ERIC Number: EJ1258387
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1935-3308
EISSN: N/A
A Critical Race Analysis of Travel for Transformation: Pedagogy for the Privileged or Vehicle for Critical Social Transformation?
Gambrell, James A.
Journal of Ethnographic & Qualitative Research, v11 n2 p99-116 Win 2016
Transformative learning theory (TLT) describes the process of reframing discriminative worldviews with a more permeable and reflective epistemology. Although TLT has been around for more than 50 years, few studies empirically engage critical theoretical frameworks to move beyond personal learning to identify the impacts of transformation on society. Through a critical race theory framework, this study analyzed how participants' socio-cultural identities of race, class, gender, sexuality, and heritage language impacted the transformative learning of eight study-abroad students from a medium-sized, rural Midwestern university. Focusing on the extent to which the participants experienced elements of transformative learning during a month-long study-abroad experience in Spain, this project explored what the experience of traveling to an "other" place and experiencing "otherness" had on transformative learning. This qualitative study drew from extensive ethnographic observations, photo analysis, and informal, semi-formal, and focus-group interviews. Participants from backgrounds of racial and class privilege experienced transformations that were deeply engaging on a personal level, but were not motivated toward more justified beliefs or action toward others. In contrast, participants from backgrounds of lesser socio-cultural privilege demonstrated increased critical social reflection and transformative outcomes.
Descriptors: Race, Critical Theory, Social Change, Epistemology, Ethnography, Transformative Learning, Learning Theories, World Views, Guidelines, Sociocultural Patterns, Racial Identification, Self Concept, Sexual Identity, Gender Differences, Rural Areas, Native Language, College Students, Student Attitudes, Study Abroad, Photography, Advantaged, Reflection, Socioeconomic Status, Outcomes of Education, Comparative Analysis, Spanish, Majors (Students), Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, Foreign Countries
Cedarville University. 251 North Main Street, Cedarville, OH 45314. Tel: 937-766-3242; Fax: 937-766-7971; e-mail: jeqr@comcast.net; Web site: http://www.jeqr.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Spain
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A