To understand the visual culture and art education practices within three ideologically distinct kindergartens, I employed an interdisciplinary approach, utilizing tools from the fields of art, education, anthropology, literary theory, visual studies and critical social theory. Each of the three schools was considered to be the "best" of its kind for the community in which it resided; TBS was the original bilingual school, and the most Westernized. It was set in the heart of a major city. The second school, OBS, operated from an Islamic framework located in an under-developed small transitioning suburb; and the last school, NBS, was situated in Al-Jahra, an "outlying area" populated by those labeled as bedouins (Longva, 2006). The participants' attitudes towards art education unfolded as I analyzed my visual observations of the participants' daily practices. I have produced a counter-hegemonic visual narrative by negotiating my many subjectivities and methods to gain new knowledge and insights. This approach has provided a holistic understanding of the environment in each site, in which attitudes and practices relating to art education have been acquired by the community. Operating from three different educational paradigms, each school applied a different approach to art education. The more Westernized school viewed art as an individual act which promoted creativity and expression. In the Islamic school art was viewed as an activity that required patterning (Stokrocki, 1986), and that the child needed to be guided and exposed to the appropriate images to follow. In the bedouin school, drawing activities were viewed as an opportunity for representing one's individual story as well as a skill for emergent literacy.

In this study, the Arizona State University Mathematics and Science Teaching Fellows 2010 program was analyzed qualitatively from start to finish to determine the impact of the research experience on teachers in the classroom. The sample for the study was the 2010 cohort of eight high school science teachers. Erickson's (1986) interpretive, participant observational fieldwork method was used to report data by means of detailed descriptions of the research experience and classroom implementation. Data was collected from teacher documents, interviews, and observations. The findings revealed various factors that were responsible for an ineffective implementation of the research experience in the classroom such as research experience, curriculum support, availability of resources, and school curriculum. Implications and recommendations for future programs are discussed in the study.

In the latter half of the nineteenth century, colleges and universities transformed their thinking of the body as they institutionalized physical education, recreational activities, and especially physical exercise. In this study, I examine the historical discourse on physical exercise and training during this period. I employ the theoretical and methodological practices of Michel Foucault's archeological and genealogical work to write a "history of the present." I challenge the essential narrative of physical fitness on college and university campuses. I also discuss nineteenth century notions of ethics and masculinity as a way of understanding twenty-first century ethics and masculinity. Ultimately, I use the historical discourse to argue that institutionalization of recreation and fitness centers and activities have less to do with health and well-being and more to do with disciplining bodies and controlling individuals.

The purpose of the research conducted and presented in this thesis is to explore mentoring programs for ASL/English Interpreters, with a focus on the question "Is a Peer Mentoring Program a successful approach to mentoring working and novice interpreter?" The method of qualitative data collection was done via questionnaires and interviews with past participants of a Peer Mentoring Program and questionnaires to identified persons who have experience creating and running mentoring programs. The results of the data collection show that a Peer Mentoring Program is a successful approach to mentoring working and novice interpreters. This research provides valued information in regard to the experience of persons in a Peer Mentoring Program as well as successful aspects of such a mentoring approach.

The high rate of teacher turnover in the United States has prompted a number of studies into why teachers leave as well as why they stay. The present study aims to add to that knowledge specifically regarding why teachers choose to stay at urban schools. Several reasons teachers in general choose to stay have been identified in previous studies including faith in their students, continuing hope and sense of responsibility, and love among others. The importance of such a study is the possibility of designing programs that reinforce teacher success through understanding the personal and professional reasons teachers choose to stay. Getting teachers to stay is important to the nation's goal of providing equity in science education to all children. Important to this research is an understanding of motivational theories. Already a challenge in the over-busy modern world, the ability to self-motivate and motivate others is of particular importance to teachers in urban schools as well as teachers struggling against restrictive budgets. Studies have shown teachers extrinsically motivated will need external rewards to encourage them while teachers who are intrinsically motivated will have their own internal reasons such as satisfaction in contributing to the future, self-actualization, or the joy of accomplishment. Some studies have suggested that teachers who decide to remain teaching tend to be intrinsic motivators. Unfortunately, the environment in most Western country educational systems presents a challenge to achieving these intrinsic goals. As a result, self-determination theory should play a significant role in shaping educational programs. The following study examined the perspectives of secondary school science teachers, specifically regarding why they opted to remain within the classroom in urban districts. It was conducted utilizing interviews and surveys of teachers working within urban school districts in Arizona and California. The sample consisted of 94 science teachers. More than half of the participants were White females and 36 percent of them had been teaching for more than 15 years. Participation in the study was based on self-selected volunteerism. Survey questions were based on self-determination theory and used Likert scale responses. Follow-up audiotaped interview requested information regarding identity and their social interaction within the urban settings. The survey responses were analyzed using SPSS for descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, and linear regression. The results of this study provide insight on what works to motivate science teachers to continue teaching in less than ideal school settings and with such high bureaucratic impediments as standardized testing and school rating systems. It demonstrates that science teachers do seem to be intrinsically motivated and suggests some areas in which this motivation can be fostered. Such results could help in the development of teacher support groups, professional development programs, or other programs designed to assist teachers struggling to deal with the specific problems and needs of inner city school students.

