Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Competitive Dance And The Adolescent’S Body: Considering Pedagogical Approaches To Teaching Competitive Dancers, Catri E. G. Barba

Dance (MFA) Theses

Diving into the past and researching for the future, this thesis explores the development and perpetuation of hyper-sexualized adolescent bodies through the competitive dance scene. Drawing on dance theorists, educational theorists, and embodied research (i.e., the author’s body archive), this thesis explores how the competition gaze is performed for and by a capitalist patriarchy. Specifically, this thesis critically reflects on the author’s career as a young competitive dancer in the greater Los Angeles, California, area during the 1990s and 2000s, as well as a competition dance instructor and K-12 educator for two decades, and how those personal experiences have shaped …

Enhancing International School Implementation Capacity: Supporting Contextualized Learning At An International Baccalaureate School In China, Christopher J. Hayden Iv

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Leadership Studies

International schools allocate substantial resources to implement progressive curricular innovations; however, the advantages offered by these developments are contingent on their effective execution within classroom settings. This mixed methods action research (MMAR) study examined the implementation of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Global Context (GC) Strategy in the Middle Years Programme (MYP) at an international school in China and asked how the school might strengthen its capacity to enact this and similar innovations. Following a sequential MMAR design, a reconnaissance phase combined a whole-staff survey (n=87) with qualitative interviews to diagnose the individual, organizational, and contextual factors shaping implementation. Analyses identified …

Meaningful Work: A Phenomenological Study Of Embedded Writing Peer Mentors, Susan S. Detwiler

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This phenomenological case study examines the experiences of writing peer mentors who are embedded in a first-year inquiry-based writing seminar. It aims to understand how peer mentors who are engaged in the complex practice of supporting first-year writers in a writing classroom make sense of themselves and writing. At a large R-1 diverse university, I interviewed 6 writing peer mentors 3 times over 1 calendar year. I traced their development from mentees, (first-year writing students), through their three semesters of peer mentoring. They also shared written reflections from their training praxis course (a course for peer mentors focusing on their …

School-Based Mental And Emotional Support For Urban Students Experiencing Traumatic Loss, Britney Daniel-Harris

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

This study explores the perception of educational staff members on school-based mental and emotional resources for urban students experiencing traumatic loss. With increased levels of research centered on enhancing training protocols to educate teachers on identifying, supporting, and guiding traumatic care through evidence-based resources, there is an opportunity to understand their experiences by hearing their voices through a narrative inquiry qualitative research design. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has six principles of a trauma-informed environment, which were utilized to analyze participant stories. Five teachers, one social worker, and one special education leader participated in one-on-one interviews …

Teaching For Autonomy: Helping Young Students Define, Create, And Fight For A Better World, Riley Mcgowan

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

I define an Autonomous Student as a learner detached from the capitalist mindset, who learns not just to reproduce the working world but to better themselves and the future. A learner who is independent, flexible, civically engaged, connected with their community, and has their own idea of success that is not tied to the school or the economy. A learner who can uncover injustice and knows how to fight back. As it is currently set up, the education system in the US does not work toward creating autonomous students. Instead, the focus is on reproducing society as it is and …

Storytelling And Equity: A Program Evaluation That Promotes And Supports Narrative-Based Learning And Open Dialogue Practices At Higher Ed Institutions, Regis A. Peeples

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

On college campuses worldwide, storytelling functions as a primary method for transmitting and affirming knowledge. It serves to validate lived experiences, acts as a relational teaching tool, and supports theoretical inquiry. Given that teaching is inherently political, storytelling can also perpetuate hate, oppression, and other social harms within academic environments. Even when educators use storytelling constructively, limited training exists on the full range of its impacts on students, particularly in terms of what may be described as “dangerous” storytelling. Dangerous storytelling refers to narratives, intentional or authentic, that reinforce or cultivate phobias about physical appearance (e.g., race, culture, nationality), propagate …

Implementing Restorative Practices For Girls In Elementary School Classrooms: A Participatory Action Research Approach, Mellissa Douglas

Dissertations of Practice

This participatory action research study examined how varying approaches to implementing restorative practices, together with teacher collaboration and influence, support resilience, enhance communication, establish healthy boundaries, encourage accountability, and build confidence among elementary school girls ages 8–10. Two third-grade teachers, three fourth-grade teachers, and three fifth-grade teachers in a midwestern elementary school implemented restorative practices through proactive circles or conferences over the course of forty school days. The eight teacher participants recorded the implementation of restorative practices in an action research journal, field notes, and photographs, and they collaborated to discuss strengths, areas in need of support, and next steps. …

Education For A Shared Society In Wartime: A Faculty Of Education Dean’S Autoethnography, Ilana Paul-Binyamin

The Qualitative Report

My autoethnographic study emerged in the wake of the Hamas–Israel war that began on October 7, 2023, placing me in a dual position as both an academic leader and a member of a society in crisis. As Dean of a multicultural Faculty of Education, I reflect on how the war disrupted longstanding efforts to promote shared society education between Jews and Arabs. Drawing on personal narratives, reflective fieldnotes, and case studies from campus life, I explore how trauma, fear, and political polarization undermined the multicultural frameworks I had developed over years of practice. I document moments of rupture—between students, faculty, …

