Predominant sustainability pedagogy and science largely focus on fixing existing problems via solutions external to humans (e.g. carbon sequestration, renewable energy). While external or outer interventions can support a transition to a sustainable future, internal or inner developments should also be highly valued. For this dissertation, I…

This article examines reader development as a key factor in understanding the pathways through which readers connect to gender expansive books, and relates those concepts to the corpus of books available for elementary level readers. The article provides evidence for the importance of attending to both book quantity and quality, as well as…

The learning environment comprises the psychological, social, cultural and physical setting in which learning occurs and has an influence on student motivation and success. The purpose of the present study was to explore qualitatively, from the perspectives of both students and faculty, the key elements of the learning environment that supported…

College students engage with religion, faith, and spirituality for a variety of reasons; however, current literature exploring these motivations is limited. We utilised a constructivist, qualitative, phenomenological design and surveyed 201 students to understand their motivations for pursuing faith, religion, or spirituality. Of those surveyed,…

Identity development is a critical process common to the human experience across all demographics. While everyone engages in identity development, the range of nuances in identity that need to be navigated makes the process more complicated. As children progress through adolescence, developing their unique identity becomes a vital task in which…

This action research looked at the low comfort levels among young people when engaging in conversations about social inequities. Additionally, this research investigated the development of youth voice, agency, and engagement from youth who were involved in creating an online resource library surrounding these topics. The research consisted of 2…

This phenomenological research study investigated how participation in the Educational Opportunity Fund summer bridge program shaped first generation low-income students' learner identity as they entered college. Learner identity is generally defined as a learner's personally and socially constructed roles that influence his or her capacity,…

Character development is part of the educational process. The current literature examining the cultural influences and educational strategies that have an impact on character development has shown certain gaps, particularly in the context of Guinea, West Africa. These include the lack of a framework and model for character development from this…

In their interactions with patients and health care professionals during work-based learning, medical students are known to experience emotionally challenging situations that can evoke negative feelings. Students have to manage these emotions. Students learn and develop their professional identity formation through interactions with patients and…

This study explored how associate deans in Illinois community colleges understand and practice culturally responsive leadership (CRL) in their institutions. The conceptual framework for this study is composed of the Culturally Responsive School Leadership (CRSL) model in the K-12 system first proposed by Khalifa et al. (2016) and the Applied…

This study focuses on the importance of having a safe space, brave space and a facilitated space in student-staff partnerships. The importance of having a facilitated space of drop-ins and workshops supporting students pastorally was investigated as part of an initiative called the Inclusive Practice Partnerships (IPP) Scheme, drawing on…

Involving students in shaping their own education allows for more suitable, acceptable and effective education. We focus on how student voice is embodied in the context of teaching and learning as well as relevant factors for implementation and the impact of student voice activities on students' personal development and school connectedness. This…

In this paper, we explore associations among undergraduate students' perceptions of professor cultural competence, students' perceptions of professor growth mindset, and students' motivation to engage in intercultural interactions. In two studies (N[subscript study 1] = 351, N[subscript study 2] = 277), we find that when students perceive their…

A total of 174 Latinx undergraduates attending a predominantly White institution provided online responses regarding motivating persons, processes, and factors that helped them persist in college. Using a multi-step, content-based qualitative approach, there were three meta-themes (i.e. family, friends and peers, and self) with 15 themes developed…

This study examined motivators of preservice teachers (PSTs) for pursuing a teaching career. We used latent profile analysis to identify four profiles of PSTs based on their scores on personal utility value, civic mindedness, and intentions for future professional engagement. Using logistic regression, we identified motivational differences among…