St.

Paul University Philippines

Tuguegarao City, Cagayan 3500

GRADUATE SCHOOL
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN TEACHING
MAJOR IN BIOLOGY

FINAL EXAMINATION IN CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

3RD TRIMESTER SY 2017-2018

Transformative Learning: Another Perspective on Adult Learning

By: Connie Malamed

In the 1980’s, Malcolm Knowles popularized certain assumptions about adult learning that have
been the basis of a model you know as andragogy. The term andragogy, which was first used in
Europe and then in America, helped professionalize the idea of adult education as a process
that was different than the one used for educating children(Merriam & Bierema, 2014).

Principles of Andragogy

If you have been involved in the world of training and adult education, then you are most likely
familiar with these six assumptions that are often stated as principles of adult education:

 Need to know why. Adults need to know the reason for learning something. This is
often thought of as the need for helping the learner understand “what’s in it for me.”
 Self-concept. Adults have a self-concept that they are self-directing human beings. They
resist or resent instances when others impose their will on them. Think of the resistance
to compliance or other training that is forced on them.
 Role of experience. Adults enter a learning situation with a wealth of experience. This
may serve as a resource to make learning meaningful.
 Readiness to learn. Adults become ready to learn when the experience will help them
deal with life situations, such as performing tasks relevant to their social role.
 Orientation to learning. Adults are life-centered or problem-centered in their desire to
learn. They are motivated when they see that learning will solve real-life situations.
 Motivation. Although adults are motivated by external rewards, the most powerful
motivators are internal pressures.

Although it seems obvious that adults are at a different point in their lifecycle than children, the
six assumptions were criticized by some as being too rigid. For example, when adults are
learning something new they may prefer being led by a teacher. And some young learners are
able to be self-directed in their learning. In a more recent book, Knowles and co-authors
clarified that adult learners are not homogeneous and any application of the model or process
should be adapted for individual differences (Knowles, Elwood & Swanson, 2015).

Transformative Learning

In the world of academia, there are many other theories that relate to adult learning. One that  I
thought would be of interest to you and that I wanted to explore in more depth
is transformative or transformational learning. It is now one of the dominant theories in the
world of adult learning even though it was introduced decades ago.

Transformative learning refers to those learning experiences that cause a shift in an individual’s

perspective. It is based on the idea that learning is “the process of making a new or revised
interpretation of the meaning of an experience” (Mezirow, 1990). This happens when adult
learners change their assumptions or expectations. What often follows is a change in their
frame of reference for interpretation and understanding.

Often transformative learning is a result of a life change, such as a parent who re-enters the
workforce after raising children, people who are newly diagnosed as HIV-positive, or adults who
became entrepreneurs after years of working in structured organizations. It can also result from
less dramatic changes, such as older adults who begin to use the Internet or a person who
becomes an activist in a meaningful social organization.

How to Foster Transformative Learning

From the perspective of those who design learning experiences, you may be wondering how
can we foster these deep and enduring transformations? In a research review, Taylor (2007)
described some factors that were shown to foster transformational learning. In addition,
Henderson (2010) outlines ways to foster transformative learning in an online environment.

 Relationships. Several studies showed that transformative learning is fostered by

establishing supportive and trusting relationships. This is the basis for dialogue and
discourse, discussed later. Building relationships requires a learning climate that is open
to differing perspectives and is non-hierarchical in nature. Online, trusting relationships
are easier to build in virtual classroom or work group situations when participants can
see each other through photos or video, when learners can hear the voice of the
moderator or instructor and when they share a common goal.

 Critical Reflection. Transformative learning often goes hand in hand with self-reflection.

This involves challenging the assumptions people rely on to understand the world. For
example, you can foster transformative learning by asking open-ended questions that
help learners relate new knowledge to their own life experiences. Probing questions
that promote critical reflection have no easy or simple answer. You can design critical
reflection into formal courses by asking participants to respond to questions through
 blogging and other internal social tools. It can also be part of thoughtful online
discussions.

 Direct and Active Experience. In his research review, Taylor (2007) found that one of
the most powerful ways to foster transformative learning is by offering direct
experiences that are meaningful to learners. In one example, doctors and nurses
studying palliative care were required to visit hospices, funeral homes and anatomy
labs. This idea can be transferred to workplace learning by initiating programs that
encourage direct experience. For example, employees who wish to develop leadership
ability could initiate a socially beneficial campaign to lead in the workplace.

