Abstract
These days, educators in academia are simply no longer the only knowledge producers and disseminators. Yet, as political, social, economic, ecological, and technological structures are changing, educational leadership is called upon to ready adults for global challenges. The 21st century knowledge society requires leadership with appropriate traits and skills: emotional intelligence; spirituality; finely honed facilitation of learning within cross-cultural, cross-sector, and inter-disciplinary settings; and a willingness toward a praxis of partnering. In this chapter, the author explores the interdependence of the multi-dimensional roles of education, educational leadership, and research. Examined within collaborative and contextual paradigms, she suggests research to become a re-searching to align the purpose of education institutions and the role of educators to empowerment of people by freeing the human spirit in service of creating a sustainable world with critically thoughtful human beings.
TopIntroduction
In this think-piece, I put forth several premises about education, leadership, and research, calling for re-considering how we re-search in the human sciences. I do not intend to lead you, the reader, to ponder a reformed method or a rejuvenated approach to inquiry; that would merely add to the flavor of the month type of treatises we find in our quasi science-focused society. Instead, in their uncomplicatedness, I offer you considerations about how we ought to think about identifying, describing, defining, and implementing education, leadership, and research action to align to the authentic needs, characteristics, preferences, purposes, and goals of stakeholders. Authenticity, I posit, is arrived at via cross-sector, cross-cultural, and interdependent inquiry and discourse among humans, followed by action that allows education practitioners to play their role correspondingly appropriate in the theatre of teaching and learning.
Much has been written about the topic at hand and debated in the field for decades over the past two millennia. It is not my intent here to provide an examination of the literature on this topic nor to debate the pros and cons of key concepts and theories. We all may have read about those already during our respective studies and our research. If not, then the references and additional resources I provide are a good start to delve into the topic.
My vantage point for re-consideration of many values and assumption in our profession is primarily informed by principles of emancipatory education, phenomenology, and critical narrative research (e.g., Garcia-Hills 2021) which I studied and applied in my praxis. It is often through cross-national and intercultural exchanges and experiences that one’s own reality becomes more sharply visible (Strohschen & Elazier, 2005). My perspective about current approaches in education, educational leadership, and research came about in two contexts: 1), through my work in community-based empowerment education programs in urban USA (Strohschen, 2014); and 2), within the reality of my higher education practices I have experienced and evaluated in Afghanistan, China, European nations, Kenya, Mexico, Thailand, and the USA . By example of work on the ground in these countries and numerous interviews with educators and community members, needs, challenges and strategies for successful collaboration in and across countries and cultures emerged for me. My action research in these countries since 2006 and my work on the blended shore education concept (Strohschen, 2009) and Metagogy (Strohschen, 2016) resulted in real-life, current, no-nonsense strategies for consideration. Fundamental to both theorems are the principles espoused by Lindeman (1926), Krishnamurti (1953), Nyerere (1968, 1974, 1977), Freire (1970), Stanage (1987), Habermas (1987), Brookfield (1995), Cervero (2000), Jarvis (2004), and Palmer and Zajonc (2010), among many other (see Additional Resources), all of which I highly recommend for further review for a deeper analysis and reflection. For our considerations, I extrapolated some essentials, if not universals, from my research and experiences as a framework for critical examination of our topic.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Metagogy: An inclusive process to instruction by, with, and for student and teacher for collaborative teaching and learning approaches that iteratively move on a spectrum of dependent/more directive to interdependent/less directive instructional approaches and relationships for the advantage of the individual as well as the community (Strohschen, 2016 AU32: The in-text citation "Strohschen, 2016" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ).
Phenomenology: A movement initiated by Edmund Husserl, who defined phenomenology as a transcendental-idealist philosophy. A German mathematician and philosopher, he believed that truth-in-itself has as ontological correlate being-in-itself. In general, phenomenology is the philosophical study of the structures of experience and consciousness. Sherman M. Stanage, specifically, spoke to the theory, directions, and research for adult education (1987) within his constitutive phenomenological approach. He addresses the four fundamental questions of philosophy (i.e., Who am I? What can I know? What ought I do? and What may I hope?) and delineates ways in which individual adults can realize their fullest growth potential and the role educators are to play in this teaching and learning process.
Critical Narrative Research: In narrative research, people’s experiences are collected and analyzed to investigate quality of life and other personal and community issues. In such critical narrative methods genres of interpretations have emerged. As one recent example, Testimonio methodology ( Garcia-Hills, 2021 ) is an anti-racist, anti-colonial, life affirming and spiritually fortifying process for inquiry geared toward transforming oppression and social injustice. Through a collaborative research practice a Testimonio methodology fortifies a sense of community and connection and disrupts traditional researcher/researched dynamics common in academia.
Cross-Sector Community Empowerment: Community-based Learning Projects are teaching and learning opportunities at a university which also benefit from diverse neighborhoods as classroom settings , if created with community input. Partnerships with community leaders can promote the creation of cross-sector community collaboratives ( Strohschen, 2014 ) to authentically identify social concerns and design contextually relevant education solutions. This concept adheres to the values expressed through the ABCD-based practices for community development (McKnight & Kretzmann, 1996 AU29: The in-text citation "McKnight & Kretzmann, 1996" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ; McKnight, & Block, 2010 AU30: The in-text citation "McKnight, & Block, 2010" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ) and Emancipatory Education (Freire, 1970 AU31: The in-text citation "Freire, 1970" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ).
Blended Shore Education: A conceptual framework, developed with input by educators from 18 countries, that guides educators in designing collaborative, international, intercultural programs and delivery practices. It calls for critical analysis and reflection on approaches based on four pillars: Development, Standards, Lifelong Learning & Lifelong Education, Spirituality ( Strohschen, 2009 ).
Emancipatory Education/Pedagogy: A philosophy of education that aims at developing a just and democratic society by means of informed and engaged denizens. It is grounded in values of international/intercultural humanization, critical conscientization, and supporting a problem-posing education system.