Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Transformational learning'

One of the greatest challenges our society faces is how to transform a fundamentally inequitable educational system. The societal inequities marginalized groups witness and experience on a daily basis are magnified by hegemonic educational policies and practices which produce, reproduce, and reinforce the concepts of white privilege. Developing transformative leaders is crucial given educational leadership is considered second only to teaching as an influence on students' learning.

This qualitative study examined the personal and professional growth of eight administrators and described the process by which these adults learn, internalized what they learn, and put their new knowledge into practice through socially just action within their schools and departments. The targeted professional development employed the tenets of critical race theory and principles of transformative leadership development as key elements toward addressing educational inequities.

The study provided insight into the lived experiences of educational leaders and explored their development of critical consciousness and how they utilized a lens of equity to effect personal and systemic change. The study grounded in critical race theory, transformational adult learning, and social justice leadership development revealed administrators who participated in ongoing, equity centered, professional development, shared similar experiences as adult learners and educational leaders in their professional roles. The results strongly suggested the impact this professional development had on their beliefs and behaviors was significant. These developing transformative leaders found the professional development to be relevant and urgent work resulting in the implementation of systemic change to varying degrees.

This action research exploratory study sought to learn how to better develop my practice by using grounded theory. It explored the apparent cognitive transformational experience of nine participants over a period of four weeks after the implementation of an intervention called Mindfulness into Action. The informal intervention was used with the Kichwa community in the Amazon rainforest and three additional formal interventions were conducted in the United States, Ecuador, and Norway over six years, in each case supported by higher education institutions. Using grounded theory methodology, the researcher found that participants were in the initial “reactive” state in Phase 1, experiencing conflict, resistance, stress, and victim identity. These characteristics were unknown to participants who were just reacting to everyday life experiences. In Phase 2, participants became aware of their behaviors, but could not stop non-beneficial behaviors. In Phase 3, they could observe their unknown behaviors and then change their sabotaging behaviors. Other salient characteristics from Phase 3 were happiness, being at peace with themselves, tolerance, and effectiveness.

There is a tendency to believe that change does not come easily, especially for adults, because our mental models rule our lives (subconsciously). However, participants were all adults from distinct walks of life who observed their unknown assumptions and reported change in their lives and in perceptions of their world. Furthermore, this intervention helped participants manage dissonance in their lives and produce changes specific and relevant to each individual, i.e., adults in the Kichwa community changed their assumptions and got rid of the mining company without violence. Moreover, the students who conducted research in the Amazon rainforest changed their research approach from top-down (doing research on people) to human development co-creation (doing research with people). Lastly, students in the academic institutions changed their way of interacting with their environment and others, and most importantly observed and changed behaviors that were sabotaging their efforts to succeed in life. They overcame their assumption of “knowing” and became more open to others’ perspectives. Each change was specific to the individual, resulting in the betterment of their lives.

Global nonprofits face not only the challenges of funding but now need to adapt to the challenges of a complex and changing environment. Part of this changing environment is the need to network with other organizations to enhance their impact. As these networked nonprofits attempt to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century they most likely will need solutions that contain complex roles, procedures, and structures. Organizations need to learn to readily adapt to these challenges. A learning organization is one which has the ability to transform itself by collectively learning how to face new challenges. An organization that has this ability is better prepared to meet its challenges and can produce greater results. When an organization becomes a learning organization it may be more likely to possess the necessary tools to effectively meet its objectives.

Leaders must implant into the organizational culture factors that will allow the organization to make the necessary transformation. Transformational leadership has been proposed as a viable model of leadership that can produce this type of environment. Rijal (2009) stated that "transforming a complex system is difficult without a leader who understands the needs of the situation, the people and the goal and undertakes the necessary action to achieve the transition" (p. 131).

Networked global nonprofits offer a unique setting for analyzing this relationship. This study will look at several ministry nonprofits that have networked together to fulfill their common purpose. It will seek to discover more about the alleged relationship between transformational leadership and a culture of learning by seeking evidence within these global nonprofits.

The purpose of this grounded theory research study was to discover the transformational learning elements of a small group experience at an Evangelical Christian church that fosters personal transformation. Given the lack of Evangelical Christians experiencing personal transformation within small groups, leaders and teachers could learn much from transformational learning theory that continues to be the predominant framework for research in the area of adult education. The source of data for this study was interviews with small group leaders, teachers, and participants who had experienced a personal transformation while attending a small group. Analysis of the data found that participants faced a variety of circumstances that were personal, meaningful, and transformative, revealing 8 elements, mostly relational, within the small group experience that fostered personal transformation. The concluding theory for this study is that the relational elements of small groups, such as love, care, prayer, and connection create a transformative learning environment where personal transformation is likely to take place through the transparency and development of close relationships with others in the group. Implications of this study include pastors and leaders incorporating relational elements into small groups by taking intentional steps to match individuals, set expectations, set an example, be open and honest, know members, focus on the Bible, be ready to learn, and assess throughout. Creating a life-changing small group experience is an essential mission of Evangelical churches and by incorporating these elements churches can make great strides in fostering spiritual growth and personal transformation in individuals’ lives.

