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37 Volume 16, Number 1, Spring 2007 Promoting Family-Centered Teaching: Can One Course Make a Difference? Ann Bingham & Tammy V. Abernathy University of Nevada, Reno Issues in Teacher Education, Spring 2007 It is critical that families be included as partners in all aspects of the educational process inasmuch as parents and families provide the primary learning environment for children of all ages (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Dunst, 1985; Finkelstein, 1980; Mahoney & Bella, 1998; Meisels & Shonkoff, 1990; National Parent Teacher Association, 1999; Reiss, 1997; Turnbull,Summers,& Brotherson,1984).Researchers,practitioners,and policymakers have documented the importance of parent involvement in children’s education (Christensen & Sheridan, 2001; Epstein, 2001; Epstein, 2002; Henderson & Berla, 1994; Hiatt-Michael, 2001; Olmstead & Rubin, 1982; Perlander, 2000; Scott Stein & Thorkidsen, 1999; Uman- sky & Hooper, 1998; U.S. Department of Education, 1994). This body of research underscores the positive effects of parental involvement in education and indicates that when parents participate in their child’s education, the result is an increased gain in skills and/or attainment of developmental milestones in early years. Teachers and other professionals who work with children generally desire to support families by providing suggestions, strategies, and other services to help them help their child (Bauer & Shea, 2003; Turnbull, Turnbull, Erwin, & Soodak, 2006; Umansky & Hooper, 1998); however, Ann Bingham is assistant professor of special education at the University of Nevada, Reno. She can be contacted at [email protected] Tammy V. Abernathy is associate professor of special education at the University of Nevada, Reno. She can be contacted at [email protected]

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Page 1: Promoting Family-Centered Teaching: Can One Course Make a ... · 42 Promoting Family-Centered Teaching Issues in Teacher Education about families within the context of the course,

Ann Bingham & Tammy V. Abernathy 37

Volume 16, Number 1, Spring 2007

Promoting Family-Centered Teaching:Can One Course Make a Difference?

Ann Bingham& Tammy V. Abernathy

University of Nevada, Reno

Issues in Teacher Education, Spring 2007

Itiscriticalthatfamiliesbeincludedaspartnersinallaspectsoftheeducationalprocessinasmuchasparentsandfamiliesprovidetheprimarylearningenvironmentforchildrenofallages(Bronfenbrenner,1979;Dunst,1985;Finkelstein,1980;Mahoney&Bella,1998;Meisels&Shonkoff,1990;NationalParentTeacherAssociation,1999;Reiss,1997;Turnbull,Summers,&Brotherson,1984).Researchers,practitioners,andpolicymakershavedocumentedtheimportanceofparentinvolvementinchildren’seducation(Christensen&Sheridan,2001;Epstein,2001;Epstein,2002;Henderson&Berla,1994;Hiatt-Michael,2001;Olmstead&Rubin,1982;Perlander,2000;ScottStein&Thorkidsen,1999;Uman-sky&Hooper,1998;U.S.DepartmentofEducation,1994).Thisbodyofresearch underscores the positive effects of parental involvement ineducationandindicatesthatwhenparentsparticipateintheirchild’seducation,theresultisanincreasedgaininskillsand/orattainmentofdevelopmentalmilestonesinearlyyears. Teachersandotherprofessionalswhoworkwithchildrengenerallydesiretosupportfamiliesbyprovidingsuggestions,strategies,andotherservicestohelpthemhelptheirchild(Bauer&Shea,2003;Turnbull,Turnbull,Erwin,&Soodak,2006;Umansky&Hooper,1998);however,

Ann Bingham is assistant professor of special education at the University of Nevada, Reno. She can be contacted at [email protected]

Tammy V. Abernathy is associate professor of special education at the University of Nevada, Reno. She can be contacted at [email protected]

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theseprofessionalsoftenreportthattheyfeelill-equippedandunpreparedtoworkwithfamilies,especiallythosewhosechildrenhavespecialneeds(Lynn,1997).BothTichenor(1998)andTurner(2000)foundthattheteach-erstheystudiedwereunsurehowtoinvolveparentsinmeaningfulways.Thisdisconnectbetweenthedesiretoinvolvefamiliesandtheskillstoeffectivelydosoisevenmoreevidentforpreserviceandbeginningteach-ers(Morris&Taylor,1997).SurveysbytheNationalCenterforEducationStatistics(Choy&Chen,1998)indicatethat,thoughsupportfromparentsisseenasacriticallinktoengagestudentsandensuretheirsuccess,onlyone-thirdofteachers“stronglyagree”that“parentssupportthemintheireffortstoeducatetheirchildren.”Giventhisconcern,preserviceteachereducationprogramsareinapositiontosupportnewteachersindevelop-mentofpracticesleadingtofamily-centeredteaching. Historically,preservice teachereducationprogramshavenotad-equatelypreparedteachersinparentinvolvementorfamily-centeredpractices(Chavkin,1991;Epstein,Sanders,&Clark,1999;U.S.Depart-mentofEducation,1997).AlthoughtheU.S.DepartmentofEducation(1997)andothergroupshaveencouragedtheadoptionoffamily-cen-teredpracticesineducationanddespiteevidenceofthepositiveeffectsoffamilyinvolvement,theevidencehasbeenlargelyignored.Becauseteachersdonot routinelyencouragefamilyinvolvement,andparentsdonotalwaysparticipatewhentheyareencouragedtodoso(U.S.De-partmentofEducation,1997),theimportanceofpreservicetrainingtoinvolvefamilymembersinchildren’seducationisparamount.Recogniz-ingthisgapintrainingandtheconcernthatmostbeginningteachersdonotnaturallyhavetheskillstoeffectivelyincludefamiliesindaytodayactivities(Morris&Taylor,1997),responsivecollegesanduniversitieshavedevelopedcoursesencouragingpositiveinteractionswithfamiliesasapartoftheircurriculum. TheHarvardFamilyStudyReport (Shartrand,Weiss,Kreider,&Lopez,1997)notedthat22statesincludeparentinvolvementeducationrequirementsintheircredentialingstandards.Asaresultofthestan-dardsoftheNationalCouncilfortheAccreditationofTeacherEducation(NCATE),asignificantnumberofstatesaddedparentinvolvementre-quirementsinthelate1990s(Gray,2001,citedinHiatt-Michael,2001).ArecentstudybytheHarvardFamilyResearchProject(Giallourakis,Pretti-Frontczak,&Cook,2005)findsthatmostcoursesinfamilyandcommunityinvolvementareofferedaspartofearlychildhoodeducationorspecialeducationprogramsincollegesofeducation. Trvette,Dunst,Boyd,andHamby(1995)describedfourfamily-orient-edmodelsthatcantypicallybeobservedineducationalprograms.Thesemodelsincluded:(a)Professionally-Centered,whereinchildandfamily

