Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

41

Teacher Education Quarterly, Fall 2013

Experiencing the Other:The Impact of Service-Learning

on Preservice Teachers’Perceptions of Diversity

By Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

InresponsetotheincreasingdiversityinAmericanpublicschoolsandconcernsoverinequitiesinopportunityandachievement,manyteachereducationprogramsareinfusingmulticulturaltopicsandcourseworkintotheirprograms(Akiba,2011;Hollins&Guzman,2005).WhilesomeprogramsutilizewhatO’Grady(2000)calledtheHumanRelationsapproachtomulticulturaleducationwithanemphasison “reducing prejudice and getting along with others” (p. 11), other programsdrivethingsfurtherandseektofosterasocialjusticeorientationintheirstudents(Zeichner,2003).O’Grady(2000)haslabeledthissocialjusticeapproachasSo-

Barri Tinkler and Alan Tinkler are assistant professors in the Department of Education of the College of Education and Social Services at the University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont.

cialReconstructionistMulticulturalEducationsinceit“teachesdirectlyaboutoppression,discrimination,social justice,andhow to takeactionagainst theseinequities”(p.4).Fosteringasocialjusticedisposi-tion can be a challenging endeavor when workingwith white, middle-class pre-service teachers whohave grown up in rural or suburban environmentswithverylimitedexperiencewithdiversity(Causey,Thomas,&Armento,2000).Becauseofthis,teachereducatorshavetoconsideranapproachthatallowsanopeningofstudents’mindstoideasofdiversityand

Experiencing the Other

42

socialjustice.Thisstudyexploresourattempttoinitiatethisprocessthroughtheuseofaservice-learningexperience. This interpretivestudyelucidates theexperiencesofagroupofpreserviceteachers(n=37)participatinginaservice-learningprojectasacourserequirementforasocialfoundationsofeducationcourse.Thepreserviceteacherswererequiredtocompletetenhoursofservice(withatleastsixvisits)atalocalJobCorpsCenter.TheytutoredJobCorpsstudentsseekingtocompletetheirhighschooldiplomaorGeneralEducationalDevelopment(GED)highschoolequivalencydiploma.Thisexperience required thegroupofpredominantlywhite,middle-classpreserviceteacherstointeractone-on-onewithadiversegroupofstudentsprimarilyfromurbanareas.Thepurposeofthisstudyistoexploretheimpactthatthisexperiencehadonthepreserviceteachers’perceptionsofandreceptivenesstodiversity.

Review of Literature Thereisagrowingneedforanemphasisondiversitywithinteachereducationprograms.Thereareseveralreasonsforthis.Firstofall,asBrown-JeffyandCooper(2011)pointedout,America’sschoolsarebecomingincreasinglydiverse.Thegrow-ingpopulationofEnglishLearnershascreatedchallengesforteachersandschoolswhoarenotpreparedtoprovidethesupportrequiredtohelpallstudentsreachtheiracademicpotential.Anotherconcernisthepersistentachievementgapforstudentsofcolor(Hollins&Guzman,2005)andstudentsinpoverty(Murphy,2009).Agrow-ingbodyofresearchhaspointedtopovertyasthemostimportantfactorinfluencingacademicachievementinU.S.schools(Berliner,2006),particularlygiventhatlowsocioeconomicstatusstudentstendtobeconcentratedinschoolswithlessexperi-encedteachersandfewerresources,thusreinforcingtheopportunitygap(Carter&Welner,2013).Asimportantasanemphasisondiversityistosupportthesuccessofstudentsofcolor,EnglishLearners,andstudentsinpoverty,attentiontodiversityisalsoimportantinsupportingthesocialandmoraldevelopmentofWhiteyouthwhoarelivinginincreasinglysegregatedcommunities(Ladson-Billings,1994)andattendingincreasinglysegregatedschools(Garland,2012). SincetheteachingpopulationcontinuestobepredominantlyWhite(Assaf,Battle,&Garza,2010),tacklingissuesofdiversityandsocialjusticewithinteachereducationcanbeachallengingproposition.Preserviceteacherswithlittleexperiencewithdiversityareoftenresistanttoacriticalexaminationoftheseideas(LaDuke,2009).AstudyconductedbyGaine(2001)foundthatstudentsweredefensiveandangryduringexplorationsoftheseissuesandresistedthediscussionofthesetopics.GayandKirkland(2003)describedstrategiesthatpreserviceteachersusedtotrytoavoidorshutdowndiscussionsaboutrace.LaDuke(2009)describedtheuseofsilenceasoneformofresistance. Someteachereducatorssuccessfullyutilizeinstructionalstrategiestotrytoaddressthisresistance.McFallsandCobb-Roberts(2001)utilizedcognitivedis-

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

43

sonanceinstructiontoaddressresistance.Studentswereintroducedtoreadingsthatchallengedtheirideasaboutraceandwereaskedtoanalyzetheirreactionstothereadingsusingthelensofcognitivedissonancetheory.Theauthorsfoundthatusingthismetacognitiveprocessreducedstudentresistance.Brown(2004)positedthatteachereducatorscanimproveculturaldiversityawarenessbyutilizinginstructionalpracticesthatrequirestudentstoexaminetheirownculturalidentityasafirststepinexaminingculturalissues.AninitialassignmentusedbyBrown(2004)askedstudentsto“researchtheirheritageandcomepreparedtointroducethemselvesina‘culturalpuzzle’thatdescribedtheinfluencesthatmadethemwhotheyare”(p.331).Theauthorfoundthatfocusinginitiallyonself-awarenessledtodecreasedresistancetocoursecontent. However,researchhasalsobeenconductedthatpointstotheideathatcoursecontentalonemaynotbeenoughtochangestudentbeliefsaboutdiversity.AstudybyCockrell,Placier,Cockrell,andMiddleton(1999)foundthatamulticulturalfoundationscoursehadlittleimpact.Theauthorsfoundthattheabilitytochangestudent beliefs was impacted by prior experience, political beliefs, and beliefsaboutschools.ResearchbyJohnson(2002)demonstrated that racialawarenesswasdeterminedbyprevioussignificantexperienceswithdiversity.Whatdowedoforstudentswhohavenothadpreviousexperiencewithdiversityandwhoareresistanttocoursecontentalone? Someteachereducatorshavesoughttosupplementmulticulturalcourseworkwithfieldexperiencesindiversesettings(Hyland&Noffke,2005;Sleeter,2001).Melnick and Zeichner (1998) pointed to the value of immersion opportunitiesforincreasingawarenessofdiversity.BurantandKirby(2002)conductedastudylookingatpreserviceteacherswhocompletedafieldexperienceinurbanschools.Inadditiontothepracticum,thepreserviceteachersalsocompletedacommunityprojectfortenhours.Almosthalfofthestudentssaidthattheexperiencedeepenedortransformedtheirunderstandingofdiversityandurbanschools. Inadditiontoutilizingdiversefieldplacements,thereisalsoagrowingmove-mentinteachereducationtoincorporateservice-learningexperiencesintoteacherpreparationprograms.Thoughtherearemultipledefinitionsofservice-learning,thedefinitionweemployinconceptualizingandconstructingservice-learningexperi-encesisthedefinitiondevelopedbytheNationalService-LearningClearinghouse(n.d.).Thisdefinitionstates:

Service-learningcombinesserviceobjectiveswithlearningobjectiveswiththeintentthattheactivitychangeboththerecipientandtheprovideroftheservice.Thisisaccomplishedbycombiningservicetaskswithstructuredopportunitiesthatlinkthetasktoself-reflection,self-discovery,andtheacquisitionandcomprehensionofvalues,skills,andknowledgecontent.(WhatisService-Learningsection,para.1)

Basedonthisdefinition,thegoalistoachievechangeforboththestudentsparticipat-ingintheservice-learningexperienceaswellastherecipientsoftheservice.While