 Readiness for the Transformative Experience. Another factor that encourages

transformative learning is an individual’s self-awareness and readiness for the
experience. A few studies showed that individuals who were in a transitional mindset
were likely to experience a transformation. They may have been in the midst of a
dilemma or at the limits of their ability to create meaning with their current level of
knowledge. The implication being that it is important to help learners develop the type
of self-awareness and acceptance of discomfort in order to allow a transformation to
occur.

 Discourse. In her research review, Henderson (2010) points out how discussion is
a critical aspect of transformative learning and that there are benefits to doing this
online. First, some adults are more comfortable speaking online than in person, so they
will be more engaged. Also, online discussions are flexible in mode. They may take place
asynchronously in forums, so participants have time to think through their responses or
they may take place synchronously in chat rooms. In addition, online discussions occur
naturally when small groups tackle problems and issues.

Transformation in the Workplace

Much of the research in transformational learning examines learners in an academic

environment. It’s exciting to think about transformations that can occur in a workplace
environment. The research points to the fact that this type of deeper learning involves building
social relationships and requires more than one-off courses. It requires changes in the
workplace that foster a culture of learning, support, reflection and meaningful conversation.

REFERENCES:

1. Edwards, R., Hanson, A., & Raggat. Peter. Boundaries of Adult Learning.
2. Henderson, J. An Exploration of Transformative Learning in the Online
Environment. 26th Annual Conference on Distance Learning and Teaching, 2010.
http://www.uwex.edu/disted/conference/resource_library/proceedings/28439_10.pdf
 3. Knowles, M. From andragogy to pedagogy. New York: Association. Knowles, M. 1984.
The adult learner: A neglected species. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing, 1980.
4. Knowles, M. The adult learner: A neglected species. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing, 1984.
5. Knowles, M., Holton III, Elwood, F., and Swanson, Richard, A. The Adult Learner: The
definitive classic in adult education and human resource
development. Burlington: Elsevier Science, 2015.
6. Merriam, S.B. & Bierema, L. L. Adult learning: linking theory and practice. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2014.
7. Mezirow, J. Fostering Critical Reflection in Adulthood. San Francisco: Jossey Bass, 1990.
8. Taylor, E. An update of transformative learning theory: a critical review of the empirical
research (1999-2005), International Journal of Lifelong Education, 26: 2, 173 — 191,
2007.
9. http://theelearningcoach.com/elearning_design/isd/tranformative-learning-another-
perspective-on-adult-learning/

The Transformative Learning Theory:

What eLearning Professionals Should Know
By: Christopher Pappas
August 2016

What eLearning Professionals Should Know About The Transformative Learning Theory

The Transformative Learning Theory, which was first introduced by Jack Mezirow [1], is based
on the principle that personal experience is an integral part of the learning process. It suggests
that a learner's interpretation of the experience creates meaning, which leads to a change in
the behavior, mindset, and beliefs. When transformational learning occurs, a learner may
undergo a "paradigm shift" that directly impacts future experiences. For example, they might
discover that they have a hidden talent or that a long-held assumption is inaccurate. This article
explores the core principles, dimensions and components of the Transformative Learning
Theory, as well as how to apply it in eLearning course design.

Principles Of The Transformative Learning Theory

There are 4 primary principles that eLearning professionals can use to ensure that their
eLearning courses provide a transformative eLearning experience:

1. There are two distinct forms of learning that an individual experiences:

 Instrumental
Involves task or problem-based learning. Online learners must identify the cause and effect,
as well as the relationship between the concepts.
 Communicative
Online learners communicate their wants, needs, and emotions.
2. In order for learning to occur, there must be a change in the learner's perspective. The
Transformative Learning Theory also states that a change in the meaning structures must take
place.

3. Online learners undergo a change in their meaning structure by reflecting on the eLearning
process, content, or underlying ideas.

4. The eLearning process may consist of refining or elaborating on meaning schemes,

discovering new schemes, transforming existing schemes, or modifying personal perspective.

Dimensions Of The Transformative Learning Theory

According to the Transformative Learning Theory, there are 3 dimensions involved in
"perspective transformation":

1. Psychological

Learners change their perspective or understanding of themselves. Based on the

Transformative Learning Theory, for real learning to take place individuals must be able to think
autonomously. Rather than allowing society or culture dictate what we think and feel or who
we are, we should create our own meanings and interpretations.

