The IAFOR
Academic Review
Volume 2 | Issue 1

Collected
Essays on
Learning and
Education

ISSN: 2188-9570

THE IAFOR ACADEMIC REVIEW

3

CONTENTS

24

15

1.

24.

46.

Introduction

Education After the

The Wolf in Sheep’s

Michael Liam Kedzlie

Arab Spring: Alternative

Clothing: The Continuing

3.

Philosophy to Develop

Accountability Discourse

A School’s Journey in

Awareness Towards thein Education‘Living and Sustaining’“Other”

Yvonne Masters

Transformative Pedagogy: Heyam Loutfi ElZein

56.

A Case Study of a New

37 .

Transcending

Zealand Primary School

Re-evaluating the

Teacher Professional

Jane Cavanagh-Eyre

Relationship Between

Development: From

15.

Millennial Students, their

Determinism to

Can Computer Science

Parents, and Professors

Complexity

Students Do Without the

When Teaching a Study-

Abdul Rahman, Garry

Desktop?

Abroad Course: Searching Hoban & Wendy Nielsen

Dave Towey & Tianchongfor More Success

Wang

J. McClanahan

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37
Editorial Committee

Rev. Professor Stuart PickenIAFOR Chairman
Dr. Joe Haldane IAFOR President & CEO
Mr. Michael Liam Kedzlie IAFOR Research and Policy Manager

The IAFOR
Academic
Review

Advisory Board, Conference Chairs and Cultural Studies

Volume 2 – Issue 1 – Jan 2016

Professor Sue Jackson, Birkbeck, University of London, UK –EditorMichael Liam Kedzlie

Professor Barbara Lockee, Virginia Tech, USA – IAFOR

Production
Rachel Dyer

Information and Society

Published by The International
Academic Forum (IAFOR),Japan
IAFOR Publications ©
Copyright 2016
ISSN: 2188-9570 (online)
www.iafor.org
Sakae 1-16-26-201, Nakaward, Aichi, Japan 460-0008

Programme Advisors

IAFOR Interdisciplinary Programme Director for Education

International Director of Programme for Technology, Education,
Professor Michiko Nakano, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan –ACE/ASCET2015 Conference Co-Chair

Professor Keith W. Miller, The University of Missouri, USA –ACSET2015 Conference Co-Chair

Front cover image
FlickrCreativeCommons/UNICEF/NYHQ2010-1316/Ramoneda

“FROM THE EDITOR

Editorial Committee Introduction

Welcome to Volume 2 Issue I of The IAFOR Academic Review. One of the central missionsof The International Academic Forum (IAFOR) is to provide avenues for academics andresearchers to be international, intercultural and interdisciplinary. One of the ways in which wedo this is through our in-house publication, Eye Magazine, our various conference proceedings,
our Journals, and now beginning in 2015, our special editions of The IAFOR International
Academic Review. In this edition we, the editorial committee, bring together a selection of
the most interesting contributions from our conferences with respect to the discussion of
Learning and Education. In many educational settings and contexts throughout the world,
there remains an assumption that teachers are the possessors of knowledge, which is to be
imparted to students, and that this happens in neutral, impartial and objective ways. However,learning is about making meaning, and learners can experience the same teaching in very
different ways. Students (as well as educators) are part of complex social, cultural, political,
ideological and personal circumstances, and current experiences of learning will depend in parton previous ones, as well as on age, gender, social class, culture, ethnicity, varying abilities andmore. The papers selected by the editorial committee for this special edition certainly reflect
the international, intercultural and interdisciplinary approach that lies at the heart of both
IAFOR and the global goals of education that we both work and live in as career academics.
Sincerely,
Michael Liam Kedzlie
Editormkedzlie@iafor.org

Contributors

Jane Cavanagh-Eyre is currently the Principal at Epsom Normal Primary School in
Auckland, New Zealand. She was previously Associate Head at the School of Education of
AUT University in Auckland. Jane has also been Principal of Sir Edmund Hillary Collegiate
in Otara, Auckland, an Education Review Officer, reviewing New Zealand schools and a
Lecturer in Literacy at the University of Auckland.
Heyam Loutfi ElZein is an Associate Professor in Educational Management at Rafic
Hariri University. Dr. Loutfi’s research interest is in trauma and conflict, early childhood
development, justice, ethics and peace education. She has conducted a large number of hours
of teacher training workshops about ECE, Peace Education and the Rights of Children,
Conflict Transformation, Teachers and Parental Empowerment in Lebanon and abroad andhas presented papers in regional and international conferences. Heyman has also publishedbooks, chapters in books and articles in a number of regional and international journals.
Dave Towey is currently an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at University of
Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC). After graduating from University of Dublin, Trinity

4 | The IAFOR Academic Review Eighth Edition

FROM THE EDITOR

College (TCD) he worked in Japan in the late 1990s, helping develop a breast cancer screening
tool using ultrasound imaging technology and fuzzy reasoning. After this, he lived in Hong
Kong from 2000 to 2006, where, as well as completing his Ph.D., he worked at University ofHong Kong (HKU), and as a teacher and teacher trainer in the local school system. In 2005,
he became involved in a newly created liberal arts college in Zhuhai, Mainland China, theBeijing Normal University – Hong Kong Baptist University: United International College(UIC), where he remained until 2013. His research interests span a number of areas, including
technology-enhanced instruction and learning, and software quality assurance, with a current
focus on software testing. Alex Tianchong Wang is currently working as a Research Assistantin the Centre for the Advancement of Information Technology in Education (CAITE) at
the Chinese University of Hong Kong where he is studying for his Doctorate of Education,
focusing his research on Curriculum and Instruction.
Yvonne Masters is currently a Senior Lecturer in Professional Classroom Practice in the Schoolof Education, University of New England (UNE), Australia, a position that she accepted after
five years as Director of Professional Experience in the same school. Prior to taking up her
position at UNE Yvonne had 30 years’ experience in secondary schools, including in the rolesof Curriculum Coordinator, Deputy Principal and Principal. Yvonne’s research interests centre
on teacher education, professional experience and virtual worlds, with a particular focus on
distance education students. Yvonne has collaborated in an Office of Teaching and Learning
Grant, VirtualPREX: Innovative assessment using a 3D virtual world with pre-service teachers,
and is currently conducting research into both teacher standards and teacher quality.
Joseph ( José) McClanahan is an Associate Professor of Spanish and Associate Chair of
the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at Creighton University in Omaha,
Nebraska. There, he teaches at all levels of the curriculum, including language and culture
courses abroad. He has taught in both Latin America and in Spain. Recently, his researchinterests have focused on the area of teaching courses related to Languages for Special Purposes,
in particular courses related to teaching Spanish to future healthcare professionals. He also has
a strong interest in curricular development and design that centers on new students entering
the university. He has led student educational trips to almost every continent on the globe.
Garry Hoban is a Professor of Science Education and Teacher Education in the Facultyof Education at the University of Wollongong, Australia. He spent the first 14 years of his
working life as a secondary science teacher, department head and K-12 Science Consultant
in schools before moving into universities as a teacher educator. His teaching and research
focus is student-created digital media for learning and explaining science. Abdul Rahman iscurrently a Doctoral Student at University of Wollongong, Australia. His research interests
lie in the areas of Teacher Education and Professional Development. Wendy Nielsen
is a science educator who was a high school science teacher prior to graduate studies in
Canada. Currently a Senior Lecturer at the University of Wollongong, Australia her researchinterests include pre-service teacher education and group contexts for learning. Current
research projects include how pre-service teachers use social media to learn science content;
how teachers utilise digital technologies in teaching science; and, learning processes whengenerating a semiotic progression of digital representations in such multimodal products as
slow-mation and blended media.

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Emerging into a Different Way of Becoming and Belonging:
A Case Study of a New Zealand Primary School’s Journey in ‘Living
and Sustaining’ Transformative Pedagogy

By Jane Cavanagh-Eyre
Abstract
Every school has an organisational storyline that relates to people, objects, relationships andexperiences. At a deeper level, a school’s storyline might be retold in terms of its aspirational
intentions and its achievements. Deeper still, a school’s storyline can be told ideologically interms of the shared understandings, shifting discourses, and the construction and reconstruction of meaning related to the learning and teaching in the school.
Using an ideological framework that focuses on the development and consensus of sharedunderstandings, this presentation will outline a collaborative research project involving an
Australian university and a New Zealand primary school. In this project the school’s storyline
was tracked for five years, beginning in 2009 from the appointment of a new principal. The
participants included the school governance body, school leadership, the staff and students.
The research findings reveal changes in a school’s storyline during a time of transforming thelearning and teaching in the school. The research illuminates the relational movements ofstakeholders in re-purposing the learning and teaching so it is transformative for all learners.
The school’s learning priorities fully embrace an inclusive, strength-focused, creative and

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critical pedagogy. The school’s learning priorities transform not only how and what thestudents learn, but also the school’s culture, enabling a different way of ‘becoming’ and‘belonging’ to emerge. As contributors to an unfolding story, leaders act as guardians of aparticular storyline that provides a framework for living and sustaining a transformative
pedagogy.
Keywords: transformative, inclusive, strength-focused, critical, creative, pedagogy
Introduction
This is a story of a school’s journey over the last five years. Through shared understandings,
shifting discourses, and the construction and re-construction of meaning, a learning andteaching culture purposefully evolved into a different way of ‘becoming’ and ‘belonging’.
Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, and a primary school in Auckland, New Zealand,
conducted a collaborative research project on the school. The collaborative research projectexamined the emergence of a new way of being; a new ideology that became prominent overtime (Giles, 2014). This paper examines more closely how, by transforming the learning andteaching, the culture of the school was also transformed. As the school moves into its nextstages of ‘becoming and belonging’, the storytelling will continue. In this paper, I (JaneCavanagh-Eyre, principal of Epsom Normal Primary School) tell the school’s story incollaboration with my students, staff and community.
Professor David Giles, the researcher from Flinders University, introduced to the schoolcommunity a shared storytelling approach. A school’s storyline, he suggested, can be told
ideologically in terms of the shared understandings, shifting discourses, and the construction
and re-construction of meaning. The process of storytelling created ideological positions,which in turn shaped the learning culture of the school. Using an ideological framework that
focuses on the development and consensus of shared understandings (Giles, 2014), this paper
tracks the school’s storyline over a five year period from the appointment of a new principal.
This collaborative research project focused on the deliberate repurposing of the school’s
strategic development and everyday practice towards a strengths-focused approach. The
continuation of this research focuses more precisely on how the learning was transformed forstudents during periods of change.
Literature Review
Organisational storylines as ideological positions
In Giles’ (2014) research on the primary school, the researcher discusses the notion of schoolleaders engendering shared understandings through on-going dialogue with the schoolcommunity. They re-tell and re-craft a school’s storyline. School leaders provide a lens on theschool’s life by acting as tellers of a particular organisational storyline (Giles & CavanaghEyre, 2012). By deliberately articulating a school’s storyline, future-oriented visions andendeavors gain greater clarity of meaning for the way learning is transformed for the students(Celik, 2010 cited in Giles, 2014).
Leading transformative learning and cultural change

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There is a large body of research literature on educational leadership. Leithwood and Jantzi(2000) list various approaches to educational leadership including transformational, moral,
participative, managerial and contingent leadership. Lingard, Hayes, Mills & Christie, (2003)
add pedagogical leadership to this list. They argue that pedagogical leaders empower their staff
to create programmes that actively achieve identified learning outcomes. They believe that thecentral purpose of leadership in schools is to maximise a student’s academic and social
outcomes via improvements to teaching practices. Educational leaders need to work creatively
with complexity, if schools are to meet the goal of providing the most equitable ways possible
for all students to achieve (Lingard et al, 2003).
According to Schein (2004) successful leaders must be perpetual learners themselves.
Educators need to be perceptive and capable of having deep insights into the realities of theworld in which their students operate. Inviting teachers to challenge ideas and thinking so they
can arrive at new insights will ultimately deepen their sense of practice (Senge, Kleiner,
Roberts, Ross & Smith, 1994). Leading transformational pedagogical change requires
educational leaders to challenge the ‘existing way of being’. Freire (1975) argues that education
should be a liberating process that exposes dehumanisation and unjust practices in the world.
Barry (2005) also suggests that to be effective citizens, students require new skills and virtues
so they can resist illegitimate power with courage (cited in Hayward, 2012). Teachers should
be driven by a moral and visionary imperative that empowers students to become confident
global citizens who can think critically so as to make a positive difference in the world (Giles& Cavanagh-Eyre, 2012).
When transforming learning for students it is vital that school leaders have a future-focusedvision for student learning. In recent years educational writers and researchers, both nationallyand internationally (Bishop & Berryman, 2005; and Palmer, 2000), have argued that theessence of teaching is encapsulated in the essence of relationships between teachers andstudents. Whilst strongly acknowledging the importance of such relationships, of equalsignificance is the need for school leaders to develop teachers capable of creatively designinginnovative learning programmes that will inspire students and generate high levels of enquiry
and engagement (Giles & Cavanagh-Eyre, 2012).
Inspirational teachers demonstrate a preparedness to cultivate creativity and innovation (Gibbs,
2006). In New Zealand there are fine examples of inspirational teachers and Gibbs (2006)
asserts that we have much to learn from these teachers of the past. Sylvia Ashton-Warner and
Elwyn Richardson, for example, attempted new ways of teaching. These inspirational teachers
continually reflected on their practice and cultivated a sense of relational connectedness. They
demonstrated a high level of self-efficacy and were prepared to be innovative and take risks,even if this meant taking on the establishment. According to Gibbs (2006), inspirational
teachers have a strong sense of purpose, and show eagerness to deal with the unknown and theunpredictable. To sustain inspirational teaching throughout the duration of their teachingcareers, teachers need to be capable of developing meaningful relationships with their students
and be driven by creativity (Gibbs, 2006).
Over the last two decades there has been increasing international interest in educational
strengths-focused approaches. Strength-focused approaches are underpinned by holistic andhumanistic imperatives; learning is embodied, relational and meaningful (Giles, 2011).
Strength-focused, emancipatory and holistic approaches not only empower learners but also
challenge deficit theories of education (Freire, 2003; Hooks, 2003). As the learning is

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transformed for students so, too, the learning organisation evolves into new ways of operating.
Educational organisations are now embracing Appreciative Inquiry (AI), which focuses onwhat is working well, and encourages generative thinking to create strategic revitalisation andchange (Bushe, 1999; Cooperrider, Sorenson, Whitney & Yaegar, 2000; Cooperrider &Srivastva, 1987; Elleven, 2007; Lopez & Louis, 2009, cited in Giles, 2014).
Methodology
The context for this research project was a public school in Auckland, New Zealand. This innercity school engages with 46 ethnic groups and is governed by a Board of Trustees, which iselected by the parent community. The school also serves as a demonstration and practice schoolfor student teachers from local universities. As a learning community the school is committed
to working collaboratively with local, national and international universities to ensure that thelearning programmes of the school reflect the most innovative and up-to-date developments in
educational research and practice.
The research methodology was underpinned by a phenomenological, qualitative approach.
This approach is concerned, first and foremost, with human experience (Denscombe, 2003).
Elsewhere, Giles (2014) outlines that the collaborative research required the university
researcher to conduct semi-structured interviews with trustees, school leaders and staff. To
continue the storyline, I (the principal) reviewed and analysed relevant school
documentation. The school governance body gave permission for the research and the Ethics
Committee for the Faculty of Education, Law and Theology at Flinders University granted
its ethical approval. Participants were given assurances relating to the confidentiality andanonymity of the data and its representations.
The semi-structured interviews produced school data across the following three phases ofdevelopment:•   Phase One: Re-visioning the school’s purpose;•   Phase Two: Re-aligning the school’s purpose and deliberate philosophicalexploration; and,•   Phase Three: The emergence of a new and alternative ideology.
Professor Giles interviewed participants on the deliberate decisions that followed a strategicplanning day in 2009, through to the school’s decision, in 2010, to give strategic priority to
the implementation of strength-focused creative initiatives. When analyzing the data fromthe interviews, the researcher employed two approaches; a thematic analysis that identified
emerging themes, and a hermeneutic analysis that considered the meanings within the text.
Further analysis of school documentation, including ‘student voice’ and information fromparent consultations, provided insight into the process of embedding transformative learning
experiences into the day-to-day learning programmes. In 2013 the Education Review Office,a government inspectorate/audit organisation, reviewed the school and its report provided
further evidence and validation of how the school has and is continuing to was realise its
vision.
Findings
Research findings show the subtleties within a school’s storyline during a time of transforming
the learning and teaching in the school. The research focuses on the relational movements of

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stakeholders in re-purposing the learning and teaching so that it is transformative for all
learners. The research findings illustrate that over time the school was able to develop, embedand sustain:•   A transformational school vision;•   A transformational pedagogy; and,•   A transformational school culture.
A transformational school vision
Analysis of the school’s documentation shows that a new school vision was shaped, embedded
and embraced over a five-year period. The visionary aspirations and intentions outlined in theschool’s Curriculum Design Document were validated by the Education Review Office Report(2013).
At the beginning of the five-year period the school was operating without a stated vision. The
school community worked together to formulate a new vision for the school. During Phase
One, through in-depth consultation with the students, staff and community, the vision for theschool was crafted as follows:
Students are:• Nurtured by community (inclusive)• Inspired by optimism (teaching)• Motivated by empowerment (learning)• To be responsible global achievers (sustaining the world).
In the first phase of the transformational journey, teaching staff were challenged to become‘inspirational teachers’ supporting students to be optimistic about their lives now and in the
future. Dialogue with staff about ‘what makes an inspirational teacher’ provided a platform forteachers to reflect on their own practice. In this phase staff discussed the ground-breaking andcreative teachers of the past in New Zealand, namely Sylvia Ashton Warner, who taught Maori
children to learn to read through composing and reading their own stories, and Elwyn
Richardson, who developed experiential learning opportunities that enabled children to
produce creative works.
The analysis of the school documentation demonstrates a refining of the emerging ideology
over time. The new vision was reworded in the third phase of transformation to include theword ‘creativity’, using ‘empower’ in relation to students’ strengths and a strengthened resolveof the school for the students to act as citizens of change now and in the future. The schoolcommunity (including the students, board of trustees and staff) worked collaboratively to shape
the new vision. The Education Review Office noted in its report that: The board has recently
reviewed and modified its vision and values in consultation with the school’s community(Education Review Office School Report, 2013, p.1). The refined vision states that:Students are:
•  
•  
•  
•  