Experiencing the Other

44

thisdefinitionfocusesattentionontheneedtoaffectchange,researchersarefindingitnecessarytodifferentiatebetweendifferentformsofservice-learningsincedifferentformsengenderdifferentoutcomes.MarulloandEdwards(2000),forinstance,havedistinguishedbetweencharityservice-learning,whichfocusesprimarilyontheserviceitselfandthebenefitstouniversitystudents,andsocialjustice(orcritical)service-learningwhichfocusesontheideaofunderstandingunderlyingsocialproblemsandseekingtocreatechangeforandwiththecommunity(Mitchell,2008). Agrowingbodyofresearchdemonstratesthebenefitsofservice-learningforpreserviceteachers.Someofthesebenefitsincludeincreasedself-esteemandself-efficacy(Root&Furco,2001;Wade,1995),improvedproblemsolvingandautonomy(Root&Batchelder,1994),andenhancedacademicdevelopment(Root&Furco,2001).AccordingtoSwick(1999),anotherbenefitisstrengthenedperspectivesofcaring.Thisisimportantsincetheliteratureonculturallyrelevantpedagogypointstocaringasacentralaspectofthisteachingstance(Garcia,2000;Pang,2001). Anotherbenefitthatisofparticularinteresttoteachereducationprogramsistheimpactofservice-learningonpreserviceteacher’sperceptionsofandreceptive-nesstodiversity.Multiplestudieshaveshownthatmulticulturalservice-learningexperiencesprovideagreaterawarenessofdiversity(Anderson,Swick,&Yff,2001;Baldwin,Buchanan,&Rudisill,2007;Bell,Horn,&Roxas,2007;Boyle-Baise,2005;Stachowski&Visconti,1998;Wade,2000)aswellashelpingpreserviceteacherstodevelopamorecomplexunderstandingoftheirownethnicity(Bollin,1996).Inadditiontoincreasedawareness,astudybyBoyle-Baise(1998)demonstratedthatservice-learningcanalsoimprovepreserviceteachers’receptivenesstomulticulturalissues.Boyle-Baise(1998)foundthatamulticulturalservice-learningexperiencepromptedgreateracceptanceofstudentsofcolorintheK-12classroomandawill-ingnessonthepartofpreserviceteacherstotrytochangetheirownpedagogyandcurriculumwhileastudybyConner(2010)demonstratedthataservice-learningexperiencechangedpreserviceteachers’perspectivesabouturbanstudentsofcolor.Brown(2005),inastudyofamulticulturalservice-learningproject,foundthatinadditiontoincreasedawarenessandreceptivenesstodiversity,theservice-learningexperiencealsoraised“thelevelofcommitmenttowardsocialjustice”(p.67). Thoughmulticulturalservice-learningexperienceshaveshownpromiseintermsofpreserviceteachers’responsivenesstodiversity,therecanbeunintendedeffects.Boyle-BaiseandLangford(2004)utilizedaservice-learningexperienceworkingwithlow-income,urbanyouth.Thoughstudentscameawayfromtheexperiencewithanincreasedawarenessofsocialproblemsandacommitmenttosocialchange,theservice-learningexperiencedidnotpromptawarenessofthepreserviceteach-ers’ownprivilegeandfosterednegativeperspectivesofcommunitymembersandparentsforsomestudents.Bell,Horn,andRoxas(2007)conductedastudyofamulticulturalservice-learningexperiencecompletedbypreserviceteachersworkingwithyouthinanafterschoolprogram.Theauthorsfoundthattheservice-learningexperienceencouragedamorecomplexunderstandingofdiversity.However,there

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

45

waslimitedevidencethatthepreserviceteachersdevelopedknowledgeofhowtoapplythisenhancedunderstandingofdiversitytotheirclassroompractice.Theseresultspointtotheneedtoconstructcoursecontentusingacriticallensinordertosupportsocialjusticeoutcomes. Thisstudyseekstoaddtothegrowingbodyofresearchthatlooksattheimpactofmulticulturalservice-learningexperiences.Theresearchquestionwhichguidesthisstudyis:Canaservice-learningexperienceimpactpreserviceteachers’percep-tionsofandreceptivenesstodiversity?

Conceptual Framework Whenconsideringhowtoarticulatewhatwewerehopingtoachievewithourstudents,weturnedtophilosophy.WeusedthewritingsofthephilosopherAlphonsoLingis(1994;1998)toconceptualizewhatweweretryingtoachievethroughtheuseoftheservice-learningexperience.LingisisacontemporaryphilosopherwhoseworkhasbeengreatlyinfluencedbybothKantandLevinas.Hisworkisgroundedintheconstructoftheimperative.Lingisdefinestheimperativeasthedrivewithinustoprovidemeaningandordertoourworld.Thisdriveisbothphysiologicalandpsychological.Itisthisdrive,thisimperative,whichdirectsourthought.Lingis(1998)stated:

Theimperativeitselfisnotaconcept,withwhichwerepresentsomecontent.Itisacommandthatweconceptualizecorrectly.Itisnotaprincipleoralaworanorder.Itisacommandthattherebeprinciplesandthatourthoughtrepresentorder—orthatwerepresenttheunprincipledandthechaoticcorrectly.(p.179)

Itisthisimperativewhichdrivesourthoughtsandperceptions,andinturn,influ-enceshowweviewtheworld. Lingisacknowledgesthatone’simperativeisinfluencedbythecodingoftheculturetowhichonebelongs.Hewrote:

Thepostureandmovementsoftheother,asoneperceivesthem,donotonlyshowpositionanddisplacementcodedbyphysicalandphysiologicallaws;theyalsoshowaculturalcoding…Whentheotherspeaks,itiswiththetongueofanation,theintonationofaclass,therhetoricofasocialposition,theidiomofasubculture,thevocabularyofanagegroup.(Lingis,1994,p.24)

Bothourknowledgeandourculturalsystemsaremanifestationsofindividualimpera-tives.Howweviewothers,includinghowweconceptualizebeauty,areconstructsthatareculturallydeterminedandthus,inturn,aresubjecttotheimperative. Itcanbedifficulttorecognizeone’sownimperative;infact,therecognitionoftheselfusuallycomesthroughexposuretotheother.Mostwriterswhousetheterminologyof“theother”aredescribingthosewhoareverydifferentthanoneself;however,Lingisdescribestheotheraseveryoneoutsideofoneself.ForLingis,com-ingintocontactwiththeotherallowsanindividualtobecomeawareoftheirown

Experiencing the Other

46

imperative.Oneusuallyrecognizesthisdifferenceasculturesinceimperativesaremanifestedinculture.Byrecognizingdifference,onerealizesthateachindividualisoperatingfromadifferentimperative. Itisasdifficulttounderstandone’sownimperativeasitistounderstandtheimperativeoftheother.But,itisthroughinteractionsthatweareabletomorefullyunderstandourownimperativeaswellastheother’simperative.ForLingis(1994),“torecognizetheotheristorespecttheother”(p.23).Therespectfortheotherinvolvestherecognitionthattheotherisruledbyhis/herownimperativewithoutmakinganyvaluejudgmentsabouttheother’simperative.ForLingis,asidefromabuse,thereisnorightorwrong,onlydifference.Unlessanindividualrecognizesandrespectsthesedifferences,thatindividualholdshis/herimperativeinauthorityovertheimperativeoftheother. Lingisbelievesthatindividualsneedtoexperiencetheotherface-to-faceinordertoapproachanunderstandingoftheother’simperative.Interactioncannotbemerelyanintellectualprocess,norcanoneaccesstheotherthroughreading.Lingis(1994)wrote,“Itiswiththenakednessofone’seyesthatoneexposesoneselftotheother,withone’shandsarrestedintheirgripsonthingsandturnednowtotheother,open-handed,andwiththedisarmedfrailtyofone’svoicetroubledwiththevoiceofanother”(p.11). Thisface-to-faceinteractionwaswhatwehopedtoprovidetoourstudents.Wewantedthemtobegintorecognizetheirownimperative,andformanyofourstudents,thiswasanimperativecharacterizedbywhite,middle-classculturalnorms.Wealsowantedourstudents tobegin to recognizeanddevelop respect for theimperativeoftheotherinordertogaintheawarenessthatweareallinfluencedbytheculturalmanifestationsofourimperative.InastudyconductedbyStachowskiandMahan(1998),theauthorsfocusedontheimpactofculturalimmersionexperi-encesonpreserviceteacherswhospenttimeonaNavajoreservation.Onestudentreflectingontheexperiencewrote:

IhadachancetolearnalotabouttheNavajoworld,andpeopleherelearnedmoreabouttheAngloways.Whetherwelikecertainaspectsofoneanother’scultureisirrelevant.Culturalimmersionallowsonetorealizethatpeoplearethewaytheyareforvalidreasons,nojudgmentattached.(p.157)

Thisquoteexemplifiestherespectthatweareseekingtopromoteinourownstu-dentsbecausewefeelthatitisthisrespectthatisanimportantstepinfosteringadispositionthatseekstocreatechange.

