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Neurodiverse Authority, Gavin Pereira Scoccia Sep 2026

Neurodiverse Authority, Gavin Pereira Scoccia

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Gavin Pereira Scoccia is a biology major and anthropology minor from Brookline, MA. While writing this essay Gavin says, “I was so upset at the education system for not giving me, or my neurodivergent peers, a chance.” Gavin shares that he was diagnosed with ADHD at a young age but “never got accommodations despite needing them, leading me to fail in school.” Gavin often believed that he was lazy, did not try hard, and was simply not good enough, and he believes that schools often let students down because they have preconceived notions about what makes a “good student.” He …


Life's A Fashion Show (If You're A Teenage Girl), Madeline Murphy Sep 2026

Life's A Fashion Show (If You're A Teenage Girl), Madeline Murphy

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Madeline Murphy is a double major in physics and art from Dorchester, MA. Fashion is a hobby of Madeline’s, she felt it was important to look back and “explore the role of fashion in the world of middle and high school, to help myself and others better understand our outfit choices: a task we complete every day, yet maybe don’t analyze enough.” Madeline considers fashion to be an art form and often compares fashion trends to art movements. She enjoys sewing and has been working on enhancing her garment-making skills. Madeline enjoys painting portraits and reading books, particularly those related …


Who Are The "Chronically Online" And What Can They Teach Us About Public Discourse?, Avery Knott Sep 2026

Who Are The "Chronically Online" And What Can They Teach Us About Public Discourse?, Avery Knott

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Avery Knott is a management major with a concentration in marketing from Sturbridge, MA. Avery writes that, “as someone who has grown up with social media as a constant throughout my life, I’ve begun to feel more and more distaste towards the apps and websites that have partially defined my social experience.” She has noticed that “particularly since COVID, interacting with people in person did not reflect the interactions she was having and seeing online.” She enjoyed the freedom that this paper allowed, and shares that “being able to explore a topic in depth that interests me was a freeing …


Do You Know Who You Are When You Write?, Lynn-Sarah Georges Sep 2026

Do You Know Who You Are When You Write?, Lynn-Sarah Georges

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Lynn-sarah Georges is a business management major with a concentration in finance. She is Haitian-American and was raised in Medford, MA. Lynn-sarah says that this essay was important to her “because I had never felt like it was accepted or okay to write in my true voice in an academic setting. I feel passionate about ‘knowing who you are when you write’ because that feels like activism in the classroom.” As a student who speaks English, Haitian Creole, and French, it is important to her that she is “not only writing in my own voice but also being able to …


Teachers Are Encouraging Bullshit: A Response To Kylie Medieros, Maxine Freda Sep 2026

Teachers Are Encouraging Bullshit: A Response To Kylie Medieros, Maxine Freda

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Maxine Freda is a computer science major from Plympton, MA. She states that this essay—a response to Kylie Medeiros’s Undercurrents essay from last year—”was a way for me to air my grievances with the rigidly structured way the school system teaches writing in high school.” Maxine notes that this is the first essay she ever wrote where she cared so strongly about the topic. She shares that this type of writing process was “far more enjoyable and resulted in something I could be proud of.” The freedom to write about “what I want in the way that I want” was …


The Practicalities Of Code-Switching, Armani Dure Sep 2026

The Practicalities Of Code-Switching, Armani Dure

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Armani Dure is a labor studies major from Malden, MA. After reading previously published Undercurrents essays, specifically Aneika Robinson’s essay on marginalization through race and language, Armani was inspired to reflect on his own interactions with academic spaces. He says that “This semester was one of the first times I really experimented using ‘I’ in my academic writing.” He adds that using “I” in his writing “allowed me to not only connect more to my writing but also get more personal. I think that ability gave this essay its flair.” Armani’s major indicates his passion for social and economic justice, …


Who Is Getting Left Out?: Breaking Down Language Barriers In Healthcare, Jackelyne Abranches Sep 2026

Who Is Getting Left Out?: Breaking Down Language Barriers In Healthcare, Jackelyne Abranches

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Jackelyne Abranches is an exercise and health sciences major from Everett, MA. She says that this essay was inspired by her firm belief that language should never hinder someone’s access to quality healthcare. Jackelyne’s career goals revolve around “breaking down these language barriers and many others to ensure equal health opportunities for everyone.” As a first-generation American, she grew up observing various health challenges faced by her Brazilian family members. She says that “witnessing their struggles has deeply impacted me, and it is this first-hand experience that fuels my passion for ensuring equitable access to healthcare for all immigrants.” Jackelyne’s …