Nurtured by community (inclusive)
Inspired by creativity (teaching)
Empowered by strengths (learning)
To be responsible global citizens (thinking critically to make a positive
difference)

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Moreover, the school’s Curriculum Design Document (2012-201) provides the necessaryelaboration for staff to fully understand school expectations in relation to vision (Curriculum
Design Document (2012-2015). As example of this elaboration for the first line of the vision‘nurtured by community’, the Curriculum Design Document states that staff and students havea right to live and work within an inclusive and respectful school community and students’cultural heritage is to be valued and recognised (Curriculum Design Document, 2012-2015,p.4). The Education Review Office also noted the realisation of the vision; … there is a sharedunderstanding of the approach by parents, teachers and students... Staff reflect the diversity ofthe school’s community and capably support the high numbers of students who are English
speakers of other languages (Education Review Office School Report, August, 2013, p.1).
Inclusive learning programmes acknowledge the bi-cultural foundations of Aotearoa New
Zealand. In particular, its founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi, and its now commonly
accepted principles: Participation, Protection and Partnership. All students have theopportunity to acquire knowledge of te reo Maori (Maori language) and me ona tikanga (Maori
culture practices). In 2013 the Education Review Office reported that at Epsom Normal
Primary School, Bicultural practices are valued within a culture of innovation, respect andcare (Education Review Office School Report, August, 2013, p.1).
In the second and third line of the vision ‘inspired by creativity’ (teaching) and ‘empoweredby strengths (learning) the Curriculum Design Document states that all students have uniqueand often undiscovered strengths. The school curriculum is carefully planned to empower
students to uncover their strengths and to become successful, creative self-motivated learners.
(Curriculum Design Document, 2012-2015, p.5). The Education Review Office further noted
that; Learning opportunities are relevant, authentic and are aligned to the school’s curriculum
planning. …Students’ individual learning strengths are at the heart of school curriculum
design. Extensive opportunities for student creativity are offered and collaborative learning is
encouraged (Education Review Office report, August, 2013, p.2).
In the fourth line of the vision ‘to be responsible global citizens’ (thinking critically to make apositive difference) the Curriculum Design Document states that students can make a positive
difference now and in the future. Students are encouraged to be globally responsible citizensof the world, who will proactively guard the world’s resources so that future generations will
benefit from the actions and decisions of today’s learners (Curriculum Design Document,
2012-2015, p.16). The emerging ideology led to social constructivist ideas and criticalpedagogy (Giles, 2014).
A transformational pedagogy: The school’s learning priorities
The research findings reveal how the school’s vision was realised through the learning
priorities. The four learning priorities determine what was and is taught and these priorities
transform not only how and what the students learn, but also the school’s culture, enabling a
different way of ‘becoming’ and ‘belonging’ to emerge overtime.
In the first phase of the school’s journey the learning priorities were ‘enhancing potential’,‘empowering learning’ and ‘enriching learning’. The learning priority ‘enhancing potential’
focused on developing student talent. Students were placed in Development of Talent (DOT)
workshops for two days, enabling them to grow their talents. The DOT workshops were andstill are a very successful initiative, and have become part of the school’s tradition. At parent
consultation week in 2010, one of the parents likened the anticipation of DOT Days to

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Christmas; children counted the days until they arrived. As the ideology shifted in Phase Two
to a more strength-focused philosophy, the senior leadership team made a structural change tothe timetable that enabled students to spend an hour a week exploring their strengths. Students’
strengths were also recorded in the school database system and reflected in report writing toparents. By Phase Three, strength-focused learning was and still is well-embedded in thepractices of the school.
A social critical constructivist philosophy emerged through on-going dialogue with the various
stakeholders in Phase Two and Phase Three. Subsequently the new vision included ‘inspiredby creativity’ (teaching) and ‘to be responsible global citizens (thinking critically to make apositive difference). Teachers believed it was important that students needed to know how to
be creative and how to be critical. Students emerged into a different way of ‘becoming’.
Creative and critical questions were formulated and published symbolically on large charts foreach classroom. The questions are as follows:
Being Creative
What ideas can I generate?
What possibilities can I explore?
What ideas can I play with?
What new connections can I make?
In what new ways can I express my thinking?
(Curriculum Design Document, 2012-2015,p.16).
Being Critical
Where have these thoughts come from?
Is this the truth?
Is this inclusive of everybody?
Have you put yourself in somebody else’s shoes?
Are these ideas making a positive difference?
(Curriculum Design Document, 2012-2015,p.16).
The school’s learning priorities are now embedded in the implementation of the learning
programmes. The Education Review Office School Report states: Students respond positively
to high quality creative and inquiry-based learning programmes where critical thinking,expression and invention are promoted (Education Review Office report, August, 2013, p1).
A Transformational Pedagogy: The School’s Curriculum
The over-arching learning theme for the school is ‘Together we are strong’. The researchfindings show that this theme has been consistently implemented since 2010, when strengthfocused pedagogy began to become one of the central learning priorities of the new ideology.
The Maori Whakatauki (proverb) for the school is: Kia ngatahi ai te tu, E pakari ai te tuara(Stand united, stand strong), which has also been actively promoted.
The curriculum design reflects the vision, values and learning priorities of the school. One
creative initiative which became as essential component of the core curriculum – the ‘I am’s’– invites students to imagine themselves in various roles. The ‘I am’s’ provide student
opportunities in ‘becoming’ and create the context for the learning focus each term in all year
levels of the school. Examples of the ‘I am’s’ include; I am a researcher, I am a volunteer, I am
an environmentalist, I am a historian, I am a geographer, I am a chemist, I am a physicist, I am
an archaeologist. There is great excitement every year when the students, staff and community

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decide together on the ‘I am’s’ for the following year. The students particularly enjoy thescience-focused topics (Student Voice Documentation 2010-2013). Two other successful topic
foci have come directly from the parent community: ‘I am a polyglot’ and ‘I am a philosopher’(Parent Consultation Notes, 2010-2011). The 2013 Education Review Office School Reportstated that: The curriculum is broad, carefully designed, and effectively promotes and supports
student learning. It is enacted through a philosophy of student-centered learning and includes
input from the community’ (Education Review Office School Report, August, 2013, p.2).
As the ‘I am’s’ evolved, other school-wide curriculum initiatives emerged. Each year all
students study the ‘artist of the year’ and the ‘composer of the year’. Recently a student voicegroup in the school sought consultation with other groups on whether all students together
should study a ‘writer of the year’. If all groups agree, the school will implement this new
initiative in 2015.
Through the ‘I ams’ the over-arching theme Together we are strong and the Whakatauki
influence school traditions and celebrations. The school follows a three-year cycle in the final
term of the school year. ‘I am a creative designer’ involves students designing, gardening,cooking, and performing for ten weeks in preparation for a Garden Party attended by thecommunity. The following year in the final term the topic is ‘I am an artist’. Students complete
numerous art works for an art exhibition. Parents, community members and local artists attend
this event. The last topic to complete the cycle is; ‘I am a performer’. All students study forten weeks what it is to be an actor/dancer/singer and two school productions are performed.
The school’s curriculum design shapes, not only the lives of our learners, but also the wider
community.
A transformational school culture: Researchers of influence
When considering the transformation of the learning programmes and the strategic direction
for the school, both the school leaders and the trustees worked from Bolman and Deal’s (2008)
organisational cultural model. This model takes into account relational, structural, symbolicand political factors when positioning a new way of ‘being’ School leaders also usedappreciative inquiry to promote organisational strengths aligned with the strength-focusedpedagogy provided for the students.
As the school journey continues, different educational researchers are given prominence overtime and shape the thinking of the staff and trustees. Research findings show that focusing onstrengths is a more effective way of learning than a conventional approach that patches up
weaknesses. For one trustee the ‘light came on’ for him around the philosophy. He describedthe experience as a profound shift in his thinking and an important lesson to remember,especially to focus on the positive and the powerful strengths of individuals (Giles, 2014). For
staff, the work of American Professor Duncan-Andrade, a critical theorist, was pivotal in themdeveloping quality critical literacy learning for students. Educational researchers (including
Giles, Palmer, Bishop, Duncan-Andrade, Buckingham, Robinson, Renzulli and Gardner) guidethe school’s learning direction. The 2013 Education Review Office School Report reinforcedthat the school operates in a research-based environment with professional and academic links
to local and international universities (Education Review Office report, August, 2013, p.1).
A transformational school culture: Growing teachers’ strengths
At the school, teachers are expected to be innovative practitioners at the ‘cutting edge’ of
educational research and practice (Curriculum Design Document 2013-2015). The seniorleadership team developed a school research model to grow the strengths of their staff. Staff

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work in teams to conduct their own learning inquires and then present their findings at anannual in-house-conference, where visiting academics critique their work (Giles, 2014).
Examples of these projects include: Intergenerational Literacy, Peer-tutoring, Embedding
Critical Literacy, Developing Year 1 Students as Creative and Critical Learners, and Creating
an Optimal Physical Learning Environment.
The Intergenerational Literacy Impact Research Project involved a parent who could not speak
English. She attended her child’s writing lesson with the teacher each day. By the end of theyear the child’s learning had accelerated and the parent became a confident speaker and writerof English (Giles, 2014). A significant research finding was that these impact research projects
have impacted on student achievement results. The 2013 Education Review Office reported
that: Senior leaders have a deep knowledge of the teaching capabilities of the staff. Teachers
are supported to research areas of educational interest that impact on student learning.
Evidence of the positive outcomes of these projects is visible in students’ achievement results(Education Review Office School Report, August, 2013, p.2).
Giles’ (2014) research and analysis of school documentation, demonstrates that school leaders
and trustees carefully selected ‘significant others’ to support the school to sustaintransformative pedagogy for its students. With the exception of conferences that staff attended,
professional development was either delivered by the school’s internal experts or by a verysmall number of external consultants. Over the last five years for example, Gaye Byers, anexternal writing consultant, supported teachers to become writers so they in turn could
effectively teach their students to become writers, while Tony Burkin from Interlead
Consultants mentored leaders and emergent leaders in a way of ‘leading’.
Discussion
Living and sustaining a transformational pedagogy
The findings presented in this paper explore the ideological processes of a school’s journey in‘becoming’ and ‘belonging’. The storyline of a deliberate and sustained focus approach tolearning within a school always involves the interrelationships and experiences of theparticipants (Celik, 2010b). The on-going dialogue of all the participants in this particularstoryline has provided the necessary framework for the school to live and sustain atransformative pedagogy (Giles, 2014). As the pedagogy was transformed for the learner, atransformative school culture also evolved and continues to evolve daily, into a different wayof ‘becoming’ and ‘belonging’.
The school’s philosophy in this research project is founded on a critical humanistic tradition of
education that promotes the holistic development of the child. Initially the agenda for change
focused on an inclusive, strength-focused and creative pedagogy. As the school’s journeycontinued, social constructivist ideas and critical pedagogy evolved. The on-going discourse
about what students should learn and how they should learn resulted in staff sharing a common
language. As the participants dialogued throughout the journey it not only reinforced theschool’s philosophy and vision, and developed a shared language, but also enabled an
emergence of ‘a philosophy in action’. The school’s educational approach is best understoodas a philosophical stance and daily practices by the teacher shapes how the learner engages
in the teaching and learning process (Lopez & Louis, 2009, p. 1).

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Bringing together over forty different ethnic student groups and their families to learn
together in an inclusive learning environment required the school leaders to provide clarityof meaning about what students learn and how students learn. Staff designed a school
curriculum where the ‘I am’s’ provide students with opportunities to develop a greater levelof ‘agency’. The ‘I am’s’ acknowledge the importance of the ‘unique self’. The school’s
learning environment reinforces how vital it is for every student to learn about who he or she
is; that they have their own life-stories and their own unique strengths. With the knowledgeof themselves as learners they can contribute their strengths to the group, and together thegroup becomes stronger. Parker Palmer (1998) an educational visionary who advocatesstrongly for the learner to know the essence of who he/she is, argues that when I choose
integrity I become more whole, I become more real and I acknowledge the whole of who I
am.
In order for an organisation to meet its creative goals, Robinson (2001) believes it is important
to identify the creative strengths of individual staff, provide an environment that is conducive
for creative thinking and harness creative endeavours that are aligned to the core objectives ofthe organisation. Peter Senge (1990) supports a generative process in a learning organisation
to enhance and extend an organization’s creativity. An organisation’s ability to stimulate
creativity and innovation on the part of its teachers is becoming increasingly important, as theenvironment that our young people are coming from is forever changing (Stoll & Seashore
Louis, 2007). The research demonstrates that school leaders were and are supportive ofgenerative pursuits of staff if their initiatives are aligned to the school vision. The impact
inquiry research projects create opportunities for staff to participate in a generative process
where their creative endeavours have a direct impact on student learning. Participating in theprocess of on-going research inquiries enables staff to incorporate an ideology that fosters
sustainable practices (Meighan, Harber, & Siraj-Blatchford, 2007).
When considering the transformation of the learning programmes and the strategic direction
for the school, both the school leaders and the trustees utilised existing organisatonal models
to assist the progression of the school’s new ideology. Both Bolman and Deal’s (2008)
organisational cultural model and the appreciative inquiry model provided the school leaders
and the trustees with a way of working collaboratively to revitalise the strategic direction of
the school (Bushe et al, cited in Giles 2014).
The shared wisdom of ‘significant others’ supported the school on its journey of transforming
learning for students. Dialoguing with selected academics from local, national and international
universities provided rigorous debate with the school and enabled staff to develop a reflective
yet deliberate approach aimed at progressing a change agenda. The collaborative research with
Flinders University reinforced that the school leaders are guardians of the school’s storyline.
The experience of re-telling the school’s storylines provided the school leaders with on-going
renewal and reflection. Careful selection of significant others, namely the external consultants,
supported school staff to self-review school practices and processes, and purposefully plan thenext steps of the school’s journey. As ‘significant belongers’ the collective wisdom of thetrustees and the parents also guided the day-to-day decisions staff were making about
curriculum design and programmes of learning.
It is evident in the shifting language of the school and in the document analysis that all involvedin this transformation of the school were challenged by the ideological shifts either at a personalor professional level. But through their on-going dialogue, it is clearly demonstrated in the

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findings that all participants shared one critical goal: ‘learning needs to be transformational for
all learners’.
The most creative periods in the lives of organisations are often in the early stages ofdevelopment. People are excited about the possibilities and have greater opportunities to becreative before the organisation itself has settled into fixed institutional structures and routines(Robinson, 2001). The greatest challenge for an organisation is to sustain this level ofcreativity. Currently senior leaders, together with staff and trustees, are in purposeful dialogue
creating the next steps in the journey of the school.
Conclusion
Leaders need to be highly creative in analysing and challenging cultural assumptions and,most importantly, have an ability to involve others and elicit their participation (Schein,2004). As schools are never static, school leaders are advised to stay attuned to the nature of
the dominant and emerging ideologies within a school (Giles, 2014). As contributors to an
unfolding story, educational leaders act as guardians of the school’s particular storyline,
providing a framework for living and sustaining a transformative pedagogy.
Educational leaders need to continue to reconstruct a school’s storyline and work strategicallyfor the moral imperative of growing and developing every learner at the forefront of theschooling experience (Fullan, 2011). Through these endeavours a school’s learning priorities
will transform not only how and what the students learn, but also the school’s culture into a
different way of ‘becoming’ and ‘belonging’. Finally, Giles states; Being a leader in education
is not for the faint-hearted as the practical wisdom, strategic thinking and planning, tenacity
and courage to sustain an ideological course for a greater public good is dramatic as much as
it is subtle (Giles, 2014, p.17).
With thanks
The school wishes to continue to work with Dr. David Giles of Flinders University in the next
phase of the school’s journey. His involvement in researching the journey of the school has
had a significant impact on the way this school’s story has unfolded to new ways of ‘becoming
and belonging’. Thank-you David.