Methods

Participants and Pedagogical Context Theparticipantsofthisstudywere37preserviceteachers(twostudentschosenottoparticipateinthestudy)enrolledintwosectionsofasocialfoundationsof

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

47

educationcoursetaughtbythefirstauthorinasmall,public,Mid-Atlanticuniver-sity.Thefoundationsofeducationcourseiscompletedasthesecondcourseintheteachereducationsequence.Moststudentscompletethecourseduringtheirfirstorsecondyearofcollege.Theteachereducationprogramseekstofosteradispositionthatisopenandreceptivetoissuesofdiversityandsocialjustice.Inordertoplaceanemphasisontheseideas,theprogramhaschosentoweavethesetopicsthroughouteverycourseintheprogramratherthancreatingonestand-alonecourse(Hollins&Guzman,2005).ResearchbyMcGuireandSchiller(2003)demonstratedthatthisinfusionapproachcanbesuccessfulinincreasingstudents’awarenessofmulticul-turalism.Thefoundationscourseexploresmanyofthetraditionaltopicscoveredinasocialfoundationscourse,suchasthehistoryandphilosophyofeducation,butalsospendsaconsiderableamountoftimeexploringissuesrelatingtodiversity.Coursecontentandreadingsarechosenwiththeintenttopromotedialogueandexplorationofissuesrelatingtopower,privilege,andoppressionwithinAmericansociety. Inordertobringtheseissuesaliveforthestudentsparticipatinginthecourse,thedepartmentchosetoimplementaservice-learningcomponentaspartofthecourse.AllofthepreserviceteachersinthecoursearerequiredtocompletetenhoursoftutoringatthelocalJobCorpsCenter.Theserviceexperiencewasinitiatedatthebeginningof thesemesterwhen theacademicmanager fromJobCorpscame tocampustointroducethepreserviceteacherstoJobCorps.Aspartoftheorientation,severalJobCorpsstudentstalkedabouttheirgoalsandaspirationsforthepartnershipandhowthepreserviceteacherscouldsupportthesegoals.ThepreserviceteachersthenattendedanorientationattheJobCorpscenterwithatourledbyJobCorpsstudents.Aftertheorientation,thepreserviceteacherswererequiredtoconductatleastfivetutoringvisitsforaminimumoftenhours.Sincemosttutorsandtuteeshadtutoringsessionsofonetooneandahalfhours,mosttutorsmadeatleastsevenvisitstotheJobCorpsCenterinadditiontotheorientationatthebeginningofthesemester,providingasustainedexperienceoverthecourseofthesemester. ThestudentsattheJobCorpsCenter,afederallyfundedprogram,rangeinagefrom16-24.WhilethereisamixtureofethnicitiesandsocioeconomicbackgroundsrepresentedatJobCorps,themajorityofthestudentsarestudentsofcolorfromregionalurbanareaswhocomefromeconomicallydisadvantagedfamilies.Thepopulationofstudentsisconsistentlyaround78%African-Americanmales.MostJobCorpsstudentshavecomevoluntarilyseekingoutnewopportunitieswhileasmallpercentagearerequiredtocompletetheprogrambecauseofacourtmandate.TheJobCorpsstudentsareworking tocompleteahighschooldiplomaor theGeneralEducationalDevelopment(GED)highschoolequivalencydiploma.AftercompletingtheirhighschooldiplomaorGED,theJobCorpsstudentstypicallycompletetrainingforatrade. WhentheJobCorpsstudentsfirstarriveatthecenter,theyaregivenatesttodeterminetheirbasicskilllevels.AccordingtotheacademicmanageroftheJobCorpsCenter,itisnotunusualtoseestudentstestingatthe3rdor4thgradelevel

Experiencing the Other

48

inreadingandwriting,andmanyofthestudentstestatlowerlevelsinmathematics.Someofthestudentshavelearningdisabilities,sometimesdiagnosed,sometimesnot,whileothershavejustbeenpassedthroughthesystemwithoutdevelopingtheneededknowledgebase.AnissueofparticularfrustrationfortheacademicmanageriswhenastudententersJobCorpswithahighschooldiploma,yetstilltestsatlowlevelsonthebasicskillstest.Eventhoughthesestudentscantrainfortheirtrade,theacademicmanagerpushesthemtoexpandtheirknowledgebaseinthebasicskillsofreading,writing,andmathematicswhiletheyarecompletingtheirtraining. Incontrast,thepreserviceteacherswhoparticipatedinthisstudywereprimar-ilyWhite(reflectingthepopulationoftheuniversitywhichis91%White).Mostofthemcamefromruralorsuburbanareasintheregion;onlyafewcamefromurbanareasorhavelivedinurbanareasinthepast.Someofthepreserviceteachersidenti-fiedthemselvesinwrittenreflectionsascomingfromlowersocioeconomicstatushomes,andtherewereafewfirstgenerationcollegestudentsinthegroup;however,mostofthepreserviceteachersinthissamplecamefrommiddleclassbackgrounds(onlyabout22%oftheuniversitypopulationiseligibleforfederalPELLgrants).Thepreserviceteachersrangedinagefromtheirlateteenstotheirearlythirties,butthemajoritywere18-19yearsold.Inthisgroupof37students,therewere28femalestudentsandninemalestudents.Onesectionofthecoursewascross-listedwithagraduatefoundationscourseintheMATprogram.Therefore,threeofthestudentsinthesampleof37weregraduatestudents.Thetwosectionsofthefoundationscourseincludedamixtureofelementary,secondary,andK-12preserviceteachers.

Data Collection and Analysis Inordertopursueourresearchquestion,wedesignedaninterpretivestudysince“interpretiveresearchseekstoperceive,describe,analyze,andinterpretfeaturesofaspecificsituationorcontext,preservingitscomplexityandcommunicatingtheperspectivesoftheactualparticipants”(Borko,Whitcomb,&Byrnes,2008,p.1025).Wecollectedavarietyofdatatoexploretheimpactthatthisservice-learningexperiencehadontheparticipantsinthecourse.Oneoftheprimarysourcesofdatathatweutilizedinthestudywasreflectionpapers.Throughoutthesemester,thestudentswereaskedtowritebriefreflectionpapers(onetotwopages)ontheirexperiencestutoringatJobCorpsandtheconnectionstheyweremakingtothetopicswewerestudyinginthecourse.Forexample,whenexaminingschoolfund-ing,thepreserviceteacherswererequiredtotalkwiththeirJobCorpstuteeabouttheresourcesavailableintheschoolstheyattendedpriortocomingtoJobCorps.Manyof theJobCorps tuteesdescribedovercrowded,dilapidatedschoolswithinsufficientordatedclassroommaterials.Attheendofthesemester,thestudentswereaskedtowriteacomprehensivereflection(fivepages)ontheservice-learningexperiencethatsynthesizedwhattheyexperiencedatJobCorpsandwhattheyfelttheylearnedfromtheexperience.Weanalyzedthreesetsofreflectionpaperswrit-tenthroughoutthesemester(111papers),andweanalyzed37finalreflections.

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

49

In order to provide creditability for the study, we utilized methodologicaltriangulation (Creswell&Miller,2000). Inaddition toanalyzing the reflectionpapers,wealsoadministeredabrief,anonymousquestionnairethatallowedthestudentstoprovidefeedbackontheexperience.Thisquestionnaireincludedbothopen-endedandclosed-endedresponseitems(Creswell,2002).Thequestionnaireaskedstudentswhattheylearnedfromtheservice-learningexperienceingeneral,whether theservice-learningsupported theirunderstandingofwhatwewere instudyinginclass,andwhethertheservice-learningexperienceprovidedthemwithabetterunderstandingofhowtoworkwithstudentsfromdiversebackgrounds. Usinganopencodingprocess,wecodedthereflectionpapersandquestion-naireslinebyline.Wethenidentifiedmajorthemesthatemergedthroughthecodingprocess.Ouranalysiswasaniterativeprocessofmovingbetweencloseanalysisofindividualcodesandbroadercategoriesandthemes.Wethengroupedthemesusingaprocessofaxialcoding(Charmaz,2006)whichallowedustoidentifythreebroadoverarchingcategoriesorthemes.Toprovideanexampleofthecodingprocess,someofthecodesthatemergedduringtheinitialcodingprocessincluded:“firstexperiencewithdiversity,”“experienceofculture shock,”and“feelinguncom-fortableintheJobCorpssetting.”Thesecodesweregroupedintothecategoryof“recognizingtheselfasother”whichisacategorywithintheoverarchingthemeof“theselfasother.” Aftercodingthereflectionpapersandresponsesfromthequestionnaire,weconductedinterviewswithsixstudentsseekingtoconfirmordisconfirmtentativethemesthathademergedfromthesedata.Weinterviewedfivefemalesandonemalestudentwithstudentsrepresentedfrombothsectionsofthecourse.Wese-lectedstudentsbasedontheirpreviousexperienceswithdiversityasdescribedintheirfinalwrittenreflections.Wesoughttoincludestudentswithdifferentlevelsofexperiencewithdiversityintheirownschoolingexperience,rangingfromextensiveexperiencetonopreviousexperience. Duringtheinterviews,weusedasemi-structuredinterviewprotocol(Rubin&Rubin,1995).Wehadspecificquestionsthatweaskedineachinterviewtosupportcross-interviewanalysis(Patton,1990),butwealsoallowedtheconversationtoflowinwhateverdirectiontheintervieweechose,andweusedprobingquestionstoexplorethesemeanderingsmorefully.Theinterviewprotocolincludedquestionsthataskedparticipantstoreflectonwhattheylearnedfromtheservice-learningexperience, todescribewhat they learnedaboutworkingwithdiverse learners,tomakeconnectionsbetweentheexperienceandcoursecontent,andtocomparetheexperiencetoothermoretraditionalfieldexperiencestheyhadcompletedintheteachereducationprogram.Theinterviewsweretranscribedverbatimandweusedasimilarcodingprocessthatwasusedforthereflectionpapersandquestion-naires.Inadditiontoconfirmingthemesthathademergedthroughtheanalysisofthereflectionpapersandquestionnaires,theinterviewsalsoaddeddepthtotheseemergingthemes.Asaformofmemberchecking,thefindingsweresharedwith