2. Convictional

Transformation of the belief system, such as personal values and assumptions. Instead of going
along with the status quo, learners shift their cognitions based on their personal experience.

3. Behavioral

Learners alter their lifestyle. For example, they might change some habits based on the
information they received. The learning experience transforms their behavior and influences
their actions.

Basic Components of The Transformative Learning Theory:

There are 2 essential components to the Transformative Learning Theory that must be present
in order for learning to occur:

1. Meaning Structures

According to Mezirow [1], learners assign their own meaning to information, based on their
personal cognitions. For example, two people might have completely different interpretations
of the same information. Mezirow suggests that there are three codes which form meaning
structures:

 Sociolinguistic Codes
The effect that society has on our schemes and structures. Examples of this are societal
norms, cultural expectations, and how language is used.
 Psychological Codes
Pertains to an individual's emotional and mental state. In other words, their thoughts and
feelings directly impact their meaning structures.
 Epistemic Codes
Focuses on how knowledge is obtained, its validity, and the conditions surrounding the
learning experience. If knowledge does not come from a reliable source, learners are less
likely to attach meaning to it.
2. Critical Reflection

Mezirow states that individuals must "engage in critical reflection on their experiences, which in
turn leads to a perspective transformation." Learners are only able to create meaning
structures if they have the opportunity to reflect on their learning experience. This process of
reflection allows them to become more self-aware and understand themselves on a deeper
level. As a result, they can understand the information more effectively and get more out of the
learning experience.

On the other hand, according to Mezirow "reflection involves a critique of assumptions to

determine whether the belief, often acquired through cultural assimilation in childhood,
remains functional for us as adults." Individuals must be able to challenge their current
assumptions and carefully examine their validity. In some instances, they may discover that
these cognitions are rooted in societal or cultural beliefs, rather than their own personal belief
system. By critically reflecting, they have the power to critique and alter their assumptions in
order to make meaningful change.

How to Apply The Transformative Learning Theory In eLearning

To create transformative eLearning experiences you must facilitate a change in their meaning
structures. By offering online learners new problem-solving approaches and ideas, as well as
challenging their assumptions, you are enacting a positive change in their mental schemes. The
ultimate goal is to trigger a "perspective transformation", which involves transforming an online
learner's perception of the world, themselves, or the topic. Give your online learners time to
reflect, ask thought-provoking questions, and encourage them to analyze their beliefs in order
to gauge their validity. Also, keep in mind that transformations can often occur gradually,
especially those that involve a change in perspective.

Use this article to apply the Transformative Learning Theory in your eLearning course design.
Though some strategies may involve changes that are more subtle, others may be on a grander
scale. Whatever the case may be, it's important to remember that even the smallest change can
bring your online learners closer to achieving their goals.

Creating a supportive and motivational eLearning environment is essential for transformational

learning

References

1. Mezirow, J. (1991). Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-
Bass.
 TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING AS A FACTOR OF LIFELONG LEARNING BY THE EXAMPLE OF
VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN CANADA
ABSTRACT
The characteristics of transformative learning as a factor of life-long learning have been
presented in the article. The paper offers analysis of foreign theorists and practitioners’ views
on transformative learning at Canadian universities. A special attention has been paid to the
exploration of transformative learning methods and techniques implemented during vocational
training at universities. The analysis of theoretical background evidences that the
transformative learning concept is based on the theory of person’s transformations depending
on the life experience, cognitive development and critical reflection skills. The significance of
transformative learning concepts implementation into Ukrainian educational process has been
substantiated. The main principles of transformative learning have been described (education,
science and manufacture integration, selfrealization through values and assumption
transformation, focus on dialogue and critical self-reflection). The key elements of
transformative learning have been determined, namely, disoriented dilemma, critical reflection
and rational discourse. The importance of nonformal and non-linear educational techniques
implementation has been proved.

