Transformative Learning Model Research Articles

Education Embraced: Substantiating the Educational Foundations of Landmark Education’s Transformative Learning Model

In 2011, Renee Lockwood offered a “dissection of the religio-spiritual dimensions of Landmark Education.” Dissecting her argument suggested a narrow categorization of basic human experiences as religio-spiritual; literature cited was from religious studies absent teaching and learning research. Key distinctions of NRMs (New Religious Movements) and the brief mention of shifting boundaries of secular and sacred generally speaking in western culture were overlooked. Most critiques were of the est training (est) – last offered in 1984, while The Landmark Forum (the Forum) was first offered in 1991. This critique employed instead research of both classic and contemporary scholars who study teaching and learning. Lockwood’s dissection scalpel was ultimately a means to verify the educational substance of Landmark Education’s (Landmark) self-described “breakthrough technology” (2015). Rather, Landmark’s holistic, transformational approach to education is not only appropriate for a culture shaped by the aforementioned shifting boundaries, but also valuable for those concerned about 21st century problems facing humanity.

Dialogic understanding of teachers' online transformative learning: A qualitative case study of teacher discussions in a graduate-level online course

Teachers are expected to implement new educational technologies and adapt to new teaching environments. However, it involves a complex learning process that can lead to their perspective transformation. We have developed and taught a discussion-based online course to facilitate teachers' transformative learning. This qualitative case study examines teachers' perspective transformation in our course to understand the nature of effective online teacher-to-teacher discussions. Based on a theoretical framework that integrates Mezirow's transformative learning model and Bakhtin's dialogism, this paper builds on previous literature on teacher-to-teacher discussions as well as providing a fresh perspective to inform the current globalized teacher education context.

Transformative learning model and its application to a global master's program in health and sustainable development

clinic day, focusing on history, examination, evaluation, and development of differential diagnosis and management plans. Results (Scientific Abstract)/Collaborative Partners (Programmatic Abstract): HIV Unit, Malawi Ministry of Health Summary/Conclusion: Side-by-side mentorship improves provider confidence and comfort with pediatric HIV care provision. Knowledge gaps can be addressed in a time-efficient manner by reviewing standardized clinical practice cases with mentees. Cases are interactive and brief, allowing mentors to conduct high-yield small-group or individualized teaching sessions even in the setting of a busy clinic. Clinical Practice Cases appear useful as a means of providing relevant and memorable pediatric HIV education to mentees. Additional resources should be developed to include malnutrition, disclosure, and non-HIV topics. Cases will be shared with the Ministry of Health for integration into a countrywide mentorship program toolkit.

The secret adventures of order: globalization, education and transformative social justice learning

There are many definitions of globalization, or perhaps more accurately, there are many globalizations. Discussing the four faces of globalization - globalization from above, globalization from below, the globalization of human rights, and the globalization of the war against terrorism - and their impacts on education and learning, this article offers an analysis of neoliberal globalization and how "competition-based reforms" affected educational policy in K-12 and higher education. These reforms are characterized by efforts to create measurable performance standards through extensive standardized testing (the new standards and accountability movement), introduction of new teaching and learning methods leading to the expectation of better performance at low cost (e.g., universalization of textbooks), and improvements in the selection and training of teachers. Competition-based reforms in higher education tend to adopt a vocational orientation and to reflect the point of view that colleges and universities exist largely to serve the economic well-being of a society. Privatization is the final major reform effort linked to neoliberal globalization and perhaps the most dominant. As an alternative, the article provides insights into the possibilities of employing the concept of marginality as a central construct for a model of transformative social justice learning. Following the inspiration of Paulo Freire, I argue that transformative social justice learning is a social, political and pedagogical practice which will take place when people reach a deeper, richer, more textured and nuanced understanding of themselves and their world.

Exploring transformative learning opportunities as part of the delivery of a video-based intervention

A teacher of the deaf reported a change in perspective following her involvement as a participant in a therapeutic intervention known as video interaction guidance (VIG). We applied a model of transformative learning to validate this report and to explore how this process was initiated. We analysed the transcriptions of two video selections from a 35 minute therapy intervention session with the teacher of the deaf for indicators of stance. The teacher of the deaf’s change in stance is mapped in her discourse throughout the session to explore this learning process. The proposition is that particular discourse components can trigger a transformative learning process. Our analysis showed that the participant frequently used binary distinctions to structure their talk subsequent to the guide having introduced a dialectic exploration of a binary proposition. The object of the learning extends beyond the video component as the participant situates this learning in their wider communicative practices. We explore the ways in which the intervention facilitated this learning process and discuss the ways in which the potential for learning can be maximised.

