Students currently enrolled in the Education graduate program here at Brock University will be required to submit an electronic copy of their final Major Research Paper to this repository as part of graduation requirements.

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Once your MRP has been accepted in the Repository you will receive an email confirmation along with a link to your work

Recent Submissions

  • Supporting Mental Health Education in Ontario Secondary Schools: A Cross-Curricular Handbook for Ontario Secondary Teachers

    Robinson, Mackenzie
    It has been almost two full years since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic (2019), the effects of which are currently being seen in Ontario today within the education system, with a profound escalation in mental health challenges among children and youth. Educators are noticing an increase in mental health issues brought forward by students, and the increase in mental health issues continues to be at the forefront of conversations held by secondary school teachers because of the pressures they face as role models and caring adults. Teachers, however, have identified they are not comfortable helping students who come forward with mental health issues because they, too, lack mental health literacy; they do not feel equipped with the knowledge and understanding of mental health, and feel ill-prepared because they have not received adequate education, training, or professional development on the topic. Some teachers are also avoiding conversations in classes related to mental health because they are unaware of the available and accessible resources, services, strategies, and tools. To address this gap, the researcher developed a mental health handbook in alignment with the Aligned and Integrated Model (AIM) framework from School Mental Health Ontario (2023) that offers a solution to improve secondary teachers’ readiness in supporting students’ mental health and well-being. Focusing on Tier 1 of AIM, the handbook is designed to improve educators’ mental health literacy through understanding early identification, prevention, and early intervention, ensuring a holistic approach to address the varying mental health needs within the school setting. The handbook is also intended to help educators recognize, respond to, and support students who might be experiencing mental health challenges. Implementing the handbook within secondary schools throughout Ontario might hold the potential to enhance teachers’ confidence and comfortability in assisting students who come forward with mental health concerns and, ultimately, foster an environment where students feel supported and empowered to navigate their mental health challenges with both efficacy and dignity.
  • Coding as a Literacy Practice in Adult Learning Communities

    Smith, Eleanor
    This study considered how computing courses for adult learners might be customized to effectively address their reasons for learning to read and write computer code. The view of coding as a literacy practice is the key theme in this study. Street’s (2006) ideological model of literacy along with the perspective of computational participation, are theoretical models used to explore coding as a literacy practice (Kafai & Burke, 2017). Through the vehicle of action research, this study focused on analyzing the delivery of an introductory web languages coding course for female immigrants. This study drew from both the student and teacher perspectives. The study used student feedback collected from online class survey questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The study also incorporated the teacher’s field notes, a course summary report, and the Teaching Perspectives Inventory survey results (Collins & Pratt, 2011). Findings from this study include these areas of insights: 1) students’ views on the benefits of learning coding, 2) the language and communication challenges students faced, and 3) an overview of some effective teaching tools and approaches. Based on these findings, there is a discussion that considered possible issues related to student engagement in learning web language coding. Included are sections on implications for practice and future research.
  • STEAM Pedagogy to Promote 21st Century Skills: A Poetry Unit Plan for Grade 9 Ontario English Classrooms

    Sarkar, Samita
    The purpose of this research project was to create a handbook for Ontario-based English teachers interested in incorporating STEAM-based pedagogy (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) to promote students’ 21st century skills. The handbook is a Grade 9 poetry unit plan that meets the curriculum expectations of Ontario’s Grade 9 English course, ENL1W, as well as curriculum expectations in other Ontario Grade 9 courses across the STEAM disciplines. A review of curriculum documents, along with a comprehensive literature review on STEAM pedagogy revealed a gap regarding translating the theory of interdisciplinary integration into practice in secondary subject areas, where courses are typically taught as discrete subjects. Therefore, this handbook was created to address this literature gap by providing high school teachers with a hands-on resource they may use to implement an integrated, STEAM-based unit. The unit plan was reviewed by Ontario English teachers and found to be helpful in both teaching and assessing English, STEAM subjects, and 21st century skills. Future research projects may build on this work by creating similar resources for other grade levels or disciplines, and exploring their impact on teaching and learning experiences.
  • A Document Analysis on Bullying Policies and Procedures at the Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board

