinding; kritiese denke; rasionele diskoers en beleidsvorming. Teorie-ontwikkeling as navorsingsmetodologie was selekteer as die mees geskikste metodologie om die argument deur nie-empiriese literêre bronne te konstrueer, waarvolgens die gekose literatuur die databasis van die teoretiese formulasie rondom die argument gevorm het in hierdie nie-empiriese studie. Groepering en integrasie van bogenoemde elemente was ondersoek as ‘n strategie om polisieleiers te bemagtig om te reflekteer oor vorige ondervindinge; kritiese denkwyses oor hantering van uitdagings in beroepsveld met inagneming van vorige ondervindinge toe te pas; diskoers oor uitdagings met ander polisieleiers te hê en om aktief te reageer op refleksies tydens leierskapsontwikkelingsprosesse. Die studie is beperk tot die analise van die status van leierskap in die Suid-Afrikaanse Polisiediens as konteks waarbinne hierdie studie onderneem is.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

This thesis document presents a case study of a professional development playbuilding process at a public elementary school located in Austin, Texas. The study argues that playbuilding is a form of participatory action arts-based research particularly when positioned within the professional development setting. This qualitative study uses a narrative thematic analysis of the playbuilding process and workshop performance to examine how reflective and reflexive practice is situated within playbuilding as professional development. The document concludes with a discussion of the limitations and transformative potential of playbuilding and argues for the creation of critical pedagogical professional learning communities for teachers in school settings. / text

Σκοπός της διατριβής ήταν να διερευνηθεί η συγκρότηση των παραδοχών, στάσεων και πρακτικών που συνδέονται με τη διαπολιτισμική ικανότητα των εκπαιδευτών ενηλίκων στο πεδίο της διδασκαλίας της ελληνικής ως δεύτερης γλώσσας σε μετανάστες εκπαιδευόμενους. Εξετάστηκε η σχέση του βαθμού διαπολιτισμικής ικανότητας των εκπαιδευτών ενηλίκων με τις παραδοχές τους σε σχέση με την επαγγελματική τους ταυτότητα, καθώς και με βασικές αρχές της εκπαίδευσης ενηλίκων. Διερευνήθηκε, επίσης, η συνάφεια της ανάπτυξης της διαπολιτισμικής ικανότητας με επιλογές επαγγελματικής ανάπτυξης που σχετίζονται με θεωρητικές αναφορές σχετιζόμενες με το πλαίσιο της μετασχηματίζουσας μάθησης. Η έρευνα βασίστηκε σε μεθοδολογική τριγωνοποίηση, αξιοποιώντας ερωτηματολόγιο που συμπληρώθηκε από 211 εκπαιδευτές που διδάσκουν την ελληνική γλώσσα ως δεύτερη ή ξένη, παρατήρηση 20 τμημάτων διδασκαλίας, συνεντεύξεις με τους εκπαιδευτές και δείγμα εκπαιδευομένων αυτών των τμημάτων (23 και 47 συνεντεύξεις αντίστοιχα) και συμμετοχική παρατήρηση των συναντήσεων και του εξ αποστάσεως διαλόγου μιας –σε εθελοντική βάση συγκροτημένης– ομάδας 18 εκπαιδευτών. Τα δεδομένα της έρευνας αποτυπώνουν την κυριαρχία, στο μεγαλύτερο μέρος των εκπαιδευτών, μονοπολιτισμικών οπτικών ως προς το στόχο διδασκαλίας της δεύτερης γλώσσας και τη διαχείριση πολιτισμικών πλαισίων αναφοράς. Οι εκπαιδευτές αυτοί υιοθετούν εκπαιδευτικές πρακτικές μετωπικής διδασκαλίας, ενώ, παράλληλα, η διάκριση ανάμεσα σε εκπαιδευόμενους «με» και «χωρίς» κουλτούρα, οδηγεί ένα μέρος τους σε έντονα αρνητικά συναισθήματα και πρακτικές υποτίμησης ορισμένων ομάδων εκπαιδευομένων. Μειοψηφική (της τάξης του 20-25%) εμφανίζεται η ομάδα των εκπαιδευτών που είναι ανοιχτοί στη διαπραγμάτευση των παραδοχών, δημιουργώντας χώρους διαλόγου, αποστασιοποίησης από τις «ασφαλείς παραδοχές» και κριτικού στοχασμού που ενδέχεται να λειτουργήσει μετασχηματιστικά. Οι εκπαιδευτές αυτοί αντιμετωπίζουν τους εκπαιδευόμενους ως ενεργούς συνδημιουργούς γνώσης, υιοθετούν σε μεγαλύτερο βαθμό συμμετοχικές εκπαιδευτικές τεχνικές, ενώ αναζητούν και αξιοποιούν την ανατροφοδότηση από εκπαιδευόμενους και κριτικούς φίλους, σε συνδυασμό με πρακτικές ενδοσκόπησης, ως στοιχεία της επαγγελματικής τους ανάπτυξης. Από τα δεδομένα της έρευνας αναδεικνύεται, τέλος, η συμβατότητα της μεθοδολογίας ανάπτυξης της διαπολιτισμικής ικανότητας με εκείνη που οδηγεί σε μετασχηματίζουσα μάθηση, ως προς χαρακτηριστικά όπως ο βιωματικός προσανατολισμός και η εστίαση στην επεξεργασία των παραδοχών αλλά και στην ανάδυση των