Visualizing Borneo Biodiversity And Dayak Cultural Heritage Through Contemporary Innovative Batik Motifs, Kristanti Kristanti Sep 2026

Visualizing Borneo Biodiversity And Dayak Cultural Heritage Through Contemporary Innovative Batik Motifs, Kristanti Kristanti

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

Borneo combines exceptional biological diversity with cultural traditions that shape regional identity. This study aims to develop contemporary batik motifs based on selected biological references associated with Borneo and one Dayak cultural reference while documenting the visual transformation process as research knowledge. A practice-based research approach was employed through exploration, design development, realization, expert validation, and revision. The initial exploration included the Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), proboscis monkey (Nasalis larvatus), rhinoceros hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros), black orchid (Coelogyne pandurata), ironwood (Eusideroxylon zwageri), and pitcher plants (Nepenthes spp.), while the Dayak …


Birch On Fetal Sentience, Claudia Passos-Ferreira Sep 2026

Birch On Fetal Sentience, Claudia Passos-Ferreira

Animal Sentience

Birch proposes that human fetuses be recognized as sentience candidates from 12 weeks, on the grounds that midbrain-centered theories fall within the zone of reasonable disagreement among theories of consciousness. I raise a methodological and a policy problem for his view. Methodologically, whether the midbrain-centered view belongs within the zone is disputed, so there is no consensus about the consensus.  Furthermore, the evidence Birch discusses for 12 weeks does not actually estimate the onset of sentience; the proposed threshold tracks anatomical rather than functional onset. On policy, the US Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling shows that fetal sentience is difficult to …


The Fragmentation Of Helcar: A Paratethyan Model For Rhûn, Núrnen And The Dead Marshes, Federico Manzoni Sep 2026

The Fragmentation Of Helcar: A Paratethyan Model For Rhûn, Núrnen And The Dead Marshes, Federico Manzoni

Journal of Tolkien Research

This work proposes a conjectural paleogeographic model linking the Sea of Rhûn, Núrnen and the Dead Marshes to the former Sea of Helcar. Beginning from Christopher Tolkien's suggestion that Rhûn may represent Helcar ``vastly shrunken,'' the study combines textual evidence, the Ambarkanta, Fonstad's cartographic reconstructions, and terrestrial analogues drawn from the evolution of the Paratethys, the Messinian Salinity Crisis and other endorheic basins. Helcar is interpreted not merely as an isolated body of deep water but as the centre of a broader hydrological province subsequently partitioned by relief change, sedimentary infilling, basin isolation and drainage reorganization. Within this model, Rhûn …


Breaking Free From Gender Norms: Adolescent Constructions Of Femininity Through The Patriarchy And High School Musical, Ina Tolentino Sep 2026

Breaking Free From Gender Norms: Adolescent Constructions Of Femininity Through The Patriarchy And High School Musical, Ina Tolentino

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Ina is a double major in nursing and psychology from Elk Grove, CA. Ina “always had trouble embracing myself with the way masculinity and femininity are pitted against each other” and found meaning in writing this essay, as they believe “there’s so much value in painting ourselves however we want … regardless of the expectations of gendered roles.” As a non-binary individual, Ina feels that writing this piece was a healing experience and a reminder to embrace all aspects of who they are. They love reading and writing, which has led to a bedroom flooded with different kinds of books. …


Rage Against The Machine: How Screen Time Is Impairing Our Intelligence And What We Can Do About It, Jillian Steeves Sep 2026

Rage Against The Machine: How Screen Time Is Impairing Our Intelligence And What We Can Do About It, Jillian Steeves

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Jillian is a history major from Danvers, MA. Her essay was inspired by an article she read in her composition class about how screens could damage cognitive functioning, and she thinks that “for a lot of people, myself included, overindulgence in tech is increasingly affecting our quality of life.” Jillian noted the irony of a history major writing about a current topic, but she “found there to be a lot of overlap between my history studies and the topic of my essay,” and she was able to “take many of the skills I’ve picked up as a historian — research, …


