Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2010, English

“The Lure of Literacy: A Critical Reception of the Abolition Debate” uses the century-long tradition of proposals for the abolition of compulsory composition to uncover pervasive assumptions about literacy. Chapters of this project revisit touchstones in the debate to show how arguments on all sides of the issue depend on ambiguous and contradictory attitudes about literacy as well as exaggerated expectations of the consequences of possessing it. This project re-contextualizes calls to abolish compulsory composition and proposes questions that may be used to inform a new model for first-year writing, one aspiring to complicate students' attitudes about literacy more generally. In arguing for a different model for compulsory composition programs, this dissertation offers a way out of an unproductive debate that has gripped composition for over a century. Following a prologue that surveys relevant literature in the abolition debate, Chapter 1 demonstrates how exaggerated expectations of the powers of literacy underline calls to abolish compulsory composition. Using principal contributors of the New Literacy Studies, I reread the first printed calls to abolish compulsory composition. I show how the period of academic specialization (1865-1920) and exaggerated understandings of the ostensible powers of literacy inform these proposals, complicating attempts to bring about lasting reform in the teaching of composition. Chapter 2 supplements existing histories of the abolition debate by incorporating overlooked voices of both abolitionism and reform. I question the validity of a distinction posited by contemporary receptions of the abolition debate; namely, between “abolitionists” and “new abolitionists.” My view is that this division is only possible if we ignore persistent continuities in the debate, especially with respect to the attitudes and definitions of literacy that inform these studies. In Chapter 3, I challenge dominant narratives of abolitionism in composition (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Kay Halasek (Committee Co-Chair); Harvey Graff (Committee Co-Chair); Cindy Selfe (Committee Member); Louie Ulman (Committee Member) Subjects: Composition

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2024, Leadership and Change

This dissertation project used an interpretivist qualitative research design to study how the right-to-read claim made by seven teenagers attending Detroit public schools in 2016 reflects, addresses, or describes contemporary discussions about educational access. Using situational analysis (SA) as a theory/method, the entirety of the claim comprises the situation of the social phenomenon being studied, not the people. This research combines critical race theory (CRT) with Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems and uses situation analysis to map historical discourses to conduct a study that examines the history of a present situation of inquiry as presented by this question: How does the 2016 right-to-read claim made by high school students in Detroit, Michigan reflect, address, or describe contemporary discussions about educational access? The study collected data to allow me to construct a prosopography that articulates an answer to the question that claims access to literacy is a public school policy right. Because situational analysis (SA) is designed to open research data to aspects of a circumstance that may have been overlooked, marginalized, or silenced, I was not certain the research results would answer this exact question. Additionally, critical theory and SA were used to conduct this qualitative research, examining historical data that addresses the right-to-read claim as a Foucaultian programmatic social problem. As such, it seeks to understand the complexities of recurring and historically situated education practices that limit actualizing U.S. education policies that embrace access to basic literacy skills as a human right. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).

Committee: Philomena Essed PhD (Committee Chair); Harriet Schwartz PhD (Committee Member); Shawn Bultsma PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; African American Studies; African Americans; African History; African Literature; American History; American Literature; American Studies; Black History; Black Studies; Community College Education; Community Colleges; Continuing Education; Counseling Education; Curricula; Curriculum Development; Early Childhood Education; Education; Education Finance; Education History; Education Philosophy; Education Policy; Educational Evaluation; Educational Leadership; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Educational Theory; Ethnic Studies; Gender; Gender Studies; Gifted Education; Higher Education; Higher Education Administration; Hispanic American Studies; Hispanic Americans; History; Multicultural Education; Philosophy; Political Science; Preschool Education; Public Administration; School Administration; Teacher Education; Teaching

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2013, EDU Teaching and Learning

At the time of this study, there were 165 Expeditionary Learning (EL) schools in the United States, but there was little research on the EL spaces of Crew, Community Meeting (CM), and Electives. The purpose of this study was to address that gap by (a) investigating the spaces of Crew, CM, and Electives in an EL school, (b) discovering the literacy events and practices that existed in these spaces, and (c) reporting on the student experiences in an EL school in regards to literacy, agency, and cultural diversity. This study drew from a theoretical framework that combined socicocultural theory, New Literacy Studies, and theories on agency and adolescents to foreground the socially situated nature of youth and their literacies. The qualitative research design was informed by ethnographic methods in order to grasp how those within the culture understood it and how they made sense of their experience. The data included observations, interviews, focus groups, and document analysis over a year long pilot study and subsequent four month study. In particular, this data reflected the stories of eight case study students across three spaces central to the EL school reform model, Crew, CM, and Electives, in a newly developed EL middle school in a large Midwestern city. Within the three school spaces, I focused my analysis onto two Crews who met every day for three months, fifteen all school Community Meetings, and three Electives that met twice a week for four months. The findings in this study are presented through descriptions of (1) the history and structure of EL as a school reform movement, (2) student experiences within this model, (3) literacy events and practices, and (4) claims about student experiences in Crew, CM, and Electives with regard to student agency, literacies, and cultural diversity. The findings of this study indicated that the EL model comes from and is perpetuated by a privileged, white, middle to upper class male, Christian, heterosexual, and Europe (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Caroline Clark (Committee Chair); Mollie Blackburn (Committee Member); Valerie Kinloch (Committee Member) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2004, Curriculum and Instruction