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References
Bishop, R. & Berryman, M. (2006). Culture speaks: Cultural relationships & classroom learning.
Wellington: Huia Publishers.
Bolman, L G. & Deal , T. E. (2008). Reframing organisations: Artistry, choice and leadership.
San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
Buckingham, M. (2007). Go put your strengths to work. New York: Free Press.
Education Review Office. (2013). Education review office school report. Auckland: Education
Review Office.
Denscombe, M. (2003). The good research guide, for small-scale social research projects.
Maidenhead, Philadelphia: Open University Press, second edition.
Duncan-Andrade J., Morrell, E., (2008). The art of critical pedagogy. New York: Peter Lang.
Freire, P. (2003). Pedagogy of the oppressed (30th Anniversary ed.) (M.B. Ramos, Trans.)., New
York: Continuum.
Fullan, M. ( 2011). The moral imperative realised. California: Corwin.
Gibbs, C. (2006). To be a teacher: Journey towards authenticity. Auckland: Pearson
Education.
Giles, D. L & Cavanagh-Eyre, J. (2012). Looking more closely at the subtleties of anorganisation’s storyline: A case study of a New Zealand primary school. Paper presented
at the ACEL conference, October 3-5.
Giles, D. L (2014) in press. A storyline of ideological change in a New Zealand primary school.
International Journal of Organisational Analysis.
Giles, D. L. (2011). Relationships always matter in education: Findings from a phenomenologicalinquiry. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, vol. 36, no. 6, pp. 80-91.
Hooks, B. (2003). Teaching community: A pedagogy of hope. London: Routledge.
Leithwood, K., & Jantzi, D. (2001). The effects of different sources of leadership in student
engagement in school, in K.S. Louis and K.A. Riley (eds) Leadership for learning:
Intermational: perspectives on leadership for change and school reform. London:
Routledge.
Lingard, B., Hayes, D., Mills, M., Christie P. (2003). Leading learning. Berkshire: Open
University Press.
Lopez, SJ & Louis, MC., (2009). The principles of strengths-based education. Journal ofCollege & Character, vol.10, no. 4, pp.1-8)
Meighan, R., Harber, C. & Siraj-Blatchford, I. (2007). A Sociology of educating,London:Continuum.
Palmer J. (1998). The courage to teach: Exploring the inner landscape of a teacher’s life.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Robinson, K. (2001). Out of our minds: Learning to be creative. Chichester: Capstone
Publishing Limited.
Schein, E. (2004). Organizational culture and leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Boss.
Senge, P., Kleiner, L., Roberts, C., Ross, R. & Smith, B. (1994). The fifth discipline fieldbook.
Doubleday, New York.
Stroll, L. & Seashore, L. (2007). Professional learning communities: Divergence, depth anddilemmas. New York: Open University Press.
Zohar, D., & Marshall I. (2004). Spiritual captial: Wealth we can live by. London:
Opening image credit: Flickr Creative Commons/Jocelyn Kinghorn

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Can Computer Science Students do Without the Desktop?

By Dave Towey, The University of Nottingham Ningbo, China and
Tianchong Wang, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Abstract
Prompted partly by potential space release and reuse, and also by international trends in moving
away from desktop computer learning environments and traditional classroom set-ups, we havebegun exploring alternatives to computer science (and other) students' use of fixed desktop
computers in traditional computer laboratory configurations. Although many studies andreports detail how mobile computing, especially tablet and smart phone use, have been
replacing desktops, certain disciplines (particularly engineering and sciences) have continued
to rely on the greater computing power available in the desktop. This has resulted in, amongst
other things, a continued enforcement of older classroom seating arrangements where rows ofindividual students face a single teacher at the front – an arrangement widely viewed as nonconducive to optimal student collaboration and learning. This paper looks at a new institutionof higher education in the People's Republic of China, HEI-A, and examines how suggestionsof reallocation of computer laboratory space are being received by some students and staff
within the computer science department.
Keywords: learning environment, mobile learning, higher education

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Volume 2 Issue 11.   Introduction
We have witnessed many changes in education, including the reform of classroom practicemade possible by evolving computing device use, particularly personal mobile devices and theBring Your Own Device (BYOD) trend (Sangani 2013).
With the advances in pedagogical practice that we have seen, an observed irony is that manyof these changes which have been facilitated by computer science (such as the mobile devices)
have impacted mainly on disciplines outside of computer science and engineering — computerscience students, for example, are often still constrained in the devices that they can use,
sometimes still needing the greater processing power of the older desktop computer set-up,
often configured in a traditionally laid out classroom of rows of computers facing a single
teacher’s computer (Hollingsworth & Powell 2011).
The economy of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been developing very strongly, andlinked to planned future economic success are recent reforms in higher education (HE),including an opening up of the sector to foreign input. The institution under study, HEI-A, oneof the newly introduced Sino-foreign partnerships, has developed very successfully over theten years since its establishment in 2004. HEI-A has been able to introduce many innovations,and has grown both significantly and quickly. The rapid growth at HEI-A has led to pressure
on space allocation and usage, a phenomenon common to many other educational institutions.
This pressure has included recent suggestions that perhaps the time has come to cease provisionof larger computer laboratories containing only desktop computers, and reassign these spaces.
The rest of this paper is structured as follows. In Section 2, some background information ispresented, including China’s economic growth, and some recent changes in Chinese higher
education. The institution involved in our study, HEI- A, is also introduced. Section 3 describes
how student use of computing devices has been changing, which has partly prompted an
examination at HEI-A of how current computer laboratory space might be revised. Section 4
looks at how computer science students, amongst others, face challenges in adoption of manyof the modern smaller devices, and, by extension, how they may not be able to benefit as easily
from some advances in classroom techniques. Some initial reaction to computer laboratory
reallocation suggestions from HEI-A computer science students and staff is also included.
Finally, Section 5 concludes the paper.
2.   Background
2.1 PRC Economic Growth
As discussed in Towey (2014), China has seen incredible economic growth over the past thirty
years, fuelled by a manufacturing industry boom that, it has been suggested, may now be
coming to an end (The World Bank 2013). It has been argued that the best hope for continued
economic growth may involve the Chinese economy changing from manufacturing to a more
service-oriented economy (Brown 2012, Morrison 2013, Phillips 2012). A challenge to this isa predicted shortage of appropriately skilled workers, especially in terms of tertiary-level
education (Marsh 2012, Ray et al. 2012): Figure 1 shows the predicted 2020 Chinese labourdemand and supply (by education level), according to which the PRC will face a shortage ofuniversity and vocational labour of about 24 million workers (Chen, Mourshed & Grant 2013).
To address this problem, China has already initiated strategies to enhance its HE provision.
2.2 Changing PRC HE Landscape

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Higher education in the PRC refers to that “conducted on the basis of the completion of senior
middle-school education” (PRC MoE 1998). It has been noted that an interesting feature ofrecent PRC educational reforms has been the focus on tertiary level, rather than on primary or
secondary (Li et al. 2012). These reforms have included a number of projects aimed atenhancing the quality and prestige of some of China’s universities, such as: Project 985, Project
211, and the C9 League (CEC n.d., Lixu 2004, Sainsbury 2009, THE 2011).
Since joining the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 2001, the PRC has allowed foreign
investment in the education sector in the form of Chinese-foreign cooperatively-run schools(CFCRS), which require a partnership with a Chinese institution. By 2013, there were 775
approved Sino-foreign projects (including joint venture universities and programmes leading
to foreign degrees) (QAA 2013, p.6), and estimates of over a thousand foreign institutions
expressing interest in establishing private universities in the PRC (Tsang 2013, p.655).

Figure 1: Predicted 2020 PRC labour demand and supply, by education level (from Chen etal. 2013, p.4).
2.3 HEI-A
The institution under study, HEI-A, was one of the first Sino-foreign partnerships resulting ina tertiary institution. It was established in 2004, and has since then grown in both student
numbers and provision of academic programmes. Due partly to its successful development,
HEI-A has recently faced space challenges, in particular, the pressure to schedule classes andto house staff and tutorials has meant that the institution has had to look again at its allocation
and usage of all university spaces.
One suggestion currently being examined by the administration at HEI-A is to reduce thenumber of large computer rooms currently housing desktop computers. It has been argued thatthese computer rooms, which have been laid out in a traditional configuration of rows ofcomputers on desks facing towards a single teacher’s computer and desk at the front, are nolonger necessary, and would represent an opportunity to reuse significant space on campus.
Some of the arguments for reducing the desktop computer room provision include the reportedchanges in how students are using and owning computing devices.

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3.   Changing Student Computing Device UseOver the past twenty or so years, we have witnessed many changes in how university students(and others) have made use of computing devices. In the late eighties and even early nineties,
most students made use of the university provided desktop computing environments (Allan
2001). In the nineties, as laptop computers became more affordable and accessible to students,
we saw more students making use of these more portable devices, although, often in addition
to, rather than in place of the university desktops.
A smaller version of the laptop, often referred to as the netbook (Descy 2009), began to appear
over the last ten years. Typically, the netbook was less powerful than the laptop, but was also
usually considerably cheaper, and more portable (Demb, Erickson & Hawkins-Wilding 2004,
Surry, Stefurak & Gray 2010). Interestingly, it seemed that few students actually used netbooks
instead of their laptops — Smith & Caruso (2010) found that only about 13% of studentsfavoured the netbook over the laptop; while Cassidy et al. (2011) found only about 8%.
Perhaps the most well-known innovation in mobile computing devices has been in the adventof the iPad: the tablet computer. Tablet computers — and their smaller cousin, the smart phone— have become ubiquitous devices. Johnston et al. (2013) reported that more than 85 million
iPads had been sold by 2013, and predicted that this would rise to over 377 million by 2016.
Similar devices (such as the Amazon Kindle Fire, Samsung Galaxy, Google Nexus andMicrosoft Surface) have also reportedly seen a significant increase in their adoption (John- son
et al. 2013). Although many of the tablet devices lack the computational power of the desktop(or even the laptop or netbook), we have been seeing their processing power grow, and Bradley(2011) has noted that they already suffice for most users’ computing needs. The power of theapps (applications, especially those designed to run on mobile devices), and the recent trends
for Cloud computing have made it possible for the tablet to replace other computing devices
for many students (Hollingsworth & Powell 2011). One of the most exciting things about thetablet devices has been the impact that they have had on the classroom, and on how lecturesand classes can be delivered (Eichenlaub et al. 2011, Fischer et al. 2013, Keller 2011, Mang &Wardley 2012).
4.   Challenges for Computer Science Students
While we have seen a number of changes in the classrooms of many disciplines, and thesechanges can be connected to developments in computer science devices, we have also noticed
that some disciplines, including computer science, have continued to use older devices andclassroom configurations, such as the desktop environment laid out in a traditional classroom
arrangement of rows of student desks facing the teacher in the front (Hollingsworth & Powell2011).
When HEI-A first began investigating the possibility of reassigning the space currently
occupied by computer laboratories, some of the experience of other institutions, as reported in
the literature, was examined. Current computer science faculty and students at HEI-A werealso invited to give their opinion on this proposal, and to offer suggestions for either how best
to implement it, or, if against the proposal, to suggest alternative, space-saving initiatives.
The rest of this section presents some of the main obstacles facing a removal of the desktop
environment, including when proposing BYOD as an alternative.

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4.1 Text Input
Text input has been identified as a challenge for students using both smart phones and tablet
computers, especially when using a virtual keyboard, with interviewees often expressing apreference for traditional keyboards (Chaparro et al. 2010, Edwards & Barnette 2004). Given
the large amount of text entry associated with programming and other computer science
subjects, the view of computer science students that tablets and smart phones are ill-suited totheir needs can be understood.
4.2 Display Size
As Bradley (2011) also found, reactions from both students and faculty at HEI- A tosuggestions of replacing desktop computers with laptops or other devices were met withcomplaints that the screen size would not suffice. Indeed, in many cases, the larger monitorsand displays attached to some desktop computers are augmented by second or third displays tofurther facilitate programming and debugging.
4.3 Multi-tasking & Processing Power
Bradley (2011) also found that more efficient multitasking is often needed than is (currently)
possible with the smaller computing devices. When using iOS (Apple’s mobile device
operating system), apps behave differently in the background compared with when in theforeground due to system limitations, and battery life is also often adversely affected (Apple
Inc. 2013). Therefore, for some very intensive operations, common in computer science andengineering, the only computing option is the desktop.
4.4 Collaboration
One of the major advantages identified with mobile computing devices has been the associatedfacility in collaboration in the classroom. In computer science, however, because of the greaterneed to share files and content, many of the current apps targeting, for example, softwaredevelopment, make this kind of sharing and collaboration more challenging. As Mang &Wardley (2012) reported, tablet operating systems lack a central file management system,
which may mean that files stored within an app cannot be accessed without opening that app,and cannot be shared across apps. Although a possible solution may be to share files in a Cloudstorage service (such as Dropbox or Google Drive), such an approach is not yet supported by
all apps, and may also represent a new challenge where such Cloud services are not available(Huang & Towey 2010).
4.5 Subject Identity
One of the major themes which has been emerging from conversations with HEI-A computerscience students and staff is a sense of how strongly the identity of computer science seems
connected to the computer laboratories (Stets & Burke 2000). Students report that, although
they may also use laptops, netbooks, tablets, and smart phones, they still tend to gravitate to
the computer laboratories to meet other computer science students, and to work on theircoursework. This highlighting of the computer laboratory as an integral part of the university,and especially the student life of the computer science student, has been one of the moststrongly voiced aspects of the stakeholder feedback.
5.   Conclusion

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As the use of computing devices by students has been evolving, and in particular with theeconomic and educational developments seen in the PRC, the need for traditional computing
facilities, especially computer laboratories configured with desktop computers, will be further
eroded. As seen in HEI-A, this declining need, combined with ever-increasing pressure on
space, is causing a rethink of how universities can provide for the computing needs of all
students. An ironic aspect of the many innovations brought about in the classroom throughadvances in computer science and computing devices is the fact that, in many cases, computerscience students themselves are not yet able to be free of the desktop computer — they need,and express a preference for, not only the superior processing power, text input facilities, anddisplays, but also the actual physical space which they can identify with as their own. Even as
the processing power, displays, and other current shortcomings of the mobile devices are
overcome, this need for a space to identify with may well continue, and represent the mostsignificant challenge to the BYOD culture and to the goal of freeing the computer science
student from the desktop.
Acknowledgements
This research was partly supported by a Small Research Grant from the Faculty of Science andEngineering, The University of Nottingham Ningbo China.

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Towey, D. (2014). Meeting the higher education needs of mainland China, in K. S. Yuen & K.
C. Li (eds), Inaugural International Conference on Open and Flexible Education (ICOFE2014), The Open University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China, pp. 322–332.
Tsang, E. Y.-h. (2013). The quest for higher education by the Chinese middle class: retrenchingsocial mobility?, Higher Education (March, 2013): 1–16. Available fromhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10734-013-9627-7 (Accessed 23 April 2014).
Opening image credit: Flickr Creative Commons/júbilo haku

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Education After the Arab Spring:
Alternative Philosophy to Develop Awareness Towards the “Other”

By Heyam Loutfi ElZein,
Rafik Hariri University, Lebanon

Abstract
Young children of Arab countries after the Arab Spring and especially the Lebanese are,unfortunately, experiencing great political pressure, conflicting ideologies, humanistic
annihilation, and are becoming a laboratory for violence and warfare, lacking positive
relationships, community participation, and responsibility. What can be done to respondeffectively to the seriousness of this problem? What is needed is a foundational system ofvalues that the communities have to be aware of. Based on these values we have to put
mechanisms and guidelines for ourselves so as to have a mutual acceptance and cooperation
between the entire world's ideologies, spiritual movements, and ethical dimensions. In my pointof view an evolutionary jump in the consciousness of the Arab families is needed for conflict
resolution, anti-racial ideologies, multiculturalism, and techniques of negotiation. This jump as
I see it is an education for a culture of peace that will help in developing humanity andcommunities. To introduce this culture of peace educating holistically, reorganizing thecontent of the curriculum and its delivery, and empowering caregivers are the ways that awaken
the Arab families to the realities of oppression, violence, and suffering. These steps serve as a
guide for revitalization of society and coexistence. This will be the focus of this paper. Specificideas and strategies as well as suggestions will be discussed to bring each step into reality. In
the end, a summative idea about the importance of revitalization and the link of these steps will
be explored with few recommendations.
Keywords: peace education, equity, conflict resolution, social justice, multiculturalism

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1. Introduction
Young children in the 21st century are facing many challenges that are affecting their lives, toname few: social inequity, political instability, conflicting ideologies, fragile economy, healthissues, and migration (The World Bank, 2013). Consequently these children, among othergroups, are expected to excel under the pressure of these conflicts in this challenging and fastchanging world. Hence, to face the challenges, children need to be equipped with the necessary
skills enabling them to be successful citizens contributing to their own good and to the good of
their societies and humankind globally.
It is true that young people worldwide share common challenges and basic developmental
needs but different aspects of development may be more important in different contexts(Palmer & Zajon, 2010). For instance, Lebanese people have been suffering from unstable
political, economic and social conditions for forty years. This unstable period has started withthe civil war (1975) that lasted fifteen years, and continues until our present time. In addition,
they witnessed and still witnessing major dramatic events such as the assassination of Prime
Minister Rafik El Hariri in 2005, the 2006 Israeli war, explosions, terrorist attacks, rise in
sectarian divisions, periodic street clashes and the “Arab spring” that created a big turmoil in
the Arab world affecting Lebanon among other countries.
Children achieve better outcomes when their diverse strengths, abilities, interests, and cultural
practices are understood and supported. Valuing and respecting diversity is vital for children
to develop a strong sense of identity. Principles of equity and diversity are linked to children
developing a sense of belonging, identity, and wellbeing so that they become effective
communicators and confident, involved learners (DEEWR, 2009; DEECD, 2009).
Among all of these events, parents, communities, as well as schools generally do not teachchildren what peace looks like or that we can live it. Peace education receives little to nocoverage in traditional school curricula and materials. Further, when war is covered it is donewith a sense of passion and excitement, while peace, when it is included, is portrayed as passive
and boring. Even when we look at our curricular materials and try to analyze its content wefind that it offers political culture. It often makes it sound as though there is no opposition to
war and no human ability to live in peace because humans are by nature, aggressive.
As a result the Lebanese children are, unfortunately, experiencing great political pressure,conflicting ideologies, humanistic annihilation, and are becoming a laboratory for violence andwarfare, lacking positive relationships, common identity due to the nation’s sectarian
segregation and social injustice among the different socio-economic groups (Nahas, 2009;
Frayha, 2012). These national challenges coupled with the global ones require from educationin Lebanon to plan programs that are culture fair and context specific. In fact, the UNESCO
report (2009) concludes that factors critical to the future of education in the world of today andtomorrow should take into account the profile of cultures, values, and circumstances of eachregion and nation.
Having acknowledged the seriousness of our problems, what can we possibly do to respondeffectively? Where do we start? The crisis we face is complex and multidimensional. How
might we bring about a meaningful education that could truly lead to a culture of peace?
What is needed is a foundational system of values that the communities have to be aware of.
Based on these values we have to put mechanisms and guidelines for ourselves so as to have a

