THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS: IN SEARCH OF TRANSFORMATZVE TEACKERS Patricia G Paterson Faculty of Education Submined in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education Faculty of Graduate Studies The University of Western Ontario London, Ontario January I997 @ Patricia A Paterson 1997 National Library Bibliothkque nationale du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographic Services sewices bibliogtaphiques The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accord6 une licence non exclusive licence allowing the National Library of Canada to Biblioth&quen ationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distniute or sell rrppoduire, *,dis tna~er0u copies of Mer thesis by any means vendre des copies de sa Wse de and in any form or format, making this thesis available to interested forme que ce soit pour mettre des persons. exemplaires de cette these ii la disposition des personnes intefessbes. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriQt6d u copyright in hismer thesis. Neither: h i t& auteur qui proege sa thh. Ni the thesis nor sub- extmts la thbse ni des extraits substantiels de from it may be printed or otherwise celle-ci ne doivent &re impimes ou reproduced with the author's srutrement nproduits sans son permission. ABSTRACT This thesis identifies and examines the personal myths and archetypes that guide the lives and direct the teaching practice of transformative teachers. Myths, archetypes and symbols of personal transformation are explored using both classical and Iungian references. Three transformative teachers are intern-ewed using a wide-range of questions which focus on ten areas to facilitate analysis. namely, teaching as a vocation and life's work, career turning points, professional and personal growth, beliefs and values about life and teaching, personal myths and archetypes, the teaching and learning process, the use of power, the importance of passion in teaching, what cuniculum should accomplish, and the impact of these teachers in teaching. The responses oftransformative teachers are compared and examined from an existential viewpoint in order to identify underlying myths and archetypes, to identify repeated themes or profound statements, to idenm commonalities, and to determine the qualities of t ransformative teachers. The findings indicate that the teaching practice of trdormative teachers is directed and guided by these teachers' personal myths and archetypes. No incongruency was found between these teachers' beliefs and values about life and the beliefs and values that direct their teaching practice. These teachers lives are dedicated to making positive changes in the lives of others, to creating positive learning communities, and to interacting with others in a relational capacity. Keywords: transformative teachers, myths, archetypes, symbols, Jungian psychology, power, teaching as a vocation, teaching as pedagogy, and "great stories" curriculum. -.. lll ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to acknowledge the support and guidance that I received from Dr. Margaret EvIcNay, Thesis Supervisor, and fiom Dr. Cornelia HoogIand, Thesis Advisory Committee member, in the development and completion of this thesis. In addition, I would like to acknowledge the three participants whose stories comprise the research portion of the thesis. These transformative teachers selflessly shared their personal journeys toward self-knowledge and transformation. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Certificate of examination Abstract .4c knowledgements Table of contents 1 Introduction 1.1 Introduction and Background 1.2 Statement of the Research Question -3 Methodology 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Participants 2.3 Inte~ews 2.3.1 Identification and Justification of Interview Questions. 2.3.2 Inte~ewP rocess. 2.4 Data Analysis: Interpretation and Discussion Literamre Review 3.1 Ove~ew 3.2 Myths that shape our lives 3.3 Literature which justifies the choice of questions for interviews 3 -3- 1 Introduction. 3 -3- 2 Archetypes in Teaching. 3 -3.3 Archetypes of Power. 3 -3.4 Curricdum. 3 -3- 5 Teaching as Pedagogy. 3 -3- 6 Teaching as a Vocation. Personal Myth 4.1 Definition of personal myth 4.2 My own personal myths and archetypes (Conlt) 5 Inte~ewws ith Transformative Teachers 5.1.1 Interview with Douglas 5.1 -2 Interview with Ann 5.1 -3 Inte~eww ith Bob Interpretation and Discussion 6.1 Personal Myths of Transformative Teachers 6.1.1 Persona! Myths of Douglas. 6.1- 2 Personal Myths of Am. 6-13 PersonalMythsofBob. 6.2 Reflectioo on Commonalities Imp tications of Personal Myth 7.1 What myths make and shape a teacher? 7.1.1 Beliefs and values about teaching. 2 Teaching as a vocation and life's work. 7.1.3 Professional growth. 7.1.4 The teaching and learning process. 7.1.5 Cumculum. 7.2 What are the implications of the personal myths of trasfonnative teachers? Reflections 8.1 Reflections on the research 8 -2 Further research Bibliography Vita Chapter 1: Introduction I. 1 Intr~&~o&n B&jq-gi I have been fortunate to have encountered many good teachers in my Me-A mong this group, a few stand out as particularly memorable. The first was a childhood mentor, a great uncle, who aood in loco ~arentifso r an absent father. He was a navigator by trade and a historian, ornithologist, and musician I;? ~.a~sioHne. was the first to welcome me to the wondrous world of learning, and the lessons he taught many decades ago are as clear today as though they happened yesterday. He taught me the essential tools of the navigator's trade long before I reached the age of ten. In the timeless tradition of my sea-farng Celtic forebears? I learned to identify the shapes and locations of the constellations. First I drew each star cluster on a brown paper bag and held the perforated design up to a light, and later I listened to my great uncle narrate the ancient stories associated with each constellation. Thus I learned the movement of the constellations in order to find Orion, the Hunter, or the Pleiades, the Seven Sisters, in the night sky. I learned the location of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, the Great She Bear and the Little She Bear, that seem to rotate around Polaris, the Pole Star, &om which all navigators take their readings. I had ample opportunity to apply this knowledge during childhood sea voyages on a coastal