Secondary-school students' motivation for portfolio reflection

Several studies concluded that deep reflection is infrequently reached in student portfolios. An explanation for these disappointing conclusions might be that motivation for portfolio reflection determines the quality of reflection. This study aimed to examine the relationship between motivation for using digital portfolios and reflection. Participants were 156 eleventh-grade students in secondary education, whose motivation for composing a digital portfolio was measured by the motivation part of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire. Portfolios of 37 of the 156 students were examined in terms of the amount and nature of reflection by means of a coding scheme based on Mezirow's model of transformative learning. On average, one-fifth (19.5%) of the paragraphs in a portfolio contained reflection, and paragraphs with deep reflection were hardly found (0.8%). It was concluded that motivation for composing a portfolio was fair, but not related to the amount and nature of reflection. This exploratory study gives rise to further research into factors that might influence the quality of portfolio reflection.

A Moment of Transformative Learning

This study describes a moment during clinical supervision when a student speech and language therapist reported that she had a moment of illumination that changed her trajectory from failing her clinical placement to passing it. The student’s self-report of the moment is provided. The clinical supervision was conducted using video feedback where the student watched successful edited clips of herself interacting with a patient in the university clinic. The clinical supervision where the moment of illumination occurred was recorded and two short extracts of this moment were analysed for evidence of a transformative process using Mezirow’s theory. The content of the student’s speech during the moment of illumination followed the steps and sequence of the transformative learning model. An analysis of the way the speech sounded showed that the moment was characterised by slow speech rate and flat monotonous pitch in both speakers and preceded by the educator modelling stopping and thinking. The use of video footage in student clinical supervision may be used with differential effect. Footage of strengths may be an effective trigger for disorientation and especially when feelings of failure or weakness are most prominent. The way the discussion of the video footage is led by the clinical educator may also support deep reflection.

Weakness, Belonging, and the Intercordia Experience: The Logic and Limits of Dissonance as a Transformative Learning Tool

AbstractEducational theorist Richard Kiely highlights the central importance of “high intensity dissonance” in successful international service‐learning. This essay applies Kiely's model of dissonance and transformative learning to Intercordia, an international service‐learning program offered at the University of St. Michael's College and the University of Toronto, in partnership with the Non‐Governmental Organization (NGO) Intercordia Canada. By placing its students in situations of significant vulnerability and weakness, the Intercordia program attempts to problematize familiar assumptions about the otherness of oppressed persons and thereby to encourage an authentic sense of belonging across boundaries of difference. The results, as reported by participants in the program, are quite profound. At the same time, the program design invites critical questions about how, and to what extent, such transformative experiences of dissonance should be scripted for students as an expected and desired result of their international service.

A Criminal Trial Simulation

Simulation is gaining popularity as an instructional method in education. The authors describe the simulation of a criminal trial stemming from a medication error. The simulation took place as a collaborative effort between undergraduate and graduate faculty teaching an issues and trends course. Bradshaw's model of transformative learning was used to design the simulation. Graduate students role played the individuals involved in the trial, and the undergraduate students acted as jurors. The curriculum design, the preparation, and the debriefing process are discussed. Lessons learned and suggestions for future simulated learning experiences are provided.

Is Higher Education Ready for Transformative Learning?

As universities begin to consider sustainability as a core value in education, there is a need to contemplate the role of transformative learning in higher education. Are current models of university education capable of facilitating action to promote ecological literacy and social change? This article outlines three models of group learning (cooperative, collaborative, and transformative) for use in higher education learning environments. It also examines the possibility (the potential benefits, drawbacks, and implications) of shifting university education from the current model toward a model for transformative learning and sustainability. Ultimately, this article raises a number of questions for academics to consider, including the possible outcomes and implications for implementing transformative education in university curriculum.

The transformative process of residency education.

The author explores a model for transformative learning proposed by the education scholar Victoria Marsick. He begins by outlining Marsick's eight principles (or outcomes) of transformative learning: increased autonomy; increased independence; the ability to separate one's feelings and opinions from those of others; the ability to critically and respectfully examine the views of others; the ability to set personal and professional goals; the ability to see how one's actions affect the system in which one works; the ability to balance and choose among conflicting priorities and at some point transcend self-interest; and the ability to acknowledge one's role in constructing one's reality. Using illustrative examples from his experiences as a resident and a teacher of residents, the author describes each principle of the transformative model. He then suggests how educators can use these principles to ensure a transformative residency experience by which novice professionals become reflective and confident practitioners.