INTRODUCTION

Nowadays we are witnessing as educational paradigm shift has affected the demands to the
modern vocational training concept as well as an increased awareness of the vital importance
of an employer’s role in the world educational process. The economic and industrial needs of
society enforce education toward technically oriented graduates who will meet up to day labor
market requirements. Educational establishments should train and graduate experts to
conform to economic interests. The development of vocational education in Canada, that is the
subject of our research, depends on the possibility to provide the vocational training for
specialists who are able to solve complicated professional tasks. Future specialists should be
better trained in their field and operate greater volume of practical experience, construct their
own conception of advantages and assessment criteria, reflect them through the personal
professional competencies and personal characteristics such as critical thinking, awareness of
modern professional trends, mastering research projects, reflection action. Global social
changes, advances in economy, politics and culture enhance underline the essence of
educational politics transformation in the frames of lifelong adult learning. It can be achieved
through improvement of qualifying requirements, educational notions standardization and
recognition of personal subject role in the society transformation. In other words, constantly
transforming society demands to provide vocational training according to transformative
learning principles. In order to develop transformative learning concepts in Ukraine, vocational
training system of Canada experience is the most interesting and meaningful for us.
Transformative learning theory is popular and successfully implemented in many countries such
as the USA, Canada, England, but in Ukraine, despite its powerful scientific potential, this theory
is little-investigated and mostly not implemented while qualification mastering in adult
education system.
AIM OF THE STUDY
With this in mind, the objective of our study is to analyze and outline pedagogical features of
transformative learning application as an integral part of adult education of Canadian
vocational training system.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND RESEARCH METHODS

A large volume of scientific literature is available on the theory of transformative learning, and
a number of studies explore the practical applications of the theory. The theoretical
background of the research comprises scientific papers of American, Canadian and Ukrainian
authors. We have reviewed the literature on transformative learning in the following areas:
theories of transformative learning (P. Cranton, 2006), (J. Mezirow, 1997), course content and
instructional activities as they relate to transformative learning (E. Taylor, 2008), and challenges
for instructors who teach transformational material (M. Belenky, E. Lange, J. Piaget). Among
Ukrainian scientists who investigated the adult learning concept are N. Bidyuk, O. Dubasenyuk,
S. Goncharenko, I. Ignatyuk, V. Kremen, L. Lukyanova, N. Nychkalo, O. Ogienko. The
transformative learning theory was first introduced by J. Mezirow, a sociologist and professor of
Columbia University. He has published a lot of works dedicated to the theory on transformative
learning. J. Mezirow explained transformative learning as a process of effecting change in a
frame of reference (Mezirow, 1997). His follower E. Taylor states that transformative learning
theory has replaced andragogy as the central educational theory (Taylor, 2008). The connection
between adult classrooms and social transformations is represented in the works of Canadian
scholars R. Hatherley and E. Lange (Hatherley, 2006). Theoretical analysis of educational
projects and scientific articles of The Transformative Learning Centre at Toronto University
proves the actual state of the question of transformative learning as one that corresponds with
the society and labor market demands. The problem of transformative pedagogy reflection
paradigm has been analyzed in the articles of O. Chigisheva (ɑɢɝɢɲɟɜɚ, 2013). In L. Gorbunova’s
researches the transformative adult learning theory is considered as the relevant approach to
education of the individual who is able to become an autonomous communicative member of
the society (Ƚɨɪɛɭɧɨɜɚ, 2013). To achieve the established objective of our research we have
applied such research methods as theoretical analysis and generalization of foreign scientific
literature sources, comparison and systematization of transformative learning implementation
experience in Canada.