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative research study was to identify the elements of adventure travel experiences that contribute to the process of transformational learning in adults. A qualitative research design was employed for this study. The sources of data were twelve pre-existing and de-identified interview transcriptions. A textual analysis was performed on the data, using an a priori approach to coding and analysis. An analysis of the data identified seven key themes that were critical for transformational learning in adults: (a) A Call to Adventure; (b) Being Open to Experience; (c) Entering a Zone Unknown; (d) Extra-Ordinary & Challenging Experiences; (e) Meaningful Interactions with Others (f) Re-Connecting to Self; and (g) Taking Action. These themes suggested a process for transformational learning in adults. In addition, (a) the authentic nature of the experience and (b) trip length, were also found to be important factors in transformational learning for these interviewees. These findings also suggest that intentionally designing adventure travel programs around these themes and the emergent transformational learning process has the potential to increase the likelihood of participants experiencing transformational learning through adventure travel.

This study explored the conditions and outcomes of student transformational learning (TL) in a semester-long community college work placement context. Thirty-five interdisciplinary students participated in an appreciative inquiry survey and interview protocol. 31% experienced a high degree of TL, reporting nearly twice the degree of change as low TL students and also exhibiting multiple TL outcomes. They exhibited self-growth, changed frame of reference, confidence, new behaviors and habits, and also described an emergent sense of hope, empowerment, and new possibilities. Positive emotions were the strongest differentiator of high versus low TL. The professional learning context, work culture, and relationships facilitated the greatest impact for high TL. Financial aid was the only personal condition of significance. Leveraging new workplace experiences to catalyze authentic learner capabilities as characterized by TL, offers promising potential for educators and employers alike to build sustainable future capacity. Continued TL research should explore positive, holistic methodologies.

The purpose of this case study was to determine which activities factor into transformational learning that may occur as a result of completing a perioperative preparation program for registered nurses. Through the process of describing the lived experiences of the participants who have completed a perioperative nurse training program, it also assisted in informing pedagogical practice by helping to establish the extent of transformational learning that occurs. The role of a perioperative nurse is one that is demanding, knowledge intensive, and highly collaborative. Perioperative nurse educators need to understand the process of transformation in order to assist new perioperative nurses in successfully completing a perioperative nurse-training program. The Learning Activities Survey, a follow-up survey, and individual interviews were used to accomplish a mixed method sequential study design. The research established that half of the participants had experienced transformational learning while half did not.

Human beings have spent much time and effort in trying to understand themselves, others, and their world. Mankind uses intellect when trying to understand life but the majority of people continue to encounter frustration, confusion, and a variety of obstacles when dealing with daily challenges and people. Theorists and researchers understand that successful existence requires more than mere knowledge; it requires a level of understanding, a form of wisdom foreign to the bulk of the populace. The missing ingredient for this kind of wisdom is the ability to ‘know thyself,’ which is the beginning of establishing a higher level of emotional maturity. This qualitative study focused on the transformational learning process of the adult learner, aged 50 and older. In studying the learning processes, an online survey was implemented and then Partridge's (1985, 2014) Maturity Reasoning Index Program (MRIP) was used as a psycho-educational program and administered after the participants answered five vignettes regarding current perspectives of five areas of their logic reasoning. After completing the MRIP, participants answered five additional vignettes regarding similar areas of reasoning. This study investigated participants’ transformational learning experiences as they developed a higher level of emotional maturity compared to previous reported emotional maturity findings. A group of 32 volunteers, recruited from a university listserv and networking among family and friends, spent several months completing the online study. The study included an initial four-part survey, a brief pre-test survey, an extensive psycho-educational program, and a brief post-test. At the end of the study, 23 participants completed the study. Findings indicate an increase in using a higher level of logic of reasoning or potential transformation after completing the psycho-educational program. Additional research is recommended in the area of emotional maturation, life satisfaction, wisdom, and trust-of-self for adult learners aged 50 and older.

This paper uses evidence from a small-scale interview of five primary school principals within the Stockholm Municipality to examine their focus on student learning. To facilitate this analysis, four questions were addressed:

• What are the expectations principals have of learning for their students?

• Has there been a change in perception of learning in the 21st Century?

• How do principals think they have influence on student learning?

• How do principals see their role towards lifelong learning?

This thesis argues that we have to redefine learning for the 21st Century through emphasizing a more holistic approach to both teaching and learning and by paying more attention to learning outcomes. It explores contemporary trends in leadership education and connects them to the literature. In practice, the study uses two models, instructional leadership and transformational leadership, to integrate the the data collected. It proposes that school principals play a part in student learning through their roles of setting directions, developing people and developing the organisation.

The main results showed that the principals and vice-principals who participated in the study were aware of their roles in student learning. However, their roles were not immediately identifiable with a particular leadership style but a combination of styles. They realised that they did not encourage lifelong learning, which is an important component of 21st Century learning.

Key Words:

21st Century learning, lifelong learning, learning expectations, learning outcomes, leadership styles, instructional leadership, transformational leadership, cultural change leadership.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the transformational leadership behaviors of nursing instructors in the clinical learning environment and the level of communication apprehension experienced by associate degree nursing students. The study also examined if this relationship was altered by the moderating effect of age, gender, and previous clinical exposure on the transformational leadership behaviors of nursing instructors in the clinical learning environment. This study employed a non-experimental quantitative correlational survey design. Participants consisted of 481 associate degree nursing students who were members of the National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA). Descriptive statistics, univariate, bivariate (correlational) and multivariate (regression) testing were utilized in the analysis of data. Data analyses revealed a statistically significant relationship between all but one of the transformational leadership subscales (providing individualized support) and communication apprehension. Additionally, the data revealed a statistically significant relationship between age, gender, high performance expectations and communication apprehension. However, no statistically significant relationship was found between communication apprehension and previous clinical exposure.