Fake News’ Negation Of A Useful Education, Vance Naftal Sep 2026

Fake News’ Negation Of A Useful Education, Vance Naftal

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Vance is an international relations Major from Baltimore, MD. Vance chose to write about the negative effects that misleading/false news stories can have on an individual, especially when in college, because he “sees society moving farther and farther away from truth and leaning more into sentiments based on emotions — which is directly at odds with the point of a higher education.” Vance started college at 16 years old. At 17, he decided to take a gap year (which became a gap of 4 years) to enter the workforce. At 21, he found himself yearning to be a part of …


Your Teachers Are Bullshitting You, Kylie Medeiros Sep 2026

Your Teachers Are Bullshitting You, Kylie Medeiros

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Kylie is a biology major from Fairhaven, MA. Because she was specifically told for this assignment that students “couldn’t bullshit this essay,” she was reminded of all the times throughout her academic career when other teachers said things of a similar nature. “Being short on time, and desperately in need of a research topic,” she found that it would be “incredibly ironic to bullshit my paper in the form of a research on the topic of BS itself.” While writing her essay Kylie found it interesting how much creative freedom she was given to research and write about something she …


Moral Punishment, Anna Krasnoslobodtseva Sep 2026

Moral Punishment, Anna Krasnoslobodtseva

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Anna is a biochemistry major from Milton, MA. She decided to write about the prison system and punishment because of conversations about morality during her Composition II class, and because she believes “the prison system in the United States is often discriminatory and does not work toward the rehabilitation of people like it should.” She felt that writing this was “more free than a traditional structured high school essay” and that it “involved a lot of learning, by means of stepping outside of what I am comfortable with writing and exploring new research methods, going to the library, and taking …


What’S In A Name?: A Discussion Of The Nature Of Bilingual Education In The United States, Emma Kennedy Sep 2026

What’S In A Name?: A Discussion Of The Nature Of Bilingual Education In The United States, Emma Kennedy

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Emma is a Latin American and Iberian Studies major with a minor in Secondary Education from Ipswich, MA. She has always been intrigued by languages, language barriers, and language learning throughout her studies. She was intrigued to “read about people who have the opposite perspective, who oppose multilingual education, and want their children to focus on perfecting their English.” Emma wants to be a teacher, focusing on multilingual students. She feels that her paper’s connection to her career “made the researching and writing process feel more interesting and relevant to her real life.” Emma enjoys reading and uses it as …


Textism And The Shift In English Writing, Alex Der-Kazaryan Sep 2026

Textism And The Shift In English Writing, Alex Der-Kazaryan

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Alex is a management major with a concentration in accounting from Belmont, MA. While writing this essay, Alex wanted to investigate “how our writing has evolved over the last thirty years or so.” Noticing a “retraction of socialization from other people,” since we introduced ourselves to new technologies, Alex focused this essay on the common complaint that “texting has only done damage to formal writing.” Alex has also come to enjoy writing as a way of self-expression and writes that it “can now be used in a way that benefits me.” Alex is also a huge history buff and has …


2022 Editor's Introduction, Lauren M. Bowen Sep 2026

2022 Editor's Introduction, Lauren M. Bowen

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

No abstract provided.


Disney And Critical Global Citizenship: Border Politics And Linguistic Decolonization In The Lion Guard, Gordana Lazić Sep 2026

Disney And Critical Global Citizenship: Border Politics And Linguistic Decolonization In The Lion Guard, Gordana Lazić

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

In this essay, I analyze the Disney television series The Lion Guard as a site of public pedagogy and argue that the show fosters a form of critical global citizenship among young viewers. It does this, I further maintain, in two primary ways: the progressive treatment of and careful attention to immigration and border politics, and disruption of the hegemony of the English language. Through age-appropriate plot development and dialogue, The Lion Guard actively participates in public pedagogy urging future policy and decision-makers to develop critical global consciousness.