    Spytkowsky, Adelia
    This study examined bullying within schools and school bullying policies with a focus on the Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board (HWCDSB). Conducting a critical policy and document analysis of eight documents on the HWCDSB website, this study sought to answer the following research questions: How does HWCDSB board policy contribute to how bullying is understood and addressed in HWCDSB schools? How does HWCDSB’s bullying policy compare to the best practices identified in the literature? Working within the framework of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, four themes emerged. The themes were analyzed to explore how bullying policy acts as an intervention within schools. This MRP adds to the body of work surrounding critical policy and document analysis, and school bullying policy. Recommendations for improving HWCDSB policies and recommendations for future research were presented. This research can inspire and promote an ecological approach to policy implementation and management of bullying behaviour.
  • Educational e-Leadership: A Review of Literature

    Zarei, Foroogh
    Studies have shown that e-learning seems to be a more established scholarly field in educational studies, both theoretically and practically, while the interface of educational leadership and technology remains relatively unexplored by comparison. This literature review aims to find out to what extent educational e-leadership has created a valid theoretical framework for the field and aims to synthesize previous research into a conceptual framework for educational e-leadership, based on the advances in both the field of education and e-leadership. Upon study, it became apparent that there remain various similar terminologies around e-leadership, which has caused a lack of unity among scholars—hindering development in the field of study. Five important topics were chosen to discuss including philosophy and pedagogy, competencies or growth of an educational e-leader, and models of quality management and trust.
  • Educational Programs and the Ontario Disability Support Program: A Critical Literature Review

    Anderson, Erica
    My major research paper (MRP) is a critical literature review of educational programming available to Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) recipients. Specifically, I review financial literacy education (FLE) programs and ODSP employment training programs. The purpose of my research was to gain a critical understanding of how these programs incorporate learners’ experiences with governmental institutions that impact financial wellbeing and employment. I analyze the literature through the lens of two critical theories: critical pedagogy and critical disability theory. Previous literature indicates that involvement with the social assistance system in Ontario influences recipients’ sense of identity related to disability (Crooks et al., 2008; Lightman et al., 2009). The impact on recipients’ identity is influenced by the binary categorization of able/disabled within social assistance institutions. Some ODSP recipients identify as neither able-bodied nor disabled, rather on a spectrum of illness and wellness. Research into these types of educational programming can support educators and policymakers in identifying the barriers ODSP recipients encounter while pursuing personal goals related to financial security and employment. In this MRP, I report on findings that indicate the presence and the usefulness of critical pedagogy and critical disability theory to improve FLE and employment training delivery. Through this research, I aim to understand the gaps in current FLE and employment training delivery and offer recommendations for future program development.
  • Impacts of an Inclusive Education Program for Adults with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities Within a Postsecondary Environment

    Forbes, April
    Over the last two decades, postsecondary institutions in Canada and globally have created programs to include persons with intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD) in higher education. These programs vary in their scope but generally aim to provide an inclusive opportunity for persons with IDD to attend postsecondary education alongside their same-aged peers. This research study focused on one program at a university in Southern Ontario that has been providing an inclusive campus experience for over 25 years. The study was guided by the research question, “What are the impacts realized by former program participants, their parents/caregivers, former student volunteers, and university partners from involvement with an inclusive education program within a postsecondary environment”? Interview data were derived from 17 semi-structured interviews across four stakeholder groups and were examined using thematic analyses. Findings indicated three major areas of impact: friendship, growth, and belonging. Implications describe steps for broader implementation and a call-to-action for postsecondary institutions to push for greater inclusivity of persons with IDD within higher education.
  • The Importance of Incorporating Holistic and Invitational Approaches in an Elementary School in Karnataka, India

    Tamkeen, Zainab
    This study explores holistic and invitational approaches to education in a private school (The Spiti Academy) in Karnataka, India, with a view of incorporating a strategic approach. The study examined holistic and invitational pedagogies of scholars such as Dewey, Maslow, Montessori, Noddings, and Purkey and Novak, who collectively emphasize the importance of a pedagogy of mind, body, and soul; a pedagogy through play; a pedagogy of student-teacher relationships that build on strengths; and a pedagogy that is invitational, holistic and builds a sense of belonging for everyone at school. An overview of the Indian education system reveals systemic gaps around holism. Focusing on the Spiti Academy, I offer strategies for creating a holistic and invitational school environment that may enable teachers and students to build on their potential, outlining recommendations for school leaders and teachers to facilitate this. My purpose is to help students in the Spiti Academy develop as a whole and enhance their learning experiences, and also to motivate other schools to collaborate for the betterment of society.
  • “Everything Works Better in Person”: Kindergarten Educators’ Experiences During the COVID-19 Pandemic