RESULTS

The variety of education innovations in Canada provides opportunity to enhance the research
base of Ukrainian vocational education. In Canada transformative learning paradigm in adult
education is grounded in holistic approach to lifelong learning which promotes educational
technologies and methods optimization. The projection of content and key disciplines studying
methods for the future profession is a basic technology of lifelong learning at Canadian
universities. Since 1990 the transformative learning acquired the attention of researchers
interested in adult education. Such kind of learning implies graduate students understanding
that they have obtained a limited view of the world and they have to adjust their personal and
professional qualities to accommodate more extend vocational conceptions. Whether it is a
part of professional or personal realization, a student’s personal view of reality has been
transformed. This conscious shift facilitates the transformation of an apprentice to an
experienced expert who can not only adjust to changes in society but initiate some qualitative
changes. Transformative learning reflects a particular vision how adults learn. Adult education
connects different personal traits, namely, from the basic education to personal resources
which we develop throughout our lives. The main focus of transformative learning is adults’
abilities and personal features such as social activity, creativity and critical thinking. The way
individuals can learn depends on their basic life concepts, values, responses that make up our
life experience but the process of learning is based on person’s ability for critical thinking, self-
direction and inquisitiveness (Cranton, 2006). J. Mezirow explained the transformative learning
as a theory of comprehension and experience altering (Mezirow, 1997). The process of learning
helps understand our experiences through two dimensions that are habits of mind and points
of view which are different from our personal ones. Educators and researchers of
transformative learning consider transformation as a natural phase of the personal
development which occurs while every transition from one educational level to the other,
consequently, from school to college, from university to working career. Meaningful shifts
evolve in response to life experience, especially if it induces powerful emotional responses in
the individual. These transitions are often complex and traumatic, thus, timely attention and
assistance from educational establishments will contribute to the successful transformation.
The objective of transformative learning is to revise old assumptions and ways of interpreting
experience through critical reflection and self-reflection (Cranton, 2006). It means to empower
individuals to change their perspectives and habit of minds (understanding of what is “right” or
“wrong”). The activation of new cognitive concepts occurrence is forced by fast social shifts,
multiprofessional labor market and net interaction of national and international employers. P.
Cranton, J. Mezirow’s follower, emphasizes critical self-reflection and student responsibility as
motivators for learning objectives achievement since transformations will lead to individual and
social changes (Cranton, 2006). In her opinion, students are involved in a group action after
establishing collective goals within the group. E. Taylor supports P. Cranton’s ideas and
concludes that more attention should be paid to the practical aspects of transformative
learning in the classroom (Taylor, 2008). The teacher’s role in establishing an environment that
evolves trust and care and facilitates the development of sensitive relationships among learners
is a fundamental principle for fostering the transformative learning (Taylor, 2008). The educator
in these situations is responsible for creating an environment that is supportive and open to
self-reflection. This is within the control of an instructor to prompt the transformative
experience. An instructor has to serve a successful role model which demonstrates his/her own
willingness to quantitative transformations. But students themselves can share the
responsibility for constructing the process of transformation learning as adults possess some
experience of personal transformations. They can encourage, criticize education process
participants and initiate transformations through demonstration and self reflection of personal
mistakes. In other words, the main task of an educator is to encourage personal development
rather than professional competencies in order to assist with critical interpretation of personal
experience as a base for future transformations. Central to transformative learning is the
process of making meaning from life and professional experience, conscious altering of basic
assumptions and values whereas the process of cognitive transformations is bounded with the
life experience. Transformative learning fosters us to identify, assess and reformulate key
assumptions through critical reflection. As a consequence, individuals are able to act in
accordance with their beliefs and values but do not just rely on others opinions and
interferences. For this to be achieved it is essential to have graduates prepared to explicate
high-level critical thinking skills, to develop the capacity for multiple views and interpretations
of past life issues (Cooper, 2009). S. Cooper defines the conscious engagement in reflective
learning as the core of transformative learning. It enables students to construct critical mind
habits and refine their own life objectives. Through conscious reflection learning can become
transformative and be translated into personal empowerment and self-awareness. Professional
challenges, non-compliance with knowledge level and volume, interruption in professional
career or promotion provide a starting point for transformative processes. Individuals realize
their objectives and seek ways for their possible achievement that can complicate educational
activities. Conscious altering enhances and accelerates adult’s self-actualization process
(Hussey, 2010). Thus, one of the transformative learning target is to shift the control focus from
external environment into internal which insures adults to become aware of own capabilities,
to enrich and master professional skills. Although, J. Mezirow states that transformative
changes do not occur in the way we learn as long as the new material fits comfortably in our
existing frames of reference. So, he described three common factors of transformational
learning implementation in the classroom. These are disorienting dilemma, critical reflection
and rational discourse (Cranton, 2006). Effective transformative learning is possible under the
presence of critical reflection of experience, response, analysis and comparing. In particular, the
experience reflection involves changes in thinking structures since unconscious recognition of
regularities by means of life experience prevents education. According to transformative
learning theory the quality and effect of adult education depend on the cognitive development
level which is the distinguishing characteristic of adult learning. The cognitive dissonance,
differentiation of old demands and causes of dilemma, self-reflection of experience and fact
integration are at the heart of the transformative learning (King, 2004). Transformative learning
is an influential cause for organizational and personal development. It is a process in which a
person is not satisfied with just getting the information but undergoes the conscious
transformation under the experience influence. The main evidences of transformation are
reperception of suppositions, values and critical analysis of opinion which differ from personal
one. The background for such transformation should be formed during the university education
by means of three transformative learning components that are problem-learning to determine
cause-effect relations due to problem synthesis and analysis; communicative learning
(communication and cooperation with working practical experts); creative learning which
promotes personal needs awareness (Cooper, 2009). In order to update the process of
vocational education in the context of transformative learning, we have identified some
educational transformative trends in higher vocational education in Canada which include
scientific international group projects, mutual practical projects with enterprises and future
employers, academic programs in enterprises (apprenticeship), conducting of psychological
trainings on leadership and improvement of self-estimation; life history exploration to stimulate
critical consciousness; giving credits for previous training at the university. The focus of
transformative learning implies an adult realization of the theory and personal activity
connection. The most effective educational means are non-linear methods which facilitate the
understanding and application of new behavioral strategies in known situation (Cooper, 2009).
The most common methods are methods of empirical study: cases, relevant behavioral models
selection; creation of learning expectations; problembased learning; simulative learning; role
plays; parallel problem solving; structured dialogues in small groups; team formation tasks. The
positive results achievement is possible on the assumption of flexible schedule of non-formal
learning content which depends on students’ results and wishes but not on the course
curriculum. The objectives, tasks and results of training are not unified but determined by
students. Non-formal education does not replace the formal one. It should be an additional way
to provide modern vocational skills formation. Experimental educational techniques are
significant to facilitate transformative learning: simulating, modeling, role plays where students
can practice and obtain knowledge not only from an instructor but from group mates. To
achieve mutual support an effective learning teacher often mixes groups by age and practical
skills. It gives students an opportunity to communicate with graduates and share experience
and knowledge. Through the dialogue learning can be translated into practice of self-awareness
and personal empowerment. The content of educational material should be authentic and close
to the life reality. It is typical to combine educational methods and techniques. Canadian
universities provide flexible system of variable methods that can be changed depending on
results, progress and students’ needs. The evaluation of students’ activity is opportunely,
regular and variable.

