Teaching, Learning, Policy & Leadership Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2759
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Item WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO CARE AND PROVIDE SCHOOLING FOR A CHILD ORPHANED DUE TO HIV/AIDS IN CÔTE D'IVOIRE?: A QUALITATIVE STUDY(2012) Briggs, Liza EA; Klees, Steven; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This is a qualitative study about how a family describes what it means to care for and provide schooling for a child orphaned due to HIV/AIDS. The study offers a perspective beyond the lens of a family through the inclusion of interview data from representatives of the Ivorian Ministry of Health, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) located in Côte d'Ivoire. Descriptive data reveal how care and schooling are nearly synonymous constructs in the family at the center of this study. To care for a child means to provide schooling. The form of care and schooling are ordered through practices linked to established matrilineal and ethnic family system practices. The child, orphaned due to HIV/AIDS, offers rich descriptive insights about how the loss of his parents affected his care needs, how he negotiated the matrilineal system and how he embraced school achievement and religion to manage his sense of loss and the stigma attached to his status as an orphaned child. This study also offers descriptions that explore the complexity of the political dynamics, support mechanisms, and psychosocial constructs that delineate care and schooling practices in this family and, more broadly, in Côte d'Ivoire. This study contributes to existing scholarly literature by offering a nuanced depiction of the impact of HIV/AIDS from a variety of perspectives. This contrasts with studies that converge on demographic and statistical analysis. This study also places a great deal of emphasis on the inclusion of the perspective of Ivorians. Ivorian representation allows for Ivorian-centered depictions and responses to the research questions and reflects concerns about post-development critiques on discourse and representation.Item "TAKE IT UPSTAIRS:" DECONSTRUCTING CULTURE AND GLOBAL COMPETENCY IN AN UNDERGRADUATE LIVING-LEARNING PROGRAM(2011) Haugen, Caitlin Secrest; Klees, Steven J; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Popular conceptions of American college students traditionally include young men and women who live on a university campus in a residence hall. Today's university campuses do not always fit the traditional mold. Institutions have begun to explore drastically different learning and on-campus residence hall configurations that better meet students' needs and create a stronger sense of community. Living-learning programs (LLPs) are one alternative that college administrators utilize to better meet student needs. This research investigates a single living-learning program called International House (IH), an LLP with the stated purpose of developing global competency skills in its participants. The research period spans one academic year, August 2009 to May 2010, with data collection continuing into the fall semester of 2010. Using ethnography as a methodology, this research investigates the culture of IH, how the formal and non-formal learning experiences shape that culture, and whether the program develops global competency skills in its participants. This study aims to fill existing gaps in living-learning program literature using qualitative methods - so far underrepresented in LLP research - and contributes to overall LLP discourse about the nature, culture, and effectiveness of existing programs. This research also contributes to the body of ethnographic inquiry because there is no evidence of published research uses the methodology to study living-learning programs. Finally, this investigation aims to add a further dimension to intercultural competency literature by examining the role of living-learning programs in developing competency. The findings suggest that International House's culture is shaped by three main values: openness, cross-cultural appreciation, and a strong sense of community. According to student experiences, the intersection of the formal and non-formal learning experiences is most meaningful to them, or the "take it upstairs" phenomenon. "Take it upstairs" means that when students learn practical, concrete skills and then are given the opportunity to apply them in cross-cultural settings, their experience is more meaningful. This research also suggests that students show strong evidence of developing global competency skills. This is attributed to relevant, experiential activities intentionally designed to develop those skills in a multi-cultural environment with a strong community connection.