Experiencing the Other

50

courseinstructorsteachingtheothersectionsofthefoundationscourseaswellastheacademicmanageratJobCorps.

Findings Thisstudysoughttodeterminewhetheraservice-learningexperiencecouldimpactpreserviceteachers’perceptionsofandreceptivenesstodiversity.Allofthedatacollectedprovideevidencethatthisservice-learningdidhaveanimpactonthisgroupofpreserviceteacherstovaryingdegrees.Studentswhobeganthecoursewithanopennesstodiversityfoundthattheexperiencefurtherbroadenedtheirunderstandingofthesetopicsandideas.Forstudentswhowerelessopen,theexperiencecreatedsomeawarenessthatunderstandingandaddressingdiversitywasimportanttotheircontinuedgrowthasfutureteachers. Thereflectionpapersthatthestudentswroteattheendoftheexperiencewereoverallverypositive;thestudentsexpressedthattheyfelttheyhadgrownthroughtheexperience.Thefirstauthorestablishedearlyinthecoursethatstudents’gradeswouldnotbepenalizediftheywerecriticaloftopicswewereexamininginthecourse;theessaysweregradedbasedoncompletenessnotcontent.OneofthereflectionsstudentswroteearlierinthesemesterrequiredthattheyrespondtothearticlebyPeggyMcIntosh(1990)titled“WhitePrivilege:UnpackingtheInvisibleKnapsack.”Studentswhowereverycriticaloftheessaywerenotpenalizedintheirgradeforthereflection,andthestudentsrecognizedthis.Wemaintainedanopenandcriticaldialoguethroughoutthecourse,andthefirstauthorencouragedstudentstoexpresstheirownopinionsregardlessofwhattheythoughttheinstructor’sopinionmightbe.Datafromtheanonymousquestionnairealsosupportthethemesthatemergedinthereflectionpapers.Onlytworespondentsexpressednegativefeelingstowardtheexperienceandfelttheydidnotlearnfromtheexperience. Thethemesthatemergedfromthereflectionpapersandquestionnairesandthatweresupportedingreaterdepththroughtheinterviewstiedirectlytothephilo-sophicalframeworkofAlphonsoLingis.Thethreebroadthemesthatemergedare:seeingtheselfasother,recognizingtheimperativeoftheother,andmovingtowardsocialjustice.Thoughweexploretheseasthreestagesorlevels,studentsdidnotnecessarilyexperiencetheseasalinearprocess.However,wepresentthesestagesinalinearwaybecausewebelievethateachstagemustatleastbetouchedupon,whetherornotitisrealizedindepth,aspartoftheprocessofmovingtoagreaterlevelofawareness.

The Self as Other During thefirst stage,whichwe titled “TheSelf asOther,” thepreserviceteachersrecognizedthemselvesastheotherandtheybegantoexaminetheirownimperatives.

Recognizing the self as other.Manyofthestudentsrecognizedthemselvesas

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

51

theotherforthefirsttimewhentheywentouttoJobCorps.Onthequestionnaire,12participants (32%)described thisas theirfirstormostextensiveexperiencewithdiversity.Onestudentwrote,“IthinkIcameintocontactwithmorediversityinmytenhoursandtwentyminutesatJobCorpsthanIhavemyentirelife.”Thislackofexperiencewithdiversitywasechoedbymanystudentsinthereflectionpaperandinterviews.Onestudentstatedduringtheinterview,“I’llbecompletelyhonestwithyou;inmyschooldistrictwehadnoAfrican-Americanstudents.” Formanyofthestudents,thiswasaneye-openingexperience.SomeofthemusedthetermcultureshockwhendescribingtheirfirstvisittoJobCorps.Onestu-dentstatedonthequestionnaire,“ItwasacultureshockatfirsttogotoJobCorps.”Someofthestudentsalsocommentedonthefactthattheyweretheminorityforthefirsttime.Onestudentwrote:

HavingtheopportunitytotutoratJobCorpsplacedmeinasituationIhadneverbeeninbefore.Thetableswereturnedonme;insteadofbeingthemajorityIwastheminorityandputinanunfamiliarenvironment.

Theexperienceofbeinginanunfamiliarenvironmentcausedfearandnervousnessforsomeofthestudentsandmanyfeltthattheywerepushedoutoftheircomfortzones.AsWade(1993)hasstated,studentsareoftenapprehensivewheninitiatingaservice-learningexperiencewiththosewhoaredifferentthanthemselves.Onestudentstatedintheinterview,“Itwasfaroutofmycomfortzone,andfromwhatI’velistenedtofromotherpeople,alotofotherpeople’scomfortzone.”InastudybyGaine(2001),thestudentsinGaine’scourseexpressedthatinordertochangeattitudesaboutrace,peopleneededtobemadetofeeluncomfortable.Asoneofourstudentspointedout,“Itmakesyouuncomfortable,andwhenyou’reuncomfortableyou’remorelikelytoadapt.”

Recognition of own imperative.Pushingstudentsoutoftheircomfortzoneandallowingthemtoseethemselvesastheotherhelpedthemtobegintorecognizetheirownimperative.Formanyofthem,thisimperativewasoneofwhite,middle-classnorms.Onestudentstatedintheinterview:

IwasatfirstalittlebitnervousaboutitbecauseIknewthatIwasn’tusedtothatdemographic, being primarilyAfrican-American students from the inner city.AndsoIwasconcernedabouthowtheywouldrespondtomebeingaveryWhiteboyfromthecountry.

Wetriedtosupportourstudents’awarenessoftheirownimperativethroughtheuseofcoursecontentwhichrequiredthemtoexaminewhatitmeanstobeWhiteandthecorrespondingbenefitsofWhiteness. Intheearlystagesoftheservice-learningexperience,thestudentswereaskedtoreadPeggyMcIntosh’s(1990)essay,“WhitePrivilege:UnpackingtheInvisibleKnapsack.”Thefirstauthoraskedthestudentstowriteareflectionpaperrespondingtotheessay,andtheywerealsoaskedtowritethreediscussionquestions.Weused