συναισθημάτων που τις συνοδεύουν. / The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the formation of assumptions, attitudes and practices related to intercultural competence of adult educators in the field of teaching Greek as a second language to immigrant students. The thesis examined the relationship between the degree of intercultural competence of adult educators and their assumptions in relation to their professional identity and basic principles of adult learning. It also investigated the relevance between the development of intercultural competence and professional development options related to the context of transformative learning. The research was based on a methodological triangulation, utilizing questionnaire completed by 211 educators who teach Greek as a second or foreign language, observation of 20 teaching groups, interviews with trainers and trainees sample of the above mentioned groups (23 and 47 interviews respectively) and participatory observation of the meetings and the distance conversation of a voluntary structured group formed by 18 trainers . The research data illustrate that monocultural views in relation to the target of teaching a second language, as well as management of cultural frames of reference, are common for the majority of trainers. These educators adopt frontal teaching educational practices, while at the same time the distinction between learners 'with' and 'without ' culture leads a number of trainers into intense negative emotions and practices of devaluation of certain groups of learners. The group of educators that appear open to assumptions’ negotiation seems to be a minority (approximately 20-25 %). These educators keep a distance from "consolidated assumptions" and create spaces of dialogue and critical reflection, that may have a transformational effect. They treat students as active co-creators of knowledge and adopt a greater degree of participatory training techniques, while seeking and utilizing feedback from students and “critical friends”, combined with introspection practices, as elements of their professional development. From the research data emerges, finally, the compatibility of the methodology for the development of intercultural competence and the methodology that leads to transformative learning, in terms of characteristics such as experiential orientation and focus on treatment of the assumptions and the emergence of feelings that accompany assumptions.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Literacy education defined as the reading and writing of print text is undergoing a paradigmatic shift towards a pedagogy of multiliteracies (Cole & Pullen, 2010). At the same time, demands for rapid, efficient, and accurate reading skills escalate (Katzir et al., 2006) in a global society with increasingly instant and complex literacy requirements. Musical rhythm plays a role in multiliteracy and print literacy learning. Rhythm is essential for music making and reading, and may facilitate print literacy for all children, including those who struggle with traditional print-based teaching and learning. The purpose of this research was to investigate the potential for the semiotic resource of rhythm to engage early years children in print and non-print literacy learning. A twelve week mixed methods quasi-experimental study was conducted to examine the effects of a multimodal Orff-based learning design on elements of reading and rhythm for grades one to three children in four schools. Students (N = 169) from nine classrooms were non-randomly assigned to one of two groups. The researcher instructed both groups two to three times a week totaling twenty-five sessions in each homeroom classroom. The experimental groups participated in Orff-based learning experiences that focused on elements of rhythm and prosodic oral reading fluency. The control group listened to and sang song-storybooks. Beat performance and oral reading rate assessments were administered as pre- and post-tests to each group. Struggling readers in the experimental group significantly improved on measures of oral reading rate compared to struggling readers in the control group using matched pairs t-procedures and analyses of