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mutual acceptance and cooperation between the entire world's ideologies, spiritual movements,and ethical dimensions, in addition to developing an ecological sense of worth, and convictions.
In my point of view an evolutionary jump in the consciousness of the Arab families in generaland Lebanese family in particular is needed for conflict resolution, anti-racial ideologies,
multiculturalism, and techniques of negotiation. This jump as I see it is an education for aculture of peace that will help in developing humanity and communities. To introduce thisculture of peace educating holistically, reorganizing the content of the curriculum and its
delivery, and empowering caregivers and stakeholders are the ways that awaken the Arabfamilies to the realities of oppression, violence, and suffering. A holistic approach comprisingdifferent methods: dialogue, training, awareness raising, advocacy, capacity building, andformation of alliances and network building. These steps serve as a guide for revitalization ofsociety and coexistence.
By revitalization and coexistence, I do not mean refining and improving the old system of
education. I mean re-conceptualizing what schools are and how they should function when aculture of peace is introduced to the educational system. Families would interact and react
when they acquire skills of dealing, understanding and communicating with the other. It is myintention to prove that when individuals change their level and way of thinking to the way they
think, and break the barriers that bind them to the old ineffective structures revitalization andcoexistence are attained.
In setting the foundation for revitalization, I suggest some basic steps, which will lead to abetter transformation in educational and social system. The first step is introducing a vision ofpeace education that offers the idea of replacing the archaic relationship that exists between
educators, children, and their parents by a more dynamic performance-oriented progress. When
this vision is correctly planned and supported by key players and educators then growth isendless. The second step has to do with quality improvement, introducing peace education
skills to teachers, and familiarizing them with these skills, the teaching profession will beenhanced, and working conditions will allow the teachers to think, reflect, and interact inprofessional development activities. In addition, students will develop a positive self-esteem
and a positive reaction toward the other and toward learning. To reach this high level of
performance, educators must keep on working and offering constant quality improvement thus
making it a norm in their organization. The last step has to do with partnership where the stresswill be on parental and community involvement. The link that has to be established between
the parents, the community and the school will create a difference in the lives of the children.
In this case certain questions have to be answered in order to create a peaceful society with nodiscrimination and understanding of the other. The first is “what is needed to help children tobe physically, socially and mentally accepting and understanding the other?’ The second, “howto interact with the needs of children and how would be our attitude and behavior when
implementing the core values derived from the first question?” Thirdly, “what would be thebehavior and attitude of the ‘Other” when all the community lives by these values?” Lastly,“how do we enumerate and evaluate the achieved standards and performance in order to add
or delete goals?” The answer to these questions will be reflected through a vision, quality
improvement, partnership and sustainability.

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2. The Vision
One of the first obstacles that will come up is people's fear of change. Creating or adjusting avision statement is an unmistakable indicator of imminent change. As important as the visionis, keeping it alive throughout the year is not an easy task. To get the most out of the vision,
we must first remove the barriers from making it an integral, vibrant facet of the school and thecommunity.
Peace education could be taken for granted, or it could be reflected through a foundational
system of values that ensures a shared existence with different groups. These shared values are
not very far from our understanding but we forgot to implement them. Bamburg (1994: 14)
notes, "The schools that have been most successful in addressing and increasing the academic
achievement of their students have benefited from a clarity of purpose that is grounded in ashared set of core values". If applied they should help in developing humanity andcommunities:-   All individuals are equal and have same rights and duties.
-   Individual's happiness is built on the basis of love that leads to ultimate good andhappiness.
-   Collaboration and mutual respect are the basis of understanding.
-   The true freedom of the individual is built on the knowledge of doing to others what
you want others to do to you.
-   Promotion of a universal language for communication worldwide, with no melting potof the language of the other.
-   Belief that interfaith and intercultural dialogues lead to unity and after that will lead touniversal homogeneity in the world.
Based on these values we have to put mechanisms and guidelines for ourselves so as to have amutual acceptance and cooperation between all the world's ideologies, spiritual and politicalmovements and convictions. In this situation, I will present six important points that can beconsidered the essential requirements that every school can follow to achieve peace and justiceon its grounds and spread it to all the people on earth. Accepting these points might be the firststep to a unified world without problems and without annihilating the other:1.   Mutual understanding through respecting others' individuality.
2.   Belief that all people belong to the same Origin and Destination.
3.   Faith in the potentials of all the individuals in the community will help in creating abetter world ruled by peace and justice.
4.   No exclusion and zero reject. All ideologies, religions, sects, spiritual movements andconvictions had their origin in their culture and developed on the basis of their culturalbeliefs, concepts and values.
5.   Testifying and not converting. The believers should present their ideas in anunderstandable language, that the dialogue between cultures, religions, and traditions
will lead to a better understanding, and to an exchange of values so as to enrich one's
faith and the others' faith.
6.   Our world is suffering from ecological, economical, social and financial problems. The
best way to solve these problems is through global collaboration between religious andfaith communities and the world of politics/economics.
These practical reasons will raise the expectations; create energy to change since the focus
is on the future with no blame for the past, and generate foundation for decision making.

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3. Quality Improvement
As for the second question of our vision, “how to interact with the needs of children and how
would be our attitude and behaviour when implementing the core values derived from the firstquestion, the answer will be through quality improvement. Talking about quality improvement,
the challenge that we will face is how to make the transition from a traditional system ofteaching to a system of various roles and wide variety of tasks to offer a cooperative andcomprehensive program in peace education as an equal partner with educational programs. The
response will be through empowering the whole constituents of the school starting byadministrators, staff, teachers, stakeholders, students and peers and whoever present in school
environment.
There is evidence that human beings perform better, will cope more effectively, when they
perceive themselves as possessed of inviolable dignity and worthy of unconditional respect(Norcross & Grencavage, 1989). With the continued emphasis on child development, theintegration of Maslow pyramid, Cognitive Behaviour Coping Skills Therapy, and Social
Ecology model can demonstrate success in helping these people change.
2.1 Teachers’ Empowerment
Lebanese schools are diverse in social class, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression,age, ability, religious background, national and geographical origin, and language and culture.
Like schools around the world, the Lebanese schools have become, in the last four years,
diverse institutions with some identified trends: younger children are joining schools, inaddition to Palestinian children; schools have to enrol Syrian, Iraqi children and children withlearning or physical disabilities due to their exposure to traumatic situations (Frayha, 2012).
The thing is how to offer an educational environment that provides equitable treatment andsupports identity development, learning and success of all students. Diversifying thecurriculum is central in achieving this goal. Further, research shows that a diverse environment
enhances the quality of the learning process for all children (Quaye and Harper 2007). As suchteachers are in need of assistance to develop skills pertinent to deal with diverse children anddiverse topics. To prepare teachers who will be both multicultural persons, practitioners andchange agents, I view teaching for social change as teaching for educational equity, social
justice, and activism.
To the researcher the first step that has to be done is to improve the well-being of teachers by
improving their attitudes towards themselves and towards others: Developing competence,
managing emotions, moving through autonomy toward interdependence, developing matureinterpersonal relationships, establishing identity, developing purpose, and developing integrity.
Cuban (2001: 26) articulates, "people who develop skills in redefining familiar situations havein their heads more than one way of seeing the world. They have developed their capacity tojuggle diverse ways of viewing daily occurrences, to the degree that one can hold in his or her
mind multiple ways to see a situation, to that degree opportunity to reframe a problem anddilemma multiply".
Here a question that comes to mind is how to support teachers to reframe their views of diverse
learners and challenges that they are experiencing? A response would be quoting Bolman and

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Deal (1994: 7), who argue that when teachers are able to reframe, they are able to see new
possibilities and become more versatile and effective in their responses". Reframing enables
the teacher to see a situation from multiple perspectives: managerial level, human relations andpolitical level.
3.1.1 Managerial Level
When it comes to classroom behaviour, and although group stereotyping is a common
occurrence, the teacher has to strive to ensure to make accurate statements about people
opposed to group stereotyping. Whenever appropriate, discussions of diversity should be
encouraged in department meetings, especially with respect to topics such as curriculum,classroom climate, course content, course requirements...
To teach in such environment is very challenging. As a result teachers have to be trained in
how to teach diverse learners and to deal with them as individuals with unique abilities andunique challenges (Kuh 2005). In this sense teachers will be as “cultural workers” (Freire,1998), “border crossers” (Giroux, 1991) or bridge builders across language, social class, racial,
cultural differences and academic abilities. As such, all teachers should be trained in the basic
skills of psychosocial support, teaching diversity, communication skills, critical thinking...
When teachers are trained on these basic skills, they will be able to help students cope withparticular challenge in some cases. By applying this, the teacher will be using the first key topeace education: a helping and healing relationship.
3.1.2 Human Relations Level
The human relations level identifies the classroom as a community defined by relationships
between individuals with feelings and needs. Like the human resource frame from Bolman and
Deal (1994, 1997), it spotlights the social system of the classroom, the caring interactions
necessary between teacher and students, and among students. In an effort to foster anenvironment of equity, teachers have to be aware about their knowledge of different groups
other than their own, and learn as much as possible about these groups. Teachers have tounderstand that marginalized people have the right to define themselves and their own issues,and have to recognize and strive to meet their distinctive needs.
3.1.3 Political Level
The political frame acknowledges the power differentials in the classroom and society, and canwork to change them. In this case the teacher will be a helper and a facilitator in teaching,learning, and personality developer of the student. In addition, when I stress the importance ofacquiring these skills, I am not devaluing teaching and academic skills, nor disregarding thevalue of knowledge that the teacher has, but I am trying to show that deficiency in interpersonaland intra-personal skills has a negative effect on teaching and learning. Today it is no longer
enough for teachers merely to learn how to be sensitive to diverse students and their cultures;
they must possess the habits of transformative practice and change agency (Cochran-Smith,
2004; Freire, 1973; Nieto, 2000; Oakes and Lipton, 2007).
3.2 Administrators’ Leadership
Another important figure that plays a role in creating and developing peace education is theprincipal and stake holders. If they are supportive, involved, and engaged in what is happening,

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all the positive powers of students, teachers, teachers' assistants, and counsellors will beunleashed to their fullest. In this situation, they will be facilitators and managers at the sametime.
One of the key findings of research carried out on successful leadership in multiethnic schools
in England (Walker et al. 2005: 3) was that it is “based on the articulation and implementationof explicit values that promote an agenda of equality, fairness and respect” and that theseleaders define their leadership ‘in terms of their commitment to principles of social justice’.
Leaders in education may benefit from ‘auditing’ their own views and encouraging and leading
their staff to do the same (Begley 2003). Discussing the leadership of multiethnic schools, Shah(2006: 530) draws on the Muslim concept of Adab as a tool for leaders, arguing that this(roughly translated as respect) ‘underpins diverse aspects of relationships, celebrates diversity,
supports vulnerability, rejects discrimination (racism!) and promotes innate human dignity’.
3.2.1 Professional development
Professional development in the form of training should be inclusive to all who often act as
education developers, caregivers, stakeholders, and the gatekeepers who recruit and interview
prospective senior staff (Coleman 2005; Coleman and Campbell Stephens 2009). Mentoring isa particularly useful form of professional development. It can be used for supporting
individuals who face the additional difficulties of overcoming stereotypes and prejudice.
The more that a school or other educational institution has integrated its values into the thinking
of staff, students, governors and parents, the easier it will be to ensure that a united front ispresented to those who are outside the immediate boundaries. It is particularly important thatleadership training includes training for social justice and awareness of diversity issues,stereotyping and discrimination.
3.3 Students’ empowerment
Empowerment can be attained by creating awareness at the levels of mental, emotional andsocial. The common problems experienced by Lebanese children have to do with the unsafe
setting of the country itself, physical, mental and social. As for the physical setting, children
are interacting with displaced Syrian and Iraqi’s poor general conditions of which hygiene,
nutrition, isolation, overcrowding, varied socio-cultural conditions…etc (Frayha, 2012). They
are developing a fear of losing some of safety that leads in its turn to anxiety, depression, lowmood, low-self esteem and emotional behaviour disorder. As a result they turn out to see thedisplaced as a threat to their existence and so refusing to accept them as normal children likethem.
Each of these factors may influence the children in one way or another. The negative effects ofthe prevalent conditions can be reduced through the holistic integrated program that offers
developmental and preventive measures. Thus the provision of adequate prevention andintervention services is both beneficial to the Lebanese children as well as to their peers. To
start with, the first thing to do in the provision of intervention program is to apply Maslow’s
Pyramid of hierarchy of needs. The most important basic needs for the children are:-   Safety, environmental stability and predictability;-   Reliable assistance from persons and settings;

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-   A sense of being appreciated and cared for, and a desire for relationships that provide
emotional sustenance and empathy;-   Services that facilitate self-advancement, self-improvement and autonomy.
-   Privacy and autonomy;-   Personal development and respect from others.
When these basic needs are satisfied then the next step is moving to the complex needs thosethat are related to psychological problems. Factors that may account for psychologicalproblems can be due to lack of coping skills and discrimination, or day- to -day stresses.
Moreover, continuous exposure to conflict and threatening events may represent a loss of
freedom, and loss of social support, fear of the unknown, uncertainty and fear about the future(Fosket & Hemsley-Brown, 2001). A suggested comprehensive prevention program that ischaracterized by a number of cognitive, behavioral and social activities will create basis forunderstanding.
3.3.1 Cognitive activities:-   Assessing the nature and type of skill deficits in every child.
-   Increasing the child’s ability to cope with high-risk situations including bothinterpersonal difficulties and intrapersonal discomfort (such as anger or depression)-   Training children to use active behavioral or cognitive coping methods to deal withproblems.
-   Through simulation, children will develop the skill of self-efficacy and be persuadedby the possibility of change.
-   Teach coping behavior through instruction, modeling, directed practice and feedback.
-   Teach specific problem-solving strategies.
-   Elicit from the significant other some important positive aspects and explore how they
can work together to overcome the discomfort.
3.3.2 Behavioral and Social Activities:
Physical activity constitutes an important factor in creating a culture of acceptance and equity.
In fact, physically active people tend to have better mental health than their inactive
counterparts. The physically active usually score better in regards to positive self-concept, andself-esteem. Physical activity has also been used to treat mental health problems such as
depression (Active Living Research, 2009).
Practical ways of enhancing resilience include but not limited to:-   Access to sports and fitness facilities-   Opportunities to participate in the arts
-   Opportunities to practice enjoyable and fulfilling use of time, for example involvementin the theatre, arts, music, drama or exercise-   Opportunities for socially useful activity, for example through peer support orcommunity involvement etc...
4. Collaboration
Thirdly, “what would be the behaviour and attitude of the ‘Other” when all the community lives bythese values?” Collaboration between teachers, staff, administrators, families and stakeholders canbe grouped into shared core values and respect, proper training, and continued cooperation. Eachlevel depends on and potentiates the other.

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In establishing the program of collaboration we need to be cognizant of what really bothers eachgroup if we are going to develop ways of genuine empathy and caring. We have to be aware about
the issues and problems that make individuals anxious, such as lack of justice, equality, security,
rights, equal opportunities, survival… Emphasizes in this section is on the social ecological model
as a form for collaboration where interaction in relationships have to be between the parents and thesurrounding community. The researcher suggests horizontal multilateral rather than vertical
approaches to service delivery through creative use of volunteers, paraprofessionals, peer support,
and social networks, in addition to professional services.
4.1 Partnership with Parents/Organizations
In establishing the program for peace education, we need to be cognizant of what really bothers
each group if we are going to develop ways of genuine empathy and caring. We have to beaware about the issues and problems that make individuals anxious, such as lack of justice,equality, security, rights, equal opportunities, survival etc.
Families need help in developing parenting skills that will encourage the kind of conditions
that promote cooperation and the development of a positive self-concept and acceptance intheir children. Parent involvement in developing a culture of peace is an important assistanceto school revitalization and individual coexistence, especially when parents are exposed todifferent psychosocial support programs and learn the necessary skills relevant to today’s
conflicting situation. Harris and Goodall (2008: 286) point out that: ‘parental engagement
increases with social status, income and parents’ level of education’ and that ‘differential
strategies are needed to secure the engagement of a diverse range of parents’
Jeynes (2003) asserts that parental involvement positively affects the academic achievement ofminority students, higher test scores, regular school attendance, better social skills andimproved behaviour, as well as more positive attitude about school, completed homeworkassignments, graduation and continued education. If you want your school to be a good andsafe place, you must enhance family collaboration. For example Foskett and Hemsley- Brown(1999: 222) identify the fives Cs: ‘consistency, clarity, concern, cooperation and confidence as
key components of the interface between the institution and the community’
Parents have to be offered instruction in effective child management techniques to help themwith parent-child conflicts. They need assistance in dealing with aggression, developing theirchildren’s self- confidence, improving family communication, and getting their children to
assume responsibility. So by increasing parents’ involvement, building collaborative
relationships and providing extended services we move towards making revitalization a reality.
Possible programs include films, speakers or discussions for parents and guardians on topics
such as bullying prevention, identity development, racial experiences, gender expression,sexuality, learning differences and family diversity.
A core component of anti-bias education is learning to take action against exclusion, prejudice
and discrimination; it can be especially powerful for students to do this in their own schools
and local communities. Research shows that when parents are involved students have higher
grades, better attendance, increased levels of self-esteem & motivation, decreased use of drugs& alcohol, and fewer instances of violence (Jeynes, W., 2010). When parents come to school
regularly, it reinforces the view in the child’s mind that school and home are connected (Horvat,
E., Weininger, E., & Lareau, A., 2003).

