The Role of Critical Theory in the Development of Multicultural Psychology and Counseling

The discipline of psychology has historically been based upon Western, Eurocentric perspectives on human behavior. Critical theory has played a central role in pushing psychology out from its insularity and perceived objectivity. This chapter examines the role of critical pedagogist Paolo Freire and liberation psychologist Ignacio Martín-Baró in the shaping of a multicultural perspective within psychology that has revolutionized the way that psychologists understand and treat mental health conditions. Freire and Martín-Baró gave voice to the marginalized and disenfranchised and pushed psychologists to engage in their own conscientization of their history and complicitness in perpetuating oppression. Implications of their work are examined in light of their contributions to theoretical underpinnings, clinical diagnosis, and treatment approaches.

Professional Development in Blended Practice

It is approaching two decades since digital technologies began infiltrating higher education in earnest, and the issue of whether or not technology should be used in higher education teaching is no longer a hot topic. The use of online technologies is considered an imperative by institutions, mostly for reasons of efficiency and social expectation. From the pedagogical perspective, the use of digital technologies infuses discussion about quality in learning and teaching but the net changes in practice are minimal. In the present chapter, a case is made for continued investment of effort into designing professional development that is effective in helping academics make use of digital technologies in ways beyond simple access to content. Findings from research into the factors likely to influence how academics use technology provide some evidence of the need to contextualize professional development around educator practices.

Transformative Learning

Transformative learning is not the goal or learning objective of a recognition of acquired competencies (RAC) process. The authors of this chapter suggest transformative learning is a possible by-product of this process which is an exercise in critical self-reflection and demonstration of competencies. Although unintentional, the RAC process is somewhat aligned with Mezirow's phases of transformative learning. A challenge is that it is empirically difficult to measure the phases or the outcome of transformative learning. However, by examining the narratives of female immigrant learners in a RAC process, this chapter explores the potential of transformative learning as a by-product of their respective experiences in the recognition of their prior learning.

From Social Learning to Norm Validation

This chapter asserts that the emergent ontology of critical realism especially as mobilized by sociologist Dave Elder-Vass in his discussion of norm circles provides a powerful theoretical basis for supporting the emancipatory aspirations of critical adult education. According to Michael Welton, because of its capacity to support social learning, critical adult education has a pivotal role to play in human emancipation. Drawing on Jürgen Habermas's critical theory of communicative action, Michael Welton argues that critical adult education's deepest contemporary purpose is to foster social learning that can enable people to resist the destructive colonization of lifeworld contexts. This chapter argues that, while Habermas provides important insight into the normative foundations of critical adult education, his theory of communicative action cannot alone illuminate the ways human learning shapes and is shaped by lifeworld contexts. Elder-Vass's exploration of norm-circles helps identify weaknesses in the concept of “social learning” and identify how, in addition to supporting individual learning, emancipatory adult educators can also support the distinctive emergent power of norm-circles to form and enforce epistemic, discursive, ethical, and practical norms.

Habermas' Reconceptualization of Historical Materialism as a Social Evolutionary Learning Theory

In this chapter, the authors examine how Habermas recasts Marx's historical materialism as a social evolutionary learning theory. The argument closely examines how Habermas transforms Marx's key ideas into a new way of understanding human evolution as a learning process.

Transformative Learning and the Power of Storytelling

Stories provoke learning, promote discovery, encourage exploration, fuel re-imagination, and help in subsequent learning. Storytelling is much more than just a strategy that engages or connects students to their learning; it helps evoke emotions and stimulate the intellect. Tools of transformative pedagogy cultivate the development for critical reflection and create a classroom experience that is particularly enriching and potentially, long term. The belief that storytelling is a necessary and beneficial art of our times has sparked a renaissance of transformative learning, which has room in the scholarship for fire-birds and microchips. This chapter explores transformative learning and the power of storytelling.

U.S. Army Trainers

Training in the U.S. military has evolved, and it has taken on new significance and priority as key in helping the military move forward. While the topic of training in the military has been discussed extensively in many different publications, there has not been as much discussion regarding those who are actually involved in that training, including curriculum designers and trainers. This chapter focuses on the experiences and identities of those who do that training. It discusses the experiences of civilian (non-enlisted) Army trainers (or educators), including how they got involved with training in the Army, their experiences in learning how to be a trainer, and their professional identities as trainers for the Army.

Online Learning

Bowling Green State University partnered with the Ohio Center for Autism and Low Incidence (OCALI) to develop and provide an online autism spectrum disorder certificate and graduate degree program. The development of the program curriculum was created around OCALI's numerous online autism spectrum disorder learning modules that were developed by experts in the field of autism. Today, over 300 individuals have completed the comprehensive certificate, or graduate Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) program, through Bowling Green State University. Online delivery is an alternative for ASD professionals and allows for a diversity of learners and learning styles. Selecting the right learning management system provides a more interactive on-line learning environment. This program is one example of how technology has broadened the outreach of educational preparation in ASD from local to national and international audiences, as well as met the needs of working professionals.

Critical and Transformational Perspectives on Career and Technical Education in the Twenty-First Century for Urban Adult Learners

Critical theory points out that cultural norms do not reflect the experiences of a large portion of adult learners, particularly urban adult learners. As adult educators in this context, are there ways we might improve or change our instruction by developing a critical understanding of the transitional and transformational events in the lives of adult learners entering into career and technical education program? What is the role of alternative approaches to transformative learning for these learners? Specifically, what is the role of alternative approaches to learning for urban adult learners transitioning into a career and technical education classroom, after years of disengagement with formal learning institutions and the need to update their technology skills? In this chapter, the authors discuss the need to use alternative conceptions of transformative learning and critical theory to understand this population of learners as they make the decisions to participate in more formal education programs. They also explore the key issues for adult education practitioner including implications for practice.

The Development of the Entrepreneurial Mindset, Critical Thinking Skills, and Critical Reflective Practices Through Experiential Learning Activities in Graduate Business School

The value and relevance of graduate business education is enhanced when students are prepared for ongoing changes in the competitive global marketplace. Some of the most sought-after characteristics among business professionals include the entrepreneurial mindset and entrepreneurial orientation in addition to critical thinking and reflective skills. Individuals with an entrepreneurial mindset use self-leadership strategies. They are creative and possess improvisational abilities. People with an entrepreneurial orientation are innovative and proactive, and they are not risk-averse. Critical thinking skills along with the capacity for critical reflection allows individuals to make effective decisions, consider the consequences of their attitudes and actions, as well as make changes to reset trajectories of effective performance. Experiential learning activities embedded throughout the business curriculum will afford graduate business students the opportunity to develop these skills and competencies and thus equip them for service in organizations in the future.