Experiencing the Other

52

thesediscussionquestionsasthebasisforaclassdiscussion,andinbothclassesthedebatewascontentious.Somestudentsagreedwiththeideas,somestudentsexpressedconfusionaboutwhattothink,tenstudents(27%)expressedthattheybelievethatraceisnolongeranissuetoday,particularlyifyouworkhard,fivestudents(14%)feltthattalkingabouttheseissuesmakesitworse,andtwostudentsexpressedangerabouttheideasintroducedinthearticle.Solomon,Portelli,Daniel,andCampbell(2005)describedsimilarresponsestousingtheMcIntosharticleinafoundationsclass. TheseresponsestotheMcIntoshessaypointtothechallengesteachereduca-torscanfaceinmovingWhitepreserviceteacherstowardamorecomprehensiveunderstandingofracethatisinclusiveoftherecognitionofWhitenessandtheat-tendantprivilegesofbeingWhite.ThepreserviceteachersinthisgroupwhostatedthatraceisnolongeranissueifyouworkhardareworkingfromtheconfinesofthemythofmeritocracyratherthanrecognizingtheroleofsocialreproductioninadvantagingWhiteyouth(Bourdieu&Passeron,1990).Teacherswhofullyascribetothisbeliefarenotlikelytomodifytheircurriculumandinstructiontorespondtoindividualstudents’needsandinterests.Likewise,preserviceteacherswhothinkthattalkingaboutracecreatesmoreproblemsareworkingfromacolor-blindperspectivethatdoesnotallowforstudentdifferenceandmakesstudentsofcolorinvisible.Bonilla-Silva(2006)reframedthenotionofcolor-blindnessascolor-blindracism.Bonilla-Silva’sreframingputspressureonWhite,preserviceteacherstorecognizeinactionbasedontherefusaltoacknowledgedifferenceasaformofracismthatreinforcesthestatusquo. ThoughthisexaminationofWhiteprivilegemayhaveplantedsomeseedsofawarenessinthestudents’minds,theexaminationofWhitenessisanintellectualprocessandonecannotgainanunderstandingofone’sownimperativethroughintellectualmeansonly;onemustexperience theother.For somestudents, theservice-learningexperiencedidenhancetheirunderstandingoftheirownimpera-tive.Onestudentwrote,“ThestudentsIworkedwithexposedmetomanyhiddenwhiteprivileges that Iwasnot awareof.”Another student,whohadexpressedangerabouttheMcIntoshessayearlierinthesemester,attheendofthesemesterwrote,“Ilearnedhowimportantitistocontinuetoencourageanunderstandingofdiversityineducation.”

The Imperative of the Other Thesecondstage,whichwetitled“TheImperativeoftheOther,”includestwoaspects:(1)recognitionandrespectfortheother’simperative,and(2)recognitionofacommonhumanity.

Recognition and respect for the other’s imperative.Responsestothequestion-naireprovidedevidencethattheservice-learningexperiencefosteredarecognitionandrespectfortheimperativeoftheother.Onthequestionnaire,25participants

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

53

(68%)madestatementsthatdemonstratedthattheyviewedtheserviceexperienceasreciprocal.Inotherwords,theyrecognizedthattheygainedsomethingfromtheexperience.Oneofthequestionsonthequestionnaireasked:Ingeneral,whatdoyouthinkyoulearnedfromthisservice-learningexperience?Whencodingtheseresponses,wefoundthat22respondents(59%)mentionedtopicsdirectlyrelatingtodiversity.Anotherquestionasked:DoyoubelieveyourexperienceatJobCorpsprovidedyouwithabetterunderstandingofhowtoworkwithstudentsfromdi-versebackgrounds?Theresponsesdemonstratedthat81%oftheparticipants(30respondents)feltthattheyhaveabetterunderstandingofhowtoworkwithstudentsfromdiversebackgrounds.Twoofthestudentsthatresponded“no”tothisquestionexpressedthattheyhadpreviousexperiencewithdiversity. Thismovetowardrecognitionandrespectfortheotherbeganwiththerealiza-tionofdifference.Onthequestionnaire,26respondents(70%)wrotecommentsthatwerecodedasrecognizingdifference.Manyofthestudentspointedoutthesedifferenceswhileacknowledgingthatdifferenceisnotnegative.Onestudentwrote,“ThetotalexperienceintheclassroomandwithJobCorpshasreallyopenedmyeyesup tohowdifferentwe reallyall are.”Acceptanceof thisdifference isanimportantsteptowardrespectingtheimperativeoftheother.Onestudentstatedintheinterview,“Ijustthinkofnotsomuchthefactthatwe’redifferentbutthefactthatwerealizeandacceptwe’redifferent.”Thisrealizationofdifferenceisonefacetofseeingtheother’simperative.Theservice-learningexperienceallowedthestudentstocomeface-to-facewiththeimperativeofanother.Onestudentstatedinaninterview,“Theservice-learningforcedyoutonotjustgoandlookattheworldthroughaglassmirror,buttoactuallygoin.” ThedescriptionsthepreserviceteachersprovidedintheirreflectionpapersofworkingwithJobCorpsstudentsdemonstratedthatsomeofthepreserviceteacherswereabletoseetheimperativeoftheother.Onepreserviceteacherwrote,“DuringmytimetutoringthestudentsatJobCorps,Icametoknowthesestudentsasindi-viduals.”ThisprocessofseeingtheotherallowedanotherstudenttorecognizesomeofthechallengestheJobCorpsstudentswerefacing.Thisstudentwrote,“AllofthestudentsIencounteredhadonetraitincommon:fearofvulnerability.”Throughseeingtheotherthisstudentwasabletorecognizehertutees’vulnerability. Thewrittenreflectionsalsodemonstratedarespectfortheimperativeoftheother. One student wrote, “While I hope that the Job Corps students I tutoredlearnedfromme,Ialsolearnedagreatdealfromthem.”Onestudentdescribedanimportantexperiencewithhistutee.Hewrote:

Oneofmystudentsneverseemedtohavehadateacherortutorallowhertowriteaboutwhatinterestedherorsomethingshecouldrelateto.AssoonasIallowedhertopickthetopicandwebeganworking,sheswitchedfromguardedhostilitytoopeninterestinhowIwouldhelpherwriteaboutherfavoritemovie.

Thisanecdotedemonstratesthatsomestudentslearnedthattheirwillingnessto

Experiencing the Other

54

acceptandrelateinapersonalwaytotheirtuteeallowedthemtomakeaconnec-tionthatsupportedtheirtutee’slearning. Theprocessofbeginningtoseeandrespecttheimperativeoftheotherre-quiredmanyofthepreserviceteacherstorethinkstereotypesthattheyheld.Onthequestionnaire,14respondents(38%)madestatementsthatwerecodedasrethink-ingstereotypes.Onerespondentwrote,“IwasexposedtoaverydiversegroupofstudentsatJobCorps,andeachstudentIworkedwithhelpedbreakthestereotypesIhadpreviouslyheld.”Thisrecognitionofstereotypesalsohelpedsomepreserviceteacherstorealizethatthoughstudentsmaycomefromsimilarbackgrounds,theyarenotallthesame.Onestudentwrote:

ItwouldbeeasyforonetoassumethatstudentsatJobCorpsareallgatheredfromasimilargroupofpeople.Thisismostcertainlynotthecase,andthebackgroundsofhundredsofhighschoolstudentsarelikelytobeevenmorediverse.

Thisrealizationisanimportantstepinrecognizingtheparticularityofeachperson’simperative.

Realization of common humanity.Anaspectof recognizing the imperativeof theother isunderstanding that thoughwearedifferent,wehaveacommonhumanity.Thisrecognitionofacommonhumanitystemsfromtherealizationthatweareallworkingfromanimperative.Weallhaveanimperativethatdrivesourneedtosurviveandtoconnectwithotherhumanbeings.Sinceeveryimperativehasaculturalcontext,therewillbesomesimilaritiesacrossimperativesthatwillberecognizablejustastherearesimilaritiesacrosscultures.Manyofthepreserviceteacherspointedoutthesecommonelements.Onestudentstatedinthequestion-naire,“Thosestudents,BlackandWhite,arethesameasme.”Anotherstudentwrote,“IrealizedquicklythattheysimplywantedthesamethingsIdid.” Thoughthisrecognitionofacommonhumanityisastepforsomestudentsinmovingbeyond stereotypes, there is the concern that for someof them thisrealizationmightreinforcethetendencytowardacolor-blindapproach.Thisissuedidseemtobethecaseforoneofthestudentsweinterviewed.Hestatedintheinterview,“Sowhenyou’rethereandyou’reworkingwiththekids,thecolorsjustdisappearandit’sindividuals.”AsIrvine(2003)haspointedout,someteachersviewthecolor-blindapproachasawaytobefairandnon-biased.However,thisapproachdoesnotgetatissuesofinequalityinoursocietybecauseit“ignorestherealitiesofracisminthiscountry”(Irvine,2003,p.xvi).

The Move toward Social Justice Inthefinalstage,thestudentsbeganthemovetowardsocialjustice.Thisin-volvedarecognitionofinjustice,anacknowledgementoftransformationorchangeinself,andtherealizationoftheneedtocreatechange.

