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ROGERIAN DEMOCRATIC PEDAGOGY AND ITS IMPLICATIONS IN COMPOSITION STUDIES FOR STUDENTS, SERVICE LEARNING, AND THE PUBLIC WRITING MOVEMENT by STACY FUSSELL THORNE Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Arlington in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON May 2010 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The statistics on attrition rates for doctoral students are alarming. Only about half of all doctoral students complete their programs of study and earn their degrees (Bowen and Rudenstine). For those who are awarded their Ph.D.s in Humanities, the median number of years spent in graduate school, at least in 2008, was 9.3 (National Science Foundation). For me it has taken even longer than that: sixteen years in graduate school, fourteen years working as a doctoral student, and ten years working on my dissertation. Despite the amount of time it has taken, I am so grateful to have finally made it this far. While I am proud of myself for my persistence and determination, I know that I could not have done this on my own. None of us can do it on our own. I am very grateful for all the help I have received along the way so that I could finally accomplish this. I will always be grateful to Tim Morris. After I had experienced several challenges that made it seem like earning my doctorate might be impossible, he became committed to seeing me through this process. Tim, you have been a wonderful mentor, and I think, after Rogers, you are the most empathetic colleague and teacher I know. I hope to be as encouraging, understanding, and supportive to my students, and as great an advocate for them, as you have been with me. Thanks, Jim Warren, for being so supportive, for serving on my dissertation committee, and for being a great colleague in our work together as online English ii teachers and designers. Thanks also, Neill Matheson, for all your support as a committee member on my dissertation. I appreciate you, Tim, Jim, and Neill, for helping to usher me through this process so that I can be a part of the 50% of doctoral students who make it. Thanks also to colleagues who have given me advice on how to improve my dissertation, including Nancy Wood, Kevin Porter, Mary French, Laurie Porter, Kevin Gustafson, Stacy Alaimo, and Johanna Smith. Thank you, Kevin Eason, for being a great friend, colleague, and mentor. I appreciate how encouraging and supportive you have been, even providing feedback on my dissertation. It has been wonderful being welcomed by you into the growing field of distance education. I look forward to establishing myself in the field as I explore new intersections between teaching composition, service learning, and distance education. Thanks to my children, Michael David, William Richard, and Emerson Elizabeth for your questions and comments that made me want to continue. “Dr. Mommy” had such a great ring to it that I could not resist. Most importantly, thanks to my parents, Mike and Beverly Fussell, my greatest advocates, who are always there for me when life is going my way—and when it is not. March 31, 2010 iii ABSTRACT ROGERIAN DEMOCRATIC PEDAGOGY AND ITS IMPLICATIONS IN COMPOSITION STUDIES FOR STUDENTS, SERVICE LEARNING, AND THE PUBLIC WRITING MOVEMENT Stacy Fussell Thorne, PhD. The University of Texas at Arlington, 2010 Supervising Professor: Timothy R. Morris, Ph.D. In this project, I articulate a democratic pedagogical model, which is based on and modified from the pedagogical theories of the American psychologist, Carl Ransom Rogers (1902-1987). Rogerian Democratic Pedagogy (RDP) is based on Rogers’ claim that learning that is student directed, and involves the learner emotionally as well as cognitively, is more effective than the traditional, teacher-directed model of education. RDP focuses on empowering composition students to have a sense of ownership of their process of learning and their class, to be responsible and active learners, and to participate as citizens in a democracy by completing public writing projects that serve a purpose outside the classroom. One type of public writing project, community service writing that is based on the Stanford model, in which the writing that students do for non-profit organizations is their service work, encourages students to conduct writing iv that fulfills a need in the community and that addresses a real rhetorical situation. I have found that my students who complete public writing projects, such as service-learning writing projects, interpret this kind of work as more meaningful to them than their traditional writing assignments, like the expository essay. According to Rogerian theory, the effectiveness of learning is increased when students are, as in these situations, more engaged and invested in their work. While any teaching method that facilitates a democratic learning environment can potentially be a useful strategy for an RDP approach to teaching composition, the RDP methods that I discuss most extensively in this project include the attempt to level the power structure of the classroom, the use of student-centered dialogue to facilitate critical thinking, and public writing projects. I assert that an RDP approach is particularly useful when linked with service-learning pedagogy, and it can help service- learning practitioners address and overcome several challenges. RDP can help to explain why service learning, when it works well, is such a transforming pedagogy. It illustrates why service learning, rather than having civic and moral value only, also increases the effectiveness of learning, which helps to overcome a common objection to service learning pedagogy by faculty who worry that a service learning approach will not help them teach the academic content of their courses. Not only does Rogerian theory address this objection because it explains that the best learning is that which students interpret as significant, but it calls into question the importance of any course material that the instructor alone, as opposed to the student, deems valuable. In addition, RDP can help service-learning practitioners facilitate v reflection and critical-thinking, overcome challenges associated with grading service- learning projects, and, according to some students in my service-learning composition class, encourage students to write for “more than just a grade” and to learn “just to learn.” vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. iv Chapter Page 1. INTRODUCTION ………. ........................................................................... 1 2. ROGERS’ PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES AND HIS PEDAGOGICAL PHILOSOPHY ................................................................. 30 3. ROGERIAN DEMOCRATIC PEDAGOGY AND ITS METHODS, INCLUDING PUBLIC WRITING ........................................... 69 4. SERVICE LEARNING AS A COMPONENT OF ROGERIAN DEMOCRATIC PEDAGOGY IN THE COMPOSITION CLASSROOM …………. .............................................................................. 100 5. LINKING ROGERIAN PEDAGOGY AND SERVICE LEARNING IN COMPOSITION: WRITING FOR “MORE THAN JUST A GRADE” AND “LEARNING JUST TO LEARN”…… ............................................... 114 6. CONCLUSION: ADDITIONAL TEACHING METHODS FOR FACILITATING DEMOCRACY IN COMPOSITION: AREAS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH …………. ......................................... 146 Appendix A. A CHRONOLOGY OF ROGERS’ MAJOR WORKS AND THEIR ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................ 156 B. ROGERS’ THEORY OF PERSONALITY .................................................. 159 C. A SERVICE-LEARNING, COMPOSITION CLASS SYLLABUS ............ 163 vii D. WRITING PROMPT FOR STUDENT REFLECTION AND SELF-EVALUATION ................................................................................. 170 REFERENCES .......................................................................................................... 174 BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION......................................................................... 182 viii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION In composition studies, the theories of psychologist Carl Ransom Rogers (1902- 1987) are perhaps most frequently associated with the notion of Rogerian argument that Richard Young, Alton Becker, and Kenneth Pike introduced in 1970 with their textbook Rhetoric: Discovery and Change . The theory of Rogerian argument rests on the assumption that is an underlying theme throughout Rogers’ major works, that empathy is an essential component of effective communication. The goal of Rogerian argument is to completely describe another’s differing perspective and its strengths before proceeding to articulate one’s own position. When using Rogerian argument, as opposed to traditional argument, instead of stating your own case and refuting your opponent’s, you state the opponent’s case with as much care as your own, and you analyze the sound points of his argument. Instead of building up your own character and qualifications and attacking those of your opponent, you seek to gain your opponent’s trust, even at the cost of acknowledging your own inadequacies. (Young, Becker, and Pike 282) The aim of Rogerian argument is to show genuine understanding of another person’s or group’s perspective as a means to reduce conflict and to establish common ground. Although I certainly appreciate