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Certain steps can be done to establish partnership with parents and the community, if
implemented it will lead to involvement that is more parental.
These suggestions include:-   Finding out about the needs of parents and communities-   The second, if you cannot bring parents to you, try to go to them. This will allow theeducators to get to know the families, their values expectations, and customs.
-   A third point is to use positive communication strategies with parents to erase thenegative attitude established through experience.
-   Fourth, the environment of the school has to become a receptive of diverse individuals,
comfortable, and encouraging one. Administrators as well as teachers and key players
have to create ways for parents to know how to help in order to create an excellent
atmosphere for the children.
-   Implementing these, strategies will take time and might be frustrating when response
from parents in the beginning of the implementation of the program might not be up to
the intended goals. In this situation, creative ways and insistence on cooperation in apositive and gradual way will lead to change.
In general this horizontal cross-training can plant the seeds for the development of awareness,knowledge and appreciation especially if all the working members are receptive to thesemessages. The triangular relationship established between the parents, staff, NGOs andteachers is the ultimate goal to a just and safe society.
5. Sustainability
Fourth question asked in developing the framework for social justice and equity was: “how do weenumerate and evaluate the achieved standards and performance in order to add or delete goals?”
The researcher considers four steps to be followed in order to answer this question; implementationof governance, accountability and order, abiding by legislations around the world that stipulate
information about dealing with displaced and diverse children and their rights, enhancing
partnership with educational organizations and the children’s community and exchanging practices(Brown, 2011; Clark, 2011). The success in delivering all the services needed demands dedicatedand well-trained educators, but they in their turn need support and recognition from theadministrators. The more this positive environment is maintained the clearer the emotional
resilience among children is observed.
Cooperation with community agencies is vital to secure continuity of psychosocial support and to
facilitate acceptance of diverse children into the school community (Epstein, 2001). Another factor
that leads to sustainability of intervention program is to do continuous evaluation of the program interms of:-   Respect of children’s rights-   Application of the processes suggested-   Quality of care and equity-   Continued meetings between parents, professionals and teachers-   Quality of the physical and social climate of the child

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6. Summary
Lebanese children are the most valuable asset. We have to provide support for their personal,
educational and emotional needs, taking into consideration the stress and vicissitudes of life.
Offering education for a culture of peace extends beyond techniques of negotiation and conflict
resolution, beyond multicultural and anti-racist curricula, even beyond spiritual practice: it isan education for a new, expanded worldview, an evolutionary leap in consciousness. Skills,
knowledge, strategies and cooperative community are the key elements for sustaining integrity,
multiplicity and social justice in educational organizations. Whether the individual is a teacher,administrator, parent or student there is a need for empowerment, guidance and counselling,support and practice. This paper was intended to offer a framework to help facilitate theimportant work of promoting equity and social justice for the benefit of the Arab community
in general and the Lebanese children in special.

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Freire, P. (1973). Education for critical consciousness. New York: Continuum.
Giroux, H. (1991). Toward a postmodern Pedagogy. Section of the Introduction to
Postmodernism, Feminism, and cultural Politics. Albany: State University of New
York press.
Harris, A and Goodall, J. (2008). Do parents know they matter? Engaging all parents inlearning. Educational Research, 50(3), 277 – 289.
Horvat, E., Weininger, E., & Lareau, A. (2003). From social ties to social capital: Class
differences in the relations between schools and parent networks. American
Educational Research Journal, 40(2), 319-351.
Jeynes, W. (2003). A Meta-Analysis: The effects of parental involvement on minority
children’s academic achievement. Education and Urban Society, 35 (2), 202-218.
Jeynes, W. (2010a). Parental involvement and children’s academic achievement. New York,
NY: Taylor & Francis.
Kuh, G. D. (2005). Student engagement in the fFirst year of college. In Challenging andSupporting the First-Year Student: A Handbook for Improving the First Year of
College, edited by M. L. Upcraft, J. N. Gardner, and B. O. Barefoot, 86-107. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Nahas, C. (2009). Financing and political economy of higher education in Lebanon. Beirut:
Economic Research Forum.
Nieto, S. (2004). Affirming diversity: The socio-political context of multicultural education.
New York, NY: Longman.
Norcross, J.C. & Grencavage, L. (1989). Eclecticism and integration in counseling andpsychotherapy: major themes and obstacles. British Journal of Guidance andCounseling, 17(3), 227-243.
Oakes, J, and Lipton, M. (2007). Teaching to Change the World. McGraw-Hill, Inc.
Palmer, p., & Zajon, A. (2010). The heart of higher education: a call to renewal. San
Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass.
Quaye, S. J., & Harper, S. R. (2007). Faculty accountability for culturally inclusive pedagogy
and curricula. Liberal Education, 93(3), 32-39.
Shah, S. (2006) Leading Multicultural Schools: A Concept of Adab for Managing Diversity;
pp 439-56; in J. K. Richards (ed) International Perspectives on Education andTraining. ATINER.
The World Bank. (2013). The Annual Report 2013. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
UNESCO. (2009). Student Affairs and Services in Higher Education: Global Foundations,Issues and Best Practices. Paris: UNESCO.
Walker, A. dimmock, C. Stevenson, H., Bingold, B., Shah, S. and Middlewood, D. (2005).
Effective leadership in multi-ethnic schools. National College for School Leadership.
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Opening image credit: Flickr Creative Commons/Michael_Swan

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Reevaluating the Relationship between Millennial Students, their Parents, and Professors
When Teaching a Study-Abroad Course:
Searching for More Success

By J. McClanahan, Creighton University, USA
Abstract
When the new millennium approached, educators looked toward the 21st century with either
excitement or concern. As a perfect time for self-reflection, many universities and colleges
began to pay attention to a new generation of students that began arriving on campuses in 2000.
Since then, much of the research has focused on identifying their distinctiveness, how they
develop, and their overall impact on campus life. Yet, what do the curiosities of this generationof students mean for foreign language learners; and in particular, for students who plan to study
abroad? As campuses across the country continue to globalize their curriculum, how canprofessors help these students learn and make the most of international educational
opportunities? Known for being naturally global in their thinking, this generation exhibits
various attributes that are ideally suited for study abroad. Therefore, this paper focuses on how
we turn perceived challenges of the millennial student population into benefits in the context
of international educational experiences, specifically looking at how family plays an importantcomponent in the encounter. It is often said that parents of this generation are an obstacle toprofessors and campus personnel in their academic endeavors. But upon reflection, I believe
this may not be true; and as such, I will examine how faculty can best utilize this perceived
difficulty to reveal how, in fact, parents can serve as a real asset and viability to the success ofa study abroad program.
Keywords: millennial students, study abroad, family-educator relationships

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Introduction
As the magical year 2000 approached, many university educators anticipated the new century
with either excitement or trepidation. In this environment of self-reflection, universities andcolleges across the nation began to pay attention to the new generation of students that beganarriving on campuses in 2000. Reasoning for much of this interest stems from census data
indicating that this generation will be the largest (U.S. Census Bureau, Jan. 2000). Even though
the generation is going on fourteen years, much of the research still focuses on identifying their
distinctiveness, how they develop, and their impact on campus life. It is only recently that
researchers have started to examine the relationship between these students and how they learn.
Yet, what does this generation of students mean for foreign language learners, and in particular,
for students who study abroad? As campuses across the country continue to globalize theircurriculum in new and different ways, how can we best help these students learn and make themost of international educational opportunities for universities and colleges? Inherently global
and multicultural in their thinking, this generation exhibits various attributes that are ideallysuited for study abroad, and as a result of this; faculty and administrators examine thesequestions of implications for type of study. Therefore, the focus here is on how faculty can turnthe challenges of the millennial student population into benefits in the context of international
educational experiences, specifically looking at the role family plays in the overall success ofthe student in the program. Often, the parents of this generation have been characterized as an
obstacle to professors and campus personnel in their academic endeavors. As such, this paper
examines how faculty can best utilize this perceived difficulty to reveal how, in fact, parents
can serve as a real asset and viability to the success of a study abroad program.
Who are they? Characteristics of the Millennial Generation
One of the primary challenges for educators is to understand the unique characteristics of thesestudents. Often referred to as the “Y Generation” or “Generation Next”, the identifying namethat has come to dominate these students is the Millennial Generation or Millennial students.
Neil Howe and William Strauss in their pioneering studies that began in the 1990’s sought tocategorize the special qualities that these incoming college students possess when they reachedcollege campuses as we entered into the new millennium. In their research they discovered
seven distinct traits that distinguish them from previous generations. First, they are describedas special. As a group, their parents and society have instilled in them that they are vitally
important both personally and to the nation. This specialness also had led these students to havehigh expectations of themselves and those around them, which in some cases has been
perceived as entitlement. They have constant need for feedback, reinforcement, and structure.
Even so, these students feel that they have a sense of purpose because of the increased amountof attention that has been given to them. Secondly, they are sheltered. As a nation, the UnitedStates began in the 1980’s to implement a series of new laws intended to protect children,
creating the most wide-ranging safety movement in America’s history and fashioning anenvironment where the defense of children is commonplace. From “baby on board” window
decals and “child-proof” caps on over-the-counter medications to amber alerts, the amount ofregulatory legislation has created an environment of protection for the nation’s children.
Moreover, these students are confident. Having solid relationships with their parents and highlevels of optimism and trust, this generation often equates good news about themselves with
their country. They are aware of their place in the nation and their perceived power andpotential within it. Even so, they take fewer intellectual risks because a fear of failure. Also,
they are team-oriented. As a result of team sports (soccer, football, volleyball, etc.) and a focus

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on group learning in schools, this generation has developed strong team instincts and bonds
closely with their peers. As politics determined and attempted to reform educational policies
throughout their lives, these students have become achievers. They have defined goals andbelieve that their potential has no limits. As a whole, they are anticipated to be the mosteducated and well-mannered generation in the history of the United States. As a result of their
desire to be the “best of the best,” these students are pressured. They endeavor to take fulladvantage of the opportunities that adults have provided for them, and therefore, they arepushed to study hard and avoid personal risk. They feel an undercurrent of pressure to excel inall that they do, and they want to do it all. This push is evident in the number of students thatfaculty and staff advise who have two or three majors, with a list of minors, extra-curricular
activities, and sports. Lastly, this generation is conventional. This is conventional notconservative. These students take pride in their improved behavior and are more at ease with
their parents’ values than any previous generation. They support convention or the notion thatsocial rules can and will help the greater whole (Howe and Strauss, 1997, 2007). All told, thesestudents possess qualities that at the onset may appear to be overwhelming or “highmaintenance.” Yet, these traits also reveal a determined and purposeful group of individuals,
who, at the core, have attributes that are desirable to many members of the faculty.
Millenials and their Professors
Now, fourteen years into having the millennial generation on campuses, their characteristics
are established and well defined. While the millennial students began arriving on campus in
2000, the majority of the university and college professors teaching in campuses across thenation belong to another generation, and as such, they possess different qualities that can comeinto conflict with these new students. The greater part of these professors belongs to the
Boomers or Gen Xers (Debard, 39). Therefore, the priorities and how the professors view areas
such as education, careers, or parent-child involvement vary noticeably from that of theirstudents. Whereas the Boomers desire to have freedom of expression in education, want tobuild a stellar career, and demonstrate a receding relationship with children; the Gen Xers havea pragmatic view of education, aspire for portability in their careers, and have a somewhat
distant relationship with parents. It is against this background that the Boomers and Gen Xers
meet the Millennials, who need structure of accountability in education, wish to build parallel
careers, and have ever-present parents (Debard, 40). As we can see, the views are at times
opposing and conflictive. Consequently, educators need to be able to step out of the comfortof their generational perspectives and be very cognizant of these students’ characteristics andviews when planning for and developing programs for non-traditional learning opportunities.
Recognizing these differences is a key point when thinking or rethinking about how one candevelop diverse areas for learning while on or off campus.
Universities and the Millennials
As previously mentioned, when this generation of student began arriving on campus, faculty,
individuals in charge of student life, resident life, and within the educational administration
earnestly took note. Faculty had to start addressing these students in a different way and offer
them with a new notion of what the university or college experience could be. The idea of “onestop shopping” became a call to universities as they moved at recruiting this generation of
students and their parents. This concept provided a framework by which everyone involved
with students could seek out new patterns of thinking about the college experience. No longer
do we only talk about our outstanding curriculum and faculty. It is necessary to accentuate thepositive in all aspects of university life: from Residence living in community to broad

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technological advances available and from internships to intermural sports, academic clubs,
and international educational opportunities.
Even though this new attention to the university experience appears to draw away from thefundamental educational underpinning by which we have built our institutions, the reality isthat if we approach it from a new perspective, we are able to see how they can add to it. Now,
study abroad experience can take on a new significance and appeal to the students and theirparents as another opportunity to learn. Both are not merely satisfied now with just a stellar
education. Students need to have a variety of “experiences” during their time at university orcollege, which can translate into “marketable skills.” This notion of marketable skills,
borrowing beneficially or not from the business world opens the door for faculty and staff torethink the different manners that we can maximize education, which is the ultimate goal forall students. Moreover, this idea of garnering multiple benefits from a singular task appeals toboth parents and students alike. Due to the continually rising costs of attending university orcollege, the investment in higher education is real and respected. Therefore, parents andstudents alike are trying to acquire more out of the university experience, and they have pushed
universities to start offering more opportunities, if they want the tuition dollars or enrollments
to continue. For this reason, when one thinks about teaching millennials, there is another set ofparameters to take into account when looking at study abroad, especially if they are faculty
directed or lead.
Millennials and Learning
Not only do millennial students exhibit unique characteristics in their lives, how they learn
prompts faculty to reflect more on their approach to teaching in general and study abroad inparticular. Robert Debard points out that “millennials are likely to invest themselves to meethigh and clear expectations” (65). Linda Sax furthers this sentiment by stating that these“students, who have achieved academic success with relatively little effort [early on in theireducation], may have unrealistic expectations about what is necessary to be academically
successful in college” (16). These two sides of expectations – rising to meet them andunrealistic in nature – require careful consideration by educators to create and foster new
learning skills by a student population that already believes itself to be in an elite, unique group.
This notion is especially important when these students are confronted with an unfamiliar
environment or country, such as in the case of study abroad. The harsh reality of not knowing“everything” hits hard and produces wide-ranging new challenges for this generation of
students.
Therefore, in order to address these high expectations, as educators we have to rethink how we
can engage students and their families in new ways which will allow the opportunity to gain asense of accomplishment and purpose through study abroad. Whether it is about learning a
different language or becoming absorbed into the new cultural encounters, their expectations
about study abroad differ greatly. As such, they come individually and collectively to these
new experiences with distinct, personal objectives. Their goals may be geared toward language
fluency or cultural competency; and as a result of this variety, these students offer opportunities
and challenges for the learning environment. Studying in a “foreign” location produces a new
set of learning parameters, which can play into or against the high expectations of themillennials. The focus of the educator is to underscore the benefits that overshadow the
problems. One way to accentuate these advantages of these students is in how we incorporate
their families into the mix By creating new ways of connecting with the curriculum to thestudent and their families, professors can now allow students to be address some of the

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insecurities that their learning styles present, and we are now able to tackle their previous
perceptions or misconceptions in a beneficial manner. Taking advantage of being in a new
locale where students have not been previously, their academic framework for learning can beadapted to link them with the new material. Moreover, students can have equal baseline forlearning.
Parents and Millennials
While there are many aspects of this generation of students that deserve attention, the role thatparents and families play in the study abroad experience is crucial. More specifically, howfaculty can take the perceived difficulties of parent’s involvement and turn them into benefits
becomes even more necessary. The direction that professors take to involve the parents of amillennial student needs to be more comprehensive. From the onset of recruiting, through thepre-departure preparations, and during the actual study abroad experience and the return home,
all represent areas where faculty needs to reticent of their role and how to include parents.
Along with a new generation of students, faculty and universities have to deal with a newgeneration of parents as well. They have been traditionally referred to as “helicopter parents”,
a term coined by Cline and Foster in 1990. They are seen as hovering or over-parenting. These
parents are involved at every stage of the educational process, including many of the decisionmaking steps. They are often considered as “micro-managers” and believe that because they
“have done it before” they know better. Yet Roiphe points out that helicopter parenting is not
the product of "bad or pathetic people with deranged values. [...] It is not necessarily a sign ofparents who are ridiculous or unhappy or nastily controlling. It can be a product of goodintentions gone awry, the play of culture on natural parental fears." Remembering on how thegovernment has played a role in this new role of parenting by instituting a series of new laws
and regulations that has resulted in the society “over protecting” this new generation of
students, it is not a far leap to see how partents, raised in that context, possess thesecharacteristics.
As such, the need to get the parents “on-board” for a study abroad experience is paramount.
Involving them from the onset provides opportunity for faculty to gain a strong support fromone of the most important factors in the student’s life. Moreover, it is the parents who often
pay for the education of the students, and as such, it is important that faculty include the parents
from the beginning of the process. As with many “millennial parents”, it is necessary tounderscore the value of this type of educational experience. The incarnations of that a study
abroad experience can vary greatly depending on the university and the focus it has. Yet, eachof them can provide new prospects for students (and their parents) who are looking to broaden
their academics. Moreover, the variety of skills that a student can take away from an experienceabroad reaches beyond the traditional academic realm. Therefore, faculty should maximize thevalue for both parents and students as they begin the recruitment process. Additionally, theapplication in the recruitment process has to include the parents. When recruiting or conducting
interviews for a study-abroad course, two of the key questions in the application should be:“Have you talked with your parents about this educational experience?” and “Do you have thesupport of your parents for this program?” Moreover, it is important to continually remind
students to share the information with their parent. By doing this, professors have theopportunity to involve the parents sooner, which will aid in the students having a positive
outcome from it.

