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This article was downloaded by: [DUT Library] On: 05 October 2014, At: 13:24 Publisher: Taylor & Francis Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ujec20 A Constructivist Perspective on Articulation: A Framework for System Change in Teacher Education Toni Ungaretti a a Johns Hopkins University Published online: 03 Aug 2006. To cite this article: Toni Ungaretti (1997) A Constructivist Perspective on Articulation: A Framework for System Change in Teacher Education, Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 18:2, 57-65, DOI: 10.1080/1090102970180210 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1090102970180210 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content.

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Page 1: A Constructivist Perspective on Articulation: A Framework for System Change in Teacher Education

This article was downloaded by: [DUT Library]On: 05 October 2014, At: 13:24Publisher: Taylor & FrancisInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number:1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street,London W1T 3JH, UK

Journal of Early ChildhoodTeacher EducationPublication details, including instructions forauthors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ujec20

A Constructivist Perspectiveon Articulation: A Frameworkfor System Change in TeacherEducationToni Ungaretti aa Johns Hopkins UniversityPublished online: 03 Aug 2006.

To cite this article: Toni Ungaretti (1997) A Constructivist Perspective onArticulation: A Framework for System Change in Teacher Education, Journal ofEarly Childhood Teacher Education, 18:2, 57-65, DOI: 10.1080/1090102970180210

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1090102970180210

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of allthe information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on ourplatform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensorsmake no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy,completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views ofthe authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis.The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should beindependently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor andFrancis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings,demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoeveror howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, inrelation to or arising out of the use of the Content.

Page 2: A Constructivist Perspective on Articulation: A Framework for System Change in Teacher Education

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private studypurposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution,reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in anyform to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of accessand use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

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Journal of Early Childhood Teacher EducationProceedings Issue 1997, Volume 18, No. 2

A Constructivist Perspective on Articulation: A Framework for

System Change in Teacher Education

Toni Ungaretti

Johns Hopkins University

Two five year olds looked up as a jet flew over the play yard of their chil-dren's center located near an air force base. Being a child of a pilot, onechild with great intent and expressive movements was explaining theaerodynamic concepts of lift, drag, and thrust to the other. She was show-ing with her arms and body movement what held the plane in the air. Dur-ing this time, the teacher kept beckoning them to move to a table. After re-peatedly ignoring the teacher to no avail, the first child stopped, looked atthe teacher, then turned to the second child saying, "Let's go he wants usto string those stupid beads again!"

This vignette while humorous and endearing also imparts the strong message ofthe importance of identifying the learner's knowledge level as the basis for planningfor future development and achievement. This statement though hardly remarkablehas implications that reach beyond the early childhood classroom to reconceptualizearticulation and even the very structure of teacher education.

Conceptually connecting constructivism and articulation seems at best an imagi-native exercise and at worst a daunting assignment. Yet upon closer inspection, boththe humor and challenge of this unusual association pales in light of its intriguing pos-sibilities. A constructivist approach allows us to step out of the boxes with which ar-ticulation issues have been traditionally addressed. It provides a new construct whicheliminates the barriers that have eluded even articulation's most supportive propo-nents.

A constructivist approach calls for assessing the student's level of understandingto create a foundation for structuring meaningful instruction. This philosophy, soprevalent in early childhood classrooms, provides insight for addressing articulationissues in early childhood teacher education. From this perspective, the focus of artic-ulation shifts from developing bridges connecting individual courses across two-yearand four-year programs to assessing the student's knowledge base. Within such aframework the task of early childhood educators at both levels is to develop assess-ments that identify what the student knows and how the student knows it. This as-sessment then becomes the basis for planning for the student's continuing profes-sional growth.

To fully understand the constructivist connection and its possibilities, it is importantto first describe the issues and challenges inherent in current articulation efforts.Secondly, a brief analysis of the constructivist viewpoint provides a common frame ofreference for the ensuing discussion. Third, the constructivist perspective offers anew way to approach articulation issues. Next, a discussion of a constructivist frame-work for teacher education beyond articulation shares possibilities for creating effec-

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tive systemic change. Finally, this approach challenges early childhood teacher edu-cators to utilize their expertise in constructivism to reconceptualize teacher educa-tion, to make it more responsive by responding to individual needs through a set ofcommonly held standards.