This ethnographic case study of a constructivist classroom examined the contextual, academic, and socio-cultural factors that influence kindergarten students' mathematical literacy development. This study was done during the crucial junction between informal and formal mathematics and during the junction between informal and formal discourse that occurs in a kindergarten classroom. It also examined how disciplinary knowledge in mathematics is presented through classroom discourse. Five lenses drawn from the research literature were used to examine the data: (a) socio-cultural perspectives, (b) constructivist learning theory, (c) kindergarten curriculum, (d) language and discourse development, (e) mathematical process and content. A final framework was developed from the data collected. It included an (a) active restructuring of the environment (socio-cultural perspectives and constructivist learning theory), (b) language and discourse development, and (c) mathematical processes and content. This framework also delineated the elements observed in the classroom that support the final framework categories. The choice of curriculum should support collaboration between children and adults as well as collaboration between children. The choice of curriculum should encourage the complex use of language and support the transition to formal mathematical discourse (one of the dominant academic discourses). Children's initiation and choice within the curriculum were found to be other key elements in this constructivist classroom. A system of continuous assessment and subsequent differentiation of instruction were two other essential elements in this reform mathematics classroom. Each of these key elements was shown to be important to foster mathematical literacy for all children. The role of socio-cultural perspectives ranging from Dewey's structuring of the environment through Freire's problem-posing curriculum to Delpit and Gee's work on dominant discourses was highlighted in (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Eileen Carr (Advisor) Subjects:

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2011, EDU Policy and Leadership

More literacy research is needed on what motivates urban high school students to write and engage in language arts learning. The three focus areas addressed in this research are (1) urban adolescent language arts literacy learning experiences, (2) youth perspectives about literacy and its link to student achievement, and (3) youth motivations to write. This qualitative methodology investigation is framed within a constructivist paradigm to capture the realities of writing motivation and literacy learning as perceived by eight urban schooled students. The research represents a collective case study that is based on student participants in a multimedia writing camp setting. The research question is: “What student perspectives about literacy learning and academic achievement further explain motivation and engagement and the call for high school literacy reform?” This study is informed by expectancy-value theory of motivation and a qualitative line of inquiry grounded in the sociocultural theory on literacy perspective. Qualitative data was gathered in the form of reflective narratives, interview transcripts, and behavior survey write-in comments.

Committee: Bruce Tuckman PhD (Advisor); Anika Anthony PhD (Committee Member); Antoinette Miranda PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Curriculum Development; Education; Educational Psychology; Language Arts; Literacy; Psychology; Secondary Education; Teaching

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2010, Educational Leadership

Although most high schools espouse school-wide literacy initiatives, few schools place equal emphasis on numeracy, or quantitative literacy. This lack of attention to quantitative skills is ironic in light of documented deficiencies in student mathematics achievement. While significant research exists regarding best practices for mathematics teaching, little research exists around best practices for leadership that supports student mathematics achievement. The purpose of this study was to explore a possible connection between school leaders‘ mathematics background and student mathematics achievement. Specifically, the study explores the potential importance of principals‘ attitudes and beliefs about mathematics, as well as knowledge of mathematics, as they impact a principal‘s ability to lead mathematics reform initiatives (i.e. the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics). The study focuses on students and administrators at secondary schools. The study used mixed methods, employing quantitative research (survey questionnaire, data-base analysis) and qualitative research (interviews). The survey was administered to Ohio principals participating in the High Schools That Work (HSTW) network. Eight survey respondents participated in follow-up interviews focusing on indicators of mathematics program success and mathematics teacher strength, as well as emphasis on numeracy across the curriculum. While the study did not yield significant correlations directly linking a principal‘s background to student achievement data, interviews conducted in conjunction with the statistical analysis did produce interesting results. Findings include insights into how a principal‘s mathematical background impacts his/her approach to mathematics program evaluation and mathematics teacher evaluation. Principal interviews offered insights into views on equal access to rigorous mathematics courses, perceptions of emphasis on numeracy, and perspectives on the importance of content knowledg (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Sally Lloyd Dr. (Committee Co-Chair); Frances Fowler Dr. (Committee Co-Chair); Steven Thompson Dr. (Committee Member); Kate Rousmaniere Dr. (Committee Member); Iris Johnson Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Mathematics Education; School Administration