Marged Howley

Early College and Dual Enrollment Challenges Inroads and Impediments to Access

In recent years, some school reformers have come to see early college and dual enrollment as mechanisms for increasing the academic engagement and performance of a range of students beyond those exhibiting high academic achievement or ability. Despite purported benefits, research on the dynamics of such programs is limited. This case study adds to the relevant literature by using semistructured interviews with key participants to investigate the cross-institutional dynamics enabling and constraining the early college and dual enrollment arrangements sponsored by a consortium of high schools and colleges in a Midwestern state. Qualitative data analysis surfaced four salient themes explaining patterns of interaction across the partnering institutions: Organizational Conditions and Motives, Border Crossers, Organizational Power Dynamics, and Personal Attitudes Regarding Early College and Dual Enrollment.

How Agricultural Science Trumps Rural Community in the Discourse of Selected U.S. History Textbooks.

Abstract Using narrative from 6 high school American history textbooks published between 1956 and 2009, this study investigated changes in how textbook authors presented the topics of agricultural science, farming, and community. Although some critical discourse analyses have examined textbooks’ treatment of different population groups (e.g., African Americans, women) or particular historical trends (e.g., industrialization), few have explored textbooks’ treatment of rural cultures and occupations. The critical analysis undertaken in this study revealed that there was a decline over time in the salience of the theme, the promise of science and technology for improving agriculture. It also suggested that a decline in explicit rhetoric in support of industrial agriculture accompanied widespread acceptance of this approach, with its emphasis on monoculture and corporate management, trumping an earlier idyll of the small farm, with its emphasis on nurture, family, and community. Interpretation of these findings rests on the distinction between the Jeffersonian and the Hamiltonian ideals for the American nation.

A Research-Focused Honors Program for High-Ability Teacher-Education Students

Honors programs represent one way that secondary schools and undergraduate programs address the needs of academically talented students. Evidence suggests that these programs contribute to positive student outcomes in terms of achievement, social development, and career preparation. Because colleges of education produce graduates who typically confront the prospect of low salaries, attracting high-ability applicants is important. Despite the benefits of encouraging talented individuals to become teachers, few traditional teacher education programs use honors programs. This study reports on an honors program in a college of education that incorporates distinct course work and field experiences, focused especially on inquiry and research. Qualitative interviewing revealed three themes: How the program’s focus on inquiry and research fits with participants’ expectations and interests, complex and conflicting responses to the program’s focus on leadership development, and significant logistical challenges. These themes corroborated findings from related literature on honors programs in secondary schools and undergraduate programs.

The Experience of Conducting a Study of Racial or Ethnic Dynamics: Voices of Doctoral Students in Colleges of Education

A large body of literature focuses on ways that learning experiences in colleges of education can combat racist stereotypes while promoting cultural competence. However, because limited research investigates how student research projects (e.g., masters theses and doctoral dissertations) can accomplish these same purposes, additional studies are needed. For this reason, the current exploratory mixed methods study addressed the following research question: “How does the racial identity development of doctoral students from colleges of education align with their experiences of conducting dissertation studies focusing on racial and/or ethnic dynamics in schools, universities, or human service agencies?” The research team used well-established scales to measure the racial identity development of Black and White participants. The team also conducted a series of three interviews with each participant to learn about how racial identity statuses contributed to and responded to the experience of conducting dissertation research with a focus on racial and/or ethnic dynamics. Analysis of interview data pointed to the salience of “advocacy” in the experiences of participants. Advocacy connected to doctoral research by affording opportunities for personal advancement and by affording opportunities to promote social change. Further interpretation revealed differences in the importance of the two types of advocacy for White and Black participants, especially in consideration of their racial identity statuses. Despite such nuances, the experience of conducting dissertation research reinforced all participants’ previous commitments to social justice and advocacy, but it did not help them develop more wide-ranging and systematic strategies for working as advocates of social justice.