The Articulation DilemmaArticulation between associate and bachelor degree programs has been a difficult

issue for even the most dedicated supporters. Articulation is a process in whichcourses taken at one institution are accepted for transfer in a second institution.Problems with this process become a major issue for students who begin their pro-fessional preparation in an associate degree program and then seek to transfer thatwork to a bachelor degree program either within or outside of their institution. A fewarticulation agreements have been developed between associate and bachelor de-gree programs in early childhood education to institutionalize the process of transfer-ring an approved set of courses or a degree to another program or institution. In themajority of cases this transfer is from a two-year school to a four-year school or uni-versity. However, in some cases it is within an institution which provides both associ-ate and bachelor degree programs.

Issues often cited as barriers to articulation include but are not limited to: the needto meet the accreditation criteria for NCATE and the lack of a system parallel toNCATE to ensure quality at the two-year level. Another factor is the incompatibility ofintegrating associate degree programs that focus on professional training with bach-elor degree programs whose first two years focus on general studies. A third issue isthe demanding load of faculty in bachelor degree programs which makes it difficult toadvise potential students from associate degree programs. Ironically, a major issueis state-mandated articulation agreements that mask real issues and serve as barri-ers to potential solutions.

THE ISSUE FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF FACULTY

The Associate Degree PerspectiveFor years, articulation has been steadfastly championed by early childhood faculty

in associate degree programs who sought an effective means to facilitate the contin-uing professional development of their students. Stories of courses taught by thesame instructors, using the same syllabi and the same text but not being acceptedfor transfer fueled a cry for change.

Even more disconcerting, stories of the same course being inconsistently accept-ed or rejected without regard to competence or quality of the student create evenmore confusion and frustration. Moreover, faculty from associate degree programsoften find their program quality in question without a standards-based approvalmechanism.

The Bachelor Degree PerspectiveSimilarly claims that courses in associate degree programs were equivalent to

those offered in bachelor degree programs alarmed early childhood faculty in bache-lor degree programs. These faculty work diligently to create and maintain high quali-

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ty integrated programs often within institutions that value the education field less thanother disciplines. Furthermore, these faculty are often criticized by other programsfor being less rigorous. In addition, education reform in a number of states has oftenresulted in proposals to eliminate four-year programs in lieu of fifth year or masterdegree programs.

These pressures heighten the consequences of taking academic risk within thestructure of the institutions. Finally, the articulation issue is compounded by state ar-ticulation agreements that mandate the acceptance by four-year institutions of allcredits in degree programs from two-year institutions. This mandate requires the ac-ceptance of credit but not necessarily acceptance as credit for degree programs.Thus, the associate degree student who typically brings a 60 credit degree to a four-year school finds that all 60 credits transfer but that none may apply to the major fieldof study even if there is an identical course match. Thus, a policy that is intended tofacilitate transfer, in fact masks issues and in practice serves as a barrier to address-ing needs. Frustration and confusion emerge in the lack of a system to accurately as-sess the student's academic level with the resulting need for caution in acceptingprevious credits.

Promising Efforts at the Local, State, and National Levels

Local initiatives. In recent years a number of efforts have made limited gains inaddressing the articulation issue at the institution, state, and national levels. At the in-stitution level, faculty from associate degree and bachelor degree programs havejointly developed articulation agreements in which blocks of an associate degreeprogram are accepted into a bachelor degree program. These "two plus two" pro-grams provide students with the security of knowing how their coursework will be re-ceived prior to the actual transfer process.

State initiates. In addition, early childhood professionals in a number of statessuch as Connecticut, California, Hawaii, and Massachusetts are working to createeffective articulation systems at all levels of the early childhood career ladder.

In Connecticut this initiative has resulted in the development of an extensive articu-lation plan. This plan provides for the transfer of 18 credits in early childhood educa-tion based on a commonly identified early childhood education knowledge base.(The Connecticut Early Childhood Education Articulation Plan, 1996).

In California a three-year, grant-funded articulation initiative has taken a multi-pronged approach in the San Francisco Bay Area, four articulation pilot projects arein progress based on a child development matrix for certification with correspondingstandards and competencies. The initiative includes two pilot certificate programsthat articulate to local four-year schools, a data base of college transfer informationand a resource and training manual for counselors (Sharpe, personal communica-tion, May 7, 1997). The Page Project in Hawaii provides a means to articulate non-credit modules that include a capstone experience so that credit may be received forcoursework at a later date (Anderson, personal communication, May 5, 1997). InMassachusetts the Higher Education Consortium and the child Care Career Institutehave jointly approved courses that are offered by a number of different colleges(Genzer, personal communication, May 5,1997).