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After completing the recruitment and acceptance phase, the pre-departure of the process begins.
In this stage, we are preparing students prior to leaving the US for their study-abroad
experience. Here, as in every other stage of the overall encounter, parents need to be a part.
Like their children, many parents have engaged technology as a means of information andcommunication. As such, faculty must be willing to adapt. By incorporating many free,available technologies, faculty can create platforms to reach out to parents and inform them.
Knowing that they will want to be involved in most aspects of their student’s lives, having
access to information is comforting and indispensable at the same time. Currently, it is not
required that faculty be computer programmers in order to create websites, blogs, or listserves.
Whether through a Google account sponsored website or free online blog, we are now able tocreate new ways of communicating and keeping informed parents of these students.

Here, the very basic website provides information for parents so that they will be informed
about what the student is learning and doing while abroad. And subsequently, they will be able
to support their children and the faculty through the study abroad course. As these parents arecontinually connected to their children more than at any time previously, the mere act ofincluding them into the communication circle allows what was once believed an intrusive
parent into an active partner in education. By providing additional information through anelectronic medium, faculty can assure parents (and students), given the “foreign” nature of thiseducational experience. A simple blog can further grant access to information, which can beviewed by participants and parents alike.

Like a website, the course or study-abroad blog offers the opportunity for faculty tocommunicate to both students and their parents. Moreover, it provides professors the chance

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to control information that is released and when. In turn, everyone is provided with the same
information at the same time. As much as we would like students to give their parents up-todate and complete information from pre-departure, informational meetings, or about what a
student is learning while abroad, every faculty member understands that sometimes the best
intentions are not always followed through. Therefore, a simple, informative blog can allow
access to information and create a space for dialogue with parents (and students). Thisadditional method of communication allows for a new collaboration with parents and students
at the same time, and it can relieve a lot of the stresses found in a learning environment thatcan often is “flexible” and reducing the anxiety of the millennial’s desire for a structured
learning space. Further still, the information is current and timely.
In order for a study-abroad program to continue to be successful, there needs to be reflection
by the teaching faculty about the successes and the areas where improvements can be made.
Here again, parents can help. By changing our perceptions about millennial parents and theirrole in the education of their children through study abroad offers faculty the chance to have amore positive, ongoing experience. While student evaluations have long been a standard forteaching, now, technology permits professors to extend to parents the chance to provide
feedback as well. While it may not be traditional for faculty to reach out to parents in this way,
I believe we are able to garner a lot of valuable information about how we best provide suchan outstanding international experience to our students, especially when we think about the
preparation we provide them. The questions can illicit information in the areas where the parent
is most present: access to information (before and during), understanding about the mission of
the experience, and the value that study-abroad has in the lives of their children.
Conclusions
As Higher Education becomes more competitive and resources are continually reduced orlimited, professors and universities need to support and offer educational opportunities for the
student population. Study-abroad has long been regarded a valuable gem in education. Yet, it
is important to adapt and change how we conduct these international educational experiences.
How we engage the new generation of students that have been arriving on our campus requires
a new way of thinking about how we teach them and through what mediums, and even more
important, the need to include the family of the student in the “extended” experiences.
Taking this into consideration, the role that parents play in study-abroad becomes incredibly
important. Encourage students to engage their parents in the mix before leaving and updatingthem through their time abroad. Professors can aid in and make the sharing more appreciated
if they can reach out through current technologies to extend their modes of communication.
Remembering what role parents can play in the lives of this generation of students, it isnecessary to take this into consideration when taking a group of students abroad. Also, we areable to take was appears to be intangible – education – and make it more tangible bydemonstrating how this experience has a true academic value. Including the parents in thecommunication cycle can do this. Leaving them to hear about it tangentially through theirchildren is really leaving it up to chance. We need to be purposeful and direct in underscoring
the inherent worth of study abroad, especially if it is a faculty-lead program. Furthermore, we
are able to highlight the practical applications and skills that students are continually acquiring
through their time in a different learning environment. Again, we cannot leave to chance theopportunity to share this information. It is essential that faculty actively communicate tostudents and their family the significance of what the students are doing.

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All told, the millenials as a generation provide the opportunity for revitalization andreexamination of study abroad. As professors, we can now take advantage of an inadvertent
fortune. This new generation of students (and their parents) possesses the raw material bywhich we can continue to strengthen and build and enhance our programs of study. Theirunique characteristics present challenges and opportunities, and as reflective educators, we areable to capitalize on this moment by mining these students’ inherent connectedness to the worldin which they live, their desire to be part of a larger community, and a desire to learn. We
understand that one of the overriding goals in higher education is fostering the growth of thewhole student, and by tapping into their distinctive traits as a generation, educators who takestudents abroad are uniquely situated to benefit from these interests.

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References
Carney Strange, C. (2004). “Constuctions of Student Development Across the Generations.”
In Coomes, Michael D, and Robert DeBard. Serving the Millennial Generation. New
directions for student services, no. 106. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. pp. 47-57.
Cline, Foster W.; Fay, Jim (1990). Parenting with Love and Logic: Teaching Children
Responsibility. Colorado Springs: Pinon Press. pp. 23–25.
Coomes, Michael D, and Robert DeBard. (2004). Serving the Millennial Generation.
New directions for student services, no. 106. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Cress, C.M., and Sax, Linda. (1998). “Campus climate Issues to Consider for the Next
Decade.” In K.W.Bauer (ed.), Campus Climate: Understanding the Criticalcomponents of Today’s Colleges and Universities. New Directions for
Institutional Research, no. 98. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Debard, Robert. (2004). “Millenials Coming to College.” Coomes, Michael D, and Robert
DeBard. Serving the Millennial Generation. New directions for student services,no. 106. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Howe, Timothy and William Strauss. (1997). Generations: The History of America's Future,
1584 to 2069. New York: Harper Perennial.
-----. Millennials go to college. 2nd ed. (2007). New York: Life Course Associates.
-----. Millenials Rising. The Next Great Generation. (2000). New York: Vintage.
Jacobson, J. (2003, July 18) “Help Not Wanted.” Chronicle of Higher Education.
pp. A27–A28.
Projected Population of the United States, by Age and Sex: 2000 to 2050. (2004)
Washington, D.C.: U.S. Bureau of the Census,. Retrieved Sep. 15, 2010, fromhttp://www.census.gov/population/www/projections/usinterimproj.
Roiphe, Katie (July 31, 2012). "The Seven Myths of Helicopter Parenting"(http:/ / www. slate. com/ articles/ double_x/ roiphe/ 2012/ 07/
madeline_levine_s_teach_your_children_well_we_are_all_helicopter_parents. html).
Slate. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
Sax, Linda J. (2003). “Our Incoming Students: What Are They Like?” About Campus,
8(3), pp. 15-20.
Opening image credit: Flickr Creative Commons/John Walker

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The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing:
The Continuing Accountability Discourse In Education

By Yvonne Masters, University of New England, Australia
Abstract
The Australian government has, for some time, shone a strong spotlight on education andteacher quality. This has particularly resulted from literacy and numeracy results slipping overthe last few years in the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment measuresof student performance. Such performance and teacher quality become inextricably linked and,almost inevitably, education is the subject of reform. In this paper, the author analyses thecompeting discourses of a recent government campaign for ‘better’ schools and improved
teacher quality. The campaign examined is the 2012 Commonwealth Government campaign,
launched through various media, officially known as the National School Improvement Plan,
but promoted as “Better Schools for Australia”. Here, the discourse of inclusive opportunity is
set against that of economic rationalism. The discussion of the government campaign is firstly
grounded in the literature of contesting views of the purposes of education and the ways inwhich the campaign contains elements of several discourses. The author demonstrates how theeconomic and accountability discourses dominate and deflate the other discourses of need andinclusion. The paper is concluded with a discussion of what these prevailing discourses mean
for teachers and pre-service teachers and how teachers and their teaching are being positionedby the accountability discourse.
Keywords: purposes of education, teacher quality, accountability, discourse analysis

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Introduction
In Australia, as elsewhere around the globe, education is a highly contested arena, discussed
within the discourses of accountability and quality. It has been the subject of numerous
government reports and funding initiatives designed to address the issue of teacher quality(Bradley, Noonan, Nugent, & Scales, 2008; Council of Australian Governments, 2009;
Department of Education Employment and Work Relations, 2010; House of Representatives
Standing Committee on Education and Vocational Training, 2007; Skilbeck & Connell, 2004).
More recently, extensive, and at times heated, debate has occurred after the publication of the“Great Teaching, Inspired Learning” document in New South Wales (New South Wales
Government, 2013) and the promotion of the National Plan for School Improvement, or “Better
Schools for Australia”, through the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace
Relations on behalf of the Australian Government (Australian Government, 2013). A large
component of the debate arises from competing discourses regarding the purpose of education.
An analysis of the Better Schools for Australia campaign reveals that there are competing
discourses: that of economic rationalism against the discourse of inclusive opportunity. In thispaper, there is a discussion of how these discourses are subtly nuanced in the text of the
television advertisements and they are also juxtaposed against differing views of the purposeof education.
Better Schools for Australia
In 2013 the Australian Government began a campaign to promote a new education initiative,
the National Plan for School Improvement. It did this through a range of media including
television, print media and public fact sheets. The initiative was to commence in 2014 and, by
26 July 2013 the government had expended $2,648.171.30 on the production of campaign
material and a further $10,390,091.86 was paid to commercial companies to air theadvertisements (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations [DEEWR],
2013). In total, there were eight television commercials (each with a perspective from different
characters), four print advertisements and four fact sheets.
In the print advertisements, each provides a selected quotation from one of the television
advertisements, but all give details as to why this new initiative was introduced and what it
would deliver. The latter is far ranging and reflects a discourse of opportunity. It promises todeliver:∗   “Ongoing teacher training;∗   A national curriculum;∗   Fairer funding for Australian school students” (Australian Government, 2013).
Very few would argue that there is a need for equitable funding for education and also ongoingteacher training to meet the demands of a changing world.
In contrast to the discourse of what is to be delivered, the reasons for the introduction of thisinitiative reflect competing discourses. The same print advertisement describes the reasons for
its introduction as:∗   “Australia’s international results have dropped from 2nd to 7th in reading and 5th to13th in maths over the last decade;

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Volume 2 Issue 1∗   By Year 9, disadvantaged students are over two years behind their peers;∗   The number of high performing students has dropped by 5% in reading literacy overthe last decade (Australian Government, 2013).
Here there is a tension between the discourses of performance (with implications that will be
discussed later) and disadvantage.
It is noteworthy that all advertisements and fact sheets describe the main purpose of Better
Schools for Australia is to improve the education system either with the tag line “to takeAustralian schools into the top five countries in the world by 2025” or a statement that it will
“will help to give Australian kids a world class education” (Australian Government, 2013).
Purposes of Education
In 1897 Dewey wrote that education is “a process of living and not a preparation for futureliving” (p.80). His writings on education were to become staples of philosophy of education
units in many teacher education programs. However, the purposes of education have been
intensely debated with no consensus being reached. Murphy and Gale (2004) argue that there
are “parallel discourses of ‘human capital’ and ‘social and cultural capital’” (p. 3). The former
relates to terms such as ‘performance’ and ‘competence’ and provides “a view that implies a
direct and singular connection between quality teaching learning, student achievement andlabour market outcomes (Murphy & Gale, 2004, p.3). In contrast, they argue that “discoursesof ‘social and cultural capital’ are characterised by issues of ‘difference’, ‘equity’ and ‘social
justice’ (Murphy & Gale, 2004, p. 4). Arising from this argument, for the purposes of this
discussion, a framework of three main educational purposes has been adopted.
Firstly, there is what Gillies (2011) discusses as the development of human capital wherein“the more and better education that individuals possess, the better their returns in financial
rewards and the better the national economy flourishes” (p. 225). He sounds a warning about
this purpose of education because:
there is a risk of education being narrowed to economic goals, of the broader
aims and purposes of education being submerged, and of the person being
reduced merely to ‘human capital’, not as a life to be lived, but as mere
economic potential to be exploited (Gillies, 2011, p. 225).
Biesta (2009) also refers to this function of education as one of ‘qualification’ which is:connected to economic arguments … an important rationale [that] can be seen
in ongoing discussions … about the apparent failure of education to provide
adequate preparation for work (p.40).
It is this purpose that frequently seems to dominate government discussions of education, atthe expense of two other purposes.
Biesta (2009) describes two other important purposes of education. The first of these is‘socialisation’, the “ways in which, through education, we become members of and part ofparticular social, cultural and political ‘orders’” (p. 40). Plato would have subscribed to thisview of education with his statement that the individual should be subordinate to a just state(Plato, 1955). The other purpose is ‘individuation’ or ‘subjectification’ where education
provides “processes . . . that allow those being educated to become more autonomous and

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independent in their thinking and acting” (p. 40). Kennedy (2014) extends the discussion of
the difference between the two in her explanation that socialisation positions those being
educated as ““novice” members of society who need to be inculcated into the culture andpractices of that particular society” (p. 2) and subjectification as positioning students as“individual members of society whose interests and talents should be fostered and encouraged
with the express intention of fostering independence and creativity” (p. 2).
With this framework as an underpinning for analysis of the discourses of the better Schools forAustralia campaign, attention is now turned to five television advertisements as examples.
Discourses of the Better Schools Plan
The eight television advertisements are each scripted to promote the view that many different
groups of people understand that there are advantages to the new initiative. Seven of theadvertisements are spoken from the point of view of different characters: a mother, a student,
a teacher, a grandfather, a youth worker, a builder and an economist. The eighth advertisement
was used as the launch and contained brief quotes from several of these characters. All of theadvertisements have a similar thrust in terms of the tag lines already mentioned: “to takeAustralian schools into the top five countries in the world by 2025” or “will help to give
Australian kids a world class education” (Australian Government, 2013).
In this section of the paper, the specific scripts of five of the characters, the economist, thebuilder, the student, the grandfather and the social worker are examined. It is important to notethat these are scripts for actors rather than the spontaneous response of real people and, as such,these scripts cast light on the government’s underlying views of the purpose of education.
Sections of the scripts in italics and different colours are there for the purpose of exposition
and are not in the original.
The first script is that attributed to Karl, an economist, who argues that:to me, nothing is more important to our country than education. To stay
economically competitive we need a well-educated population. We've alreadygot good schools and teachers but we've got to keep pushing to get our literacy,
numeracy and science scores back amongst the world's best (AustralianGovernment, 2013).
Here, the voice of economic rationalism speaks loudly, perhaps to be expected from an
economist’s point of view. Education here falls clearly into the rhetoric of the first purpose
described in the framework, the development of human capital. There is no reference toeducation having any individual purpose, but is rather a description of education as providing
national good such that the country can be economically competitive. Even in the comment
about raising literacy and numeracy scores the rhetoric is about competitiveness, being
amongst the world's best, whilst not referring to the other aspect of human capital development
described by Gillies (2011) as providing better educated people with “better … returns infinancial rewards” (p. 225).
Along similar lines is the script for Darren, a builder. Darren is concerned about businessgetting ahead and having ‘job-ready’ employees. He explains that:

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I'm a builder. This job's not just about banging nails in. I need apprentices who
are able to measure, calculate, read plans - people who can think on their feet.
Lifting education standards will help make well-rounded employees - people
who can think on their feet and that's got to be good for all businesses, big andsmall. A strong education system is not just important, it's a must for mybusiness.
Darren is discussing the need for educated employees so that not only his own business, but all
businesses can grow and prosper. Certainly it is important that employees can meet therequirements of the jobs that they hold, and this links with subjectification loosely as it must
be assumed that the employee wishes to improve his or herself, but the underlying discourse isstill economic and gaining a necessary qualification.
Turning our attention to the script for a student, Adam, he states that:my mum reckons, there's nothing more important than an education. What I
reckon is, if I get a good education, I'm more likely to get a good job, and dosomething I really love. And, if I get a great education, who knows. At this stage,
I don't really know what I want to be, but I really want the chance to be whatever that is (Australian Government, 2013).
In this script, two purposes are at play. Adam reveals the development of human capital
approach to education: I’m more likely to get a good job. At a time of high youth unemployment
and uncertainty about the youth job future this is a common comment from many students inschools. While playing into the economic rationalism rhetoric, it is certainly a very realcomment. Adam’s other comments move out of the human capital paradigm and into that ofsubjectification. In his statement regarding doing something I really love and, while not yet
knowing what future he wants, he really want[s] to be whatever that is, we can see at work
what Kennedy (20140 has described as Adam being “individual members of society whose
interests and talents should be fostered and encouraged with the express intention of fostering
independence and creativity” (p. 2). While the dominant discourse of the economist is stillapparent, it is subservient in this script to a more individual purpose to education.
Peter, who purports to be Adam’s grandfather, has the fourth script for discussion. Peter states
that:for me, there's nothing more important than my grandchildren's education. It's
more important now than when I went to school. Nowadays, we have got all thisglobal technology. If things happen as fast as they have in the last 50 years, wehave to work smarter. The National Plan for School Improvement means
children will have a better opportunity to get a great education for the world
they'll live in tomorrow.
In this script we see the only instance of what might be considered the socialisation purpose of
education. Here, peter is describing how his grandchildren will need to have a good education
to fit into the world they’ll live in tomorrow. This script begins to touch on how students canbe assisted to fit into the society of which they are a part through their education.
The fifth script considered here is one that can be argued is more problematic. It is that ofRebecca, a youth worker.