Humanity, Ai, And The Pedagogy Of Vince Gilligan’S Pluribus, J. Scarlett Kingsley Sep 2026

Humanity, Ai, And The Pedagogy Of Vince Gilligan’S Pluribus, J. Scarlett Kingsley

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

This review discusses the tv show Pluribus as a contemporary television narrative that functions as an allegory for artificial intelligence and its implications for human meaning-making. Centering on Carol Sturka, one of thirteen individuals immune to a alien global virus that merges humanity into a cooperative “Hive Mind”, the series explores tensions between autonomy and collective well-being in a “peaceful apocalypse.” The analysis argues that the Hive Mind reflects key concerns surrounding AI, including the production of knowledge without understanding, personalization without discernment, and efficiency that bypasses the struggle through which meaning is formed. Drawing on John Searle’s distinction between …


Examining Enrolment Patterns In French Electives At The University Of Botswana: Implications For Policy And Curriculum Development, Kagiso Jacob Sello Sep 2026

Examining Enrolment Patterns In French Electives At The University Of Botswana: Implications For Policy And Curriculum Development, Kagiso Jacob Sello

International Journal of Transformative Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

This study examines enrolment trends in French electives at University of Botswana (UB) to assess cross-disciplinary relevance, sustained student engagement, and implications for curriculum development and institutional internationalisation. Using a descriptive-analytical design, the study analysed institutional enrolment data from six consecutive semesters. Data were disaggregated by faculty and analysed using SPSS, guided by Student-Centred Curriculum theory and Interdisciplinary Learning principles. A total of 1,200 enrolments were recorded. The Faculty of Business accounted for the highest participation (48.6%), followed by Humanities (20.8%) and Social Sciences (14.9%). Other faculties, including Science, Education, and Engineering, showed lower but consistent participation, confirming broad interdisciplinary …


Stigmatic History: The Advancement Of Accessibility In U.S. Museums, 1960-2010, Misty A. Davis Sep 2026

Stigmatic History: The Advancement Of Accessibility In U.S. Museums, 1960-2010, Misty A. Davis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation represents an overlap between disability history and public history by examining how museums in the U.S. became more accessible between 1960 and the early twenty-first century. Utilizing an expansive cross-section of primary and secondary sources, this study unravels the complexities of social and legal pressures that resulted in accessibility becoming a priority in museums. Changes in social expectations, new legal measures, and activism contributed to a shift in the status and treatment of people with disabilities. With these changes came a need for public spaces to adapt and provide disabled peoples with the same access and experiences as …


Tongues In 1 Corinthians 12–14: Their Role In Gospel Proclamation And Unity, Adam Rimmer Sep 2026

Tongues In 1 Corinthians 12–14: Their Role In Gospel Proclamation And Unity, Adam Rimmer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The gifts of the Holy Spirit have been controversial throughout the ages. Many theologians, apologists, and church fathers have tried to clarify glossolalia. This dissertation is an exposition of 1 Corinthians 12–14 that argues that glossolalia is an actual human language that supports the gift of prophecy for proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ, but was being misused within the church at Corinth as ecstatic speech, which was not the valid biblical gift of glossolalia. It will demonstrate that this gift served as a divine means to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who spoke different languages before …


Exploring The Role Of Mentorship For Urban African American Underprivileged Students Who Participate In Band Programs: A Case Study, Tyreese Lamar Pleasanton Sep 2026

Exploring The Role Of Mentorship For Urban African American Underprivileged Students Who Participate In Band Programs: A Case Study, Tyreese Lamar Pleasanton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Underprivileged urban African American students who participate in band programs benefit from transformative mentorship within a culturally relevant support system. By providing access to environmental resources and equitable opportunities, mentors play a critical role in promoting academic achievement, social-emotional growth, and cultural pride. This study investigates the impact of mentorship on student outcomes in urban settings, highlights distinctive African American experiences, identifies structural barriers, and proposes relationship-based strategies to advance educational equity through culturally responsive support. Data will be collected through surveys, interviews, observations, and thematic analysis, with a specific focus on current band directors. The findings will contribute to …


Recommendations For Improving Undergraduate Music Education Student Teaching Opportunities At A Faith-Based College In The Southeastern United States, Molly E. Stephens Sep 2026

Recommendations For Improving Undergraduate Music Education Student Teaching Opportunities At A Faith-Based College In The Southeastern United States, Molly E. Stephens

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Student teaching opportunities are the most valuable and foundational experiences in a music educator’s pre-service training. Foundational skills are often refined during student teaching experiences. These skills include critical thinking, pedagogical strategies, classroom management, and effective communication—all key elements of successful teaching. Student teaching opportunities serve as the bridge between course content and real-world application for young educators. The purpose of this study was to provide recommendations for strategies to improve student-teaching opportunities in the undergraduate music education program at a faith-based college in the southeastern United States. The problem was the limited scope and frequency of student teaching opportunities …


