Deweyan tools for inquiry and the epistemological context of critical pedagogy

This article develops the notion of resistance as articulated in the literature of critical pedagogy as being both culturally sponsored and cognitively manifested. To do so, the authors draw upon John Dewey\u27s conception of tools for inquiry. Dewey provides a way to conceptualize student resistance not as a form of willful disputation, but instead as a function of socialization into cultural models of thought that actively truncate inquiry. In other words, resistance can be construed as the cognitive and emotive dimensions of the ongoing failure of institutions to provide ideas that help individuals both recognize social problems and imagine possible solutions. Focusing on Dewey\u27s epistemological framework, specifically tools for inquiry, provides a way to grasp this problem. It also affords some innovative solutions; for instance, it helps conceive of possible links between the regular curriculum and the study of specific social justice issues, a relationship that is often under-examined. The aims of critical pedagogy depend upon students developing dexterity with the conceptual tools they use to make meaning of the evidence they confront; these are background skills that the regular curriculum can be made to serve even outside social justice-focused curricula. Furthermore, the article concludes that because such inquiry involves the exploration and potential revision of students\u27 world-ordering beliefs, developing flexibility in how one thinks may be better achieved within academic subjects and topics that are not so intimately connected to students\u27 current social lives, especially where students may be directly implicated

The Nature of Hope Among Men and Women Living with HIV-AIDS

The goal of this qualitative study was to discover how individuals living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) experience hope. Still considered a life-threatening illness, the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) continues to challenge those who are affected by it. In an attempt to enhance understanding of the nature and role of hope in HIV-related illness, repeated in-depth conversational interviews were conducted over 24 months in naturalistic settings. Participants in this longitudinal study originally included 5 women and 30 men; 15 deaths have occurred since the onset of the study. Of the 28 participants who completed the study, all but 7 were diagnosed with AIDS. Many lived with a positive HIV status for 8 years or more. Ages of the participants ranged from 22 to 60 years; the average age for men and women was 34.7 years. Individuals were invited to respond to the questions, Please tell me what it has been like for you living with HIV or AIDS, and Can you tell me about some times when you have been aware of hope? Twelve themes of the experience of hope were determined through the process of phenomenological analysis of personal narratives. The following portrait of the nature of hope emerged from the discovery process: Hope is the belief in possibilities; it is believing in the possibility of living a meaningful, purposeful life; of having physical comfort; and belonging and connecting with others. Hope is the belief in the possibility of managing the illness, holding on to one\u27s independence, living a normal life with humor and love, and doing good deeds. It is the belief in the possibility of acceptance, living with HIV-AIDS, dying with some life left, and being at peace. An unexpected finding of this study was the lasting quality of hope over time, regardless of illness progression or severity of symptoms. This finding suggests that fatalistic perceptions of an HIV or AIDS diagnosis are not shared by those who live with the virus and that a context for hope should be considered an important aspect of caring for HIV-affected individuals. Thematic descriptions of the experience of hope were discussed in relation to social support, stigma and stereotypes, and Erikson\u27s stage theory of psychosocial development. A notable finding was the participants\u27 complaint of becoming old. Fatigue and pain were the physical symptoms cited most frequently by both men and women as being difficult to live with. The notion of hopeful dying was relevant to many participants. A hope model for HIV-AIDS caregivers is discussed

An Introduction to the Social Determinants of Health in Relation to the Northern Territory Indigenous Population

This report was commisioned by CoOperative Research Centre for Aboriginal and Tropical Healt

Learning wisdom through collectivity: The Women Writing Women Collective

The Women Writing Women Collective was a collegial and collaborative response to the isolation that is often experienced by women scholars as they pursue their academic careers. For 5 years, a group of women gathered on a monthly basis to share their writing. In doing so, the group members provided a sounding board for each other as they engaged with writing and scholarship through reflective, reciprocal, and responsible critique and curiosity. As a writing collective, we began to recognize and deconstruct specific institutional constraints, practices, and theoretical stances that had influenced our perspectives and experiences of what it means to be women writing in the academy. Within this process of critical reflective practice, our scholarship, our writing, and our sense of community was strengthened. Within this article, we share our experiences of women writing and learning togethe