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needsaredeterminedsolelybyprofessionals/educators;(b)Family-Allied,wherefamiliesareenlistedtoimplementteacherchoseninterventions;(c)Family-Focused,whereprofessionals/educatorsassistthefamilyinchoosingoptionsfromthosethatprofessionalshavedeterminedtobeoptimal;and(d)Family-Centered, whereteachersbecomeinstrumentsoffamiliesbyreflectingwhatparentsseeasimportantandvaluedbytheirownfamilies. Asafoundationforcourseworkinfamilyinvolvement,theNationalParentTeacherAssociation(NPTA,1999),aswellassomestatedepart-mentsofeducation,developedstandardsforparentinvolvement.TheNPTAstandardshighlighttheimportanceoftwo-waycommunicationwithfamilies,parenting,theparentalroleinstudentlearning,volun-teering,schooldecision-making,andcommunitycollaboration.However,accordingtotheNPTAwebsite,todateonlynineteenstateshaveadoptedsimilarstatewideresolutions.DespitethefactthattheNPTAstandardsforparentalinvolvementmaybeseenasrepresentativeofafamily-fo-cusedmodel,preserviceteacherscouldbeencouragedtoembedthesestrategieswithinafamily-centeredperspectiveforoptimalcollaborationwithfamilies(Trivette,Dunst,Boyd,&Hamby,1995). Familyinvolvementcourseworkshouldfacilitateachangeprocessforpreserviceteachers’preconceivedideasabouttheroleoftheteacherandtheroleoffamilies.Literaturesupportstheideathatteacherbe-liefshavestrongimplicationsfortheirpersonalpraxisandpedagogy(Brickhouse,1990;Clark&Peterson,1986;Hashweh,1996).Inotherwords,teachersactandteachaccordingtotheirbeliefs.Nespor(1987)developedabeliefsystemsmodelthatexaminesthestructure,use,andfunctions of teachers’ beliefs. Nespor maintains that knowing is notnecessarilybelieving,andthatteachers’experiencescantakeknowledgeandtransformitintobeliefs. Acomplicatingfactoristheemotionalaspectofbeliefsthatmakesthembasicallynon-dynamic,inflexible,andunchangeable(Shechtman,1994).Ifbeliefsdochange,theydosothrougha“conversionorgestaltshift” rather than throughrationalargument (Nespor,1986,p.321).Onewaytofacilitatethisbeliefdevelopmentistohelpteachersbecomereflectiveandself-consciousastheyarepresentedwithdatathatvalidateorrefutetheirbeliefs(Olson&Singer,1994).Hunzicker(2004)arguesthat“permanentlychangingteacherbeliefsrequiresthatinformationispresentedrepeatedlyovertimetothepointthatthepersonbeginstofeeldisequilibriumbetweencurrentbeliefsandnewinformation”(p.45).Acentralpremiseofteachereducationispresentingnewinformationthatchallengespreserviceteachers’beliefs. Thoseinvolvedinpersonnelpreparationmustbequalifiedtofacilitate

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authentic “transformative” experiences for students as recommendedbyBanks(1997;1998).Involvingstudentsinactivitiesandexperiencesthatreshapepreconceivednotionsofteachingandteachersisessentialtoinitiatepersonaltransformativemomentsforstudents.Duringteacherpreparationandthenoviceyears,teachersaremostinterestedin“self”concerns(Karge,Sandlin,&Young,1993).Whenworkingwithchildrenwithdisabilitiesandtheirfamilies,over-relianceonthe“self”mayinterferewiththedevelopmentofimportantandessentialskillsteachersneedtosupportfamiliesandfacilitatechilddevelopment. AsCochran-Smith(2003)warned,teachereducationprogramsthathammerpedagogyintostudentsmaybethwartingthedevelopmentofaqualityteacherbyonlyemphasizingoneaspectoftheprofession.Theimplicationforteachereducationprogramsistodeveloprobustprogramsthatrespectpedagogy,butfacilitatethetransformationofteachercandi-datesfromastereotypicalviewofthemselvesasateacherintoareflective,respectfulpartnerintheeducationalexperiencesofchildren.

Looking At Preservice Teachers’ Attitudes Using Concept Maps

The current study uses concept mapping to describe changes inpreserviceteachers’attitudesandperspectivesregardingworkingwithfamiliesofstudentswithandwithoutspecialneedsfromthebeginningtotheendofone16-weeksemester. Constructivisttheoryassertsthatgrowthinknowledgeisaresultofactivelyconnectingnewideaswithpastunderstanding(Beyerbach&Smith,1990)andreorganizingconceptualideastoaccommodatethenewinformationandexperience. Strategiesdesignedtohelpteachersreflectupontheirbeliefs,suchasconceptmapping,canleadthemtoevaluatetheirworkinclassroomsandwithfamilies(Beyerbach&Smith,1990).Thisstudyusesconceptmapstoexaminepreserviceteachers’knowledgeand beliefs regarding families prior to and following a sixteen-weekcoursepromotingfamily-centeredteaching. Conceptmapsaregraphicorganizersthatvisuallyrepresentideasaboutacentraltopicandhighlighttherelationshipsbetweenconceptsandimportantdetails(Beyerbach&Smith,1990).Conceptmapshavebeenusedforover30yearsasaresearchtoolinscienceeducationandhavebeenadoptedbythousandsofteachersinmanyfieldstoevaluateinstruction,curriculumdesign,learningandconceptualchange(Markham& Mintzes, 1994). Other disciplines that have used concept mappingintheirscientificresearchincludenursing,accountingeducation,andspecialeducationteacherpreparation(Correa,Hudson,&Hayes,2004).Conceptmapsareawaytomeasurethechangesinpreserviceteachers’

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understandingofcomplexissuesastheyintegratethemintotheirexist-ingschema. Recentliteraturefocusingonpreserviceteachereducationhasshownthatconceptmappingisaneffectiveandefficienttoolformeasuringhowstudentsgainmasteryofasubjectandreorganizeknowledgeastheirconceptualunderstandingincreases.Conceptmappingprovidesatwo-dimensional,visualdepictionoftherelationshipamongimportantideasandconceptsfollowingclassroominstruction(Correa,Hudson,&Hayes,2004;Jones&Vesilind,1996;Kinchin,2000;Markham&Mintzes,1994;Morine-Dershimer, 1993;Trent, Pernell, Mungai, & Chimedza, 1998).Mapsareintendedtoshowthecomprehension,beliefs,reflections,andbiasesofthestudentsandtorepresentconnectionsmadebetweenrelatedtopicsand subtopics, aswell as the student’sdepthofunderstanding(Beyerbach&Smith,1990;Kinchin,2000).Conceptmappinghasbeenfoundtoshowbothstatisticallysignificantchangesfromaquantitativeperspectiveaswellasmeaningfulqualitativegrowthwhencomparedwithothermethodsofevaluationsuchasobservation,critiqueofavideotape,orKellyrepertorygridexercises(Correa,Hudson,&Hayes,2004).