    Lamb, Iris
    The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on education worldwide, leading to school closures and radically different classroom practices when schools opened back up. This study looked at the effect on five Kindergarten educators of shifting to an online delivery model for Kindergarten students in Southern Ontario, Canada. Participants reported on struggles with engaging their students on a computer screen, the inequities between students that surfaced during this time, and the lack of support throughout the process of pivoting from online teaching to in-class teaching and vice versa. The study findings indicated that more research is needed to fully understand the impact of teaching virtual Kindergarten on both educators and students, but a lack of support from school boards and administrators is an issue that negatively impacted the kindergarten educators in this study.
  • The Challenges Faced and Strategies Used by University Administrators Before and During COVID-19

    Rajasekharan, Sreedevi
    This study undertook a systematic literature review corresponding to challenges faced and strategies used by university administrators in Ontario (Canada) and internationally before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. As leaders who act as the interface between academic institutions and faculty, staff, and students, the study sought to identify university deans’ and department chairs’ specific roles and responsibilities in response to such adversity. The study adopted Bronfenbrenner’s (1999) bioecological model of development and Mukaram et al.’s (2021) adaptive leadership framework to understand the complex demands placed upon and the responses of university administrators navigating the pandemic. Findings reveal that during emergency situations like the COVID-19 pandemic, university administrators act as change agents who redefine their complex roles through a holistic leadership framework that fosters flexibility, empathy, resilience, and adaptability in their practice while developing sustainable, inclusive, and interconnected learning communities.
  • The Relationship between Confucianism Culture on Chinese International Students’ Self-confidence

    Wang, Junjie Jr
    Considering the uptrend of educational globalization, the younger generation in China is choosing to study abroad. According to Lundeberg, Fox, Brown and Elbedour’s research (2000), Chinese participants have low self-confidence and do not trust their own skills. Furthermore, research shows that that Chinese graduate students tend to refrain from participating in classroom activities (Lu & Han, 2010). The purpose of this research project is to explore how Chinese international students perceive the influence of Confucius culture on their self-confidence, while completing the international graduate program in a single university in Ontario. All data was collected through loosely structured interviews with four Chinese graduate students in the international graduate program. Key findings of this research project highlight the students’ educative experience in both Canada and China, the influence of Confucianism on their self- confidence levels and the progression of this trait throughout the whole learning experience.
  • Comparing Successful Education Approaches From the Global South and Canada

    Lu, Olivia
    Educational reforms have been enacted to strategically address critical issues facing schools at the local (individual classroom, school, district) or systemic (provincial and national) level. At the systemic level, large educational change movements often present difficulties in the areas of sustainable success (Fullan, 2021). Across the globe, nations’ economic success is strongly correlated to students’ mathematics performance (Farrell et al., 2017). Therefore, the education of school-aged children in mathematics is an area of concern in both the Global North and Global South. Although many Canadian initiatives have addressed areas of improvement for mathematics education in schools over the last 10 years, limited research and few such initiatives have considered success stories beyond the Global North, thus overlooking new radical approaches for the core subjects, including mathematics (Farrell et al., 2017). This major research project conducted a comprehensive literature review exploring three Canadian mathematics education initiatives—Building Thinking Classrooms (Liljedahl, 2020), Math Minds (Davis et al., 2020), and Show Me Your Math (Lunney Borden, 2010)—as well as three alternatives from the Global South: Escuela Nueva (Colbert & Arboleda, 2016), Learning Community Project (Rincón-Gallardo, 2019), and Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee Non-Formal Primary Education (Numan & Islam, 2021). Findings from this study can stimulate a flow of ideas between the Global South and Global North, with a detailed comparison between the Canadian and Global South approaches that can enhance mathematics education.
  • A Scoping Review of Teaching Practices for Linguistically Diverse Students in Ontario

