The Perceived Influence of Lasallian Mission Formation Programs on Participants from the District of San Francisco New Orleans

The Perceived Influence of Lasallian Mission Formation Programs on Participants from the District of San Francisco New Orleans The mission of Catholic education involves the faith formation and the integral human development of individuals (Second Vatican Council, 1965a). The Catholic Church recognizes that the realization of this two-fold mission, religious and academic, is primarily dependent upon school faculty and staff. The De La Salle Christian Brothers have made mission formation of faculty and staff one of their principal aims. Within the United States, they provide a variety of Regional and District formation programs to assist their faculty and staff advance the mission of Lasallian Catholic education. To date, limited empirical data exists concerning these formation programs. This study sought to address that limitation. This study investigated the perceptions of Lasallian Catholic school faculty and staff of the San Francisco New Orleans District (SFNO District) regarding their mission formation experiences between 2005 and 2015. The quantitative study utilized a researcher-designed online survey. One hundred sixty-six faculty and staff from 16 Lasallian Catholic secondary schools who attended the nine Lasallian mission formation programs under review were invited to participate in this research, and 73% (N=121) accepted and completed the online survey. Most participants (92%) were lay men and women. The study’s findings suggest that the Catholic Church’s call for faculty and staff to be prepared and formed both spiritually and professionally is being addressed by the SFNO District Christian Brothers. The findings also confirmed the influence of the Lasallian Regional and District mission formation programs upon the study’s participants. Data revealed that the respondents perceived the programs experienced to be “very influential” on their ability to address the Five Core Principals of Lasallian education in their schools. Also, respondents considered the programs under review to be recommendable to a colleague. Data found that 45% of the respondents attended one mission formation program while 55% attended two or more programs during the time period examined. However, less than 20% of all faculty and staff in the 16 Lasallian secondary schools had attended one of the nine mission formation programs under review during this time period. This finding suggests that Lasallian mission formation in the SFNO District is needed in the future

Jean-Baptise de La Salle and the education of teachers

No abstract available

The Frequency of Implementation of Lasallian Pedagogy in Traditional College-Preparatory High Schools Sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers in the United States

Since the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), the De La Salle Christian Brothers have re-examined the charism of their founder, St. John Baptist De La Salle, and the meaning of their founding documents in light of modern circumstances. Only recently have Lasallian scholars (Campos & Sauvage, 1981, 1999; Lauraire, 2004, 2006; Poutet, 1997; Van Grieken, 1995, 1999) been bridging the gap between the spiritual awareness of the Lasallian charism and the implications for classroom practice. This study established a baseline measurement for the frequency of implementation of Lasallian pedagogy according to the seven dimensions of Lasallian pedagogy, as defined by White (2007): student-centeredness, holistic education, constructive scaffolding, collaboration, social justice, relevancy, and discipleship. Using survey research with selected follow-up interviews, 137 academic department chairs at 21 traditional college-preparatory Lasallian high schools provided data on the frequency with which they incorporated the above-noted pedagogical dimensions in their curricular and instructional practice. These data were reported out both in relation to the dimensions of Lasallian pedagogy, as well as demographic categories established in the survey. Recommendations for both research and practice were presented based on identified strengths and growth areas derived from the research findings. The results indicated that student-centeredness, holistic education, and constructive scaffolding were incorporated into curriculum and instruction multiple times per week. Collaboration, however, was only incorporated two to four times per month. Those educators with the most experience and least experience in the classroom were more student-centered educators. Members of visual/performing arts departments and Mission Assembly (a quadrennial gathering of Lasallian educators) participants incorporated holistic education frequently, whereas members of mathematics departments incorporated holistic education less frequently. Lasallian Leadership Institute participants were more likely to collaborate than those survey respondents who did not participate in this formation program. Members of religious studies departments and those respondents who attended either a Huether Conference or a Mission Assembly incorporated social justice more frequently into their curriculum and instruction, whereas members of mathematics departments incorporated social justice less frequently. Respondents with doctoral degrees maintained high levels of relevancy in their curriculum and instruction, whereas respondents with teaching credentials maintained low levels of relevancy

Perceptions Regarding the Identity and Culture of a Lasallian Catholic Secondary School in Australia