Method

Thisstudywasguidedbythequestionofwhetheraone-semester(16week)coursewoulddevelopandenhancepreserviceteachers’at-titudestowardscollaboratingwiththeirstudents’families.Thestudywasconductedovertwoconsecutivesemesterswithtwosetsofpreser-vicestudents.Thefirstauthorofthisarticleservedasinstructorforthecourse,“ServingIndividualswithDisabilitiesandTheirFamilies.”Thepurposeofthecoursewastoprovidestudentswiththeory,generalprinciples,procedures,andlegalrequirementsforfosteringcollaborativepartnershipsamongfamilies,professionals,studentsandotherstake-holdersthatleadtooutcomesofindividualandmutualempowermentbyemphasizingthefamily-centeredmodel.Thiscoursewasrequiredforthestudents’subsequentstatelicensureinspecialeducation.Thecontentandactivitiesduringbothsemestersofthecoursewereconsistent,aswerethetext(Turnbull&Turnbull,2001)andsupplementalreadings.ThestudywasconductedretroactivelywithInstitutionalReviewBoard(IRB)approvalbasedonatypicalin-classactivity. This course was taught under the theoretical premise that thestudentsshouldexaminetheirownperceptionsandbeliefsregardingfamily.Thispremisesupportsconstructivisttheory,whichrecognizesthatindividualsconstructtheirownrealitiesandchangeperceptionsbaseduponestablishedbeliefsandvalues.Byreviewingtheirbeliefs

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aboutfamilieswithinthecontextofthecourse,studentswerethoughttobeinabetterpositiontoaccommodatenewideasthatmayextendtheirestablishedconceptions.Theinstructoremphasizedthatherownbeliefsaboutfamilyoriginatedinherfamilyoforigin,i.e.,thefamilytowhichshewasborn,andwerebroadenedasshehadexperienceswithherfriends’andassociates’families,asshemarriedandhadafamilyofherown,andasshesharedexperienceswithandstudiedaboutfamiliesindiversecircumstances. The class was held weekly in a three-hour block. In addition toitemstraditionallytaughtin“families”courses,i.e.,benefitofparentalinvolvement,home-schoolcommunicationtechniques,andtheroleoffamilyduringIndividualEducationProgram(IEP)orIndividualFam-ily Service Plan (IFSP) development as required by the Individualswith Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the instructor incorporatedseveraldistinctiveactivities.Theseactivitiesweredesignedtoencour-agestudents’reflectionsoftheircurrentbeliefsandchallengepersonaltransformations.Descriptionsoftheseactivitiesfollow. Anin-classexperienceusedtodemonstratefamilydiversitywasthe“CrossingtheLine”activity.Theinstructorplacedapieceoftapedownthemiddleoftheclassroomandaskedstudentstostandononeortheothersideofthe“line”baseduponavarietyoffamilyconditionsincluding(a)raisedinaruralsetting;(b)familyoforiginparentalconfiguration,i.e.,twoparenthomeorsomeotherconfiguration;(c)onlychildoronewithsiblings;and(d)singleormultiplelanguagesspokeninthehome.Ineverycondition,therewerestudentsresidingonbothsidesoftheline.Theinstructorthenemphasizedthatthesamediversityoffamilycharacteristicsexistingwithintheclasscouldbeanticipatedastheyinteractwiththefamiliesoftheirfuturestudents. Threeclasssessionsaddressedtheissuesofsocioeconomicstatusandpoverty;twomajoractivitiesaccompaniedthesetopics.Duringthefirst,thestudentswereaskedtomakealistoftheirindividualincomeandexpensesascollegestudents.Theythencomparedtheireconomicsituationwiththatofasingleparentwho,becauseofthelackofahighschooldiploma,isforcedtoworkaminimumwagejob.Afterexaminingissuesthatwouldcomplicatethesituationforourhypotheticalparent,e.g., lack of transportation that minimizes access to local resources,studentswrote reflections comparing their ownsituations to that ofthehypotheticalfamily;specificallytheywereaskedtoexaminehowtheyas teachersmightconnectwith this family.Thesecondactivityaddressingsocioeconomicissueswasagameinwhichstudentswererandomlyassignedtosocialgroups,providedtokensrepresentativeofresourcesbasedupongroupassignment,andthenattemptedasindi-

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vidualstobettertheirsituationastheytradedtheirtokenswithothers.Theoverridingresponsefromstudentsbasedupontheresultsoftheactivitywasthat“therichgetricherwhilethepoorgetpoorer.”Classdiscussionandindividualreflectionsaddressedthedifficultyofupwardmobilityandthepremisethatitisnotjustamatterofworkingharder;someindividualssimplydonothavetheresourcesthatallowthemtoimprovetheireconomicsituation. Thecollaborativeprocessofteamingwithfamilieswasalsoaddressedduringclassactivitiesandclassdiscussions.Studentsweretaughttoexpect thatdifferentopinionsariseamong teammembers.Classac-tivitiesdemonstratedtheprocessesofconsensusbuilding,emphasizingthatdifferingopinionscanleadtorichdiscourseandpositivesolutions.Students’reflectionsonthisactivitydemonstratedtheimportanceofvaluingthecontributionsoffamilymembersandtrustingthatcaregiv-erswantwhatisbestfortheirchildren. Twomajorprojectswereusedtohelpstudentsmakeconnectionsbetweentheirownfamilyandafamilycontainingachildwithadisabil-ity.Earlyinthesemesterthestudentsconducteda“FamilyofOrigin”interviewwithoneofthecaregiversfromthefamilyinwhichtheywereraised.Thisinterviewwasdesignedtoexaminehowtheirowneducationalperspectivesweredevelopedbasedupontheirownandtheircaregivers’educationalexperiences.Towardtheendofthesemesterthestudentscompleteda“CaregiverConversation”withtheparentofachildwithadisabilityaddressingthosesameissues.Studentssubmittedpapersmakingcomparisonsbetweenthetwofamilies; theirtypicalfindingswerethat,whilethereisgreatsimilaritybetweenthetwofamiliesasallparentsdesirethebesteducationaloutcomesfortheirchildren,familiescontainingachildwithdisabilitiesoftenencounterdifficultiesaccessingadequatesupportsthatwouldprovidetheirchildrentheabilitytomeettheireducationalpotential.