CONCLUSIONS

We would like to conclude that transformative learning is an actively developed and

implemented educational technique at Canadian universities. Transformative learning
possesses a great potential and is based on constant social shifts which enable students to
develop their professional skills and strategies, become conscious of prior assumptions, achieve
critical reflection upon these assumptions, create effective working process and become real
leaders of XXI century. The perspective studies are aimed at detailed investigation of
transformative learning implementation at technical Canadian colleges through its main
components: dilemma, reflection and rational discourse.

REFERENCES
1. Cooper, S. (2009). J. Mezirow’s Transformation Learning. Retrieved 10.07.2015from :
http://www.lifecirclesinc.com/Learningtheories/humanist/mezirow.html
2. Cranton, P. (2006). Understanding and Promoting Transformative Learning: A Guide for
Educators of Adults. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass, 228 p.
3. Hatherley, R. (2006). J. Mezirow’s Transformative Learning Theory. Retrieved 10.07.2015from
: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformative_learning.
4. Hussey, T. (2010). Transitions in Higher Education. Innovations in Education and Teaching
International, Volume 47, Issue 2, pp. 155–164.
5. King, K. (2004). Furthering the Theoretical Discussion of the Journey of Transformation:
Foundations and Dimensions of Transformational Learning in Educational Technology. New
Horizons in Adult Education, Volume 18, pp. 4–15.
6. Mezirow, J. (1997). Transformative Learning: Theory to Practice. New Directions for Adult
and Continuing Education, Issue 74, pp. 5–12.
7. Taylor, E. (2008). Transformative Learning Theory. New Directions for Adult and Continuing
Education, Issue 5, 15 p.
8.Theory of Transformative Learning: Adult Education in the Context of “Liquid Modernity”].
9. [Philosophy of Education: Scientific Journal], No 13, pp. 66–114 (in Ukrainian) [Models of
Self-regulated Learning in Adult Education]. [Adult Education: Theory, Experience, Perspectives:
Digest of Scientific Papers], No 7, pp. 53–65 (in Ukrainian).

