Rose, J, Fuller, M, Gilbert, L and Palmer, S (2011) 'Transformative empowerment: stimulating transformations in Early Years practice.' Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, 5. pp. 56-72. ISSN 1742-240X
Abstract
This paper examines dimensions of transformative learning in university students stimulated by an active learning context. It draws on a research study which investigated the experiential learning of four cohorts (2006- 2009) of final year Early Childhood Studies degree students visiting Early Years settings in Sweden, and evaluates the impact of the active learning process on their understanding and subsequently on their practice. The active learning experience is viewed as a catalyst for the transformations in perspectives. The paper then reports on the meaning and quality of the changes in thinking that appear to have taken place, evaluated against a theoretical framework drawn from transformative theory. This evidence is then considered in the light of how the students’ altered perceptions manifested themselves in practice once they left university. The analysis reveals that the active learning experience stimulates a transformative mindset on the part of the students, and engineers a powerful capacity for becoming a change agent with profound implications for practice. These findings, largely presented as illustrative case studies, thus extend the scope of transformative theory to consider its empowering dimension for effecting change.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Divisions: | School of Education |
| Date Deposited: | 01 Feb 2013 13:24 |
| Last Modified: | 11 Oct 2022 14:07 |
| URI / Page ID: | https://researchspace.bathspa.ac.uk/id/eprint/554 |
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