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Act 31 and C ompliance T heory

Dan Timm , Ed.D . Department of Kinesiology University of Wisconsin, Madison. Act 31 and C ompliance T heory. Background. Teach in the physical education teacher education (PETE) program at the University of Wisconsin The “Act 31 person” Apply Act 31 to physical education

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Act 31 and C ompliance T heory

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  1. Dan Timm, Ed.D. Department of Kinesiology University of Wisconsin, Madison Act 31 and Compliance Theory

  2. Background • Teach in the physical education teacher education (PETE) program at the University of Wisconsin • The “Act 31 person” • Apply Act 31 to physical education • What can I do to make the Act 31 training better? • Helpful to know what other PETE programs were doing

  3. Literature Review • Maurer (1994) found no positive results of including Act 31 into a high school curriculum • Johnson (1996) and Smith (1997) found a lack of compliance and understanding on the part of school district administrators

  4. Literature Review • WIEA/WTEDA/UW-Extension (2000) indicated 2/3 of colleges of education reported being in compliance with Act 31 • Data from all teacher education programs were grouped together • Not known if any PETE programs responded to the survey

  5. So… • If I wanted to know what other PETE programs were doing, I would have to find out myself • Initial thought was to examine all the PETE programs in the state • Advisor quickly changed that idea to something more manageable • Case study of one program

  6. Research Question • How does a Wisconsin university include Act 31 in the PETE teacher-training curriculum to attain transformative learning regarding values and social justice for American Indian people in Wisconsin?

  7. Purposeful Sampling • Wanted the participant PETE program to be doing a “good” job • Informally contacted UW institutions that offered a major in PETE

  8. Purposeful Sampling • Eight universities were contacted; how many responded? • Of the universities that responded, how did they indicate they were including Act 31 in PETE curriculum?

  9. Purposeful Sampling • Five universities responded • Received a variety of responses • “Dance class but that instructor is now gone” • “I know we’re not doing a good job” • “I think that’s covered in Education but I’m not sure”

  10. Purposeful Sampling • One university responded in the affirmative • The participating university for the study had been identified

  11. Methods • Qualitative grounded theory design • Grounded theory would help explain the practice of how a Wisconsin university included Act 31 in its PETE teacher-training curriculum • Participants • Four instructors of the “human relations” course • Five PETE preservice teachers

  12. Data Collection • Artifacts • Course syllabus, assignments, and readings • Interviews using open-ended guiding questions • Instructors • PETE preservice teachers

  13. Data Analysis • Artifacts • Coded to discover the underlying meaning • Interviews • Transcribed and coded to discover the underlying meaning

  14. Data Analysis • Draft Summary • Themes were identified • Story Draft • Pulled together themes and detailed information from artifacts, instructor interviews, and PETE preservice teacher interviews

  15. Critical Pedagogy Analysis • Findings of the study were examined from a critical pedagogy perspective (Freire, 1970/1970) • Identified themes as a schooling or education approach to teaching Act 31 (Kanpol, 1998; McLaren, 2003) • Schooling is similar to a technical/managerial approach to teaching Act 31 (Leary, 2007) • Education is similar to a historically situated approach to teaching Act 31 (Leary, 2007)

  16. Findings – Five Themes • Factors affecting the teaching of Act 31 • Instructors’ teaching of Act 31 • Instructors’ thoughts on the teaching of Act 31 • Act 31 and PETE courses • PETE preservice teachers and Act 31

  17. Findings – Five Themes • What are some “sub-themes” that were revealed under each of the five themes?

  18. Factors Affecting the Teaching of Act 31 • Overall course content was extensive • Act 31 was one of 12 topical areas in a 15-week course • Time spent teaching Act 31 was small • Three instructors spent one week • One instructor spent two weeks • Basic information; could not go into detail

  19. Factors Affecting the Teaching of Act 31 • Preservice teachers’ prior knowledge of Act 31 • Most preservice teachers knew nothing about Act 31 prior to the human relations course • Instructors no longer expect preservice teachers to know anything about Act 31 • Service learning project • Director of curriculum, principals, and teachers did not know anything about Act 31

  20. Factors Affecting the Teaching of Act 31 • Preservice teachers’ perceptions of American Indians • Treated poorly in the past but now things are OK • Very separate from the lives of preservice teachers • Either “a deficit model” or “they have unfair rights model”

  21. Factors Affecting the Teaching of Act 31 • Addressing methods in the human relations course • Instructors of methods courses were resistant to include anything about race or culture • Resulted in a big split between methods and content • Many preservice teachers did not know how to apply Act 31 to their content area

  22. Factors Affecting the Teaching of Act 31 • Critical pedagogy perspective • Schooling approach to training preservice teachers so they will have met requirements to become licensed teachers • Technical/managerial approach to teaching Act 31 • Instructors were limited to be solely in compliance with Act 31 and satisfy a curriculum requirement

  23. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • Instructors’ approach to teaching Act 31 • Attempted to have preservice teachers attain transformative learning regarding values and social justice for American Indian people in Wisconsin • Develop greater awareness, examine own value systems, think critically

  24. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • Instructors’ approach to teaching Act 31 • Three instructors took a gradual, cumulative approach (O’Hara, 2006); • One instructor took a direct, in-your-face approach

  25. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • Learning activities used to teach Act 31 • Minimal lecture • Discussion • Large and small group work • Question and answer sessions • Preservice teacher presentations • Guest speaker presentations • Readings, videos

