WHAT ABOUT ME? THE INTERSECTION OF TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING AND SOCIAL STRATIFICATION By LAURA MCALISTER Integrated Studies Project submitted to Dr. Patricia HugHes‐Fuller in partial fulfillment of tHe requirements for tHe degree of Master of Arts – Integrated Studies AtHabasca, Alberta November, 2011 Table of Contents Abstract....................................................................................................................................... 3 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................................4 Transformative Learning – An Overview ........................................................................ 6 Transformative learning and the purpose of education............................................ 7 Critical Reflection.................................................................................................................... 8 How learners are viewed...................................................................................................... 9 Critical Pedagogy…………………………………………………………………………………………..11 Social Stratification and Social Class……………………………………………………………..12 Capitalism……………………………………………………………………………………………………..16 Social Class – Ignored on Purpose…………………………………………………………………17 Transformative learning and redefining social class…………………………………….19 Transformative Learning and Popular Culture……………………………………………..20 The Breakfast Club – a film for understanding transformative learning and social stratification ………………………………………………………………………………………22 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………………………….28 References…………………………………………………………………………………………………….30 3 Abstract: This paper provides a critical discussion on the intersection of transformative learning and social stratification. The discussion includes a presentation of transformative learning as a process, including the importance of critical reflection and critical pedagogy. The connection to the purpose of education is also considered. Social stratification and social class are examined, and it is argued that social class has largely been ignored in the classroom. In addition it is argued that uneven power relations related to social class are reproduced. The intersection of transformative learning and social stratification is emphasized through examining the John Hughes film, The Breakfast Club. A discussion on popular culture and its contribution to education is also presented. 4 Introduction The education process provides a multitude of purposes and reflection opportunities for students, teachers and even institutions. Adult education is considered a social process; the elements involved in this social process are multifaceted. They are comprised of expected components such as the curriculum, the textbooks, and the course syllabus, but there are larger, overarching factors that infiltrate these seemingly benign elements. These factors influence what is contained in the curriculum, textbooks and syllabus, and (interestingly) what it does not contain. These factors are complex. They are comprised of a seemingly endless set of possibilities ranging from the attitudes and values of the students to the culture and values of the surrounding society. All of these factors point to the purpose of education. An understanding of the purpose of education begins with the idea that the classroom is not neutral and the process of education is not value free. The purpose(s) of adult education is of great interest to educators and students alike and reinforces the larger societal value that demands a thorough understanding what we are doing in the classroom and why. As such, students do not arrive in the classroom as empty vessels – they are already shaped by their own worldview that in turn is influenced by the community and broader society around them. It is argued that one of the desired purposes of education is transformation (Spencer, 2006). In this paper I will critically investigate transformative learning and explore, in depth, the transformative learning process. In addition, I will present a critical discussion on social 5 stratification and social class within education, and in particular how transformative learning and social stratification intersect. I will also explore the power relations underpinning this learning process and the relationship to social stratification. Finally, because popular culture can reflect and influence the sociological imagination (Brym, Lie, & Rytina, 2010) I will examine the John Hughes film, The Breakfast Club to concretize and explicate the intersection of transformative learning and social stratification. 6 Transformative Learning – An overview Nohl (2009) suggests that education is more than “learning facts, acquiring skills and becoming socialized in roles” (pp. 287). Education should challenge and call into question our assumptions, ideals and worldview. These assumptions, ideals, and worldview make up with Nohl (2009) refers to as our ‘meaning perspectives.’ A change in meaning perspectives is fundamental to transformative learning. Transformative learning as a concept is best articulated by Mezirow (1978) who stated that transformative learning is about “how we learn to negotiate and act on our own purposes, values, feelings, and meanings rather than those we have uncritically assimilated from others – to gain greater control over our lives as socially responsible, clear thinking decision makers” (Mezirow, 2000, pp. 8 as cited in Nohl (2009). There are several dimensions to examine here when understanding transformative learning as a concept. First, transformative learning is clearly a learner‐centered concept; it is more about the individual experience rather than an acquisition of an external skill, concept or procedure. Transformative learning does not view learners (and ultimately learning) as empty vessels that get filled up with “knowledge” and then learning has taken place. Transformative learning suggests something more – something ultimately more associated with emancipation that speaks to the individualism of transformative learning as a concept. Second, there is the element of critically assessing ideas through the process of education (and being educated) that leads to an individual eventually being able to better understand, 7 assess and critically examine their own worldview i.e. there is an element of civic responsibility to transformative learning. Mezirow (2000) suggests that transformative learning allows individuals to make better decisions as citizens. Transformative learning and the purpose of education Transformative learning as a concept has ties with the purpose of education and also seems to contain some assumptions about the process as well. As discussed above, Mezirow states that transformative learning seeks to move beyond meaning we have “uncritically assimilated from others” (ibid) which suggests that individuals have passively obtained “knowledge” or “information” that has simply comprised a worldview but does not call that worldview into question. It seems then, that learning that is not transformative is merely learning that reinforces and confirms existing ideals. The process of transformative learning is such that the learner must actively engage in the process of learning and go about the often difficult task of calling into question the assumptions and underpinnings of a person’s own worldview. This process is key to transformative learning. Of course, this raises an implicit assumption ‐ transformative learning seems to suggest that a person’s worldview is in need of transformation and that an individual who is not transformed is somehow lacking or is not whole. Mezirow uses Habermas’ ‘cognitive‐rational’ approach to transformative learning which posits the learner as an ‘autonomous’ thinker (Nohl, 2008). This approach has been criticized, as it does not factor in elements such as emotions and creativity that can also contribute to transformative learning (Nohl, 2008). 8 In addition to including such elements as emotions and creativity, Nohl (2008) offers the ‘life story’ as a way to accomplish transformative learning. Coupled with the life story is spontaneous action (Nohl, 2008). Through this spontaneous action and recounting of the life story the learner experiences a “sudden beginning of something completely new in their life story” (Nohl, 2008). It seems here that transformative learning hinges on the learner making sense of and searching for new meanings within their own worldview. (This concept is reflected in the characters in the film, The Breakfast Club, to be discussed later.) The nature of spontaneous action is such that, as a process, it extends beyond the walls of the classroom. This limits the ‘planable’ nature of education (and curriculum) while at the same time suggesting that transformative learning is something more, something beyond the nature of planned objectives and predictable outcomes of learning activities. Critical Reflection Transformative learning points to something deeper than the uncomplicated acquisition of new information. Walters (2008) suggests turning to Kierkegaard and other humanist thinkers and posits that “transformative learning serves as a vehicle to ‘being’…the change and transformation of ‘self’ and ‘being’ are accompaniments of deep, relational learning” (pp. 111). Again, this speaks to the depth of transformative learning by showing that in order for learning to be transformative there must be a change in self. This ‘deep’ learning