Participants Allparticipantsinthestudy(n=49students)wereenrolledinoneoftwosemester-longcoursestitled“ServingIndividualswithDisabilitiesandTheir Families.”Twenty-four students were enrolled during thefirstsemesterandtwenty-fiveinthefollowingsemester.Becausethecourseisrequiredforsecuringaspecialeducationteachinglicense,themajorityofstudentsidentifiedthemselvesasspecialeducationmajorsor“dual”majorsworkingtowardbothelementaryandspecialeducationlicensure,yetstudentswithadditionalmajorswerealsorepresented.Studentsatbothundergraduateandgraduatelevelswererepresentedineach sectionof the course;however,all studentswerenew to the

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teaching profession. Undergraduate students’ (n=36) majors includedspecial education (n=6), early childhood education (n=1), anddual el-ementary/specialeducation(n=29).Graduatestudents(n=13)included12 special educationmajorsandonehealth/physical educationmajor.Theclassconsistedof51%self-reportedtraditionalagestudents(n=25,ages20-24)and43%non-traditionalstudents(n=21,ages>24)withagesrangingfrom25to52(mean=27).Sixpercent(n=3)ofthestudentsdidnotreportage.Ninetypercent(n=44)ofthestudentswerewomenand10%(n=5)men.Studentsareadvisedtotake“ServingIndividualswithDisabilitiesandtheirFamilies”earlyintheirteachereducationprogramsasafirstorsecondsemestercourse.Whilestudentsareadvisedtofollowaprescribedprogramofstudy,somestudentsstepoutoftheirprogramandtakecoursesoutofsequence;thereforeitispossiblethatasmallnumberofstudentstookthecoursejustpriortostudentteaching.

Data Collection Onthefirstdayofeachcoursetheinstructorprovidedstudentswithinstructionsforcompletingaconceptmap.UsingPowerPointgraphics,sheexplainedthestep-by-stepconstructionofaconceptmapbyprovid-ingamapoutlining“LeisureActivities”(seeFigure1).

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Students were then provided a blank map with the course title,“ServingIndividualswithDisabilitiesandTheirFamilies”asthecen-tralconceptandweredirectedtocompletemapsbasedupontheirownperceptions.Additionally,studentswereaskedtoprovideashortwrittenrationaleexplainingwhyspecificcomponentswereincludedontheirmaps.Therewasnotimelimitandstudentswereencouragedtoincludeasmanyideasaspossible.Duringtheclassactivitystudentswrotetheirnamesonthemaps. Inthefinalclassofthesemesterthemapactivitywasreplicated.Theclassrevisitedthe“LeisureActivities”mapasarefresher.Studentswereonceagaingivenamappagewiththecoursetitleinthemiddle.Studentsweredirectedtocompletethemapagainnowthattheclasswascomplete.Againstudentsworkedwithoutatimelimit.Thisactivitywascompletedblind,asthestudentswerenotabletoreviewtheiroriginalmaps.Studentsagainwrotetheirnamesonthemapwhencompletingtheactivity.Whenitwasdeterminedthatthemapswouldbeanalyzedaspartofastudy,themapswerematchedpre-andpost-courseforeachstudent,thestudents’nameswereremoved,andacodingnumberre-placedthename.Anexampleofastudent’spre-andpost-coursemapscanbefoundinFigures2and3.

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Development of the Concept Map Analysis Form Tobeginassessingcontrastsinstudents’perceptionsfromthebegin-ningofthecoursetotheendofthecourse,datafromtheconceptmapsneededtobeconsolidatedandcategorized.Alongandevolvingprocessof identifyingcodingcategories forthemapswasundertaken.Giventheunlimitedpossibilitiesstudentscouldwriteontheirmapsandtheessentiallackofstructureoftheassignment,theprocessproceededinsmallincrementsandthecodingcategoriescontinuedtoevolvethrough-outthecodingprocess.Inordertodeterminecodingcategories,thetworesearchersindependentlycodedsixmapsrandomlyselectedfromthecollectedpre-andpost-maps,andrecordedcategoriesandthemestheresponsessuggested. Theresearchersthenmettodiscussdifferentwaystogroupthesepotentialcategoriesanddevelopedapreliminarycodinganalysisformwithlargerconstructsdefinedbymorespecificcategories.Athirdcoderwasthentrainedtousetheinitialdatacodingsheetusingtheinitialsixmapsrandomlyselected.Aftersuccessfultraining,anothersetofsixmapsfromthecombinedcollectionperiodswasrandomlyselectedtotesttheveracityofthedatacodingsheet.Asexpected,newresponsesappearedonthemapsthatdidnotfitintothepreviouslyidentifiedcat-

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egories.Withtheagreementofallofthecodingteam,newcategorieswerecreatedasnecessary,makingthedatacodingsheetanevolvingdocument.Thegoalwastoproduceadatacodingsheetthatcapturedalloftheparticipants’responses. Subsequentmapswerecodedinbatchesoften.Aftereverytenwerecoded,thethreecodersmetforareliabilitycheck.(Onecoderwassubse-quentlydropped.Seediscussionofreliabilitybelow).Duringthisprocess,revisionsweremadetothecodingsheetasthemesevolvedanddefinitionsexpanded.DevelopmentoftheConceptMapAnalysisFormresultedinfourmajorcategories,(a)Communication,representingteacher/parentinteractionorspecificteacheradvocacyonbehalfoftheparentorchild;(b)Role of School/Teacher,representingtheroleof teachers inschoolsettings;(c)Perception of Family Issues,representingperceptionsoftheissuesfamiliesfaceraisingachildwithadisability;and(d)Other,foranyitemsthatfelloutsideofthemajorcodes.Withinthesemajorcategorieswere22sub-categoriesreferredtoassubtopics.