freighter, the Lady Anstruther, that carried supplies to the coal mines of Wales, and later, on a tanker, the B.A. Canada, that plied southern waters to the oilfields of Venezuela and the Mediterranean ports of Sicily and North Africa. I now understand that my great uncle gave me more than information; he imparted knowledge that was usefil and meaningfur to my life's journey. He reinforced his teachings by - 3 engaging me in discussions about his sea voyages to Antarctica, his journeys to the near and fa east, and his flights with Scottish Aviation that traced the great circle route Corn Iceland to Labrador. These discussions ranged across the disciplines from geography to history, natural science to literature, and astronomy to philosophy. Together, we pondered life's great questions. Once while walking through an ancient Celtic burial ground, he posed timeless questions of death and the continuation of life. The Celts, of course, have their myths surrounding this issue. We explored, extended and refined the myth of Tir na nQe the Celtic otherworld, through a study of the world's great religions. Our discussions were endless. One led into another, uncovering deeper levels of understanding. One quesrion answered only left other areas to be revealed. At an early age, I discovered that learning occurred in a great spiral of interrelated topics which intersected, co~ectedan d formed new meaning. I learned to make these connections and look beyond the obvious to seek a deep understanding. I learned to observe and to wonder at the formation of snowflakes, the flight of an osprey, the sounding ofa whale, and the daily miracles of life that surrounded me. I believe that the first decade of my life was spent in the presence of a great mind and an enlightened spirit. This gentle, thoughtfid learning contrasted sharply with the way children were instructed in Scottish schools of those times. The Scotish cumculum of my 1950 's childhood was rigorous and de~adingw, ith an emphasis on memorization. Discipline was mict and enforced by corporal punishment. Students wore school uniforms and sat at attention with arms folded over chests in precise, military rows. Our placement in amphitheatre-styled classrooms was according to our academic standing: the brightest child in the class sat in the top left-hand comer of the room; the child unfortunate enough to have obtained the lowest academic standing sat in the lower right-hand comer nearest 3 the teacher's lectern and the strap. I remember two boys who vied for this undesirable position. Both were the 'bairns' of impoverished homes and the objects of teachers' unbridled wrath. Van Manen (1984) identifies the etymoiogical source of 'bairn' as a Scots term meaning "bearing and born" (p. 53). In the Scottish dialect, this term refers to children, particularly young children. I often wonder what became of those 'bairns' who must stiU carry internal scars from the shame inflicted during those daily humiliations. Certainly, as children, the external welts on their hands and arms from countless strappings were vivid reminders of their academic and social unworthiness. I know that one left for Canada where I hope a kinder fate awaited. I generally escaped the strap as I exceiled in language, history, geography, and science; however, I suffered immeasurably in mathematics which usually resulted in my losing first and second class placement to more mathematically ,@fled peers. Class placement had significance in Troon Primary and Junior School. Twice a year, prior to the issue of report cards, we cleared our desks and gathered on the main wooden platform of the classroom. There, we waited b ro ur names to be called in order of academic achievement to ascend or descend to our new placements for the upcoming term The teacher's most withering glower was reserved for the children who were among the last to be seated. This humiliating procedure left no question as to one's position in the rank and file of classmates, and resulted in fierce competition to secure and maintain a good standing. The nccasioaal visitor to the classroom was also able to ascertain, by virtue of our placement, the general achievement of the student. 1r emember Mr. BIackwood, M.A., Headmaster, responding with measured thoughtfidness as I stood to answer a question in literature from the top left-hand comer seat. My early schooling occurred in a system of academic reward and strictiy enforced 4 punishment which, I believe, reinforced a more pervasive ill, namely, the use of educational institutions to replicate and legitimize the social status quo ofpost-war Britain. The children of families with sufficient money or social standing avoided the humiliation and competition rampant in the state schools by attending 'public' schools. This alternative private school system had a financial stake in and moral obligation to assuring that the seKesteem of even the dullest pupil emerged somewhat intact. I also believe that the inflexible social and academic hierarchy which existed in the school system of the time was purposefbl; it was there in order to reinforce the British class system through controlling entrance into the professions. I observed students and teachers carefblly attending to their location within various social ranks, each with its own levels of privilege. For instance, promising students were given speech lessons to soften the broad, glotral vowel sounds of their working-class Scottish dialect, thereby making their &re upward social mobility possible. These students invariably became dining room monitors, and they attended vigilantly to the table manners of their lower-grade charges. Our teachers taught in their university gowns, a symbol of their status and authority which garnered them immediate respect. 1 believe that all were masters within their various disciplines; however, only a few could be considered outstanding educators. Something in the exchange between teacher and student was missing in the determined, linear transmission of knowledge in those teachers' classrooms. In 1956, I sat the I I PLUS examination which identified those students who would go into a secondary academic stream and who were destined to university and fbture professional occupations, and those students who would be streamed into technical and vocational schoois and who were destined to work in the factories, industries, and trades of Britain. As I reed, these