University of Wisconsin Milwaukee UWM Digital Commons Theses and Dissertations May 2019 Beyond “Through the Looking Glass” Borders: a Content Analysis of North Africa/Southwest Asia in College-level World Regional Geography Textbooks Parisa Meymand University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.uwm.edu/etd Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Meymand, Parisa, "Beyond “Through the Looking Glass” Borders: a Content Analysis of North Africa/Southwest Asia in College-level World Regional Geography Textbooks" (2019). Theses and Dissertations. 2102. https://dc.uwm.edu/etd/2102 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by UWM Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of UWM Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BEYOND “THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS” BORDERS: A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF NORTH AFRICA/SOUTHWEST ASIA IN COLLEGE-LEVEL WORLD REGIONAL GEOGRAPHY TEXTBOOKS by Parisa Meymand A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education at The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee May 2019 ABSTRACT BEYOND “THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS” BORDERS: A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF NORTH AFRICA/SOUTHWEST ASIA IN COLLEGE-LEVEL WORLD REGIONAL GEOGRAPHY TEXTBOOKS by Parisa Meymand The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2019 Under the Supervision of Professor Jeffrey M. Hawkins Many college teachers have a required textbook(s) for their courses, yet textbooks often misrepresent facts both directly and indirectly — through both the perspective and possible bias of the author(s) and/or the omission of information and events. As textbooks are primary sources of knowledge, and students believe the information to be true, it is important to examine their content. Thus, seven editions of Geography: Realms, Regions and Concepts were analyzed to address the sense of place and portrayal of North Africa/Southwest Asia. Utilizing both qualitative and quantitative Content Analysis based on seven selected editions of World Regional Geography textbooks, this study examined individual editions, as well as the patterns and differences between editions. The findings indicated that there was an incomplete narrative of the realm of North Africa/Southwest Asia, and an inconsistent narrative between world realms. The conclusions support a need for a more balanced representation of the realm of North Africa/Southwest Asia. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS I. CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................1 Textbooks ...............................................................................................................................1 The Impact of Education and World Regional Geography ....................................................3 Being Human ..........................................................................................................................4 Research Question ..................................................................................................................4 Theoretical Discussion ...........................................................................................................5 Purpose of the Study ..............................................................................................................9 Significance of the Study .......................................................................................................9 Filling the Gap ......................................................................................................................10 II. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................12 Key Terms ............................................................................................................................12 Importance of Textbooks .....................................................................................................14 Narrow Representations and Misrepresentations of Marginalized Groups..........................16 Narrow Representations and Misrepresentations of Marginalized Groups over Time ........................................................................................................................21 Summary ..............................................................................................................................24 III. CHAPTER THREE: DESIGN AND METHODS..............................................................26 Research Design ...................................................................................................................26 Procedures for the Content Analysis of this Study ..............................................................28 Historiography ......................................................................................................................35 Textbook Selection ...............................................................................................................35 Positionality ..........................................................................................................................38 Limitations of this Study ......................................................................................................41 iii IV. CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS OF THE STUDY ..............................................................42 Research Questions on Critical Regional Geography ........................................................42 Research Questions Orientalism and Post-Colonial Theory ..............................................75 Summary ............................................................................................................................90 V. CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION ..........................................................................................91 Review of the Methodology .................................................................................................91 Conclusion and Interpretation of Findings ...........................................................................91 Implications ........................................................................................................................101 Recommendations ..............................................................................................................103 Future Research ..................................................................................................................107 VI. APPENDICES......................................................................................................................108 Appendix A: Definition and Description of Realms from Geography: Realms, Regions and Concepts ..........................................................................................108 Appendix B: Table of Categories Showing Description of Selected Realms .................121 Appendix C: Key Concepts, Terms, and Headings Found in Selected Editions ............123 Appendix D: Spatial Organization of the Textbook .......................................................160 Appendix E: Table on Percent of Textbook Coverage, Population, and Land Percentages ..........................................................................................................165 Appendix F: Inter-Coder Results ...................................................................................175 Appendix G: Inter-Coder Reliability – Researcher and Participant Coding Sheet for Cohen’s Kappa Statistic .......................................................................................185 Appendix H: Cohen’s Kappa Formula’s and Inter-Coder Reliability ...........................196 Appendix I: Inter-Coder Curriculum Vita .....................................................................198 VII. REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................212 VIII. CURRICULUM VITAE ..................................................................................................224 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Literature Review Schematic .........................................................................................24 Figure 2: Wordle from 1st Edition (left) and Wordle from 17th Edition (right) ...........................67 Figure 3: 2nd Edition Spatial Arrangement (left) and 17th Edition Spatial Arrangement (right). 71 Figure 4: United States Frequencies over Selected ......................................................................82 Figure 5: British Frequencies over Selected Editions ....................................................................83 Figure 6: Bounda* Frequencies over Selected Editions ................................................................86 Figure 7: Iran Frequencies over Selected Editions ........................................................................90 v LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Questions from Critical Regional Geography ............................................................................... 6 Table 2: Questions from Orientalism and Post-Colonialism ...................................................................... 9 Table 3: Partial Textbook Selections and Years ..........................................................................................36 Table 4: Complete Textbook Section Editions and Years ........................................................................37