This 2010 qualitative case study explored the perceptions of administrators and teachers regarding the Lasallian Catholic identity and culture of St. John\u27s College (a pseudonym), a secondary school located in Australia. Data collection occurred over a 10-week period primarily from the researcher\u27s interviews with three administrators and 12 teachers, and supplemented by his observations of school events and analysis of school documents. Overall, the participants in the study identified numerous characteristics of a Lasallian Catholic school, and perceived St. John\u27s College as reflecting many of them. The observed school and faculty activities and the analyzed school documents validated their perceptions. Primarily, the humanistic characteristics of Lasallian Catholic education were generally recognized by participants to be operative at St John\u27s College, and these traits included respectful and positive teacher-student relationships, a comprehensive academic program, high standards, a well-run school, social justice outreach programs, a commendable pastoral care program, and an affinity with the poor. However, the faculty made no reference to the salvific mission and its evangelical role of Lasallian Catholic education, although the administrators alluded to them. In general, the participants perceived St. John\u27s College as being more Lasallian than Catholic, as the former was viewed as more inclusive of both non-practicing Catholic faculty and non-Catholic teachers. The study concluded that there were numerous elements, emanating from internal and external sources, which prevented the Lasallian Catholic identity and culture of St. John\u27s College from being fully realized relative to the principles and practices outlined in Church documents concerning Catholic education, the writings of St. John Baptist de Salle, and contributions from experts in the field. These factors included teachers who did not have an adequate understanding of, preparation in, and appreciation for, what fully comprises the identity and culture of Lasallian Catholic education; an increase in Catholic school families and Catholic school educators who are not affiliated with the local church due to the marginalization of religion in general, and the Church in particular, in Australian society; and the increased divergence between the educational aspirations of parents and students at St. John\u27s and the mission of Lasallian Catholic education

CULTURE, MEDIA AND POWER: UNDERSTANDING COMMUNITY SERVICE THROUGH MEDIA REPRESENTATION

The study aims to examine the culture and ideological underpinnings espoused by Newsette, the official publication of De La Salle University-Dasmariñas (DLSU-D), through examination of headlines of articles pertaining to the promotion of culture of community extension service of DLSU-D. Specifically, it aims to: (1) define the ideology espoused on community service; (2) determine the linguistic concepts; (3) and examine the manipulation techniques used by the publication to its readers. Data were obtained through discourse analysis of the publication’s headlines. Analysis of this study allows an understanding of the standpoint of Newsette on community development endeavors of the University. It identifies salient points in illuminating messages which are revealing of the social and cultural representations on community services in the University. More importantly, the results provide building material for opinion and explanation of the impression, acceptance and participation of Lasallians towards community extension services

Lasallian Educational Approach (LEA)

https://ciencia.lasalle.edu.co/efl/1001/thumbnail.jp

Implicit Theories and Perceptions of Academic Changes Among Teachers in Lasallian Secondary Schools in the San Francisco New Orleans District

A central issue in education is whether teachers are preparing students to succeed and serve a rapidly changing world. In Catholic Lasallian schools, teachers are called to accomplish the Church’s ministry of education and therefore to continually renew and adapt their practices to prepare students for their contemporary society and to live out Christian values in service to others. This study focused on the fundamental beliefs and perceptions of teachers who implement academic changes in Lasallian schools. It utilized the psychological framework of implicit theories (Dweck, 2000) as its theoretical rationale. The purpose of the study was to investigate the extent to which teachers in Lasallian secondary schools in the San Francisco New Orleans (SFNO) District have entity (fixed) or incremental (malleable) theories in the domains of (a) intelligence, (b) the world, and (c) morality. The study also investigated the extent to which teachers in Lasallian secondary schools in the SFNO District have favorable perceptions about implementing academic changes in (a) curriculum, (b) instruction, and (c) assessment. Furthermore, the study investigated whether there is a correlation between the implicit theories of teachers in Lasallian secondary schools in the SFNO District and their perceptions about implementing academic changes. This study utilized survey methodology. Part I of the online survey utilized measures published by Dweck (2000) with permission. Part II utilized items developed by the researcher to measure respondents’ perceptions about academic changes in curriculum, instruction and assessment. Part III consisted of demographic questions. The survey was administered to teachers in 14 secondary schools in the SFNO District. Fifty-five percent of the population (366 respondents) completed the online survey. The study found that respondents held incremental theories of intelligence, the world, and morality, and favorable perceptions of academic changes in curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Respondents with incremental theories of the world were more likely to favor academic changes in curriculum and assessment than those with entity theories of the world. These findings were consistent with prior research on implicit theories of teachers in the intelligence domain and contributed new insights regarding the implicit theories of teachers in the world and morality domains

La Salle Magazine Fall 2014

https://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/lasalle_magazine/1236/thumbnail.jp