National initiatives. At the national level, the National Association of Early Child-

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hood Teacher Educators (NAECTE) and the American Associate Degree EarlyChildhood Educators (ACCESS) collaborate to address common concerns. For sev-eral years, they have held joint sessions at the National Association for the Educationof Young Children (NAEYC) Annual Meeting and at the Institute for Early ChildhoodProfessional Development Annual Meeting. A number of those sessions have fo-cused on articulation issues and potential solutions. These meetings have provided aforum for initiating a dialogue between the memberships to share successful articu-lation agreements, identify issues that require additional study, and create relation-ships on which to build common ground.

Moreover, NAEYC invited early childhood faculty from both NAECTE and AC-CESS to participate in the creation of a framework for early childhood professionaldevelopment and to develop program guidelines for two-year and four-year pro-grams. In addition, the two groups in conjunction with the Division of Early Childhoodof the Council for Exceptional Children developed an ethics initiative to address acommonly identified need that emerged from the joint sessions.

Most significantly, in the development of a framework for early childhood profes-sional development it became apparent that while the Child Development AssociateCredential, the bachelor degree programs, and advanced programs had nationalsystems to judge program quality, no such system existed for associate degree pro-grams. The identification of this need, and the effort of ACCESS to advocate for theestablishment of a national program approval process led to an agreement withNAEYC to develop and pilot such an initiative.

Common element of success. These examples reflect successful initiatives inthe effort to create a continuum of professional development. Though limited inscope and impact they do share a common element. The professionals involved inthis work have been willing to step beyond the boundaries of their institutional rolesand focus on their common goal - what is good for children. From such a perspective,they have begun to construct agreements grounded in shared beliefs rather than tofortify resistance focused on differences.

With these successes there is the knowledge that the solutions work when there isa dialogue that reaches beyond the mere transfer of credits to embrace the common-ly held goal of providing the best practitioners for children. These effective articula-tion efforts reflect an approach and perspective that is akin to the application of con-structivist principles in the early childhood classroom.

A Constructivist Perspective on Articulation

An Emancipatory Constructivist ViewpointO'Loughlin (1992) stated that "constructivism takes many forms and the potential

of a given approach to teaching to be either emancipatory and transformative or re-productive depends less on its claim to be constructivist than in the type of construc-tivism to which it lays claim" (p. 336). Emancipatory constructivism is closely alignedwith the poststructuralist (Rosaldo, 1989) and critical ethnographer (Clifford, 1988)position that knowledge is partial and positional dependent on the learner's perspec-tive. O'Laughlin notes that this is in contrast to the perspective that there is "objectivetruth" (p. 336) and that by using certain rational thinking processes we can find it andimpart it to others.

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Ellsworth (1989) noted that students construct knowledge through multiple framesof reference influenced by their ethnic background, race, class, gender, language,culture, religion, and body image. O'Loughlin (1992) suggests that the potential forknowledge construction depends on how the environment responds to the learner'sutilization of these diverse frameworks in creating meaning.

Relating this to articulation, the issue focuses on the response of the higher educa-tion institution to the student's framework for knowing. The institution can validate ordiscount the student's way of knowing. Bernstein (1990) and Gee (1991) indicatethat schools are middle class institutions that sanction middle class values. Bernstein(1990) also observes that schools guarantee the success of the middle class andmaintain existing class structure. This same thinking may help to explain the exis-tence of systems that appear impervious to student's and institution's attempts totransfer into teacher education programs.

O'Loughlin (1992) advocates for an emancipatory perspective that is reflexive andcritical and enables "people to understand the socially constructed nature of realityso that they might begin constructing and acting on their own visions of a betterworld" p. 337. It is this view of constructivism that emancipates one's thinking fromthe structures that have created barriers to resolving articulation issues. Using sucha constructivist perspective provides a refreshingly new approach to teacher educa-tion that transforms articulation issues. Within this configuration the dynamicschange from lockstep course comparisons to an ongoing dialogue among profes-sionals seeking to provide flexible, career-long entry and exit points along the contin-uum of early childhood professional development.

Constructivism, Early Childhood Education, and Teacher EducationAs its basic level constructivism stresses the importance of meeting the individual

at the level of that person's knowledge and conceptual level - the individual'sschema. This schema is developed through multiple frames of reference that haveemerged from life experience. The task is to identify what the learner knows, the de-gree to which the learner knows it, and how the learner knows it.

Once the student's level of knowing is identified, an environment can be createdthat challenges the individual to change or adapt to new demands. The adaptationmust be neither too little so as not to be attractive or too much so as to be over-whelming. Key to this process is the requirement that the individual must value thechange and that the change is achievable. In confronting the opportunity to change,the individual assimilates the new experience into existing schema while simultane-ously accommodating to its new demands. By a continuous process of assimilatingand accommodating to the new experience, the individual's schema is transformedinto a different way of knowing. This constructivist perspective is observable in earlychildhood education and in teacher education.