  26. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • Perspectives from which Act 31 was taught • Historical • Political • Social • Contemporary • Educational • Social justice

  27. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • What preservice teachers are expected to learn and achieve from their Act 31 training • Be better prepared as teachers • Content knowledge • Able to integrate Act 31 into their teaching and curriculum; not in a superficial manner

  28. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • How instructors know if preservice teachers have successfully completed their Act 31 training • No formal assessment • Evaluation of in-class activities • No indication if preservice teachers “could really do it” or were just in compliance with a state requirement

  29. Instructors’ Teaching of Act 31 • Critical pedagogy perspective • Instructors took an education approach to teaching Act 31 • Attempted to go beyond a superficial level and attain depth of understanding and transformation • Historically situated approach to teaching Act 31 • Taught from various perspectives • Attempted to foster development of values and social justice

  30. Instructors’ Thoughts on the Teaching of Act 31 • Being in compliance with Act 31 • Instructors questioned the validity of being in compliance with the Act 31 requirement • One instructor felt she was just checking checkboxes when teaching the human relations course • “I just think it’s really a joke that this class can count as covering…even if we do it great, it’s still not OK” (Instructor Helen)

  31. Instructors’ Thoughts on the Teaching of Act 31 • Building partnerships • As a group, the instructors had not built partnerships with American Indian entities on-campus or off-campus • Preservice teachers were told to build partnerships • One instructor had individually built partnerships

  32. Instructors’ Thoughts on the Teaching of Act 31 • Critical pedagogy perspective • Instructors thought they were schooling preservice teachers on Act 31 • Factors affecting the teaching of Act 31 limited instructors to a technical/managerial approach to teaching Act 31

  33. Act 31 and PETE Courses • How Act 31 was currently included in PETE courses • Was not included • Possibly included as an underlying tone in a methods class discussing culturally relevant pedagogy • “I don’t know if I’m that comfortable even including it in my classes” (PETE preservice teacher Colleen)

  34. Act 31 and PETE Courses • Suggestions for including Act 31 in future PETE courses • Introduced in humans relations course and reinforced in PETE courses • PETE courses needed to address more diversity issues • Opportunities for professional development for PETE instructors are limited because of teaching loads

  35. Act 31 and PETE Courses • Critical pedagogy perspective • Act 31 not being included in any PETE courses represented a schooling or technical/managerial approach to teaching Act 31

  36. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • PETE preservice teachers’ prior knowledge of Act 31 • All grew up in Wisconsin • None recalled Act 31 being included in elementary or secondary education • Taught whatever textbooks stated • Realized textbooks were wrong after taking human relations course

  37. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • PETE preservice teachers’ retention of Act 31 • Minimal retention of Act 31 from human relations course • Remembered only bits and pieces of information; no connected thoughts • “Can you review what Act 31 is?” (PETE preservice teacher Mike) • No preservice teacher mentioned Act 31 in any of three portfolios

  38. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Difference in self before and after being taught about Act 31 • Greater awareness and sensitively toward American Indians • One thought he grew as a teacher; another felt more mature

  39. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Views on social justice for American Indians in Wisconsin • Public needed to be educated more • Act 31 not being taught enough or stressed enough • American Indians sometimes misunderstood; shed in a negative light

  40. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Thoughts by PETE preservice teachers regarding the Act 31 instruction they received • Excellent course but difficult to apply the Act 31 material • Could have been better • Stressed more • More time given it in the human relations course

  41. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Including Act 31 in future teaching • Readiness: talk about history if play a Native game • Told to be creative and make content relevant to students • Not sure how to do that with Act 31

  42. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Including Act 31 in future teaching • “I would say very poorly. I don’t think I’ve been prepared to any extent to include it in my teaching. The instructors had really no idea how to include it in as a phyed teacher” (PETE preservice teacher Colleen)

  43. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Recommendations for future teaching of Act 31 to PETE preservice teachers • More direct, more emphasis • Should be its own class • Incorporated into PETE curriculum

  44. PETE Preservice Teachers and Act 31 • Critical pedagogy perspective • Thoughts represented a schooling or technical/managerial approach to teaching Act 31 • Lack of retention of Act 31 • Few differences in selves after Act 31 training

  45. Grounded Theory • Compliance Theory • Administrators at a Wisconsin university did what was needed to be in compliance with the Act 31 requirement • PETE preservice teachers did receive instruction in the history, culture, and tribal sovereignty of the federally-recognized tribes and bands in the states

  46. Grounded Theory • Compliance Theory • Administrators at a Wisconsin university placed secondary importance on the quality of Act 31 training provided to preservice teachers • Act 31 was included in only one course • One of 12 topical areas • Act 31 was not included in methods courses • Act 31 was not included in PETE courses

  47. Recommendations • A Wisconsin university • Reevaluate how it addresses the Act 31 requirement • Act 31 needs to be included in methods courses • Remove some of the content from the human relations course

  48. Recommendations • Instructors of human relations course • Move some content to a history, philosophy, and law of education course • Build partnerships with campus and community groups • Develop a way to assess preservice teachers’ knowledge of Act 31

  49. Recommendations • PETE Program • Incorporate Act 31 into its courses • Reinforce what is taught in the human relations course • PETE preservice teachers have opportunity to apply Act 31 content to physical education

  50. Recommendations • Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction • Reconsider the concept of compliance

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