Recognition of injustice.Manyofthestudentsexpressedsurpriseandanger

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

55

atwhat theirJobCorps tuteeshadexperiencedwith teachersandschoolsbeforecomingtoJobCorps.ThepreserviceteachersrealizedthatmanyoftheJobCorpstuteeshadbeenshort-changedbythesystem.Onthequestionnaire,26participants(70%)includedresponsesthatwerecodedasdemonstratinganincreasedawarenessofeducationalinequalities.Thisrealizationofinjusticerelatedtomultiplefactors.Somestudentsspecificallywroteaboutissuesofrace.Onestudentwrote,“AllthreeofmystudentsattendedapredominantlyBlackschool,whichmademequestionhowfarwehavemovedsinceBrown vs. the Board of Education.”Anotherstudentstated,“Thisexperiencehasmademerealizethatthereisstillracisminthiscountry.Noteverypersonistreatedequally.”Manystudentsalsopointedtoeconomicinequalities.Onestudentwrote,“InmytimethereIworkedwithatotalofeightdifferentstudents.Outofthesestudentstherewasnotonewhohadbeeninaqualityschoolsystemwithaffluentsurroundings.”AccordingtoAyers,Quinn,andStovall(2009),thenotionofequityisanimportantpillarofsocialjusticeeducation.Fosteringanawarenessofissuesofequityisanintegralstepinadvancingasocialjusticeperspective. Anothertopicofconcernwastheattitudesofpastteacherswhodidnotseemtocareabouttheirstudentsandmadethemquestiontheirabilities.Onepreserviceteachersharedaparticularlydisturbingstoryabouthertutee.Shewrote:

Onestudenttoldmethatshequitgoingtoclass[atherpreviousschool]becausetheteachersonlycaredabouttheWhitekids.WhenIaskedwhatshemeantshesaidtheteacherwouldanswertheWhitekids’questionsbutmaketheBlackkidskeepaskingthequestionuntilshelikedthewaytheysaidit.

Thisanecdoteisanexampleofateacherforcinghis/herimperativeonastudentanddemonstratesthelackofpowerthatstudentsmayfeelinthesesituations. ConsideringtheobstaclesthatmanyoftheJobCorpsstudentshavehadtodealwith,thereistheconcernthatthepreserviceteachersmaybegintoviewtheJobCorpsstudentsasvictims.However,manyof thepreservice teachers recognizedthattheJobCorpsstudentswereseekingtomakeachangeintheirlives,andtheyrespectedthisdetermination.Onestudentwrote,“Iwassurprisedtoseehownearlyeachtuteedesiredtoimprovehisorherlifewithasolideducation.”Manyofthepreserviceteachersdescribedworkingwithtuteeswhohadgoalsforacareerorwhowereseekingtofindabetterwaytosupporttheirfamily.Onthequestionnaire,12respondents(32%)madecommentsthatwerecodedasdemonstratingtheirawarenessofthecapabilityoftheJobCorpsstudents.Oneparticipantwrote,“IlearnedthatthestudentsatJobCorpsarejustascapableanddeterminedtosucceedasIam.”

Acknowledgment of transformation or change in self.Manyofthestudentsconveyedintheirreflectionpapersandintheinterviewsthattheservice-learningexperiencehadbeentransformativeforthem;theyrecognizedachangeinthem-selves.Onestudentwrote,“Ithasbeeneyeopening,educational,andlifechang-ingtotutoratJobCorps.”Trulyexperiencingtheotherisoftenatransformativeexperience.Thisrecognitionofchangewasexpressedinmanyways,including:

Experiencing the Other

56

changesinknowledge,changesinoutlook,andchangesinperception.Inrelationtoknowledge,thequestionnaireasked—Doyoufeelthisservice-learningexperiencesupportedyourunderstandingoftheideasandissueswewerestudyinginclass?36respondents(97%)repliedyestothisquestion.Whenaskedtospecifyinwhatways,15participants(41%)gaveresponsesspecifictodiversity. Somestudentsfocusedontheirchangedperceptionsofschools.Onestudentwrote,“BeforegoingtoJobCorps,Ihadaparticularviewofeducationandteachersthathasbeenradicallyalteredafterthisexperience.”Anotherstudentwrote,“Theexperiencehashadaprofoundimpactonmyunderstandingoftheworldofeduca-tion.”Studentsalsodescribedhowtheexperienceimpactedtheirunderstandingofdiversity.Onestudentwrote,“InthetimespentthereIhavelearnedmoreabouteducationaldiversityandtheneedforitthanIcouldhaveeverhopedtolearninaclassroom.”Overallmostofthestudentsdescribedtheexperienceashavinganimpactontheirknowledgeandunderstandingofdiversity.

Need to create change.Thestudents’recognitionofinjusticeandrealizationoftheirchangeinthinkingalsoledmanyofthemtoacknowledgethattheywantedorneeded tocreatechange.On thequestionnaire,22 respondents (59%)madecommentsthatdemonstratedthattheyunderstoodtheexternalfactorsthatimpactachievementandthatneedtobechanged.Forsomeofthem,thiswaschangewithintheirownclassrooms.Onestudentwrote,“AsateacherInowknowmorethaneverthatIhavetobesensitiveandconsiderateofone’sbackgroundandchangemystyletoaccommodateit.”Anotherstudentsaid,“Itisuptoindividualteacherstofindacreativewaytolearnmoreabouttheirstudentsandthenpresenttheirsubjectinawaythatthestudentcanunderstand.”Thisinclinationtowardchangeisimportantsincechangebeginswitheachteacher,andasIrvine(2003)haspointedout,“thereisgrowingrecognitionamongtheeducationalresearchandpolicycommunitiesthatoneofthekeyvariablesrelatedtotheschoolachievementofculturallydiversestudentsistheteacher”(p.72). Some students focused not only on the need for change within their ownclassrooms, but also recognized the need for change on a larger scale. On thequestionnaire,fourrespondents(11%)madestatementsthatwerecodedasdesiringtochallengethestatusquo.Inthereflectionpapers,somestudentswrotethattheyseethemselvesasfutureadvocatesfortheirstudents.Onestudentwrote,“IthaschangedmyperspectiveonhowIviewstudents.Iwanttobetheiradvocatesonomorestudentsfallthroughthecracks.”Anotherstudentstated,“IwillnotbeshywhenIknowthatImustactonbehalfofthegoodofmystudents.”Onestudentsawherroleasanadvocateasextendingbeyondschoolsandchildrenandintothebroadersociety.Thisstudentwrote:

AsanoppressorinasystemIhelpedtocreate,albeitunconsciously,Iwillnowhaveheightenedawarenessandusemyinheritedempowermenttohelpstandagainstsocialinjusticesthatplaguemyimmediateworldandbeyond.

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

57

Thisquoteexemplifies thegoalwewere seeking to reachwithour students: acommitmenttowardseekingchangeforsocialjustice.AccordingtoAyers,Quinn,andStovall(2009)themovetowardactivismisanotherpillarofsocialjusticeedu-cation.Ifpreserviceteacherscommittoactivisminsupportoftheirstudentsandcommunities,theyhavethepotentialtofosteranactivistorientationintheirownstudents.Thisisimportantasactivismisa“moveawayfrompassivity,cynicismanddespair”(p.xiv).

Putting Pressure on Assumptions As we developed our findings, we sought to be aware of areas where theservice-learningexperiencemayhavefallenshortofourgoalsorinstanceswhenthe experiencemayhavebeenmiseducative.One areaof particular concern isthattheexperienceseemedtofosterdeficitperspectivesoftheJobCorpsstudentsforsomeofthepreserviceteachers.Onthequestionnaire,14respondents(38%)madestatementsthatwerecodedasreflectingadeficitperspective.Onewrote,“Ihadnoideahowfarbehindthekidswere.”ThisoutcomeisreflectedinresearchconductedbyTilley-Lubbs(2009)whofoundthataservice-learningexperienceunintentionallycreateddeficitperspectivesofthecommunity. Theservice-learningprogramhasprovidedbenefitsfortheJobCorpsstudents.TheacademicmanageratJobCorpsreportsthatsincethestartoftheservice-learningcollaboration,thetestscoresonthebasicskillstesthaveimprovedeverysemester.Inaddition,thepassratesfortheGEDandhighschooldiplomaprogramhaveim-proved.However,wehaveconcernsthatifourpreserviceteachersareworkingfromadeficitperspectivethattheymightnotpushtheJobCorpsstudentstoachieveathighlevels.Wehaveconcernsthatadeficitperspectivemightleadtolowexpecta-tions.Inordertocounteractthisperspective,wehavemadeaconcertedefforttoinfusethetenetsofcriticalpedagogyintothesocialfoundationscourse(Stenhouse&Jarrett,2012).WenowstartoffthesemesteraskingstudentstoreadanessaybyHerbertKohl(2007)titled“IWon’tLearnfromYou!”Intheessay,Kohldescribesthechoicethatsomestudentsmakenottolearn.Thearticlepromptsdiscussionaboutthechoicetonotlearnasanactofresistancewhenschoolsmakenoattempttoberesponsivetothecultureofthestudentsintheschool.Anotherchangewehavemadeinthecourseistoteachexplicitlyaboutwhatitmeanstoworkfromanassets-basedapproach.Weexaminehowschoolsmightapproachculturaldifferenceandexaminetheimplicationswhenschoolsworkfromaculturaldeficitapproach(Erickson,1987).Wehavealsoworkedtoselectreadingsandframeclassdiscus-sionsaroundstudentcapabilitiesratherthanstudentdeficits.Movingforward,wewillcontinuetoendeavortoemphasizeanassets-basedapproachaspartoftheservice-learningexperience. AnotherissuethatcameupinseveralpapersthatconcernedusrelatestodeficitperspectivesoftheparentsoftheJobCorpsstudents.SomeofthestudentsmadetheassumptionthattheJobCorpsstudentshadparentswhodidnotcareabout

