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Download File BIG LEARNING IN SMALL COMMUNITIES: EXPLORING WITH YPAR IN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS Lora Elaine Hawkins Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy under the Executive Committee of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 2021 © 2021 Lora Hawkins All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT BIG LEARNING IN SMALL COMMUNITIES: EXPLORING WITH YPAR IN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS Lora Hawkins This study is a critical evaluation conducted by a Youth-led Participatory Action research team that has, over the course of five years, sought to investigate culturally responsive pedagogies in international schools populated with Third Culture Kids. Previous to this work, the youth researchers and I developed an interdisciplinary, choice and project-based honors program which we called the Small Learning Community. As such, this program became the object of and context for this review. We were guided by the question, What are, if any, the perceived learning benefits for students in the Small Learning Community?, and we sought to critically evaluate the program’s perceived impact on meaningful learning experiences, student agency, and transference of skills. We leveraged constructivist-oriented Grounded Theory—in part because of the value this approach assigns to emic knowledge—to examine interview transcripts of SLC participants. I then developed case studies and argue for pedagogical shifts in the international classroom that center more deliberately on (1) active participation, (2) the perception of new, (3) choice, (4) attention to process, (5) personal interest, and (6) social emotional learning, while addressing the need for more intentional and systematic practitioner research. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………………………………………. vii LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………….………………………... viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………………. ix DEDICATION………………………………………………………………………………. xii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………… 1 Nesting Contexts of the Small Learning Community………………………………... 4 Context of International Education………………………………………..…… 5 Contextualizing the American School of Kuwait………………………...……. 12 The American School of Kuwait, as it is………………………………... 15 Statement of the Problem……………………………………………………… 20 Significance of Diversity in International Education and ASK………… 24 Responding to Context through the Small Learning Community……………… 27 Theoretical Framework…………………………………………….………… 33 Social constructivism.……………………………..……………… 34 The Third Culture………………………….…………………...… 37 Communities of Practice………………………….....………….… 40 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE …………...………………………...………... 42 Methods of Inquiry and Limitations………………………….………………... 42 Gaps in the Literature…………………………………....……….. 43 International Schools and Schooling...…………….……………………...…… 45 Conceptual Beginnings……………………….….…...………….. 45 Differentiating Modern International Education..………… 46 i Impacts & implications the world congress on education..... 47 Standardizing Definitions of International Education.…….……. 49 Scholars in the Field………………….………………………………………… 52 Early voices in international education……………….………….... 53 Early voices in international education……………….………….... 57 Student Stakeholders in International Education……………….…….…..……. 64 The First Conundrum: Building Strong Pedagogy in International Settings…… 67 Examining Transference……………………...…...………………. 69 Increasing transference.………………………………. 72 Communities and Cultures in Action………………..……...……. 73 Unpacking culture and communities………....………. 76 Implications for a New Classroom Paradigm………………….…. 77 The Second Conundrum: Creating Inclusive Research………………………... 80 PAR: A Transformative Framework……………………………… 81 YPAR………………..………………….……………. 82 YPAR in international education.……….…………… 83 Synthesizing YPAR, culture, and community………. 84 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………..... 85 CHAPTER III: PEDAGOGICAL DESIGN…………………….………………………… 86 Context for/of the Object of Study…………………………………………….. 87 Responding to Research: Creating a New Course…………..…….. 90 Theoretical Underpinnings.……………………...….… 91 From Elective Course to a Small Learning Community…….…….. 92 ii Scheduling………………………………………….…. 93 Participants in the SLC.….…………………………… 96 Conclusion.………………………………………..…………………………… 99 CHAPTER IV: METHODS & METHODOLOGY………………………..……………….. 101 Socially Constructed Knowledge: The Methodological Root………………….. 103 Epistemological Foundations: Social Constructivism…………….. 103 Social Constructivism in the classroom.…….……..…. 106 Social Constructivism in the study.……………...……. 107 Grounded Theory & Socially Constructed Knowledge..……..……. 108 Grounded theory in the study………………...……….. 111 Youth-led Action Research & Socially Constructed Knowledge…. 