Coding Data Duringthecodingprocess,codersrecognizedtheimportanceofstemconceptsinordertofullycodeeachbranchofthemap;stemconceptsallowed the coder todetermine the intentof the student for specificentries.Wedefineastemconceptastheoriginoftheresponseorthecategoryonwhichresponseswereattached.Forexample,onthepre-coursemapthestudentincludedtheterm“assessment”intwoareasofthemap.Byusingstemconcepts,wedeterminedthatthisstudentconnectedassessmenttobothteachingmethodsandchildplacementis-sues.Subsequentlyeach“assessment”entrywascodedseparately.Everyentryonamapwasassignedacodebasedupontheanalysisformandnoresponseswereleftuncoded.Weinitiallycodedmapsfromthefirstsemesteroftheclasspre-andthenpost-coursefollowedbythesecondsemesterclassmaps,pre-andthenpost-course. Inadditiontocodingindividualitemsonstudentmaps,twoholisticscoreswereassigned.Holisticscoreswerebasedonthetoneoftheoverallreadingofthemap,inotherwords,alloftheresponsesinsumandnotjustindividualresponses. Thefirstholistic scorewasnamed“positioning.”This constructisbasedonthetheoreticalworkofHarre&vanLangenhove(1999).Specifically,wewereinterestedinhowrespondentsappliedfamily-centeredprincipleswhenpositioningteachersandfamiliesintermsofexpertiseandleadership.Fourholisticpositionscoreswerecreated:Therespondentscouldpositiontheteacherasexpert(TE);therespondentcouldpositionthefamilyasexpert(FE);teachersandfamiliescould

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bothbepositionedasexperts(TF);orpositioningmaynotbeevident(NE)inthemap. Thesecondholisticscorerepresentedtheserviceprovisionpriorityoftherespondentreflectedinthemap,i.e.,whetherthechildorthesystemthatservesthechildwasreflectedasapriorityonthemap.Codesforthisscorewere:Thechildwithadisabilityisthefocusandpriority(CP);thesystemthatservesthechildisthefocusandpriority(SP);themapreflectsamixedpriorityfocusedonthechildwithadisabilityandthesystemthatprovidesservices(MP);orafocusorpriorityisnotevident(NE)inthemap. Duringthedatacodingprocess,tenunusualmapswereidentifiedbythecoders.Theseweresetasideandalloftheresearchersmetandreachedconsensusonthecodingcategories.

Reliability Initiallythreecodersweretrainedtousethecodingsheet.Onlytwoweretrainedtoreliability;subsequentlythethirdcoderwasdropped.Ofthe98totalmaps,elevenwereusedfortraining,sevenwereusedforreliability,andtenmapswerecodedbyconsensus;allmapswereusedinthisstudy.Theprimarycoderindependentlycodedtheremaining70maps.Thesemapswereorganizedintobatchesoftenandonemapineachbatchoftenwasusedtoreassessreliability,thusaccountingfortheseventotalusedtoassessinter-raterreliability.SeeTable1forinter-raterreliability.

Results

TheprocessfordevelopingtheConceptMapAnalysisFormresultedinfouroverarchingcategories:Communication,theRoleofSchool/Teach-ers,Perception ofFamily Issues, andOther (for those responsesnotfittingwithintheotherthreecategories).Datawereanalyzedinthreedistinctphases.Initially,descriptiveanalyseswereconductedtoexamine

Table 1. Inter-rater reliability results for seven randomly selectedmaps.

Totalresponses Numbercoded %agreement

Map1 10 8 80Map2 21 19 91Map3 9 7 78Map4 21 18 86Map5 20 18 90Map6 9 8 89Map7 32 31 97

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thenumberofresponsesineachcategoryandthenumberofresponsesperparticipantineachofthethreecategories.Toexamineifchangesoccurredfromthepre-coursemapstothepost-coursemaps,aseriesofMcNemartestswereusedtoexaminepotentialchangesbetweensub-topicsineachcategory.TheMcNemartest“…assessesthesignificanceofthedifferencebetweentwodependentsampleswhenthevariableofinterestisadichotomy”(McNemar,n.d.).McNemar’stestisconsideredappropriateforpairedcategoricaldataandhasbeenusedinapreviousstudyofconceptmaps(Correa,Hudson&Hayes,2004).Table2indicatestheaggregatenumberofresponsesforeachtopiconstudents’pre-courseandpost-coursemapandtheresultsoftheMcNemartests.Finally,chisquareanalyseswereusedtoexaminedifferences in the twosetsofholisticscoresbetweenthepre-courseandpost-coursemaps. Thefirst of the categories,“Communication,”wasdefined as theinteractionsbetweenparentsandteachers.Thiscategoryyieldedfoursubtopicsincludinginteractionsrelatedtotheflowthroughofinforma-tionandpaperwork,theverbalcaringconversationsbetweenparentsandteachers,andresourcesharing.Overall students’addedto theirperceptionsof“Communication.”TheaveragenumberofresponseswithinthefoursubtopicsincreasedfromM=75.5(SD=29.1)onthepre-coursemapstoM=103.75(SD=35.05)onthepost-coursemaps. Theaveragenumberofpre-courseresponsesperstudent inthe“Communication”categorywas6.22(SD=5.56)andincreasedinthepost-coursemapstoM=8.5(SD=7.09).Within“Communication”therewasanincreaseinthenumberofresponsesonpost-coursemapsinthesubtopicofPurpose of Communication: Getting the Job Done,buttheresultwasnotsignifi-cant.ResultsrevealedasignificantchangeonthesubtopicAdvocacy for Children and Their Families(z=2.74,p<.01). Thesecondcategory,“RoleofSchool/Teachers,”coveredfivesubtop-ics specific to thework teachersdowith children in theeducationalenvironment.This category included improving academic and socialoutcomesandenhancingchildren’sself-esteem,aswellastheteacher’sroleasproblemsolverandproviderofsupportsandaccommodations. Overthecourseofthesemester,students’alteredtheirperceptionofthe“RoleofSchool/Teachers”byrecordingfeweroverallresponsesin this category. The average number of responses across the fivesubtopics reducedon thepost-coursemap fromM=97.6 (SD=99.30)toM=69.6(SD=88.34).TheaveragenumberofresponsesperstudentchangedfromM=9.96(SD=8.68)toM=7.12(SD5.64).OnlythesubtopicImproving Academic Outcomes/Pedagogyshowedasignificantchangeinthestudents’perceptionswithastrongreductioninpost-courseresults(z=1.95;p<.05).

