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Full-Text Articles in Education
Steps Toward Healing A Colonial System While Improving Equitable Experiences For Indigenous Learners K-12 In A Bc Rural School District, Gail Higginbottom
Steps Toward Healing A Colonial System While Improving Equitable Experiences For Indigenous Learners K-12 In A Bc Rural School District, Gail Higginbottom
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
The Canadian K–12 education system is built on the policy and practices of genocide at Indian residential schools and on ongoing Indigenous-specific racism. With a history of assimilation, it is imperative to address settler colonialism in education today. Through the agency of a Secwépemc district principal, Secwépemc ways of knowing and being, decolonial leadership, and critical and transformative theories emerge as tools for a fraught education system. As a problem of practice, the tension between Indigenous student success and systemic understandings of Indigenous ways of knowing highlights the imperative to address colonial system conditions while improving equitable experiences of Indigenous …
The Amplification Of “At-Promise” Middle School Student Voice To Foster School Success, Nathan J. Ngieng
The Amplification Of “At-Promise” Middle School Student Voice To Foster School Success, Nathan J. Ngieng
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
Transformative actions towards the collective vision of the educated citizen have been central to the change efforts of educational leaders in British Columbia. Through a challenge to the status quo, utilizing a critical and post-structuralist lens, this paper charts a path towards revisioning middle school student success nested in listening stances and reflective practices. At the heart of this Problem of Practice is the disengagement and lack of voice that middle school students are experiencing, viewed through the context of a large and diverse suburban school district in the lower mainland of British Columbia. Theories of social learning, adult learning, …
Queering Education: Creating Inclusive And Affirming Learning Environments For Sexually Diverse Students, Phillip M. Spalierno
Queering Education: Creating Inclusive And Affirming Learning Environments For Sexually Diverse Students, Phillip M. Spalierno
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
This inquiry draws upon a variety of theoretical perspectives and leadership approaches, including critical and queer theories, and the transformative leadership approach, for the purposes of identifying an appropriate solution to creating inclusive and identity affirming learning environments for sexually diverse students. This inquiry provides insight that will help to further understand the experiences of sexually diverse students in the education system, while exploring strategies for creating learning environments that affords these students value, dignity, and respect. It is proposed that a transformative leadership approach, as it is grounded in social justice efforts, may serve to stimulate the conversation amongst …
Systemic Abuse Of Black Educational Leaders In K-12 Schools, Bianca Parris
Systemic Abuse Of Black Educational Leaders In K-12 Schools, Bianca Parris
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
Anti-Black racism (ABR) is race-based discrimination experienced by Black educational leaders in the Ontario education system. Since the police officers murdered George Floyd, it has ignited the global Black Lives Matters movement. This has translated into K-12 Ontario schools with a more pronounced emphasis on addressing ABR and systemic racism to provide an environment that is rooted in equity. Despite this global action and ministry requirement, ABR continues to prevail and affects Black educational leaders’ ability to lead effectively. Black educational leaders are navigating a system that is unjust and rooted in colonialism which puts them at a disadvantage. Critical …
Weaving The Story Of Self Into Transformative Leadership, Nicole R. Davey
Weaving The Story Of Self Into Transformative Leadership, Nicole R. Davey
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
Indigenous students are not achieving the same levels of success as non-Indigenous students according to British Columbia (BC) Ministry of Education annual reports on academic achievement, secondary transitions, and sense of belonging. School-based leaders oversee implementation of the BC curriculum in their schools and can influence the mindset and practices of educators in their buildings; however, they need supports and structures to better understand how to address the opportunity and achievement gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) asserts that school-based leaders can disrupt oppressive behaviours in the K–12 education system through social justice practices. Transformative …
Hidden In Plain Sight: Finding A Balance Between Assessment And Learning In Competency-Based Education In Canadian Health Care, Scott Murray
Hidden In Plain Sight: Finding A Balance Between Assessment And Learning In Competency-Based Education In Canadian Health Care, Scott Murray
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
Due to its emphasis on skill development and alignment with workforce demands, competency-based education (CBE) has garnered considerable attention in recent years. My organizational improvement plan (OIP) focuses on the potential benefits of incorporating learners’ voices into CBE in Canadian medical education and proposes a corresponding implementation framework. The traditional CBE model often lacks a critical component: the learner’s voice. My OIP reviews the literature and outlines its theoretical underpinnings (e.g., systems theory, adult education theory) within the scope of authentic leadership. The findings suggest incorporating learners’ voices into CBE to boost engagement, motivation, and agency. In response to such …
Cultivating Compassion: School Discipline Through A Lens Of Equity, Wellbeing, And Decolonization, Kristi L. Blakeway
Cultivating Compassion: School Discipline Through A Lens Of Equity, Wellbeing, And Decolonization, Kristi L. Blakeway
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
Punitive and exclusionary discipline practices cause harm to elementary aged students weakening their connection to school. Such practices are reactive in nature and fail to understand the needs of students who demonstrate challenging behaviour. This organizational improvement plan provides a framework to reimagine school discipline through a lens of equity, wellbeing, and decolonization. It is an invitation to look under the surface to better understand students who struggle with behaviour in elementary classrooms. The school discussed is a large, suburban public school in British Columbia serving students in kindergarten through to grade seven. A conceptual change model, the transformative wheel, …
Building Collaborative Systems To Support Elementary School Principals In Ensuring All Students Flourish, Kristen Brach Ms.
Building Collaborative Systems To Support Elementary School Principals In Ensuring All Students Flourish, Kristen Brach Ms.
The Dissertation in Practice at Western University
This organizational improvement plan addresses the problem of practice of how a district leader can support elementary school leaders in a small, rural school district to work towards improving their schools to become more culturally responsive and meet the needs of all students. Historically, there have been many students, particularly those who have been underserved, who have not had a positive school experience that considers their identity and learning needs. Schools have been unsuccessful at being places that accept all learners and strive to ensure that they are able to grow and flourish. Although there are some classrooms that are …