    Kittani, Lana
    This study explores the challenges faced by linguistically diverse students and teachers in Ontario, Canada. Current research suggests that it takes 5 to 10 years for English Language Learners (ELLs) to reach the language proficiency of their native English-speaking peers (Goodman & Fine, 2018). During this time, ELLs face many challenges including language loss, difficulties in developing a sense of belonging and inclusion in the school community, and difficulties in negotiating their identity. Likewise, educators face challenges when attempting to tailor assessment and instruction for ELLs. Some of these challenges are present based on educators’ background on literacy development and their understanding of language loss, the need to better understand students’ funds of knowledge to support their sense of belonging, lack of teacher education in ELL instruction to assist students in their identity negotiations and formation, and lack of time and resources to prepare and deliver inclusive instruction. A scoping review was conducted to answer the following research questions: (a) What are the experiences and challenges faced by ELLs and classroom teachers? (b) What high-yield pedagogical approaches can teachers use to support ELLs’ inclusive learning needs? (c) What are the implications for the educational and research community of employing such high-yield pedagogical approaches for teaching ELLs? This review provides specific pedagogical approaches for educators to use within their practice to support ELLs, as well as findings and implications for both the research and educational community. Findings from this review indicate that improvements to teacher education programs are needed to develop teachers’ understanding of ELLs, as well as a close examination of existing policy documents and ways in which they can be updated to reflect Ontario’s growing ELL population.
  • The Experiential Embodied Feminist Antimilitarist Learning Hack: A Learning Journey Through Niagara’s War of 1812 Museological Sites

    Drenth, Monica
    In this Major Research Paper, I examine gendered representations of the War of 1812 at four significant cultural sites: the Niagara Falls History Museum, Lundy’s Lane Battlefield, Drummond Hill Cemetery, and Queenston Heights. I employed an experiential embodied feminist antimilitarist learning hack to view exhibits, sites, displays, and epitaphs. The overarching question that guided my research was: How does embodied feminist experiential learning intersect with the ways that gender and militarism are remembered and represented in War of 1812 museums and heritage sites in Niagara, Ontario? My research concluded that the way that the stories of the War of 1812 are told at these sites serves to perpetuate the hegemonic portrayals of war, including the celebration of violent and bloody combat, war as a male-dominated condition, and the conventional roles of men and women in wartime. My research demonstrates the need for change at these sites so visitors might understand the problematic ways in which gender and violence is presented with regards to the War of 1812.  
  • “Keep It 100”: A Handbook Promoting Equitable Outcomes for Black University Students Through Mentorship

    Adebo, Michael
    Black and racialized students attend Canadian universities with the intent of achieving academic success. However, instances of overt and covert racism negatively impact Black and racialized students’ academic success and retention rates in university programs. Lee (1999) and Sinanan (2016) suggest mentorship as a key strategy towards increasing academic success and retention rates among Black students. This handbook proposes mentorship strategies for use by university educators and administrators to help build beneficial relationships with Black and racialized students that lead to improved learning outcomes. Specifically, this handbook proposes what Quach et al. (2020) have identified as mentee-focused mentorship. Mentee-focused mentorship centres on the needs of Black students and recognizes the layers of systemic racism that exist in universities. This project provides educators and administrators with an understanding of concepts related to systemic racism, anti-racism, intersectionality, critical race theory (CRT) and CRT-informed practices. Personal stories from Black students collected from the academic literature are presented alongside points of reflection for educators and administrators. Points of reflection are provided with the intent that readers will meaningfully consider their positions of power and the strengths in students’ non-academic identities.
  • What Does It Mean to Be a Teacher?: How Confucius and Socrates Facilitate Contemporary Classroom Discourse

    Nguyen, Quynh
    This project investigates the complex and divergent role of the teacher in the contemporary context, in which teaching becomes a profession and a teacher’s responsibilities are predetermined. By adopting a philosophical lens, I explore what it means to be a teacher by analyzing and comparing the two great teachers Confucius (Kong Fuzi or Kongzi) and Socrates. Although there has been no shortage of studies comparing and contrasting these two thinkers’ pedagogy, little research examines the similarities and differences between their approaches in a specific context of contemporary education. By facilitating discourse among Confucius, Socrates, and contemporary teachers, I outline what a teacher means according to the two thinkers and which factors might impede present-day teachers from being Confucian and Socratic teachers. I will propose an integrated approach that can help bring the values of both Confucian and Socratic teachings to contemporary classrooms.
  • Sea Turtles Living in a Fishbowl: Political Identities and the Returning Trend of Chinese International Students

