ERIC Number: ED648334
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 164
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 979-8-3514-2892-5
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Science Leadership Academy: A Learning Community Creating "Freedom-Fighting Warrior Scholar" Change Agents
Robert K. May
ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Frostburg State University
This mixed-methods phenomenological case study investigated how the alumni of Science Leadership Academy (SLA), a public high school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, became change agents in their communities as a result of their time as students at the school. At the heart of SLA's innovative pedagogy is inquiry-based learning. The school is focused on helping students pursue the issues they are passionate about and facilitating learning that empowers students with the tools to research those issues and create change around them. The data for this study were collected in three ways: a quantitative survey and lived-experience journal involving 20 alumni participants, as well as 30- to 60-min interviews with 12 alumni. The survey measured social justice self-efficacy, interest, and commitment using the Social Issues Questionnaire by Miller et al. (2009). To understand the student experience and education at SLA, this author used and specifically discussed North's (2009) social justice literacies in each interview. Additionally, Dover's (2013) theoretical model for teaching social justice was utilized to analyze the school's design and pedagogy. This study found that alumni are both committed to making social change in their communities and actively involved in their communities. As seen through the alumnus experience, all of North's social justice literacies are manifest in the work that SLA does with its students, which in turn creates alumni who are change agents in their communities. Beyond the design and pedagogy of the school, alumni consistently pointed to three aspects of the school that were vital to their becoming the people they are today: strong, caring relationships with the teachers and other students; SLA's core values of inquiry, research, collaboration, presentation, and reflection; and their exposure to diversity, not only at the school but also in the community, as part of their projects in high school. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
Descriptors: Public Schools, High Schools, Leadership Training, Science Education, Active Learning, Inquiry, Change Agents, Social Change, Community Involvement, Alumni, High School Students, Student Experience, Student Leadership
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Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A