Constructivism in Early Childhood EducationEarly childhood educators have a long history of incorporating constructivist prac-

tices into their classrooms. DeVries and Zan (1995) noted that constructivist educa-tion is a developmentally appropriate approach to early education, inspired by Pi-aget's theory that the child constructs knowledge, intelligence, personality, and socialand moral values." (p. 5). Early childhood educators have an extensive history of uti-

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lizing constructivist tenets in their work with children. The early childhood educatorconstructs the classroom environment and expectations around the assessment ofthe child's level of development. Through a system of continuous assessment of thechild's constructs, the teacher provides experiences at the large group, small group,and individual level to meet identified needs.

Constructivism in Teacher Education.A number of early childhood teacher educators have applied this same construc-

tivist approach to structure courses that are more responsive to the instructionalneeds of their students. These teacher educators create flexible course structuresbased on the assessed needs of students. They develop opportunities for growththat ensure the achievement of course competencies but also provide support for ex-tensions of learning beyond the course and at times beyond the expertise of the fac-ulty member.

Black and Ammon (1992) adopted the notion "that teachers' pedagogical under-standings develop through sequential, qualitatively different levels and that it is im-portant for teacher educators to identify the key conceptual differences that distin-guish one level of understanding from another within the domain of pedagogy, just asit is important for teachers to understand the conceptual transformations that childrengo through within each domain of school subject matter." (p. 331). They described apostgraduate program that features small cohorts of students, course work orga-nized to address topics repeatedly and hierarchically, and multiple, diverse fieldplacements.

Such a constructivist perspective in teacher education presents a new frameworkwithin which to view teacher education. Its development orientation provides the pos-sibility of being an emancipatory constructivism that affirms the constructs of the indi-vidual and provides a flexible framework for limitless levels of change.

Examples of Constructivist Thinking Transforming EducationThe professional development school (PDS). The education reform movement

calls for the reconceptualization of education that centers the student in the learningprocess. It focuses on the assessment of the student and the design of an education-al system that is responsive to identified needs (National Commission on Teachingand America's Future, September, 1996). As part of this process there is a renewedinterest in the preparation and continuing professional development of teachers whoneed to be able to support student development and achievement.

The professional development school represents systemic change in the relation-ship between school and higher education. Within it, the expertise of school and high-er education faculty blend theory and practice to prepare new teachers and to sup-port the continuing development of all faculty. A new structure is created that isfocused on development and achievement of all monitored by state and/or nationalstandards identified for students, new teachers, and experienced faculty. The cre-ation of a PDS removes the barriers that traditionally separate the responsibilities ofschools and higher education and result in a disjointed teacher preparation and sup-port system.

The PDS creates new flexible structures to meet student and teacher needs thathave not been adequately met within existing systems. Furthermore, the relation-

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ships and benefits to faculty, schools, higher education institutions, and children thatemerge in a PDS are in many cases more profound than imagined in the beginning -a truly emancipatory constructivism!

Problem-based learning in medical schools. Another example of a construc-tivist approach is the medical school problem-based learning model which has beenadopted from the field of education. Within this approach students form study groupsto identify what they know and what they think they need to know in order to under-stand a particular medical case. They research their needs and return to the studygroup with new information. The new information and current conceptual under-standing is shared in the presence of a facilitator and/or group of experts who clarifyissues and add new information. Students repeat the process as they examine is-sues more deeply. In problem-based learning, the teaching begins at the student'slevel of knowing and is guided by experts on the topic (Albanese & Mitchell, 1993).

Similar to the professional development school, the problem-based learning modelis flexible and accommodates different levels of knowing. Both examples reflect anapproach in which the structure for the process emerges from the students' needs.Such a perspective provides new insight and possibilities for conceptualizing articu-lation.

Transforming Articulation through a Constructivist PerspectiveThe current view of teacher education program as a series of courses restricts ar-

ticulation to a process of matching specific courses. Problems arise when courses inassociate degree and bachelor degree programs are not identical. A constructivistperspective has the potential to free the articulation process from the limitation ofcourse to course comparison. It opens the possibility of developing approaches thatidentify the student's conceptual level and determine the key conceptual differencesthat characterize levels of understanding (Black & Ammon, 1993). Within this per-spective, the focus of articulation shifts from matching courses in developing assess-ment systems to identifying current levels of knowledge, competencies, and disposi-tions. Assessment systems aligned with national standards would provide adefensible approach to effective articulation.

The Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) Prin-ciples provide a set of nationally developed standards that can be incorporated intoteacher education programs. These standards are built into the National Council forthe Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) Standards for accrediting teachereducation programs and into the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards(NBPTS) for experienced teachers. Together these standards create a framework forprofessional development that addresses participants' development and achieve-ment rather than course completions. In addition, professional standards related tospecific disciplines (i.e., National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, NCTM) and tospecific populations (i.e., Division of Early Childhood of the Council for ExceptionalChildren, DEC) could also be incorporated into the framework.

The development of such a system responds to the recommendations of the Re-port of the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future (September,1996) that we "get serious about standards for both students and teachers" (p. 17)and "reinvent teacher preparation and professional development" (p. 20). It has impli-cations for not only articulation but also for the structure of teacher education.

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Creating a Systemic Framework for Teacher EducationThe challenge ahead is to utilize national standards to create an assessment ap-

proach that identifies the students conceptual level of understanding. This orientationtransforms teacher education from a series of connected courses in a system for de-termining and supporting the development and achievement of teachers. Such aframework has the potential to flexibly accommodate multiple backgrounds, differententry points, and the integration of general education and professional knowledge.

This new approach to teacher education also offers the means to address issuesrelated to quality that emerge in efforts to articulate courses across institutions. Thepoint of articulation shifts from competencies reflected in courses to competenciesidentified in the student. The new structure matches the student's knowledge, skills,and attitudes to the standards in the field and uses that to determine appropriate ed-ucational placement. Within this framework a variety of courses, small group experi-ences, and individualized instruction can be designed to support the students' devel-opment. Moreover, major articulation concerns such as those related to NCATEaccreditation are addressed through the use of a set of standards and a process de-veloped to assess student competence at the entrance and exit of the program.

The impact of an emancipatory constructivist approach to articulation extends be-yond the relationship of associate and bachelor degree programs to the whole con-tinuum of early childhood professional development. It is a vehicle for creating aseamless system of professional development with multiple entry and exit points toaccommodate individual needs without compromising quality. It assesses individualneed and determines competence based on national standards. The structure thatresults creates a community of learners composed of early childhood professionalsat various levels of development in various institutions, each growing within a com-mon set of standards.

The constructivist approach facilitates the development of multiple entry points forcapable individuals to advance in the field. These entry points affirm the student'scurrent knowledge level as a basis for future growth. This approach encourageshighly capable students to advance. It removes frustrating barriers and inappropriatecourse work that impede progress and discourage degree completion.

The Challenge to Early Childhood Teacher Educators. An emancipatory con-structivist perspective on articulation provides a framework for systemic change inteacher education. The changes in conceptualization required to do this have beenmastered by early childhood teacher educators in their work with young children.This approach extends their constructivist philosophy in the broader arena of teachereducation. As such, early childhood teacher educators are poised to lead other edu-cators in identifying the possibilities of this approach to the whole of teacher educa-tion.

The challenge remains for early childhood teacher educators to utilize their con-structivist skills to advocate for the systemic restructuring of teacher education that isstandards-based and focused on development and achievement. As indicated in theopening vignette, meaningful learning emerges in being able to identify and build onwhat the student knows.

ReferencesAlbanese, M. & Mitchell, S. (1993). Problem-based learning. A review of literature on

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its outcomes and implementation issues. Academic Medicine, 68(1), 52-81.Anderson, P. (May 5, 1997). National Association for the Education of Young Chil-

dren. Personal communication.Bernstein, B. (1990). The structuring of pedagogic discourse: Volume 4, Class,

codes, and control. London: Routledge.Black, A. & Ammon, P. (1992). A developmental constructivist approach to teacher

education. Journal of Teacher Education, 43(5), 223-235.Clifford, J. (1988). The predicament of culture: Twentieth century ethnography.

Berkeley: University of California Press.The Connecticut early childhood education articulation plan: Executive Summary.

(1996). Connecticut Department of Higher Education, Author.DeVries, R. & an, B. (1995). Creating a constructivist classroom atmosphere. Young

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sive myths of critical pedagogy. Harvard Educational Review, 59, 297-324.Gee, J. (1991). Social linguistics and literacies: Ideology in discourses. New York:

Palmer Press.Genzer, A. (1997. Wheelock College, Center for Early Care and Education. Personal

communication.O'Loughlin, M.O. (1992). Engaging teachers in emancipatory knowledge construc-

tion. Journal of Teacher Education, 43(5), 336-346.National Commission on Teaching and America's Future. (September 1996). What

matters most: Teaching and America's future: Summary Report. Author.Rosaldo, R. (1989). Culture and truth: The remaking of social analysis. Boston: Bea-

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