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“PerceptionofFamilyIssues”wasthethirdand largestcategorywith eleven subtopics identified. “Perception of Family Issues” wasdefinedas teachers’ perceptions of the issues families face raisingachildwithadisability.Subtopicsinthiscategoryincludedtheadvocacyroleofparents,thesupportsfamiliesneed,theroleoffamilystructure,resources,financialconcerns,andfamilycharacteristicssuchasvalues,habits,cultureandreligion. Thedescriptiveresultsofthepost-coursemapsreflectedanincrease

Table2.Numberofstudentresponsesonpre-courseandpost-coursemapspertopic.

Topic Pre-course Post-course McNemar Responses Responses pvalue

Communication Mechanismforgettinginformation betweenhomeandschool 47 58 .50Purposeofcommunication: Gettingthejobdone 85 127 .66Purposeofcommunication: CaringProfessional 112 95 .23Advocacyforchildrenandtheirfamilies 58 135 .01*­ Role of School/Teachers Improvingacademicoutcomes/pedagogy 173 82 .05*­Improvingsocialoutcomes 37 19 .22Enhancingself-esteem 27 14 .41Providingsupportandaccommodations 234 219 .13Problemsolving/readyforanything 17 14 .28 Perception of Family Issues Rolesofparents 20 38 .03*­Familiesneedhelp 14 15 .72Familyactivitiesimpactedpositively bydisabilityissues 15 6 .72Familyactivitiesimpactednegatively bydisabilityissues 19 17 1.00Familystructure 12 13 .79Familystructure—parent 6 6 .37Familystructure—siblings 11 11 1.00Familystructure—extendedfamily 3 9 1.00Interactionswithinfamily 29 26 .45Financialconcerns 4 24 .01*­Familycharacteristics 49 82 .01*­Familyresources 8 26 .01*­

*­indicatesasignificantchangeintheparticipants’responses.

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instudents’perceptionsof“FamilyIssues.”Familyissuesweremarkedonpre-coursemapsinM=15.83(SD=12.81)cases,butincreasedtoM=22.75(SD=20.98)instancesinthepost-coursemaps.Themeannumberofre-sponsesperstudentinthiscategoryincreasedfromM=3.81(SD=6.12)toM=5.49(SD=5.10).Foursignificantchangeswerenotedonsubtopicsinthiscategory.First,post-coursemapsindicatedmorestudentsincludedtheRole of Parents ontheirmaps(z=2.37;p.03).ResultsalsoshowedasignificantincreaseinthenumberofparticipantswhoincludedFinan-cial Concerns(z=3.36;p.01)Family Characteristics (z=3.13;p<.01) andFamily Resources (z=2.74;p .01) intheirpost-coursemaps. Chisquareanalysiswasusedtodeterminechangesinthecategoricaldatausedfortheholisticscores.Thefirstanalysisforthe“Position”ofteacherorfamilyasexpertrevealednochangeovertimewiththeteacherpositionedastheexperton73%ofthepre-coursemapsand65%ofthepost-coursemaps(X 2

(1)=1.22;p>.05).Thesecondanalysisoftheholisticdatawasconductedforthe“PriorityorFocus”ofthemap.Resultsrevealednochangeovertimeinstudent’sperceptions(X 2(1)=.02;0>.05).Studentsperceivethespecialeducationsystemtobethefocuspriortothecourse42.86%andafter42.86%.Thechildwasperceivedasthefocuson30%ofthepre-coursemapsandon32.68%ofthepost-schoolmaps.

Discussion

TheprocessfordevelopingtheConceptMapAnalysisformresultedinfouroverarchingcategories:(a)Communication,(b)RoleofSchool/Teacher,(c)PerceptionofFamilyIssues,and(d)Other(foranyitemsthatfelloutsidethemajorcodes).Studentgenerateddataguidedthedevelopmentoftheanalysisform.Theanalysisformcontinuedtodevelopthroughoutthecodingprocessasourintentwastorepresenteveryitemthestudentshadincludedaspartofdataanalysis.Onlytwoitemsfromthe98pre-andpost-coursemapswerecoded“other.”Codingthedatawasdifficultandlaborintensiveandrigoroustrainingwasrequiredinordertoreachacceptablereliabilitylevels.

Communication Overallstudentsaddedtotheirperceptionsofcommunicatingwithfamilies.Initiallystudentsviewedcommunicationasbeinganinterac-tionbetweentheparentandtheteacher,generallycarriedoutbyverbalmeans.Bytheendofthecourse,studentsexpandedtheirviewofthePurpose of Communication: Getting the Job DonetoincludeAdvocating for Children and Their Families.Specifically,studentsexpandedtheircommunication role to exceed completing the IEP and the required

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paperwork process to include sharing information on resources andrelated services. Students moved away from communication as be-ingamethodofinteractiontobeingatoolformeetingchildren’sandfamilies’ needs. Post-course maps demonstrate communication as atwo-wayprocesswhereinfamilieswereabletosettheagendaforsomeoftheinteractionsratherthansimplyrespondingtoteacherdirectives.Thisfindingdirectlylinkstothein-classconsensusbuildingactivities,whichemphasizesfamilies’rolesasteammembers.Overall,thetoneofpost-coursecommunicationresponsesrepresentedamorerespectfulandmorereciprocal interactionwith families.Studentsrelinquishedtheroleof“powerbroker”andembracedtheroleofadvocate.

Role of Teacher Itisnotsurprisingthatthestudentsbegantheclassbyfillingtheirconceptmapswithitemssupportingthetraditionallyperceivedroleofteacherastheacademicleader.Studentsareinfluencedbytelevision,newspapers,andothermedia,aswellastheirindividualmemoriesofschool,allofwhichsupportalimitedviewofteachertasks.Students’overallperceptionofteachersreflectedthisstereotypicalteacherasthepurveyorofknowledge,e.g.,teachinglessons,assessingprogress,meet-ingestablishedstandards.Thisperceptionwassupportedbypreviousteachereducationcoursework,whichemphasizedteachingmethodsandcontentofinstruction.Methodstextstypicallyendwithachapteronhowtomakethecurriculummoremeaningfulbyincludingconnectionswithparentsandfamilies;incontrast,thiscoursemovedtheroleoffamiliestotheforefront,recognizingthepositiveimpactoffamilyinvolvementin children’s education. This finding raises questions regarding thesequenceofcourseworkinteachereducationprograms:Whereshouldcoursesthattrytochangebeliefsanddispositionsbelocatedwithinaseriesofcontentandmethodscourses? Thevalueofthistypeofcourseisthattherewere50%fewerpost-courseresponsesreflectingthestereotypicalperspectiveofteacherre-sponsibilities.Thepost-coursemapsshowedthatstudentsseeteachingasmorecomplexandcollaborative.Post-coursemapsdemonstratedthatteachers’workgoesbeyondlessonplanninganddeliveringofinstructionandexpandsoutintothecommunity.Representativemapsincludeditemssuchasteaming,sharingresources,andshowingcompassiontowardbothchildandfamilychallenges.Whilewecannotchangetheresultswhichfoundthatstudents’perceptionsofinteractionswithfamiliesdidnotmeettheidealstandard,wedocelebratethefactthatthesestudentsexpanded their conceptions of the role of teacher to includepositiveinteractionswithfamilies.

