This phenomenological study on experiential learning, specifically studying abroad, examined the evolution of education in the United States, including the rise of standardized testing and the increased focus on whole child and democratic teaching and learning. The participants found a positive correlation between their study abroad experience and…

Engineering graduates are called on by society to work with others to address wicked problems which incorporate a wide range of socio-technical considerations. One promising approach to more wholistically prepare students for the demands of engineering-related work and positively contributing as citizens is community-engaged learning. To help this…

"Paideia," a Classical ancient Greek notion of education, encompassed both holistic formal instruction and art (particularly poetry) as means to develop cultural values and understanding. This dissertation examines how the new media arts--as a transdisciplinary and computational field--can be leveraged to fulfill a contemporary notion of…

This study evaluated the impact of a somatic wellness training pilot program specifically designed for marriage and family therapy (MFT) students. Anchored in mindfulness and the person of the therapist (POTT) model, the program aimed to cultivate heightened self-awareness, emotional regulation, and self-care practices, incorporating respect for…

The dominant educational paradigm is rooted in a Platonic, Cartesian, and Piagetian mind-supremacist epistemology that subordinates the body and experience to the mind, ideas, and objective concepts. This reduces students to cognitive receptors of information in a detached, decontextualized, and dehumanizing classroom, i.e., the banking…

If a group of engineering deans were asked whether students at their institutions were successful and why, what information might they immediately or subconsciously use to measure or gauge the engineering students' success? If only academic performance outcomes like GPA, individual course grades, or graduation rate race to their minds, then their…

Latinx students face some of the country's lowest persistence and graduation rates (Green & Wright, 2017). Previous research affirms the need to develop intentional student support programs inclusive of the characteristics, identities, strengths, and unique needs of underrepresented student populations, including Latinx students, to improve…

This dissertation examines the Community of Faith-Enculturation Paradigm of John Westerhoff through an early childhood weekday's educational pedagogy that occurs in a conservative evangelical church setting. Chapter 1 introduces the research problem, question, thesis statement, and the purpose of the study including the definition of the terms.…

K-12 schools in the United States play an important role in developing global competence in students. As technology, communications, and economics increase globalization, students must interact with and thrive in cultures different from their own. Educators must develop globally competent citizens with critical knowledge, skills, and mindsets to…

K-12 schools in the United States play an important role in developing global competence in students. As technology, communications, and economics increase globalization, students must interact with and thrive in cultures different from their own. Educators must develop globally competent citizens with critical knowledge, skills, and mindsets to…

The purpose of the study was to explore the aesthetic foundation of the Waldorf pedagogy in order to understand how art and aesthetic experiences may develop care toward the environment. A form of humanistic education developed by Rudolf Steiner in the early twentieth century, Waldorf education is a learning model envisioned as a framework for…

This study is an ethnographic portrait of Interpretive Naturalists at a Midwestern state park. The study exhibits the ways in which Interpretive Naturalists learn about a place, how they create meaning about a place, and how they transmit this knowledge to others. Principle findings include the use of experiential storytelling and intimate contact…

This dissertation examines the experiences of effective Federal Government leaders in developing their emotional intelligence (EI). Using a conceptual framework of adult learning, leadership, and leader development, this study focused on experiential and situated learning to discern how EI develops. The researcher in the context of this…

Research on collaboration between academic and student affairs in higher education suggests that student affairs must change to enhance outcomes of collaborative efforts. The purpose of this case study was to investigate perspectives of both academic and student affairs professionals within the context of a campus on which collaborations occur…

Patient centered medicine is a paradigm of health care that seeks to treat the whole person, rather than only the illness. The physician must understand the patient as a whole by considering the patient's individual needs, social structure, socioeconomic status, and educational background. Medical education includes ways to train students in this…