10.[Transition Phenomenon in Foreign Pedagogy and Educational Practice]. Retrieved

23.07.2015 from : http://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/ fenomen-tranzitivnosti-v-zarubezhnoy-
pedagogike-i-praktike-obrazovaniya.
 TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING TO PROMOTE SUSTAINABILITY:
INSERTING THE THIRD LEVEL OF LEARNING IN MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS

 Lisiane Celia Palma
 Eugênio Ávila Pedrozo

Abstract

Sustainability is a complex issue, which has required individual, organisational and

social changes. Therefore, programs related to management play an important role,
since they educate the majority of managers that lead organisations. They can therefore
prepare them to lead organisations more committed to sustainability. To this end, some
studies show that such programs need to go through a transformative learning process,
both at the individual and organisational level. Thus, this article aims to present an
expanded framework of the integrated model of organisational learning by inserting
transformative learning as a proposal for the programs related to the field of
management to increase their contributions to sustainability. It also presents a case
study of a postgraduate program at an educational institution that seeks to promote
transformative learning. The case study was developed for the application of the
framework. The main contributions of this study highlight the importance of expanding
individuals’ mental models and shared mental models in organisations that take place,
respectively, through critical reflection and the promotion of spaces where the mental
models of different stakeholders can be shared.

Background

Sustainability is a complex issue, which has required changes in individuals, organisations and
society as a whole. Therefore, the programs related to the management area have an important
role, since they educate the majority of managers that lead organisations. Consequently, they can
prepare these managers to lead organisations that are more committed to the environment and
society.

Changes have been observed in these programs for the inclusion of issues related to
sustainability (e.g.: Stubbs and Cocklin 2008; Palma et al. 2011; Demajorovic and Silva 2012).
Yet, these are still incipient and often related to maintaining the status quo, without the intention
of rebuilding or moving towards sustainable, interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary proposals.
According to Carvalho et al. (2014), there is still a lack in the construction of the most robust
educational actions, with regard to educating a new generation of managers prepared to meet the
demands of a sustainable logic.

Barin-Cruz et al. (2006) argues that in order for organisations to move toward strategies aimed at
sustainability, they must go through an evolutionary process moving from a financial-economic
to a sustainable logic. Thus, Education Institutions (EIs) in general, and management programs
specifically, need to go through a learning process to promote a transformation to sustainability.
Considering that this transformation requires a paradigm shift (Batie 2008; Sterling 2010–2011),
this process is related to transformative learning.
Transformative learning seeks to promote changes that go beyond behavioral change, posing a
challenge to existing beliefs and ideas, and promoting the reconstruction of meanings. It suggests
a more radical paradigm shift, rather than a change within the existing paradigm.

Thus, this article aims to present an expanded framework of the integrated organisational
learning model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998), in order to insert transformative learning in
programs related to management. Moreover, it presents the application of this framework in a
program related to the management area.

Therefore, it begins with a reflexion on sustainability and its different interpretations. Soon after,
it introduces a discussion of organisational learning and its relation to individual learning,
presenting Kim’s (1993, 1998) model. Then, transformative learning is introduced, followed by
the proposed framework. The method, main results and analysis, appear in “Methods” and
“Results and discussion” sections, respectively. Finally, some conclusions of the study are
highlighted.

Sustainability and its different interpretations

With the advent of the Industrial Revolution and later the so-called Fordist society, as well as the
patterns of mass production and consumption it brought, environmental problems intensified and
became increasingly more visible to the society. Since then, a series of events have occurred to
raise awareness of the environmental problems that have begun to appear worldwide (Dias 2006;
Barbieri 2007).

Of note was the establishment of the World Commission on Environment and Development by
the UN in 1983. A report entitled “Our Common Future”, also known as the “Brundtland
Report”, which was published by this commission in 1987, formalized the concept of Sustainable
Development (SD) as meeting the needs of the present without compromising future generations
from meeting their own needs. This action made the global necessity to adopt a new type of
development evident. The document was an important reference and basis for the debates that
occurred during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the Earth
Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. At this event the concept of SD became popular and
environmental and developmental issues became inextricably linked (Dias 2006).

However, the multiple interpretations of SD are confusing, and clearly sustainability has diverse
meanings for different audiences. Authors discuss this question by presenting distinct
interpretations and definitions for the subject (e.g. Gladwin et al. 1995; Leal-Filho 2000;
Hopwood et al. 2005), as well as different possible strategies to reach it (e.g. Graaf et al. 1996;
Veiga 2005). As stated by Leal-Filho (2000), it is improbable that a consensus about the meaning
of sustainable development can be reached, because its own definition is influenced by the
training, work experience, and political scenarios experienced by each person.