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Perception of Family Issues Studentsalsochangedintheirunderstandingofthecomplexityoffamilycharacteristicsandthechallenges families face.Thiswas thelargestcategory,withelevensubtopics;ofthose,foursubtopics,Role of Parents, Financial Concerns, Family Characteristics, and Family Re-sources,eachshowedsignificantchange.TherewasanoverallincreaseinthenumberofresponseslistedundertheRole of Parents,asthirty-eightofthestudentsincludeditemsunderthissubtopicintheirpost-coursemaps.Whilethischangeissignificant,itisdisappointingthatmoreofthestudentsdidnotrecognizetheimportanceoftheparents’roleasacollaboratorinchildren’seducation.Astudent’strueunderstandingoffamily-centeredinteractionswouldpromoteaviewoftheroleoftheparentsasprimaryindeterminingthoseissuesorconcernsthatwerecrucialtobeaddressedfortheirindividualchild(Trivette,Dunst,Boyd,&Hamby,1995).Thecoursetext,“CaregiverConversation”assignment,andconsensusbuildingactivityeachemphasizedtheindividualnatureoffamilies’concernsandtheimportanceofpartneringwithparentstodeterminethebestwaytoattendtotheseconcerns. Eighty-twoofthetotal98post-coursemapsincludedatleastoneitemrepresentativeofFamily Characteristics,e.g.,familysize,configuration,habits,culture,beliefs,traditions,religion.Studentsclearlydevelopedabroaderperspectiveofthecharacteristicsthatdefineandcontributetothedistinctivequalitiesofeachfamilysystem.The“CrossingtheLine”activityandthe“FamilyofOrigin”project,aswellasthecoursetext,clearlyexpandedthestudents’perceptionsofthemultiplecharacteristicsthatmakeupfamilies. Additionally,throughthe“CaregiverConversation”projectstudentshadtheopportunitytovisitwithafamilycontainingachildwithdis-abilities.Thisdirectinteractionwithaspecificfamilyencouragedthestudents to lookbeyondtheirownperceptionsof familyandexpandtheirunderstandingofchildanddisabilityissues.Teacherswhopossessabroadunderstandingofthevariousattributesthatdefineafamilyareinabetterpositiontocraftinteractionsbaseduponeachfamily’suniquecharacteristics(Bauer&Shea,2003;Turnbull,Turnbull,Erwin,&Soodak,2006;Umansky&Hooper,1998). Anothersubtopicfromthiscategorythatshowedasignificantincreaseonpost-coursemapswasFinancial Concerns;however,onlyone-fourthofstudents’mapsincludedaniteminthissubtopic.Whilesignificant,this result was disappointing given that three entire class sessionsfocusedonissuesofpovertyandsocialstatus.Reflectionsonthetwoin-classactivitieslinkedtothistopicseemedtoindicatethatstudentsrecognized themagnitudeof these issues,yetdespite thisemphasis,

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manystudentsfailedtoseetheseissuesasaprioritywhenconsideringtheirinteractionswithfamilies.Thistransformationobviouslyrequiresdirectexperienceswithchildrenandfamiliesexperiencingsocioeconomicchallenges;however,atthispointintheireducation,thestudentshavenothadalotofdirectexperienceinschools. Studentswillsubsequentlycomeface-to-facewithpovertyandso-cialstatusissuesastheyareplacedin“atrisk”schoolsinhighpovertyareas.Wehope that studentswill then remember these experiencesandapplyappropriate interactions regardless of families’ socialandeconomicconditions.Thesedisappointingresultsmayalsobedue tostudents’perceptionsoftheoverarchingconditionsofdisabilityandalltheimplicationsthatfollowadisabilitydiagnosis—theydonotenvisionalackofsocialstandingand/oreconomicresourcesasanadditionallayerofcomplexitythatcanchallengefamiliesofchildrenwithdisabilities. Family Resources wasthefinalsubtopicunderthiscategoryinwhichpost-courseresponsesrevealedsignificance.Itisencouragingthatstu-dentsarebeginningtorecognizeextraneoussupportsystemsseparatefromfinancialresourcesorresourcesavailablethroughtheschoolsystem,i.e.,friends,neighbors,asbeingcrucialtofamilysystemscontainingachildwithadisability.Yetonlyone-fourthofthestudentsincludedanentryontheirmapsunderthissubtopic.Theirexperiencesinterview-ingfamiliescontainingachildwithadisabilityduringthe“CaregiverConversation”assignmentmayhaveenlightenedthemonthecomplexityofday-to-dayactivitiesthesefamiliesfaceandtheimportanceofaccess-ingsupports.Additionally,anunderstandingoffamilies’dependenceoncommunityprogramsaddressingtheneedsofchildrenwithdisabilitiessurfacedduringsomeoftheseinterviews.Again,itisimportanttonotethatthesestudentshavehadlimitedinteractionwithschoolsandtheirsubsequentinteractionswithfamiliescontainingchildrenwithdisabili-tiesduringpracticumplacementsandstudentteachingwillallowthemtogrowinunderstandingoftheimportanceofextraneousresourcestothesefamilies.