Fostering Meaningful Relationships In Middle School Music Ensembles And The Impact On Student Retention, Michael Andrew Murphy Sep 2026

Fostering Meaningful Relationships In Middle School Music Ensembles And The Impact On Student Retention, Michael Andrew Murphy

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Although participation in music ensembles varies from school to school in the United States, many directors struggle to retain, let alone grow, the number of members that comprise their performance ensembles. This is often the result of scheduling, time constraints, financial obligations, and understanding the needs of student engagement. The purpose of this qualitative, ethnological study is to explore the impact of fostering meaningful relationships in middle school music ensembles and what role those relationships play in the retention of students. This study also investigates how students and teachers determine the meaningfulness of their relationships, the importance of those relationships …


In Myth And Memory: The Efficacy Of New England Civil War Chaplains, Kevin L. Hostettler Sep 2026

In Myth And Memory: The Efficacy Of New England Civil War Chaplains, Kevin L. Hostettler

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Private William Kennedy of the Fifty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry damned chaplains as “the most gigantic nuisance in the Army,” then praised his own. The distance between abstract condemnation and named, concrete appreciation has shaped the historiography of the Union chaplaincy, with historians largely accepting nameless class censure at face value and treating competence as the exception. This dissertation argues that no single standard of efficacy can be applied to Union chaplains, because they answered to seven competing horizons of expectation (governmental, military command, regimental, soldiery, denominational, civilian, and personal), leaving chaplains to fill undefined duties Congress never clarified or reconciled. …


Who Killed Lucio Blanco? Border Incursions & Sovereignty Along The Rio Grande, Jaime L. Alvarez Sep 2026

Who Killed Lucio Blanco? Border Incursions & Sovereignty Along The Rio Grande, Jaime L. Alvarez

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The assassination of Lucio Blanco along the banks of the Rio Grande in 1922 was not an isolated episode of political violence but the culmination of nearly a century-old practice of contested sovereignty, border incursions, and lack of law enforcement. This dissertation thus examines the borderlands of Texas and Mexico from the nineteenth century through the aftermath of the Mexican Revolution. Within this time frame, this dissertation demonstrates that the international boundary functioned less as a fixed division between two sovereign states and more as a political gray zone in which authority, identity, violence, and political power were continually negotiated. …


Examining Christian Hospital Chaplains’ Roles: Navigating Shifting Paradigms, Karen Y. Wilkins Sep 2026

Examining Christian Hospital Chaplains’ Roles: Navigating Shifting Paradigms, Karen Y. Wilkins

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this heuristic phenomenological study was to explore how faith-based hospital chaplains negotiate their professional identity while serving non-religious clients. As hospital chaplaincy expands beyond traditional religious care, chaplains are increasingly expected to support the holistic well-being of patients from diverse religious, spiritual, and secular backgrounds. Guided by humanistic theory, role theory, and theory of meaning, this study examined how chaplains understand and fulfill their professional roles. Role theory informed the exploration of expectations placed on chaplains, while theory of meaning provided a framework for understanding how chaplains support patients’ meaning-making processes regardless of religious affiliation. Data were …


The Influence Of Augmented Reality Virtual Try-On On Purchase Intention: The Mediating Role Of Attitude Toward The Product In Cosmetics, Raden Adi Cahyadi, Benni Ahdiyana Pamungkas, Ruthlivia Tiara Bernessa Sep 2026

The Influence Of Augmented Reality Virtual Try-On On Purchase Intention: The Mediating Role Of Attitude Toward The Product In Cosmetics, Raden Adi Cahyadi, Benni Ahdiyana Pamungkas, Ruthlivia Tiara Bernessa

Journal of Language, Literature, and Arts

Augmented reality (AR)-based Virtual Try-On (VTO) enables consumers to visualize cosmetic products before purchase and has become increasingly relevant in digital marketing. Drawing on the Stimulus–Organism–Response (S-O-R) framework, this study examines attitude toward the product as a mediating mechanism linking AR-based VTO experiences with purchase intention. Unlike studies that predominantly conceptualize the organism in terms of responses to technology or technology-mediated experiences, this study adopts a product-focused perspective by examining consumers’ evaluations of cosmetic products presented through VTO. A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted with 199 women who had used Maybelline’s VTO feature within the preceding three months. Data was …