Embodied Reimagining of Pedagogical Places/Spaces

• Published in: Educational studies (Ames) Vol. 48; no. 4; pp. 347 - 365
• Main Authors: Sinha, Shilpi, Bryzzheva, Lyudmila
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia Taylor & Francis Group 01.07.2012; Routledge; Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
• Subjects: Beliefs; Class Activities; Classroom discussion; Classroom Environment; College Students; Critical Thinking; Education Courses; Educational Philosophy; Elementary Schools; Foundations of Education; High Schools; Learner Engagement; Narratives; Pedagogy; Self Evaluation (Individuals); Simulation; Student Attitudes; Student behavior; Teaching methods; Theory Practice Relationship
• ISSN: 0013-1946; 1532-6993
• DOI: 10.1080/00131946.2011.647149

Students often find themselves disconnected from foundations courses such as Philosophy of Education, citing the abstract nature of some of the ideas studied and a perceived disconnect from practical issues. Moreover, the place/space of the university classroom itself can be seen to contribute to students' disengagement and stunting of their critical capacities. In this article, we present two intertwined narratives. In one strand, we describe our attempt to secure our students' engagement in our course, Introduction to Philosophy of Education, as well as remedy the forms of interaction that are called out of a university classroom through our employment of what we termed the pedagogical spaces project. This project is built upon the notion of a situated pedagogy and emphasizes a performative stance for students. We present a description of the pedagogical steps undertaken. Intertwined with the first narrative, we also present a mapping of how our very understanding of our project and its goals evolved. Theoretical grounding for our project occurs through theorists such as Howard Cannatella, David A. Gruenewald, John Martin, Harold Rugg, Augusto Boal, Martin Buber, and Mikhail Bakthin. Utilizing excerpts from student self-evaluations, final essays, and insights from theorists such as Megan Boler, we illustrate the ways in which students were able to holistically engage in critical and situated thought about familiar and dominant images of teaching and learning.