Holistic Scores Theresultoftheholisticscoringprocedurethatexaminedthepositionof“expert”wassurprisingatfirstglance.Preserviceteacherspositionedtheteacherastheexpertin73%ofthepre-coursemapsand65%ofthepost-coursemaps.Itwasthoughtthatexperienceinthecoursewouldchangestudents’perceptionsonwhotheypositionedastheexpert.Giventhefocusofthecourseandthe“family-centered”perspectiveframingofthecourse,theinstructorexpectedtoseeasignificantchangeintheteacherandfamily(TF)jointlypositionedasexperts.Itisimpossibleto

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determineifthestudents’werepositioningtheir“self”(p.7)asHarre&vanLangenhove(1999)describe,orthemselvesastheunknownteacherexperttheyarehopingtobecome;thefactremainsthatthestudents’forcedpositioningofthefamilyasasubordinatemayleadtorestric-tionsthatarenotfavorable.Familiespositionedassubordinateswillbelesslikelytoinitiateconversations,askforclarification,sharefamilycircumstances, share resources orparticipate inadvocacy (Turnbull,Turnbull,Erwin,&Soodak,2006).Thelossofanyofthesebehaviorsdamagestheteacher-familyrelationship. WhileIDEAmayespousea“person-first”perspective,itwasevidentintheconceptmapsthatpreserviceteachersweremorefocusedonthesystemratherthanthe“child.”ItwasthelegalitiesofIEPs,IFSPsandIDEAthatcapturedtheattentionofstudentsratherthanthehumanbeingsthelawanditsmandatorydocumentsweredesignedtoprotect.Whiletheinstructorapproachedtheclassfromachildandfamilycen-teredperspective,itappearedtomakelittleimpactwhenviewingtheirmapsfromaholisticperspective. Atthebeginningofthecourse,thestudentsfocusedonspecialedu-cationasasystem;bytheendofthecourse,regardlessofthenumerousactivitiesinwhichtheyparticipatedandthefamilystoriestheyheard,theydidnotmoveawayfromseeingthefocusoftheclassonthespecialeducationsystemanditsrequirements.Thisfocusonthesystemraisesconcernsforteachereducatorsandourapproachtoteachingthelawanditsrequirements.Perhapsinourconcernforchildrenandfamilieswetoozealouslyimpressonourstudentstheirresponsibilitiesunderthelaw.Indoingso,itispossiblethatteachereducationstudentsonlyseethelawasaseriesofrulesandregulationsthatmustbefollowedorelseriskbeingoutofcompliance.Asteachereducatorswemaybefailingtounderscorethesensibilitiesinthelawthatprotectchildrenandtheir families. Itseemsimperativetorectifythissituation; if infactourstudentsteachthewaytheyaretaught,theymaybetakingaheavyhandedapproachwithfamiliesastheyworkthroughtheirlegallymandatedassignments.Forexample,itispossiblethatourstudentsaresendingmessagestothefamiliestheyencounterthatcompletingtheIEPismoreimportantthanthepeopleinvolvedintheprocess.

Limitations

Itisimportanttoexaminethebenefitsandchallengesofusingcon-ceptmapsasatoolforevaluatingteachingefficacy.Asusedinthisstudy,conceptmapsprovedtobeverystudentfriendly—theywerecompletedaspartofanin-classactivitywithnogradesassigned.Thisformatwas

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relativelystress-freeforstudents.Studentswerecompletelyfreetoincludewhateverconceptsheldimportancetothemontheirmaps,studentswerenotpromptedastowhattoinclude,andallstudentsreceivedthesameinstructionsregardingthebasicsofmapconstruction.Thestudentswerenotinformedthattheirmapswouldbeusedtoevaluatetheeffectivenessofthecourse.Thesesamebenefitsinusingconceptmapsalsocontributedtothechallenges.Asubstantialnumberofunexpecteditemsappearedonthemapsduetothefreedomthestudentshadinconstructingthem.Whilethisfreedomprovidedrich,robustdata,italsocomplicateddataanalysisandcontributedtothecumbersometaskofcodingresponses.Asasolutiontothedatacodingcomplexity,wedevelopedtheprocedureof stemconceptsas itwas important forus toacknowledgestudents’perspectivesinincludingspecificitemsontheirmaps. Therearelimitationstotheconceptmappingprocedure.Althoughstudents are encouraged to ask questions about mapping, they areconstructingtheirmapsimmediatelyafterbeingtaughtaboutthem.Theremaybesome limits tostudentsunderstandingof theprocess.Whilesomestudentstookthetimetocreatecomplexmaps,othersdidnottakesufficienttimetodeveloptheirmaps.Anotherlimitationisthatwedonotknowhowmuchpriorknowledgestudentsmaypossessaboutagiventopic; forexample,somestudentsmayhavefamilymemberswithdisabilitiesmakingthemprivytodisabilityissues.Thesestudentsmayconstructmoredetailedmapsbaseduponindividualexperienceratherthancoursecontent.Afurtherlimitationisthatwechosetogiveeveryitemstudentslistedequalpriority.Usingourmethodology,creditforasubtopicwasgivenifstudentsincludedarepresentativeitemontheirmaps.Wedidnotgiveadditionalemphasistoconceptsthatwereincludedmultipletimesanditemswerenotweightedbytheirrelativepositiononthemaps;i.e.,thestemconceptreceivednomorecreditthanitemsondistantbranches.Duringcoding,theinstructorofthecoursehaddifficultyachievingreliabilitywiththeothercoders.Thismaybeduetotheintimacyshehadwiththesubjectmatterandcourseactivi-ties.Thisintimacymadeiteasytoprojectherinterpretationsintothedefinitionsofthecategories.

Conclusion

This study addressed the question of whether a single semestercoursewoulddevelopandenhancepreserviceteachers’attitudestowardscollaboratingwiththeirstudents’families.Whilechangeswerenotedinourstudents’overallperceptionsofthreemajorcategories,“Communi-cation,”“RoleofTeacher,”and“PerceptionofFamilyIssues,”significant

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findingsinmorespecificsubtopicswerelimited.Thisisnotsurprisingconsideringthecomplexnatureofimplementingchangeinbeliefs(Hun-zicker,2004;Nespor,1987;Shechtman,1994),yettherigorousformatandcontentofasinglecoursefocusedonfamilyinvolvementinitiatesthe“transformative”experiencesofpreserviceteachersandcontributestodisequilibriumin thinkingabout theirpotential interactionswithchildren’sfamilies.Itisimperativethatteachereducatorscollaboratewithcolleaguesdeliveringpedagogicalcourseworkandfieldexperiencestoensurethatissuesoffamilyinvolvementareeffectivelyembeddedwithinsubsequentcourses.Includingtheseimportantconceptsinallpreserviceteacherexperiencesassuresthetransformationofpreserviceteachers’beliefsaboutfamilieswillcontinue.

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