Experiencing the Other

58

them.Onlyonestudentconveyedthatshewasactuallytoldbyhertuteethathehaduncaringparents.TherestofthemjustassumedthatthiswasapartofthereasonwhytheJobCorpsstudentsendedupinthesituationtheywerein.Werealizedthatweneedtocounteractthisassumptiondirectlythroughourcoursematerialsandsubsequentlyaddedcoursereadingsthatprovidedifferentviewsintoparentinvolvement(Finn,1998). AfinalconcernwasthatwefoundnoevidenceinthedatathatthepreserviceteachersrecognizedthatmulticulturaleducationisasimportantforWhitestudentsasitisforstudentsofcolor.TheydidnotseemtomaketheconnectionthatsincemanyofthemcamefrompredominantlyWhiteschoolsthatitisimportantthatteachersbegintothinkabouthowtheycansupportstudentsinpredominatelyWhiteschoolsinbecomingmoreaware.TheydidnotseemtorealizethatifWhiteteach-ersteachinginWhiteschoolsdonotinfusediversityinthecurriculumthattheyarejustperpetuatingthecycleofnon-awarenessthattheythemselvesexperienced.Wehavesubsequentlyfocusedonmakingexplicitconnectionsinthecoursetothevalueofmulticulturaleducationforallstudents.

Implications Ourprimarygoalforincludingaservice-learningexperienceinthesocialfounda-tionscourseistosupportthedevelopmentofasocialjusticeperspective.Wewouldlikeallofourpreserviceteacherstorecognizetheirroleaspotentialchangeagentsintheirfutureclassroomsandinsocietyasawhole.AsAyers,Quinn,andStovall(2009)havepointedout,“educationforsocialjusticeistherootofteachingandschoolinginademocraticsociety,therockuponwhichwebuilddemocracy”(p.xiv).Thisstudydemonstratesthatutilizingamulticulturalservice-learningexperiencealongwithcoursecontentcanbroadenpreserviceteachers’perceptionsofdiversity.Thisservice-learningexperienceforcedstudentsoutoftheircomfortzoneandallowedthemtoexperiencethemselvesandtoexperiencetheother.Throughcontactwiththeother,thepreserviceteachersbegantorealizetheneedtoaffectchange. Theneedtoaffectchangeisincrediblyimportantgiventhecurrentcrossroadsweareatineducation.Asacountry,wehavetodecidewhethertocontinuewithafocusonaccountabilityandsanctionsortotrulyembracethenotionofequaleducationalopportunity.Ourgoalistoimpactfutureteacherswhowillbecomeactivistsfortrueequityforallstudents.Wethinkthatincludingaservice-learningcomponentinthesocialfoundationscourseisastepinthisdirection.Thedatademonstratethatthisexperienceimpactedthepreserviceteachersinpositiveways.However,thequestionnowiswhetherornotthisservice-learningexperiencewilllead these future teachers tomakemeaningfulchanges in their future teachingpractice.Wequestionwhetherthesefutureteacherswillbeabletoresist“thepullofschooling-as-usual”(Michie,2009,p.705).Thisisanimportantquestionthatwarrantsfurtherstudy.Weareworkingtodevelopalongitudinalstudytofollow

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

59

thestudentsastheycontinuethroughtheprogramandintoteachingtoseewhatlastingimpacttheexperienceinthefoundationscoursemighthave.AsHollinsandGuzman(2005)havepointedout,thistypeofresearchisgreatlyneededinthefieldofteachereducation. Manyteachereducatorswhoareusingservice-learningintheircoursesrecognizethemultiplebenefits that theseexperienceshave for their students.Multiculturalservice-learningexperienceshavethepotentialtoimpactstudentsbeyondwhatispossiblethroughcoursecontentalone.Itisimportantthatweexpandthebodyofresearchtodemonstratetoothersthetransformationsthatweseeinourstudents.Itisalsoimportantthatteachereducationprogramsbegintothinkabouthowtheycanprovidemultipleopportunitiesfortransformativeexperiences.Theseexperiencescanleadtogreaterawarenesswiththelong-termgoalofchangesinclassroompractice,andchangesinclassroompracticecanleadtobroaderchange.AsstatedbyAyers,Quinn,andStovall(2009),“Wechangeourlives,wechangetheworld”(p.xiv).

ReferencesAnderson,J.B.,Swick,K.J.,&Yff,J.(Eds.).(2001).Service-learning in teacher education:

Enhancing the growth of new teachers, their students, and communities.Washington,DC:AACTEPublications.

Akiba,M.(2011).Identifyingprogramcharacteristicsforpreparingpre-serviceteachersfordiversity.Teachers College Record, 113(3),658-697.

Assaf,L.C.,Battle,J.,&Garza,R.(2010).Multiculturalteachereducation:examiningtheperceptions, practices, and coherence in one teacher preparationprogram. Teacher Education Quarterly, 37(2),115-136.

Ayers,W.,Quinn,T.,&Stovall,D.(Eds.).(2009).Handbook of social justice in education.NewYork:Routledge.

Baldwin,S.C.,Buchanan,A.M.,&Rudisill,M.E.(2007).Whatteachercandidateslearnedaboutdiversity,socialjustice,andthemselvesfromservice-learningexperiences. Journal of Teacher Education, 54(4),315-27.

Bell, C.A., Horn, B.R., & Roxas K.C. (2007).We know it’s service, but what are theylearning? Preservice teachers’ understandings of diversity. Equity & Excellence in Education, 40(2),123-133.

Berliner,D.C.(2006).Ourimpoverishedviewofeducationalresearch.Teachers College Record, 108(6),949-995.

Bollin,G.G.(1996).Usingmulticulturaltutoringtopreparepreserviceteachersfordiverseclassrooms.The Educational Forum, 61(1),68-76.

Bonilla-Silva,E.(2006)Racism without racists: Color-blind racism and the persistence of racial inequality in the United States.Lanham,MD:Rowman&Littlefield.

Borko,H.,Whitcomb,J.,&Byrnes,K.(2008).Genresofresearchinteachereducation.InM.Cochran-Smith,S.Feiman-Nemser,&J.McIntyre(Eds.),Handbook of research on teacher education: Enduring issues in changing contexts (3rded.)(pp.1017-1049).Mahwah,NJ:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates.

Bourdieu,P.,&Passeron,J.C.(1990).Reproduction in education, society, and culture(2nded.).London,UK:Sage.

Experiencing the Other

60

Boyle-Baise,M.(2005).Preparingcommunity-orientedteachers:Reflectionsfromamulti-culturalservice-learningproject.Journal of Teacher Education, 56(6),446-458.

Boyle-Baise,M.(1998).Communityservicelearningformulticulturaleducation:Anexploratorystudywithpreserviceteachers.Equity and Excellence in Education, 31(2),52-60.

Boyle-Baise,M.,&Langford,J.(2004).Therearechildrenhere:Servicelearningforsocialjustice.Equity and Excellence in Education, 37(1),55-66.

Brown,E.L.(2005).Service-learninginaone-yearalternativeroutetoteachercertification:Apowerfulmulticulturalteachingtool.Equity & Excellence in Education, 38(1),61-74.

Brown. E.L. (2004). What precipitates change in cultural diversity awareness during amulticultural course:The message or the method? Journal of Teacher Education, 55(5),325-340.

Brown-Jeffy,S.,&Cooper,J.E.(2011).Towardaconceptualframeworkofculturallyrelevantpedagogy:anoverviewoftheconceptualandtheoreticalliterature.Teacher Education Quarterly, 38(1),65-84.

Burant,T.J.,&Kirby,D.(2002).Beyondclassroom-basedearlyfieldexperiences:Under-standingan“educativepracticum”inanurbanschoolcommunity.Teaching and Teacher Education, 17(3),561-575.

Carter,P.L.,&Welner,K.B.(2013).Closing the opportunity gap: What America must do to give every child an even chance.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress.