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As a community youth worker, I believe nothing is more important thaneducation. I see the cycle of disadvantage every day and I believe a great
education has the power to change lives. From what I know, the National Planfor School Improvement will fund schools based on the needs of students sokids who need extra support, get extra support, giving them a better chance tofinish school and get a great job. If we put opportunity in front of our kids
through a stronger education system, we grow stronger as a country (AustralianGovernment, 2013).
Here, the discourse of inclusivity and disadvantage is strong at the start. Rebecca argues
the cycle of disadvantage, the needs of students and imbues education with the power
to change lives. In all of the advertisements, this script most closely argues the
subjectification purpose of education. However, Rebecca is then scripted to move fromthis discourse into the government’s dominant discourse of national growth andeconomic rationalism. While it could be argued that stating the initiative will permit thedisadvantaged to get a great job, the linking of this statement with the statement that an
opportunity for education will allow us to grow stronger as a country deflates theformer argument.
Each of the scripts considered here has a slightly different approach to what the purposeof education might be. However, when coupled with the tag lines already mentioned
and also with the reasons for the initiative, explained in an earlier section, the strong
discourse is that of economic rationalism and development of human capital. This has
been re-stated in a recent media release (Phillips & Walters, 2014) where, discussing
recently released statistics on Australia’s poor world position across six measures inscience, technology, engineering and mathematics, the journalists state is importantbecause “science and innovation boost our standard of living and contribute toeconomic growth and jobs”. The economic imperative is still being promoted in the
media.
Discussion of Australia’s results in comparison to the rest of the world, one of thereasons publicly stated for the introduction of the Better Schools for Australia initiative,
falls squarely into the development of human capital agenda for education. Kennedy(2014) explains how:
the human capital function is evident in the way in which international measuresof student achievement are used as proxy measurements for the success of
individual nation states’ education systems (and by implication, the success of
their teachers) and therefore are seen to be measures of the human capital
produced by these countries (p. 2).
While this discourse positions schools and funding arrangements, and by corollary, students inparticular ways, it is also a discourse that positions teachers and pre-service teachers inimportant, and contestable, ways. This positioning is the subject of the next section.
Teacher and Teacher Education in the Accountability Era
For decades, debates and decisions about teacher education have been permeated withdiscourses of accountability and quality. While few would argue against the need for teachers

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both to be accountable and to be quality educators, the positioning of teachers within theprofession is being subtly refashioned by the development of professional teaching standards
that define what it means to be a quality teacher. However, the calls for greater accountability
and better quality have emerged as the result of performance on international measures such as
the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) (Australian Government, 2013;
New South Wales Government, 2013). These calls have resulted in professional teaching
standards which purport to describe what it means to be a quality teacher (Australian Institutefor Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL], 2011) as well as new measures for accreditationof teacher education programs. Conway and Murphy (2013), writing about ireland while
acknowledging the global trend, refer to this coupling of a range of accountability issues withmeasures of perfomance as a “rising tide meeting a perfect storm” (p. 11) and they argue that
this is part of a global education reform with its “with its new emphasis on standardisation, anarrow focus on literacy and numeracy and a reconfiguration from low/moderate to high-stakes
accountability (p. 29).
Kennedy (2014) describes how teachers are positioned in the accountability milieu bydrawing on the same framework of the purposes of education as previously described (p. 3).
She argues that teachers can be positioned as “‘novice’ members of the profession who need
to be inculcated into the existing culture and practices of the profession, and thereafter help tomaintain the status quo” (socialisation) or “state functionaries who will enable students toenhance the standing of the country through increased success in international league tablesof performance” (development of human capital) or “autonomous educators who cancontribute to the common good through the fostering of their own specific interests andtalents in creative ways” (p. 3). It can be argued that professional teaching standards promote
one view of what it means to be a quality teacher, a view that can be argued as technicist in
its approach.
Ryan and Bourke (2012) further argue that “bureaucratic, hierarchical and managerial controls
replace cultures of collaboration; there are competencies and licensing rather than trust” (p. 2).
In the race to prove that teachers and teacher education are accountable to the public and to thegovernment, there is the possibility that the questions of being accountable to whom, for what
and why could be ignored. One of the unfortunate aspects of professional teaching standards
is that, given their claim to ensure quality, there will be no critique of what quality might mean.
Is it quality to ensure that the devilment of human capital occurs so that a nation can be seenas ‘better’ than others in measures of particular subject areas? Is it quality to have all teachers
subscribing to a ‘one size fits all’ view of what a quality teacher is? Sachs (2003) states that:while any attempt to develop a ‘one size fits all’ version of standards may beattractive to governments, it may not be in the best interests of teachers teachingin remote areas, in difficult schools, or in multi-age settings where theircompetence will be judged on the basis of some idealized notion of whatcompetent or excellent teaching might be (p. 185).
It is clear that there needs to be sound critique of the discourses of education, teacher quality
and accountability.
Conclusion
It is clear, both from an examination of the rhetoric of the Better Schools for Australia
campaign and from the current literature that the dominant discourse for education is one of

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economic rationalism and the standardisation of what it means to be a teacher. However, there
is a long history of opposing views as to what the purposes of education are/should be. The
discussion seems to be encapsulated in the framework of three distinct purposes as outlined inthis paper. Plato (1955) would espouse the socialisation view of education. Many governments
are less philosophical, but would probably agree with Plato providing that the economic
rationalist view, the development of human capital, was also dominant. However, manyteachers and educational researchers are questioing this view of education, preferring to lookto the ways in which the individual can achieve self-actualization.
It seems, in the current climate, that discussions about the purposes of education and what
quality education might be is at an impasse. It is suggested here that one possible way forward
is global collaborative research into the how the purposes of education can be melded. It is notsuggested that there is only one purpose: indeed, there is an constant interplay between
competing purposes. However, it is imperative that there not be one dominant discourse, onethat looks only to the economic good of the nation.

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References
Australian Government. (2013). The National Plan for School Improvement. Capital Hill,
Canberra: Australian Government.
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL]. (2011). AustralianProfessional Standards for Teachers. Canberra: Education Services Australia
Biesta, G. (2009). Good education in an age of measurement: on the need to reconnect with
the question of purpose in education. Educational Assessment, Evaluation andAccountability, 21(1), 33 - 46. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11092-008-9064-9.
Bradley, D., Noonan, P., Nugent, H., & Scales, B. (2008). Review of Australian Higher
Education discussion paper. Canberra: Department of Education Science andTechnology.
Conway, P. F., & Murphy, R. (2013). A rising tide meets a perfect storm: newaccountabilities in teaching and teacher education in Ireland. Irish Educational Studies,32(1), 11-36. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03323315.2013.773227.
Council of Australian Governments. (2009). National Partnership Agreement on Improving
Teacher Quality. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.
Department of Education Employment and Work Relations. (2010). Building the Education
Revolution. Retrieved 3 June 2011, fromhttp://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/BuildingTheEducationRevolution/Pages/default.aspx.
Department of Education Employment and Work Relations. (2013). Expenditure on the'Better Schools for Australia' campaign in 2013. Freedom of Information Disclosure
Log. Canberra: Department of Education Employment and Work Relations. Retrieved 26
July 2014, from https://docs.education.gov.au/documents/expenditure-better-schoolsaustralia-campaign-2013.
Dewey, J. (1897). My pedagogic creed. The School Journal, LIV(3), 77 - 80.
Gillies, D. (2011). State education as high-yield investment: Human capital theory inEuropean policy discourse. Journal of Pedagogy, 2(2), 224 - 245. doi:
http://dx.dio.org/10.2478/v10159-011-0011-3.
House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Vocational Training.
(2007). Top of the Class. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.
Kennedy, A. (2014). What do professional learning policies say about purposes of teacher
education? Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 1 - 12. doi:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1359866x.2014.940279.
Murphy, E., & Gale, T. (2004, 28 November - 2 December). A new story for quality teaching
and teacher learning: Talking across conceptual and contextual boundaries. Paper
presented at the Australian Association for Research in Education 2004, Melbourne,
Victoria.
Phillips, N., & Walters, C. (2014, 1st December). Australian science and innovation in six
charts. The Age. Melbourne, Victoria. Retrieved 1 December 2014, fromhttp://www.theage.com.au/technology/sci-tech/australian-science-and-innovation-in-sixcharts-20141130-11wg87.html.
Plato (1955). The Republic. (H. D. P. Lee, Trans.). London: Penguin Books. (Original work
published c. 380 BC)
New South Wales Government. (2013). Great Teaching, Inspired Learning: A blueprint foraction. Sydney, NSW: New South Wales Government.

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Ryan, M., & Bourke, T. (2012). The teacher as reflexive professional: making visible theexcluded discourse in teacher standards. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of
Education, 1-13. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2012.717193.
Sachs, J. (2003). Teacher professional standards: Controlling or developing teaching?
Teachers and Teaching, 9(2), 175-186. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13540600309373.
Skilbeck, M., & Connell, H. (2004). Teachers for the Future - The Changing Nature ofSociety and Related Issues for the Teaching Workforce. A Report to the Teacher Quality
and Educational Leadership Taskforce of the Ministerial Council for Education,
Employment Training and Youth Affairs. Canberra: Ministerial Council for Education,
Employment Training and Youth Affairs.

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Transcending Teacher Professional Development:

From Determinism to Complexity

Abdul Rahman, Garry Hoban & Wendy Nielsen
University of Wollongong, Australia
Abstract
There is a multiplicity of factors and actors that come into play to make teacher
professional development (TPD) a strategic and powerful scheme for improving teacher
practices. This multiplicity is evident in educational practices and theories.
Consequently, traditional perspectives that take a simple view of TPD as a single,
independent entity in teacher learning in isolation from other factors and actors areproblematic. To better understand how TPD can bring about change in teacher
practices–transforming teacher learning, there is a need to transcend the linear, causal,
deterministic assumption about TPD. Here, in this discussion paper, I argue thatpowerful TPD is neither determined nor directed, but rather emerges. Powerful TPD
emerges from many interconnected agents and these agents interact and combine indifferent ways depending on the situation, are reciprocal and are always nested, thus
TPD is a complex enterprise. In order to showcase the complexity of the enterprise,
TPD in the Indonesian context will be scrutinised using the lens of complexity theory.
Keywords: teacher professional development, teacher learning, teacher change,
complexity theory, Indonesia

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Introduction
Teacher professional development (TPD) has become a major focus of a worldwide
educational reform agenda because of the belief that students’ learning and achievement
is largely dependent on the quality of teachers’ instructional practices (DarlingHammond, Wei, Andree, Richardson, & Orphanos, 2009; Doecke et al., 2008; OECD,
2009; World Bank, 2011). In this sense, TPD can be seen as a powerful mechanism forenhancing teachers’ instructional practices (Desimone, Porter, Garet, Yoon, & Birman,
2002). If the educational reform agenda is to improve students’ performance, then apowerful TPD is fundamental.
Yet, providing TPD that is powerful to enhance teachers’ instructional practice isneither simple nor straightforward as a proposition or undertaking. Literature on TPD
suggests that a number of factors need to be taken into account to provide powerful
TPD. The factors range from contents, types and processes of TPD (Burney & Elmore,
1999; Darling-Hammond & McLaughlin, 1995; Desimone et al., 2002; Ingvarson,
Meiers, & Beavis, 2005), to teacher characteristics (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2007;
Guskey, 2002; Little, 1993; Pajares, 1992; Putnam & Borko, 2000; Smylie, 1988) andthe conditions in schools (Bredeson & Johansson, 2000; Jurasaite-Harbison & Rex,
2010; Wermke, 2011). These research studies not only illuminate the importance of
these influential factors in TPD, but they also illustrate that powerful TPD is influenced
by a multiplicity of factors.
This discussion paper presents a perspective on the complexity nature of TPD. It
examines the multidimensionality and non-linear dynamics of TPD to shape teacher
change and argues for a need to transcend the linear, causal, deterministic assumption
underlying TPD practices –how TPD is conceived and conducted. The examination
begins with an outline of perspectives on TPD and the corresponding implications of
the perspectives. The paper then develops a proposition of TPD based on complexity
theory and to illuminate the proposition, following the discussion is a showcase of TPD
in the Indonesian context that is explored from the perspective of complexity theory.
Contemporary Perspectives on TPD
In the literature, there is a variety of terms and definitions related to the notion of teacher
learning and change. Among those commonly used terms are teacher training, inservice education and training (INSET), in-service learning, staff development,
continuing professional development (CPD), staff development, professional
development, continuing education, professional learning and life-long learning alongwith their respective definitions. Yet, the ideas or meanings of these terms are mostly
often overlapped. Burke (2000) illustrated that “when educators think of professional
development, they usually think of in-service days” (p. 29). Therefore, these terms are
sometimes used loosely and interchangeably (see for examples; Bolam & McMahon,
2004; Burke, 2000; Craft, 2000; Day, 1999). In this paper, the term teacher professional
development (TPD) is adopted to mean “a learning system in which influential factors
and actors interrelate and interact to shape teacher learning and change”.
A number of different perspectives have informed the practice of TPD over time. The
first perspective views TPD as activities, events, or opportunities. Fenstermacher and

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Berliner (1983), for instance, viewed TPD as “the provision of activities designed toadvance the knowledge, skills, and understanding of teachers in ways that lead tochange in their thinking and classroom behaviour” (p. 4, emphasis added). In a similarvein, Bolam (2000) argued:[T]PD embraces those education, training and job-embedded support
activities engaged in by teachers, following their initial certification, andhead-teachers. Such activities are aimed primarily at adding to theirprofessional knowledge, improving their professional skills and helping
them to clarify their professional values so that they can educate theirstudents more effectively. (p. 267, emphasis added)
The focus of this perspective of TPD is then on formulating the types of learning
activities that can effectively and efficiently deliver the expected knowledge and skills
for teachers. This perspective is concerned with the quest of “what” types, forms andmodels of TPD that work best to improve teachers’ instructional practices. Thus, in thecurrent discussion of TPD, the supporters of this perspective compel to replace the socalled “traditional” learning activities to “reform” ones such as changing workshops,
seminars, and in-service training with action research, collaborative learning, or peer
network.
The second perspective regards TPD as a process by which teacher quality can beenhanced (Evans, 2002; Sparks & Loucks-Horsley, 1989). Evans, for example,
interpreted TPD, or ‘teacher development’ to use her term, as “the process whereby
teachers’ professionality and/or professionalism may be considered to be enhanced”(p. 131, emphasis in original). In this perspective, the concern is about uncovering theprocesses that work best for developing teachers’ knowledge and skills. Therefore, theproponents of this perspective are likely to concentrate their attention on the “how” of
TPD can be best delivered so that teacher quality is enhanced. Common issues in thisperspective include whether to let teachers plan and pursue their own learning, to send
them on courses, to present teachers with problems and challenges or to impose changes
on them.
The third perspective combines the previous two perspectives and conceives of TPD as
both activities and processes. Guskey (2000) defined TPD “as those processes andactivities designed to enhance the professional knowledge, skills, and attitudes of
educators so that they might, in return, improve learning of students” (p. 16, emphasis
added). In an overarching and commonly cited definition, Day (1999) explained:
Professional development consists of all natural learning experiences andthose conscious and planned activities which are intended to be of direct
or indirect benefit to the individual, group or school and which contribute,
through these, to the quality of education in the classroom. It is the process
by which, alone and with others, teachers review, renew and extend theircommitment as change agents to the moral purposes of teaching; and bywhich they acquire and develop critically the knowledge, skills andemotional intelligence essential to good professional thinking, planningand practice with children, young people and colleagues through eachphase of their teaching lives. (p. 4, emphasis added)