Social Development Dynamics Of Students In Inclusive Education In Indonesia, Nur Hidayat Nh

Jurnal Pendidikan: Teori, Penelitian, dan Pengembangan

This narrative review analyses the social development of students with special needs in Indonesian inclusive schools by synthesising five high-quality empirical studies (indexed SINTA 1–3) published between 2018 and 2023. Addressing three research questions, the synthesis reveals heterogeneous and generally limited social development trajectories shaped primarily by ecological interactions rather than inherent disability characteristics. Key barriers include symbolic inclusion, inadequate teacher training in multimodal strategies, low peer acceptance, and systemic resource deficits, whereas facilitators encompass contextualised multimodal communication, active family involvement, and supportive institutional leadership. Effective interventions depend on coordinated teacher–parent–peer triangulation, leveraging local sign language, structured peer-mediated activities, and …

School And District Leaders’ Understanding Of Technology Organizations’ Cyber Business Practices, Jayejaye Johnson

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Educational technology (EdTech) interoperability throughout cyberspace provides the financial opportunity to collect and sell student privacy information in digital learning environments, challenging school leaders to govern schools and keep children safe. School leaders provide the resources, funding, planning, decision making, and administration for EdTech cybersecurity practices and policies, yet little is known about what public school leaders understand. A quantitative study was designed using primary data collected from an online survey. Four research questions guided this study: What are the differences in cybersecurity practices and policy response scores (1) between male and female school leaders; (2) among leaders with different …

Finding Black Joy: Understanding How Black Students Are Seen, Affirmed, And Nourished In Expanded Learning Opportunities., Jamila Mosley

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines how Black students experience Black joy within expanded learning opportunity (ELO) programs and how those programs are structured to nurture that joy. It is guided by the central research question: How do Black students describe the ways in which an expanded learning opportunity program fosters their joy through experiences of being seen, affirmed, and nourished? Using an instrumental case study design at two secondary schools, the study draws on semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and observations of students participating in robotics, debate, Sister Circle, cheer, basketball, and creative writing. Data were analyzed through multiple cycles of coding, first …

Table Of Contents - Jaepl - Volume 30, Wendy Ryden

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

No abstract provided.

Front Matter - Jaepl - Volume 30, Wendy Ryden

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

No abstract provided.

Full Issue Of The Journal Of The Assembly For Expanded Perspectives On Learning Volume 30, Wendy Ryden, Jonathan M. Marine

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

No abstract provided.

Writing Without Peter: Reflections On Peter Elbow And His Legacy: Peter Elbow The Philosopher, Irene Papoulis

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

On the occasion of Peter Elbow’s passing, we read many tributes and praises commemorating him and the foundational contributions he made to the multi-faceted field of writing studies. But as we know, even as Peter’s ideas were lauded and embraced, they were also questioned by many, including other renowned members of our profession.

“Narrative Medicine Saved My Life”: Writing Is A Verb As Well As A Noun, Marian M. Maccurdy, Sarah Robinson

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Dedicated to Professor Peter Elbow 4/14/1935 – 2/6/2025

I, Marian, began my career as a graduate student in medieval literature who had a teaching assistantship to fund her degree. As a graduate student I lived in a world that saw writing as a noun, something done and finished, not as a verb, a process that shows us a world that is as ever-changing as we are. But as a writing teacher I found myself sliding into the world that writers inhabit, and

The Giving And The Receiving: Spiritual Traditions And Teaching, Aepl Summer Conference 2025, Estes Park, Co., Bhushan Aryal, Beverly Brannon, Geri Deluca, Nate Mickelson, Laurence Musgrove, Kristin B. Rajan, Adrian Matt Zytkoskee

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Editor’s note: This past year, AEPL held its first full, in-person conference since the pandemic at our beloved Estes Park location in the Rockies. To commemorate the return of this staple event for our organization, here’s a snapshot of one of the workshops, led by immediate past AEPL Chair, Geraldine DeLuca, “Writing Our Spiritual Autobiographies,” in which DeLuca asked attendees to consider, where and how did we begin, spiritually? What sustains us now? Deluca provided three prompts by Wallace Stevens, Karen Armstrong, and Audre Lorde to aid attendees in their reflection and writing processes. These prompts appear at the end …

Review: Williams, Bronwyn T. Literacies In Times Of Disruption: Living And Learning During A Pandemic., Ashna Singh

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

This review is structured around three central concepts that Williams develops throughout this book: affect, assemblages, and the connection between memory and identity. In Literacies in Times of Disruption: Living and Learning During a Pandemic, Williams focuses on the narratives of over thirty university students at the University of Louisville to examine how their literacy practices and emerging identities were influenced by physical, emotional, and structural crises.

Bringing Mindfulness Into First-Year Composition, Matt Lemas

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

I first stumbled upon the relationship between mindfulness and writing sometime after college. I had been meditating for a few years—not perfectly, but enough to notice the way it softened the inner critic and procrastinator that usually accompanied me to the page.

