Studying Folklore As Part of An
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“THERE’S A LOT MORE CULTURE IN MY LIFE THAN I THOUGHT”: STUDYING FOLKLORE AS PART OF AN UNDERGRADUATE GENERAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM Krystie Lynn Herndon Submitted to the faculty of the School of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Education in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Indiana University May 2021 ii Accepted by the Graduate Faculty, Indiana University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. Doctoral Committee _____________________________________ Lucy A. LePeau, PhD _____________________________________ Gerardo M. Gonzalez, PhD _____________________________________ Sue Tuohy, PhD _____________________________________ Andrea Walton, PhD March 25, 2021 iii To Marguerite J. Adams Elcie “Joe” and Charlene Curtis Adams My parents, elders, and mutual fan club iv Acknowledgements This 20-year graduate school odyssey, beginning with an old life dream of becoming a librarian, and ending in the middle of a higher ed career I never imagined and greatly enjoy, has been lovingly sustained by the four most important people in my life. Tim, Matt, Zach, and Grace, thank you for your encouragement, perspective, tech support, and occasional exasperated comments such as: “You don’t HAVE to do this. You CHOSE to do this. So quit complaining!” I hope I’ve inspired you as much as you inspire me, every day. I love you very much. I must also give a special family shout-out to my identical twin sister, Audrey Bigelow, and my step-granddad, Walter R. Bryant. Lifelong family friendships light our hearts and our way, and you two have always been there to cheer me on. I am thrilled and proud to be related to both of you capable people. I am thankful for my doctoral committee. To Dr. Lucy LePeau, thank you for advising me these past nine years. You gave me my first opportunity to publish professionally in higher education, you pointed me in the direction of my passions in research, and you never let me get away with a lazy ‘triumphant narrative’ in my writing. Without your matter-of-fact prodding, I would not have completed this degree. Dr. Gerardo Gonzalez came alongside me through a mutual interest in the value of a liberal arts education, and inspired me with his own life story, while echoing Dr. LePeau’s challenge to define my terms. Dr. Sue Tuohy not only taught one of my favorite classes in 20 years of graduate school—FOLK-F 722 Senses of Place: Production and Performance—but also spurred me on to better organize my decade’s worth of higher ed notes, an effort that facilitated my work as I approached qualifying exams and beyond. Dr. Andrea Walton provided me with my first affirmation, as a doctoral student, that I could write as v a scholar worth listening to, and helped broaden my reading list to strengthen my arguments. I hope I have hit somewhere close to the mark that you all assured me I could reach. Thanks also to Dr. Tom Nelson Laird, my master’s degree advisor, who also taught the dissertation proposal class I attended; he asserted that my methodology could offer new ways to assess learning outcomes in undergraduate education. Thanks to Dr. Jessica Lester, for teaching me the fundamentals of qualitative research analysis. You both transformed the concept of “methodology” for me, to seem like fun. Finally, I present profound thanks to the Indiana University Bloomington Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology. Throughout my nearly 14 years as an undergraduate academic advisor, the staff, faculty, and students of this department have cherished and respected me, and our mutual admiration settles my academic heart at home. This project I humbly offer to you all, as I do in all my efforts for this department, as a labor of love. vi Krystie Lynn Herndon “THERE’S A LOT MORE CULTURE IN MY LIFE THAN I THOUGHT”: STUDYING FOLKLORE AS PART OF AN UNDERGRADUATE GENERAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM Helping students to gain knowledge and understanding of human cultures, and how these cultures shape individuals and communities, comprises an enduring learning objective in the general education of college students. The study of folklore, as an example of cultural studies disciplines, has been offered to undergraduate students at several hundred American colleges and universities. However, little research has been done to ascertain whether undergraduate students actually gain such learning outcomes from folklore classes. Using constructivist narrative inquiry methodology, the chief purpose of this study was to provide undergraduate students with an opportunity to reflect upon and to articulate their perceptions of cultural knowledge and understanding gained from folklore general education classes. Qualitative research methods were used to provide triangulation of three sources of data: document analysis of syllabi from six fall 2019 folklore general education classes; notes from attendance at one lecture of each of the six classes; and transcripts of interviews with 22 undergraduate students who had completed their first folklore general education classes. Students’ reflections were investigated to ascertain how students perceived their folklore general education class experience as contributing to their knowledge of themselves, their own cultures, and cultures different from their own, and as contributing knowledge useful to their daily lives and future career paths. The study’s conceptual framework of intercultural maturity development vii (King & Baxter Magolda, 2005; Perez, Shim, King, & Baxter Magolda, 2015) undergirded examination of how the students’ folklore general education experience might contribute to their intercultural maturity and growth. Student participants were able to articulate cultural knowledge that they had retained from their folklore general education classes: knowledge and understanding about themselves and their own cultures; knowledge and awareness of cultures different from their own; and application of their newly gained cultural knowledge to their daily lives and career goals. Student reflections tended to echo both the content and learning objectives of course syllabi and lecture notes. However, interpretation of these findings indicated that noting movement towards intercultural maturity in undergraduate students would require more longitudinal study of students’ cultural learning experiences. Implications for practice and future research are discussed. _____________________________________ Lucy A. LePeau, PhD _____________________________________ Gerardo M. Gonzalez, PhD _____________________________________ Sue Tuohy, PhD _____________________________________ Andrea Walton, PhD viii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: FOLKLORE STUDY AS A CASE OF CULTURAL LEARNING ........................1 Background of Study ....................................................................................................................1 Statement of Problem ...................................................................................................................3 Purpose of Study ..........................................................................................................................4 Conceptual Framework ................................................................................................................5 Significance of Study ...................................................................................................................6 Key Terms ....................................................................................................................................8 General Education: Common Learning for All Undergraduates...............................................8 Other Terms Related to the Undergraduate Curriculum .........................................................10 Folklore as an Academic Discipline for Gaining Cultural Knowledge ..................................12 Overview of Study ......................................................................................................................14 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................16 General Education in 20th-Century American Higher Education ...............................................18 Experiments in General Education during the Interwar Period ..............................................20 The Harvard Report of 1945: A General Education Plan for All Americans .........................23 General Education as a Renewed Call for Consensus ............................................................26 Current General Education Initiatives of the 21st Century .........................................................29 Consolidating 21st-Century General Education Goals ............................................................31 Neoliberalism and De-Valuing Non-STEM Disciplines in American Higher Education..........37 Contemplating Higher Education without the Humanities Mindset .......................................39 Negotiating Neoliberalism in the Liberal Arts Curriculum.....................................................42 Cultural Knowledge Learning Outcomes ...................................................................................44 Culturally Relevant/Culturally Responsive Pedagogy ............................................................47 Multicultural Competence .......................................................................................................52 Intercultural Maturity and