This narrative study sought to understand the socialization experiences of Hispanic entrepreneurs. While several studies have explored socialization and work-life wellness, few have focused specifically on Hispanics or entrepreneurs. A total of 25 participants were formally interviewed for this study including 16 entrepreneurs and 9 of their family members. Data were also collected through participant observation in which 210 participants were observed at several venues. Participants were recruited from three Southwestern states including: Arizona, Colorado, and Texas. The study employed qualitative interpretive methods to collect and analyze data. Research questions focused on the socialization experiences Hispanic entrepreneurs' reported, how they narrated the ways in which these experiences influenced their work-lives as entrepreneurs, and what they and their family members reported about the relationship between family and work. Results indicate Hispanic entrepreneurs were exposed to work at very young ages, acquired a variety of skills (e.g. sales and leadership) that transferred to their careers as entrepreneurs, and developed coping skills which helped them deal with business and personal hardships. Moreover, participants noted the ways in which faith, positive self-talk, and emotional labor played a role in their work lives. Finally, this research extends current constructions of care and what constitutes work and quality family time.

ABSTRACT Stress and burnout in the educational field primarily in teaching is not a new phenomenon. A great deal of research and analysis to the contributing factors of causation to teacher burnout has been executed and analyzed. The struggle of the artist/teacher, hybrid professionals that maintain two concurrent roles, offers a perspective to burn out that has gone unnoticed. The conflict of roles for the artist/teacher does not infer that the teacher role is incapable of reconciling with the artist role but because of this unique scenario the stories of art teachers and burnout often go unheard. Today's public educator is contending with established stress factors as well as emerging and evolving stress factors. How does this phenomenon impact the artist/teacher's ability or inability to be creative? What are the implications of burnout and its impact on artist/teachers personal and professional work? This qualitative study was conducted using Narrative/Autoethnograpy, Narrative/Ethnography and A/r/tography. The stories of four artist/teachers provides in-depth accounts of their experiences as teachers and how that profession has affected their art making process and well being.

American families have been coming to South Korea accompanying active duty service members or Embassy employees since before the Korean War. While their numbers were originally smaller, they continue to increase as South Korean assignments undergo "tour normalization", a transition from a location intended for service members to come alone for one year to a location where service members come accompanied by their family and stay for longer periods of times. The U.S. maintains a large presence in South Korea as a deterrence against possible threats from North Korea. Despite establishment of an armistice at the conclusion of the Korean War, a constant state of potential threat was created. This paper will examine what affect the recent rise in tension between North Korea and South Korea has on the American children living in South Korea with their active duty service member parent(s).

This study explores experiences of women as they pursue post-secondary computing education in various contexts. Using in-depth interviews, the current study employs qualitative methods and draws from an intersectional approach to focus on how the various barriers emerge for women in different types of computing cultures. In-depth interviews with ten participants were conducted over the course of eight months. Analytical frameworks drawn from the digital divide and explorations of the role of hidden curricula in higher education contexts were used to analyze computing experiences in earlier k-12, informal, workplace, and post-secondary educational contexts to understand how barriers to computing emerge for women. Findings suggest several key themes. First, early experiences in formal education contexts are alienating women who develop an interest in computing. Opportunities for self-guided exploration, play, and tinkering help sustain interest in computing for women of color to engage in computing at the post-secondary level. Second, post-secondary computing climates remain hostile places for women, and in particular, for women of color. Thirdly, women employ a combination of different strategies to navigate these post-secondary computing cultures. Some women internalized existing dominant cultures of computing programs. Others chose exclusively online programs in computing to avoid negative interactions based on assumptions about their identity categories. Some women chose to forge their own pathways through computing to help diversify the culture via teaching, creating their own businesses, and through social programs.

This project explores the cultural identity of a refugee group named Meskhetian Turks, an ethnic group forced to relocate multiple times in their long history. Driven from their original homeland and scattered around Central Asia and Eastern Europe for decades, approximately 15,000 Meskhetian Turks have been granted refugee status by the American government in recent years. The focus of this study is a group of Meskhetian Turkish refugees in the Phoenix metropolitan area. This is a narrative study conducted through twelve open-ended in-depth interviews and researcher's observations within the community. The interview questions revolved around three aspects of Meskhetian cultural identity, which were represented in each research question. These aspects were: how Meskhetian Turks define their own culture; how they define their connection to Turkey and Turks; and how they define Americans, American culture and their place within the American society. The first research question resulted in three themes: history, preservation of culture, and sense of community. The second research question revealed two themes: Meskhetian Turk's ties to Turkey, and the group's relationship with and perception of Turks in the area. The final research question provided two themes: the group's adaptation to United States, and interviewees' observations regarding the American culture. Exploring these themes, and examining the connection between these aspects provided a complex and intertwined web of connections, which explain Meskhetian Turkish cultural identity. Meskhetian Turks' cultural self-definition, relation with the Turkish community, and perceptions of American culture are all inter-connected, which supports and furthers a dialectic approach to cultural studies. The study also contributes to refugee adaptation literature by examining cultural identity influences on the group's adaptation in the United States and offering insight and suggestions for improving the adaptation process.