Causey,V.,Thomas,C.,&Armento,B. (2000).Culturaldiversity isbasicallya foreigntermtome:Thechallengesofdiversityforpreserviceteachereducation.Teaching and Teacher Education, 19(1),33-45.

Charmaz,K.(2006).Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative analysis.London,UK:Sage.

Cockrell,K.S.,Placier,P.L.,Cockrell,D.H.,&Middleton,J.N.(1999).Comingtotermswith“diversity”and“multiculturalism”inteachereducation:Learningaboutourstu-dents,changingourpractice.Teaching and Teacher Education, 15(4),351-366.

Conner,J.O.(2010).Learningtounlearn:Howaservice-learningprojectcanhelpteachercan-didatestoreframeurbanstudents.Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(5),1170-1177.

Creswell,J.W.(2002).Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantita-tive and qualitative research.UpperSaddleRiver,NJ:MerrillPrenticeHall.

Creswell,J.W.&Miller,D.L.(2000).Determiningvalidityinqualitativeinquiry.Theory into Practice, 39(3),124-130.

Erickson,F.(1987).Transformationandschoolsuccess:Thepoliticsandcultureofeducationachievement.Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 18(4),335-356.

Finn, J. (1998). Parental engagement that makes a difference. Educational Leadership, 55(8),20-24.

Gaine,C. (2001). “If it’s not hurting it’s notworking”:Teaching teachers about “race.”Research Papers in Education, 16(1),93-113.

Garcia,L.(2000).Placing“diversevoices”atthecenterofteachereducation:Apre-ser-viceteacher’sconceptionof“educacion”andappealtocaring.Youth Theatre Journal, 14(1),85-100.

Garland,S.(2012,December5).Was“Brown v. Board”afailure?The Atlantic.RetrievedFebruary25,2013,fromhttp://www.theatlantic.com.

Gay,G.,&Kirkland,K.(2003).Developingculturalcriticalconsciousnessandself-reflectioninpreserviceteachereducation.Theory into Practice, 42(3),181-187.

Hollins,E.R.,&Guzman,M.T.(2005).Researchonpreparingteachersfordiversepopula-

Barri Tinkler & Alan Tinkler

61

tions.InM.Cochran-Smith&K.M.Zeichner(Eds.),Studying teacher education: The report of the AERA panel on research and teacher education(pp.477-548).Mahwah,NJ:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates.

Hyland,N.E.,&Noffke,S.E.(2005).Understandingdiversitythroughsocialandcommunityinquiry:Anaction-researchstudy.Journal of Teacher Education, 56(4),367-381.

Irvine,J.J.(2003).Educating teachers for diversity: Seeing with a cultural eye.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress.

Johnson,L.(2002).“Myeyeshavebeenopened”:White teachersandracialawareness.Journal of Teacher Education, 53(2),153-167.

Kohl,H.(2007).Iwon’tlearnfromyou!Confrontingstudentresistance.InW.Au,B.Bigelow,&S.Karp(Eds.),Rethinking our classrooms: Teaching for equity and justice(2nded.,pp.165-166).Milwaukee,WI:RethinkingSchools.

Ladson-Billings,G.(1994).The dreamkeepers: Successful teachers of African-American children.SanFrancisco:Jossey-Bass.

LaDuke,A.E.(2009).Resistanceandrenegotiation:Preserviceteacherinteractionswithand reactions to multicultural education course content. Multicultural Education, 16(3),37-44.

Lingis,A.(1998).The imperative.Bloomington,IN:IndianaUniversityPress.Lingis,A.(1994).The community of those who have nothing in common.Bloomington,IN:

IndianaUniversityPress.Marullo,S.,&Edwards,B.(2000).Fromcharitytojustice:Thepotentialofuniversity-com-

munitycollaborationforsocialchange.American Behavioral Scientist, 43(5),895-912.McFalls,E.L.,&Cobb-Roberts,D.(2001).Reducingresistancetodiversitythroughcog-

nitivedissonanceinstruction:Implicationsforteachereducation.Journal of Teacher Education, 52(2),164-178.

McGuire,M.B.,&Schiller,K.(2003).Increasingmulticulturalawarenessamongpre-serviceteachers:Resultsfromoneprogram’sevaluation.PaperpresentedattheannualmeetingoftheAmericanEducationalResearchAssociation,Chicago,IL.

McIntosh,P.(1990),Whiteprivilege:Unpackingtheinvisibleknapsack.Independent School, 49(2),31-35.

Melnick,S.L.,&Zeichner,K.M.(1998).Teachereducation’sresponsibility toaddressdiversityissues:Enhancinginstitutionalcapacity.Theory into Practice, 36(2),88-95.

Michie,G.(2009).Teachingintheundertow:Resistingthepullofschooling-as-usual.InW.Ayers,T.Quinn,&D.Stovall(Eds.),Handbook of social justice in education(705-710).NewYork:Routledge.

Mitchell,T.D.(2008).Traditionalvs.criticalservice-learning:Engagingtheliteraturetodiffer-entiatetwomodels.Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 14(2),50-65.

Murphy,J.(2009).Closingachievementgaps:Lessonsfromthelast15years.Phi Delta Kappan, 91(3),8-12.

NationalService-LearningClearinghouse.(n.d.).Service Learning is… RetrievedSeptember15,2006,fromhttp://www.servicelearning.org/welcome_to_service-learning/service-learning_is/index.php

O’Grady,C.(2000).Integratingservicelearningandmulticulturaleducation:Anoverview.InC.O’Grady(Ed.),Integrating service learning and multicultural education in colleges and universities(pp.1-19).Mahwah,NJ:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates.

Pang,P.O.(2001).Multicultural education: A caring-centered reflective approach.Boston:McGraw-Hill.

Experiencing the Other

62

Patton,M.Q. (1990).Qualitative evaluation and research methods (2nded.).NewburyPark,CA:Sage.

Root,S.,&Batchelder,T.(1994).Theimpactofservice-learningonpreserviceteachers’development. Paper presented at the annual meeting of theAmerican EducationalResearchAssociation,SanFrancisco.

Root,S.,&Furco,A.(2001).Areviewofresearchonservice-learninginpreserviceteachereducation.InJ.B.Anderson,K.J.Swick,&J.Yff(Eds.),Service-learning in teacher education: Enhancing the growth of new teachers, their students, and communities(pp.86-101).Washington,DC:AACTEPublications.

Rubin,H.J.&Rubin,I.S.(1995).Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data.Thou-sandOaks,CA:SagePublications.

Sleeter,C.E.(2001).Preparingteachersforculturallydiverseschools:ResearchandtheoverwhelmingpresenceofWhiteness.Journal of Teacher Education, 52(2),94-106.

Solomon,R.P.,Portelli,J.P.,Daniel,B.J.,&Campbell,A.(2005).Thediscourseofdenial:HowWhite teacher candidates construct race, racism and “White privilege.” Race Ethnicity and Education, 8(2),147-169.

Stachowski,L.L.,&Mahan,J.M.(1998).Cross-culturalfieldplacements:Studentteacherslearningfromschoolsandcommunities.Theory into Practice, 37(2),155-162.

Stachowski,L.L.,&Visconti,V.A.(1998).Servicelearninginoverseasnations:U.S.studentteachersgive,growandgainoutside theclassroom.Journal of Teacher Education, 49(3),212-219.

Stenhouse,V.L.,&Jarrett,O.S.(2012).Intheserviceoflearningandactivism:Servicelearning, critical pedagogy, and the problem solution project. Teacher Education Quarterly, 39(1),51-76.

Swick,K.(1999).Servicelearninghelpsfutureteachersstrengthencaringperspectives.The Clearing House, 73(1),29-32.

Tilley-Lubbs,G.A.(2009).Goodintentionspavethewaytohierarchy:Aretrospectiveautoeth-nographicapproach.Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 16(1),59-68.

Wade,R.(2000).Service-learningformulticulturalteachingcompetency:Insightsfromtheliteratureforteachereducation.Equity & Excellence in Education, 33(3),21-29.

Wade,R.(1995).Developingactivecitizens:Communityservicelearninginsocialstudiesteachereducation.The Social Studies, 86(3),122-128.

Wade,R.(1993).Socialaction:ExpandingtheroleofcitizenshipinthesocialstudiesCurricu-lum.Inquiry in Social Studies: Curriculum, Research and Instruction, 29(1),2-18.

Zeichner,K.M. (2003).The adequacies and inadequaciesof three current strategies torecruit,prepare,andretainthebestteachersforallstudents. Teachers College Record, 105(3),490-519.