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This perspective is the combination of both the “what” and “how” of TPD.
Theoretically the activity and process of TPD are dependent on one another and, inmost cases, a particular TPD activity informs the process that it entails and vice versa.
For example, action research as a TPD activity, involves an investigative process
whereby teachers examine their practices in order to improve them. This third
perspective is evident among the scholars who propose a set of those “effective”
features of TPD (e.g. Ball & Cohen, 1999; Burney & Elmore, 1999; Darling-Hammond& McLaughlin, 1995; Desimone et al., 2002; Hawley & Valli, 1999; Knapp, 2003).
The last perspective views TPD as a complex system rather than just an activity or aprocess, or both (Davis & Sumara, 2007; Hoban, 2002; Knight, 2002; Morrison, 2008;
Opfer & Pedder, 2011). Opfer and Pedder (2011), for example, construed ”teacher
learning as a complex system representing recursive interactions between systems andelements that coalesce in ways that are unpredictable but also highly patterned” (p. 379,
emphasis added). With the same orientation, Hoban (2002) coined the term
“professional learning system” to advocate a theoretical framework in teacher learning“based on a combination of … conditions for teacher learning that need to complement
each other to support educational change as a complex system” (p. 68, emphasis added).
The next section discusses why it is more appropriate to conceptualise TPD as acomplex system rather than just an activity, a process or both an activity and a process.
Teacher Professional Development as a Complex System
Complexity theory underlies the argument in this paper. While the theory originates inother fields, such as physics, biology, mathematics and economics, complexity theory
has been increasingly employed in the social sciences, including education (Davis &Sumara, 2006; Hoban, 2002; Lemke & Sabelli, 2008; Nielsen, Clarke, Triggs, &Collins, 2010; Opfer & Pedder, 2011; Reigeluth, 2004). Complexity theory is a way of
thinking and acting that perceives and conceives living systems to consist of multiple
elements or agents that interact in many different ways, and further, the organisation ofthese systems cannot be understood in simple mechanistic or linear ways (AlhadeffJones, 2008; Mason, 2008; Waldrop, 1992). According to Mainzer (2007), “[t]heprinciples of complex systems suggest that the physical, social, and mental world isnonlinear, [and] complex” (p. 417, emphasis added). The systems are nonlinear because
a direct causal connection cannot be specified. Semetsky (2008)_ENREF_45 explicatedthat “[a] single cause may in fact lead to a multiplicity of effects; conversely, a single
effect may be produced by a multiplicity of causes” (p. 80). The physical, social, andmental worlds are complex because “a great many independent agents are interactingwith each other in a great many ways” (Waldrop, 1992, p. 11). From this complex
systems perspective, the paper builds on and extends the work of those who
conceptualise TPD as a complex system in an attempt to develop a more dynamic
understanding of TPD.
There are at least two primary reasons for conceptualising (TPD) as a complex system.
First, casting TPD as a complex system implies that numerous factors come into playin TPD. As described in the earlier perspectives, TPD is multidimensional in nature.
Therefore, when teachers participate in a TPD program, their learning and change
cannot be attributed to a single factor. Teacher learning and change are made possible
by other elements or agents being already in place. Teacher learning and change occur,for example, when among others, a learning activity is available; the teachers have a

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need and/or motivation for the learning; their beliefs, knowledge and experience arecompatible with the knowledge or skills to be learned; and supports are provided byprincipals or administrators (Ball, 1996; Bransford & Schwartz, 1999; Caffarella &Barnett, 1994; Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1999; Richter, Kunter, Klusmann, Lüdtke, &Baumert, 2011). The presence of these agents and elements means that a perspectivethat views TPD as an activity is too narrow and restrictive.
The second reason for conceptualising TPD as a complex system relates to the processof TPD. A number of scholars argue that TPD researchers and practitioners havecommitted an epistemological flaw by approaching TPD in a linear, causal anddeterministic way (Gravani, 2007; Hoban, 2002; Opfer & Pedder, 2011; WebsterWright, 2009). Guskey (1986, 2002) and Desimone (2009), for example, proposed thefollowing models of TPD:
Figure 1. Guskey’s (1986, 2002) model

Figure 2. Desimone’s (2009) model

Although the two models are different in some aspects such as the order of changes andthe nature of relationship among factors and actors, both of the models are presented
visually in a linear, cause-effect, deterministic way. The models assume that: 1) an
activity or reality occurs in a sequential process; 2) one part of an entity causes or affects
another part in a linear way; and 3) because of this linear, cause-effect relationship, theoutcome of an activity is pre-determined and known. This view holds that a known
input will repeatedly produce a similar effect (Jayasinghe, 2011). Thus, it is a common
belief in the field of TPD that once teachers attend “effective” TPD, the desired learningand change will follow. Unfortunately, the relationship of agents (factors and actors)
that interrelate in TPD is highly complex, which means that the outcomes of TPD aremostly unpredictable (Gravani, 2007; Knight, 2002). TPD is more than just a process
or a compilation of an activity (by an agent) and a process, but is a nonlinear system inwhich “the effect is disproportionate to the cause” (Larsen-Freeman, 1997, p. 143).

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It is from this multidimensionality and non-linearity of TPD that the paper argues for
TPD as a complex system. Figure 3 depicts a representation of TPD as a complex
system. However, Figure 3 presents only a simplified image of a much more complex
set of processes and structures. First, there are multiple factors and actors (small circles)
operating in one system (the larger circle). Second, as the two-way arrows suggest, theprocesses at play in a system are not linear but rather one element or agent can feedback or influence (or be influenced by) other elements. Third, the arrows outside thelarger circle indicate that there are other systems, elements or agents operating outside
this particular system that are influential to this one. In sum, through the lens ofcomplexity theory, TPD is a learning system with multiple elements and agents thatinteract in non-linear ways to occasion the emergence of teacher learning and change.
Figure 3. Conceptual framework of TPD as a complex system (Adapted from Davis &Sumara, 2006)

TPD in Indonesia from a Complexity Perspective
This section presents a description of typical TPD in Indonesia. Some basic conceptsof complexity theory are useful in attempting to understand the complex nature of TPD.
Among these concepts include: nested structure, feedback and sensitivity to initialconditions, and emergent and self-organisation.

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TPD in Indonesia: A glimpse
A typical TPD program in Indonesia starts with a letter of invitation but mostly in asense of a request received by schools from educational authorities (districts, provinces,or central government) or TPD providers. This letter specifies the information about
contents, duration, venues for the TPD program and most importantly the allocatednumber of teachers or subject teachers required to attend the program. The principals
then choose teachers to represent the schools at the TPD programs. Although, there issometimes a guideline or a set of criteria for choosing the teachers, in most cases, thedecision on which teachers to choose is at the principals’ discretion. Thus, a TPD
program commonly involves teachers from various backgrounds (e.g. districts, school
types, career status and qualifications). Generally, TPD learning activity takes the formof workshop training which is held at training centres or hotels in districts, provincesor a state capital. The duration of this workshop training ranges from a one-day
workshop to a 15-day workshop training. In the workshop training, teacher participantsreceive intensive lectures on specified educational topics such as teaching methods,
curriculum or assessment from 08:00 to 17:00 and then a second session in the evening
from 19:30 to 21:30. Training instructors are not only required to follow specified
teaching methodologies to assure consistent delivery, but also to ensure that the sameoutcomes are achieved by all participants. Upon their return to their schools, teachers
have the responsibility to cascade the newly gained knowledge and skills to their fellow
teachers through a series of learning activities in their districts and schools (Adey,
Hewitt, Hewitt, & Landau, 2004; Supriatna, 2011; Thair & Treagust, 1997).
With this kind of TPD practices, many have argued that TPD has a little or limited
impact on teachers’ instructional practices for several reasons. First, schools do notprovide adequate support for teachers to share their learning experiences with otherteachers as well as to experiment the newly gained knowledge and skills. Second, what
teachers learn from their TPD is often not applicable or practical to their school andclassroom conditions. Third, teachers have restricted time and energy to haveprofessional talks with their colleagues due to the fact that many teachers hold a second
job to supplement their low incomes (Saito, Imansyah, Kubok, & Hendayana, 2007;
Supriatna, 2011; Yuwono & Harbon, 2010). Put differently, "[t]he impact of training intransforming Indonesian educational institutions is not clearly established at all. The
effects of training are arbitrary and, too often, dependent on the unplanned interactionsof returning trainees, their supervisors and opportunities in their working environments.
Much training leads nowhere except to unrealized potential, frustration and waste"(Cannon & Arlianti, 2008, p. 79).
Nested Structure
Complex systems are made up of elements or agents that are simultaneously agents ofother systems (Davis & Sumara, 2007; Doll, 2008). Each whole system is a collectionof interacting agents and at the same time is a part of a more inclusive whole. In thisarrangement, “the part-whole relationship is a nested one” (Doll, 2008, p. 187).
Therefore, in the nested structure of a complex system, everything is inextricablyinterrelated with everything else and the development and change of one agent/systeminfluences and is influenced by that of other agents/systems. The concept of nested
structure helps us to embrace the idea that TPD is composed of and comprises otheragents/systems. TPD is itself a system along with its constituent parts including

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instructors, activities, learning materials and participants and at the same time it is apart a greater system such as a TPD system or an educational system for a country.
Thus, TPD is not an isolated or independent system disconnected from other systems
in which it operates and to which it is related.
It is commonly argued that TPD in Indonesia brings about little impact on teacher
learning and instructional practices. One of the important reasons for this small impact
is the types of TPD activity that are made available to the teachers. The answer is thento look for and introduce new types of TPD that are “empirically effective” to improveteacher quality such as lesson study and action research. However, something which isassumed to have a positive impact often does not yield the expected outcomes. The
introduction of lesson study in TPD program in Indonesia, for example, does not in
itself guarantee teachers’ improved learning and instructional practices. Sometimes
quite the opposite is true. Teachers who attempt a lesson study in their schools may
become resentful to their fellow teachers or principal who are not “in the same page”
which in turn badly influences school dynamic. Other teachers may feel the lesson study
to be too demanding or time-consuming, which may lead them to withdraw their
participation. Schools may become over-reliant on this new type of TPD and then fall
into a traditional view of TPD where the procedure or activity is supposed to be a quick
fix for quality improvement that has been mandated by authorities. Thus, impact of
TPD cannot be solely attributed the type of TPD/learning activity. There are other actors
and factors, such as teachers, principals, and members of schools that affect the TPD
impact at teacher or school level.TPD cannot be fully understood without reference toother agents and systems within which it operates.
Feedback and Sensitivity to Initial Conditions
A feedback loop is a mechanism that either keeps a system in an overall steady state bydampening perturbations or amplifying a specific quality in the system so as to ensure
the change is noticed and a response enabled (Davis & Sumara, 1997; Haggis, 2008).
On one hand, a feedback loop that functions to regulate and control the course and theoutcome of the system is called a negative or regulatory feedback loop. On the other
hand, a feedback loop that functions to notice or inform the system when something
new happens and thus amplify it into messages that signal a need for change is calleda negative or regulatory feedback loop (Wheatley, 2009). A feedback loop, both
negative and positive one, occurs between the interacting agents of a system and thefeedback continually adjusts and modifies both the agents of the system and the systemitself (Haggis, 2008).
A complex system has also “initial characteristics [that] can have profound effects onlater behaviour … [and] small variations at the beginning of a process can have large
effects in the end” (Buell & Cassidy, 2001, p. 212). In the realm of complexity, this isunderstood as ‘sensitivity to initial conditions’. The initial condition of a complex
system involves many different combinations of interactions which are possible at thatpoint in time (Haggis, 2008). Haggis further explained that “[t]his untrackable history
of interactions (both within and beyond the system) is crucial in determining the formof future emergences, making time and history of central importance [in complex
systems]” (p. 158). The ideas of feedback loop and sensitivity to initial conditions
suggest the necessity to acknowledge and engage with the history of the particular TPD
system and its interacting parts. The feedback loop mechanisms help us to recognise

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that the outcome of TPD is shaped by the kind of responses that are fed back into theinteracting parts and the TPD system. The sensitivity to initial conditions suggests thata similar TPD program can produce different outcomes at the teacher and school level
because of the diversity of teachers’ or schools’ initial characteristics.
TPD programs in Indonesia commonly emanate from agents (districts, provinces orcentral authorities) external to teachers and that operate at a different level of thesystem. To assure the smooth and successful implementation of TPD programs, theauthorities have virtually developed every aspect of the TPD including content,
duration, number of participants and so on. Based on these pre-specifications, policy
makers, TPD providers, instructors, and principals evaluate the progress or outcome ofthe programs. Teachers, in turn, are expected to adjust their behaviour and attitude
towards these criteria. This kind of evaluation is essentially a negative feedback loopthat aims to regulate and control the courses and outcomes of TPD programs onteachers. A deviation from the specified processes and outcomes is not tolerated and,thus, should be abandoned, leaving teachers no room for improvisation. A powerful
TPD program should allow and stimulate any single ideas and experiences to be
amplified into innovations or novel practices, instead. It indicates that TPD also needs
to incorporate positive feedback mechanisms so that a seemingly small event can beamplified to bring about a bigger impact.
The idea of sensitivity to initial conditions means that the starting point of any TPD
program is different from one teacher or a group of teachers to another. These are initialconditions that are consequential in terms of the impacts of TPD on teachers. Where
teachers start with a particular TPD program often has a big impact on where they end
up. Some teachers may have already accessed materials or ideas presented in the TPD
programs, and thus, could feel bored and/or influence the dynamic of group in the
program. Others might have had prior negative TPD experiences that could influence
their present response to a new program. In a more positive circumstance, a teacher may
point out a particular practice that he has been doing in his class and this point could
trigger other teachers to engage in an in-depth group discussion that could presage thedevelopment of a learning community.
Feedback mechanisms and sensitivity to initial conditions help us to recognise thatwhile some aspects of TPD can be carefully managed and controlled, others cannot.
Further, it is almost impossible to know in advance which interactions will besignificant, what interactions have preceded the TPD, and what has resulted from theseprevious and unknown interactions (Haggis, 2008). Sometimes, those who involve in
TPD just need to observe until they recognise what emerges and provide necessary
positive feedback.
Emergent and Self-Organising
From a complexity theory, change is natural, evolutionary, and emergent from a processthat is neither imposed nor directed (Byrne, 2001; Morrison, 2008; Waldrop, 1992).
What emerges at a system level is the result of interactions among the agents of thesystem. The popular example is termites that develop into a colony and as a collective
can build an incredible structure (e.g. the termite mound) relative to the size of thebuilders. Yet, in the process of building the mound, there is no chief termite, architecttermite or master plan. Each individual termite acts locally, following a few simple

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shared rules: the termite mound emerges from a process of self-organisation. This
manner of organisation means that most of the interactions between agents within such
systems are with their closest neighbours and are based on simple sets of local rules.
Self-organising systems, like the termite colony, demonstrate the ability of all social orliving systems to organise into a web of interactions that increases capacity: thiscapacity cannot be reduced to the sum of its parts.
The emergent and self-organising principles help us to understand that providing TPD
opportunities to all teachers in the same way will not yield the same outcomes for every
teacher. Outcomes of TPD are shaped by the kind of local needs, interests, orconventions that shape teachers’ behaviours and responses toward their TPD
experiences. The principles also posit that local actors in TPD such as teachers,
principals, and administrators have the capacity to behave adaptively and produce theexpected outcomes without directions detailing their actions.
The emphasis of TPD in Indonesia is often on careful, top-down organization rather
than encouraging local interactions. As mentioned previously, most TPD programs are
imposed on teachers by superior authorities who envisage particular changes in theparticipating teachers. However, most teachers do not achieve or display the envisagedchanges because teachers need to adapt what they take from the TPD to what alreadyexists or applies in their schools. For example, delivering an ICT training program toteachers and asking them to integrate ICT into their instruction does not necessarilymean that all teachers will use ICT-based learning activities. Teacher capacity todevelop and implement such learning activities may be enabled or hindered by local
factors, such as IT resources at the school, teacher values and beliefs about ICT, school
culture and the principal. Those involved in delivering such training have little or nocontrol over such local factors.
The principles of emergence and self-organisation suggest that particular outcomes or
effects cannot be imposed on teachers by external authorities. TPD providers cannot
position themselves as authorities that can direct the courses and hence outcomes ofparticular TPD activities. Instead, the system in which teachers is a part of, say a school,“decides” what is and is not desirable, acceptable or applicable.
Implications and Conclusion
What specifically, then, are the implications of complexity theory for the practices of
TPD? Complexity theory presents a number of challenges to conventional ways ofthinking about TPD.
First, people who are involved in TPD need to redefine TPD. It is a common practicethat when one thinks of TPD, the focus of attention is on the activity of TPD to the
exclusion or little attention of other factors and actors. However, if TPD is regarded as
a complex system then the attention needs to be extended from a focus on individual
consideration of activity to the TPD as a whole. A complexity perspective enables
people to view TPD as a system of relationships and participations (Davis, 2003).
Second, whoever has a stake in TPD needs to surrender certainty and predictability. A
complexity perspective informs the inevitability of changes in the courses and outcomesof TPD on teachers. Attempts to hold or fix the courses and outcomes of TPD as
constant are impossible and indicate a perspective on learning that “assumes learning

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can be isolated, separated, and controlled from the milieu in which it is embedded”(Clarke & Collins, 2007). From a complexity perspective TPD providers,administrators, and principals cannot determine completely the courses and outcomesof TPD in advance. However, this indeterminacy does not mean that anything goes
randomly or that plans, expectations or standards for TPD are abandoned. Rather, it isan acknowledgment that expecting teachers to perform neatly to a predetermined set ofoutcomes (practices) of TPD and at the same time to allow for “rich” learning forteachers is highly improbable. Last, people who are involved in TPD need to allow for
improvisation. Too often teachers are positioned and treated to be passive recipients ofknowledge and skills. They cheerfully forgo inquiry and mindlessly submit to what they
are being told to do. However, in many literature about TPD this is not the sort oflearning that can help teachers improve themselves. Teachers have to be reflective
practitioners in their learning (Shulman & Shulman, 2004) and the generative spacecreated by improvisation is essential for the emergence of such properties.
Improvisation is “a willingness to hold in abeyance patterned responses and allow for
the possibility of something new to emerge” (Clarke & Collins, 2007, p. 170). Clarke
and Collins further explicated that improvisation is a not a solitary act but relies oninteraction, communication and a willingness to explore from others.
To sum up, if people who are involved in the provision of TPD are to understand thepotential of TPD to enhance teachers’ instructional practices, there is a need totranscend the linear, causal, deterministic assumption underlying current TPD
practices. Complexity theory helps us to understand and acknowledge the complex
interplay of factors that influence teacher learning and change. It also helps us to accept
and capitalise on the fact that TPD opportunities may not influence teachers, schools,
and ultimately students, in the same ways as expected or predicted. TPD is a complex
enterprise of practices, and thus approaches underpinned by a “one size fits all”
approach will likely flounder because they fail to take into account the inherently
complex nature of TPD.

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