112 Youth-led Research & the Small Learning Community 114 Methods………………….………………………………………..……………. 116 Situating the Research Team…………..……………...………...…. 117 Research team implications.…………..………………. 120 Developing Lines of Inquiry……………………..…………...……. 121 Data Collection and Analysis………………………...……………. 122 Data Analysis Process.……………………………….……………. 124 Situating Data Collection Methods……………….………….……. 128 Conclusion………………………………………………….…..………………. 130 CHAPTER V: PRESENTATION & DISCUSSION OF DATA—PART I………….…….. 132 Carina…………………….……………….……………………………………. 136 Carina’s Perceptions of Meaningfulness……………………...….... 138 iii Carina’s Perceptions of Agency…………………………..……….. 142 Carina’s Perceptions of Value Beyond SLC..…….…………….…. 146 Coding Carina’s Interview……………..………….………………. 149 Youth-researcher analysis: valuing active/experiential learning 150 Teacher analysis: valuing active/experiential learning………... 150 Meta-analysis: valuing active/experiential learning…………... 153 Rakesh………………………………………………….………………………. 155 Rakesh’s Perceptions of Meaningfulness……………....…….……. 158 Rakesh’s Perceptions of Agency……………….…………….……. 160 Rakesh’s Perceptions of Value Beyond SLC…………...…………. 163 Coding Rakesh’s Interview………………………………….…….. 167 Youth-researcher analysis: application of learning..…. 168 Teacher analysis: application of learning…………….. 168 Meta-analysis: application of learning…………..……. 171 CHAPTER V: PRESENTATION & DISCUSSION OF DATA—PART II……....……….. 176 Eleanor…………………………………………………...……….……………. 177 Eleanor ’s Perceptions of Meaningfulness.………………,.………. 179 Eleanor ’s Perceptions of Agency………....………………………. 183 Eleanor ’s Perceptions of Value Beyond SLC…....…………….…. 185 Coding Eleanor ’s Interview……………………..………..………. 188 Youth-researcher analysis: reflecting on effort vs process... 189 Teacher analysis: reflecting on effort vs process………..... 189 Meta-analysis: reflecting on effort vs process……………. 194 iv Jol…………………………………………………………………....…………. 196 Jol’s Perceptions of Meaningfulness……….…………...…………. 199 Jol’s Perceptions of Agency………………………………………. 203 Jol’s Perceptions of Value Beyond SLC……….……………….…. 207 Coding Jol’s Interview……………….………………....…………. 210 Youth-researcher analysis: demonstrating personal interest 211 Teacher analysis: demonstrating personal interest ………. 211 Meta-analysis: demonstrating personal interest…………. 216 Emerging Understandings…………………………………………...…………. 218 CHAPTER VII: CONUNDRUMS, CONSTRUCTIONS, & CONCLUSIONS….………… 221 Framework for the Study……………………….………………………....……. 222 Understandings and Implications for a Teacher’s Practice…………………….. 224 Creating Meaningful Work in the Classroom………………...……. 225 Systemic pedagogical shifts……………..……………. 227 Developing Perceptions of Agency……….....……………………. 228 Fostering Perceptions of Transference…………….………………. 231 Thematic Implications for a Teacher’s Classroom…...……………. 235 Active participation…………………..……….………. 236 Perception of new………………………...……...……. 238 Choice.………………...………………………………. 239 Attention to process.……………………….………….. 240 Personal interests……………………...……...……….. 241 Social emotional learning.…………………………….. 242 v Application…...…………………………….…………. 243 Moving Beyond a Teacher’s Classroom………………………………….……. 244 Final Thoughts and Wonderings………………………………………….….…. 251 EPILOGUE………………………………………………...…………………………….… 252 REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………… 255 APPENDIX A………………………………………………………………………………. 275 APPENDIX B.……………………………………………………………………………… 279 APPENDIX C.………………………………………………………………………………. 288 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 1 SLC 2018-2019 Cohort………………...…………………………………................ 98 Table 2 YPAR Team Overview.…………………………………………………….............. 117 Table 3 Interview Particpiants…………...…………………………………………............... 124 Table 4 Case Study Participants……………………………………………………............... 124 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Sample SLC Schedule……………………………………….…..…….................. 31 Figure 2: SLC Learning Plan………………………………………………..………............ 32 Figure 3: Sample SLC Projects……………………...………………………....……............ 32 Figure 4. Typical 9th Grade Schedule…………………………………….……….………… 94 Figure 5. Typical SLC Schedule A……………………………………………….………… 95 Figure 6. Typical SLC Student Schedule B………………………………………………… 96 Figure 7. Typical SLC Student Schedule C………………………………………………… 97 Figure 8. Interview Questions……………………………………………...……………….. 123 Figure 9. Focus Coding Excerpt…………….……………………………..……………….. 126 Figure 10. Theoretical Coding Excerpt………………………………………………........... 128 viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to express my deepest appreciation for the dozens of people who have contributed to this project. Of particular important is my advisor Dr. Bob Fecho, who was endlessly patient after I ran away to the Middle East, disappeared, and then reappeared only to bombard him with an unreasonable number of drafts. He showed me firsthand what meaningful research
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