    Liao, Yuchen
    While American philosopher Martha Nussbaum (2016) claimed that “most of us would not choose to live in a prosperous nation that had ceased to be democratic” (pp. 10−11), more and more Chinese international students have followed an opposite trend recently, returning from democracies to China where political freedom is deteriorating. This project conceives the heterogeneous political identities of Chinese international students as an underlying cause, rather than a directly decisive factor, to understand the increasing proportion of Chinese “sea turtles”—the homonym of “returnees” in Mandarin. I use conceptual, reflective, and argumentative methods, proposing and exploring four different political identities of Chinese international students: party-statist, neoliberal, liberal, and double-dissident. I develop a metaphor of the “fishbowl” to depict Chinese political control and argue that the fishbowl plays a more decisive role than democratic education in constructing Chinese international students’ political identities to pull many of them back to China. My purpose is to provide new insights and critical hope for democratic education, illuminate the complex situation that Chinese international students face, and challenge the China−West binary in order to promote mutual understanding.
  • Lingering in the Threshold: A Faculty Development Initiative to Support Writing Instruction

    Brook, Adriana
    While academic writing is a ubiquitous university requirement, writing is seldom explicitly taught due to structural, attitudinal, and pragmatic constraints. In this paper, I propose a means of supporting writing instruction through faculty development, drawing on threshold concept theory, the strategies that have evolved to support Writing Across the Curriculum and Writing in the Disciplines initiatives, and adult learning theory. Taken together, this scholarship suggests that both faculty development offerings and writing instruction are most successful when a balance is achieved between linear progression toward conceptual understanding and cyclical, recursive thinking, allowing learners to linger in troublesome and incomplete understanding. On this theoretical foundation, I propose a model for a writing workshop series to support faculty in writing instruction. I conclude by suggesting ways in which this model could be modified for different institutions and discuss the implications for research and practice as well as the limitations of my work.
  • The Relationship Between Chinese EFL Learners’ Reading Self-Efficacy and Use of Metacognitive Reading Strategies

    Jiang, Ying
    The promotion of self-efficacy and metacognitive strategies plays a decisive role in EFL learners’ foreign language reading performance. This study investigated the relationship between Chinese adolescent EFL learners’ current level of reading self-efficacy and their use of metacognitive reading strategies, and more specifically the differences in use of such strategies among learners with high, medium, and low self-efficacy. Findings indicated that the frequency of participants’ use of metacognitive reading strategies was high, and participants felt confident in their English reading ability. Findings also revealed that the use of metacognitive reading strategies had a significantly positive correlation with English reading self-efficacy. Results suggest that self-efficacy is an influential factor that impacts learners’ use of metacognitive reading strategies. Conclusions and implications drawn from the study emphasize the importance of Chinese EFL learners’ use of metacognitive reading strategies and the reinforcement of selfefficacy in their reading performance.
  • Exploring Ontario Universities’ Strategic Mandate Agreements’ New Performance-Based Model in Relation to SMA’s Original Differentiation Goals

    Clare, Matt
    Efforts have been underway for over a decade to define and differentiate Ontario’s postsecondary education (PSE) system by creating differentiation clusters out of the 21 universities and 24 colleges, the primary tool being strategic mandate agreements (SMAs). In 2019 through 2020, the third iterations of SMAs (SMA3) were negotiated. This research discusses SMA3’s 10 new Performance-Based Funding (PBF) metrics that will govern up to 60% of provincial transfers. SMA3 also introduces an institutionally allocated metric weighing scheme. A summary of PBF literature and Ontario’s SMA policy is followed by descriptions of each metric accompanied by relevant experience with similar PBF programs in other jurisdictions, and a discussion of each metric’s implementation. Metrics created for SMA3 are justified only by their adherence to neoliberal new public management objectives; not PBF literature. SMA3 fails to incorporate established mitigations against access bias while introducing the risk of untested and ideologically motivated metrics.

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