James Moffett’S Basic Principles, Jonathan M. Marine, Stephen Lafer

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

The tricky part about trying to distill James Moffett’s basic principles is that there are so many of them. In literature, the “major” poets are separated form the “minor” for a number of reasons, but one critical criteria is development; major poets have to develop across the span of their careers, either writing in new forms, or about and with new ideas or themes. Suffice to say, Moffett developed a great deal across his career, from a focus on pedagogy to a focus on spirituality and mindfulness along with increasing consideration of educational assessment and policy. Of course, I’m overgeneralizing …

Book Reviews Introduction: Is It Just Me?, Curtis Porter

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Each of the reviews in this issue of JAEPL focus on a book that was published long before this particular crisis. The books span very different academic fields and very different research methodologies. Yet each reviewer gives a glimpse of how the research behind each book emerged from lived challenges and illustrates how that research sheds light on the daily work and daily struggle that we collectively face.

Contributors: Jaepl - Volume 30, Wendy Ryden

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Contributors: JAEPL - Volume 30

Review: Cope, Emily M. Evangelical Writing In A Secular Imaginary: The Academic Writing Of Christian Undergraduates At A Public University., Kelly M. Sauskojus

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Emily Murphy Cope’s Evangelical Writing in a Secular Imaginary: The Academic Writing of Christian Undergraduates at a Public University (2024) empirically considers how evangelical students negotiate their identities in their academic writing.

Back Matter - Jaepl - Volume 30, Wendy Ryden

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Back Matter - JAEPL - Volume 30

Mindful Administration: Toward A Theory Of Academic Leadership We Can Live With, Sue Doe, Janelle Adsit

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

This article names barriers to faculty leadership and identifies specific ways that faculty can harness tools and resources needed to lead well. Through mindful and relational leadership practices, faculty can ensure that the values that academic communities espouse are made manifest.

An Impact Study Of Young Women's Leadership Development: A Case Study Of Kosovo, Linda Gjergji

Theses & Dissertations

This study explores the leadership development trajectories of young women in Kosovo engaged in a global leadership program, offering significant insights into their capabilities, aspirations, and the barriers they face in pursuit of leadership roles. Using a qualitative instrumental case study approach, this study examines how participation in global leadership initiatives fosters skill development, self-awareness, and civic engagement among young women in a traditionally male-dominated society. The conceptual framework of the study is comprised of Erikson's theory of Psychosocial Development (Erikson, 1968) and Positive Youth Development (Lerner, 2005). Data was collected through online semi-structured interviews and an arts-based method, revealing …

Review: Poetter, Thomas S. Curriculum Fragments: A Currere Journey Through Life Processes., Joseph Wiederhold

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

Poetter’s book Curriculum Fragments—and the stories shared within— have changed the way I think about education. Redefined it. Recentered it on what matters most—the human experience, the life processes at the center of Poetter’s book: losing, knowing, forgiving, relating, hoping, growing, loving. Each of Poetter’s fragments—reflective narratives written following the Currere methodology (Pinar)—caused me to reevaluate my practice.

Camp David Accords Lesson Plan With Simulation, Natalia Burgess

Teaching Social Studies in the Peach State

The Camp David Accords resulted in a peace between Egypt and Israel that lasted 45 years, but failed to achieve the broader effect that Jimmy Carter was aiming for which was peace in the Middle East. With this lesson plan students taking U.S. History at the secondary education level will analyze U.S. international and domestic policies including their advancements and social changes during the Carter administration. Students will evaluate key issues between Egypt and Israel by analyzing the successes and/or failures of the Camp David Accords. Students should be able to identify conflict and change by understanding when there is …

“You Don’T Have To Tell Them It’S A Lie”: Teaching Social Studies Within A Backsliding Democracy, H James Garrett, Mardi Schmeichel, Christopher H. Clark

Democracy & Education

In this essay, the authors posit that democratic backsliding, rather than partisanship, is the prevailing political situation in which civics and social studies teachers are working. The authors then present evidence from focus groups composed of practicing social studies teachers from across the United States to illustrate how the reliance on evidence and argumentation is the primary mode of navigating contemporary political issues. However, while these strategies are built on decades of research in civic education, the authors illustrate a conceptual dilemma: Inquiry strategies may not be able to accommodate the realities of democratic backsliding and its attendant misinformation. The …

“The Domino Effect”: How Early Adolescents Describe Their Capacity For Civic Engagement, Michelle Bauml, Jonathan W. Crocker

Democracy & Education

This qualitative study explored how 28 early adolescents described their capacity for civic engagement as they participated in a civic education camp in the United States and engaged in action civics inquiry projects about local issues. Focus group interviews revealed that these youth recognized the capacity of people their age to raise awareness and advocate about issues they care about while acknowledging their limits as youth and conceding that adults have advantages of age and power. Participants also described their capacity to take personal responsibility for their actions and efforts and to leverage relationships to influence others. Findings suggest that …