Advisor
Yakaboski, Tamara
Committee Member
Rodriguez, Katrina L.
Committee Member
Guido, Florence M.
Department
Leadership, Policy and Development
Institution
University of Northern Colorado
Type of Resources
Text
Place of Publication
Greeley (Colo.)
Publisher
University of Northern Colorado
Date Created
12-1-2014
Genre
Thesis
Extent
209 pages
Digital Origin
Born digital
Description
The purpose of this qualitative, constructivist study utilizing portraiture methodology was to explore the experience of transformative learning from three perspectives: the learner, the educator who helped to create or support the experience, and a significant individual in the learner’s life. For this project, transformative learning was defined as learning that creates a shift or change in a person’s way of knowing, thinking, and being in the world, as well as how that person views one’s self and others within that world. A total of 12 individuals participated in the study: four learners, four educators, and four significant others. Data were collected through a total of 16 interviews: two individual interviews with each learner, one individual interview with each significant other, and a paired interview between learner and educator. The themes that emerged centered around characteristics of the learner, characteristics of the educator and learning environment, and the relationship between learner and educator. Additional themes included the learners finding a sense of voice and place, their desire to pay their transformative learning experiences forward to others, and the ways in which their relationships and perceptions of self changed. Implications for educators, including both faculty and student affairs professionals, as well as students, and directions for future research are discussed. Through this study, support is given for more widespread use of transformative teaching and learning practices in higher education.
Degree type
PhD
Degree Name
Doctoral
Language
English
Local Identifiers
Braun_unco_0161D_10370
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by author.
