Conflict Between Philosophical Beliefs About Language Arts Instruction and District Mandates
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WHOLE LANGUAGE TEACHERS: CONFLICT BETWEEN PHILOSOPHICAL BELIEFS ABOUT LANGUAGE ARTS INSTRUCTION AND DISTRICT MANDATES by CYNTHIA KELLEY TRUETT (Under the Direction of JoBeth Allen) ABSTRACT Teachers in the study were mandated to follow district and school mandates that were anti-thetical to their beliefs about literacy instruction. All of the participants had adopted the whole language philosophy, which informed their classroom practices. External forces such as changes in leadership as well as political and parental pressures caused new mandates to become imposed on their teaching practices. Extensive interviews were conducted to determine how these teachers dealt with such mandates. The results indicated that the teachers developed various coping strategies in an attempt to reconcile the incongruence between their beliefs about literacy instruction and mandates that were in opposition to those beliefs. The strategies used by the teachers consisted of compromise, giving up, direct compliance, appearance of compliance, closing the door and ignoring the mandates, and leaving the school system. INDEX WORDS: Whole language, Literacy Instruction, School Reform, Teacher Change, Coping Strategies for Teachers, Professional Development, Mandates WHOLE LANGUAGE TEACHERS: CONFLICT BETWEEN PHILOSOPHICAL BELIEFS ABOUT LANGUAGE ARTS INSTRUCTION AND DISTRICT MANDATES by CYNTHIA KELLEY TRUETT B.S.Ed., The University of Georgia, 1982 M.Ed., Georgia StateUniversity, 1988 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF EDUCATION ATHENS, GEORGIA 2004 © 2004 Cynthia Kelley Truett All Rights Reserved WHOLE LANGUAGE TEACHERS: CONFLICT BETWEEN PHILOSOPHICAL BELIEFS ABOUT LANGUAGE ARTS INSTRUCTION AND DISTRICT MANDATES by CYNTHIA KELLEY TRUETT Approved: Major Professor: JoBeth Allen Committee: Linda DeGroff Joel Taxel Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia December 2004 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people have influenced the process of conducting this study and writing this dissertation. The process of writing this dissertation has been a long journey due to many curves life has thrown my way in the midst of trying to complete this study. There were many individuals along the way who helped me finally reach completion and I appreciate their support in helping me reach this long-standing goal. First of all, I want to thank my husband, Chuck, and my daughters, Kelli and Katie, for their continual support over these many years. Thanks for never doubting my goal to complete this study. I thank you for your interest, encouragement, the quiet writing time and for the times you pulled me away from writing to do other things. You have always been an important reminder of what is truly important in life. I could not have finished without your support, encouragement, patience, and interest in my study. I also want to thank my parents, Bob and Faye Kelley, for their steadfast belief in me, no matter what I attempt, and for their constant encouragement to complete this study. As an educator, I want to thank my mentor and Major Professor, Dr. JoBeth Allen, whose support of my study never waned and whose encouragement was a motivating force throughout the study. I also want to thank JoBeth for recognizing the merit in telling the stories of these wonderful teachers. Her support, advice and mentoring were invaluable throughout the writing process. I also want to thank the other members of my committee, Dr. Linda DeGroff and Dr. Joel Taxel, for their time, expertise and feedback about my study. Your input provided insight on ways to improve this study and make it relevant to current practices in literacy instruction. I v appreciate the longevity of your membership on my committee and your willingness to hang in there for the long haul. I want to thank several of my colleagues without whom this would not have been possible. I owe a huge thank you to Nancy Morrison and Stephanie Twitty Carmon for their support when I needed time off to analyze data. Your support of this time was a huge catalyst in allowing me to finish this project. Thank you for keeping all the pieces together in my absence. I also want to thank Kay Elder and Debra Ault-Butenko who have graciously endured working with a new principal while she attempted to complete a dissertation. I would not have made it through the home stretch without your support and encouragement. I have been blessed to work with such high caliber colleagues. One group that kept the writing fires burning for me was my writing group. I want to thank the members of my writing group, Dr. Terry Burns, Dr. Shane Rayburn, Dr. Sara Angeletti, Dr. Jane Rogers and Mrs. Sharon Clark. You were all such a strong source of encouragement and support. Thank you for reading drafts, good and bad, and for allowing me to be part of your dissertation journey. I learned so much from sharing in your writing process and have grown as a person, a writer and a professional from my time with you. Shane and Terry, thank you for the perfectly timed phone calls that always came when I needed shot in the arm to keep writing. Your timing has always been impeccable. I will always be grateful. Finally, I want to thank Rebekah, Carey, Barbie, Maggie and Patty for opening up their personal and professional lives to be part of this study. Your stories are priceless and I feel honored that I was the one empowered to share them with a larger audience. Thank you for your daily contributions to children, our wonderful profession and for being a voice in a profession where many remain voiceless. Your stories are sure to serve as an inspiration to others. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS........................................................................................................... iv CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY............................................................................1 Brief History of Instructional Practices and Reform Efforts.....................................2 Researcher’ Professional Journey as an Educator...................................................12 Defining Whole Language ......................................................................................15 Theoretical Foundation of Whole Language...........................................................17 Principles of Whole Language ................................................................................19 Role of the Whole Language Educator and the Downfall of Whole Language…..24 Statement of the Problem ........................................................................................41 The Research Question............................................................................................45 Conclusion...............................................................................................................45 2 REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE .............................................................................47 Defining the Teacher’s Role Through Gender ........................................................48 Determinants of Curricular Change ........................................................................53 Determinants of Curricular Stability .......................................................................69 Literacy Instruction: From Progressive Education to Reading First.......................81 Efforts to Abolish Whole Language........................................................................93 Summary ...............................................................................................................105 vii 3 RESEARCH METHODS..........................................................................................109 Research Design....................................................................................................109 Researcher Beliefs.................................................................................................110 Site Selection.........................................................................................................114 Participants and Research Site ..............................................................................115 Data Sources and Collection .................................................................................119 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................125 Validity..................................................................................................................129 Ethical Concerns....................................................................................................130 Summary ...............................................................................................................132 4 THE PARTICIPANTS...............................................................................................135 Maggie’s Story ......................................................................................................136 Rebekah’s Story ....................................................................................................147 Carey’s Story.........................................................................................................156 Patty’s Story ..........................................................................................................164 Barbie’s Story........................................................................................................171