variance. Associations between beat performance and oral reading rate were explored using bivariate and multivariate regression and correlation analysis. A strong positive correlation was found between measures of beat competency and measures of oral reading rate. Qualitative methods using grounded theory, semiotic data analysis, multimodal analysis, action research, and design research methods placed within a bricolage framework (Kincheloe & Berry, 2004) and examined through the lens of complexity thinking (Davis & Sumara, 2006) added multiperspectival meaning-making of data. Findings pointed to the value of multimodal music and rhythm experiences for engaged, deep, meaningful print and non-print learning for diverse individual and classroom collective learners in both control and experimental classrooms. Beat competency was important to both print and music literacy learning in experimental classrooms. Beat experiences were compelling, equitable, and appeared to organize music, oral language, and print literacy into meaningful and accessible patterns and structures. Similar findings may be occasioned through an ontology of multimodal richness, a complex epistemology, embodied ways of knowing and communicating, and systemic shared beliefs and values.

Literacy education defined as the reading and writing of print text is undergoing a paradigmatic shift towards a pedagogy of multiliteracies (Cole & Pullen, 2010). At the same time, demands for rapid, efficient, and accurate reading skills escalate (Katzir et al., 2006) in a global society with increasingly instant and complex literacy requirements. Musical rhythm plays a role in multiliteracy and print literacy learning. Rhythm is essential for music making and reading, and may facilitate print literacy for all children, including those who struggle with traditional print-based teaching and learning. The purpose of this research was to investigate the potential for the semiotic resource of rhythm to engage early years children in print and non-print literacy learning. A twelve week mixed methods quasi-experimental study was conducted to examine the effects of a multimodal Orff-based learning design on elements of reading and rhythm for grades one to three children in four schools. Students (N = 169) from nine classrooms were non-randomly assigned to one of two groups. The researcher instructed both groups two to three times a week totaling twenty-five sessions in each homeroom classroom. The experimental groups participated in Orff-based learning experiences that focused on elements of rhythm and prosodic oral reading fluency. The control group listened to and sang song-storybooks. Beat performance and oral reading rate assessments were administered as pre- and post-tests to each group. Struggling readers in the experimental group significantly improved on measures of oral reading rate compared to struggling readers in the control group using matched pairs t-procedures and analyses of variance. Associations between beat performance and oral reading rate were explored using bivariate and multivariate regression and correlation analysis. A strong positive correlation was found between measures of beat competency and measures of oral reading rate. Qualitative methods using grounded theory, semiotic data analysis, multimodal analysis, action research, and design research methods placed within a bricolage framework (Kincheloe & Berry, 2004) and examined through the lens of complexity thinking (Davis & Sumara, 2006) added multiperspectival meaning-making of data. Findings pointed to the value of multimodal music and rhythm experiences for engaged, deep, meaningful print and non-print learning for diverse individual and classroom collective learners in both control and experimental classrooms. Beat competency was important to both print and music literacy learning in experimental classrooms. Beat experiences were compelling, equitable, and appeared to organize music, oral language, and print literacy into meaningful and accessible patterns and structures. Similar findings may be occasioned through an ontology of multimodal richness, a complex epistemology, embodied ways of knowing and communicating, and systemic shared beliefs and values.