Over the years, even the pillars of sustainability (economic, social, and environmental) have been
complemented and expanded. Steurer et al. (2005) developed a framework of reference for SD,
“a kind of inventory which pinpoints what SD actually means on the microeconomic level”
(Steurer et al. 2005, p. 269). They expand the triple bottom line by proposing a fourth dimension
which comprises some issues that are of a general conceptual character, or are relevant for all
three dimensions (economic, social and environmental) such as transparency and participation,
reflectivity, integration and intergenerational equity/foresight.

In order to help make sense of the multiple interpretations of SD, Hopwood et al.
(2005) suggest a mapping methodology based on the combination of environmental
and socio-economic issues on two separate axes (Fig. 1). The socioeconomic axis covers
the level of importance given to human well-being and equality. The environmental axis
covers the environmental priority from technocentric to ecocentric. The shaded central
area of the map indicates the range of opinions in the debate on the SD, combining
socioeconomic and environmental issues. There are some points of view out of this
area, concerned with only environmental or socio-economic issues.

Superimposed in Fig. 1 are three broad views about the nature of the necessary policy changes in
society, in economic structures and relationships between man and the environment to achieve
SD: (1) that can be achieved within the present structures—status quo; (2) that a fundamental
reform is necessary, but without a complete rupture with the existing arrangements—reform; and
(3) that, as the roots of the problems are their own economic structures and the power of society,
a radical transformation is needed—transformation (Hopwood et al. 2005).

Thus, it is possible to state that sustainability beyond the status quo demands a transformation.
However, the prevailing logic in programs for managers is based on the Neoclassical approach
and Homo Economics. In this sense, sustainability, when addressed, is often analyzed only under
one view—the mainstream.
However, if such programs are intended to contribute to sustainability by empowering managers
to be agents of change, they must change. In fact, they must undergo a learning process, which is
discussed below.

Organisational learning process

Since 1960, several authors have explored the subject of organisational learning (e.g.:
Argyris 1964; March and Olsen 1975; Senge; 1990; Argyris and Shon 1996). However the
literature in this field remains fragmented, consisting of many different definitions and concepts.
As highlighted by Prange (2001, p. 42), “the multiplicity of ways in which organisational
learning has been classified and used, has the sense of a ‘jungle of organisational learning’,
which is becoming increasingly dense and impenetrable.”

According to Prange (2001), it remains unclear whether we are talking about individual learning
in organisations, organisational learning equivalent to individual learning, or some kind of
emerging or collective learning. Similarly, Kim (1993, 1998) emphasizes that

if a distinction between organisation and individual in not made explicit, a model of

organisational learning will either obscure the actual learning process by ignoring the
role of the individual (and anthropomorphizing organisations) or become a simplistic
extension of individual learning by glossing over organisational complexities (Kim 1993,
p. 9).

Thus, the model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998) proves to be quite relevant to understand the
process of organisational learning. The author builds a theory about the process through which
individual learning advances organisational learning and presents a framework that focuses on
the crucial link between these types of learning (Fig. 2). The author entitles this model OADI–
SMM: observe, assess, design, implement—shared mental models.
Kim (1993, p. 2) initially posits that learning encompasses “what people learn (know-how) and
how they understand and apply this learning (know-why).” Learning, therefore, can be said to
“increase one’s capacity to take effective action” (Kim 1993, p. 3).

He uses the learning cycle (observe, assess, design, implement—OADI) as the basis of his
individual learning model. This model is shown in the upper part of Fig. 2, which refers to
individual learning. According to the author,

In the OADI cycle, people experience concrete events and actively observe what is
happening. They access (consciously or unconsciously) their experiences by reflecting on
their observations and then design or construct an abstract concept that seems to be an
appropriate response to the assessment. They test the design by implementing it in the
concrete world, which leads to a new concrete experience, commencing another cycle
(Kim 1993, p. 3).
The author adds memory to the model, which has a key role in linking the organisational and
individual learning. He stresses that it is important to distinguish between learning and
memory. Learning has more to do with acquisition, while memory is related to the retention of
whatever is acquired. To understand the role of memory in the learning process, it is important
to understand the concept of a mental model, which “differs from the traditional notion of
memory as static storage because mental models play an active role in what an individual sees
and does” (Kim 1993, p. 4).

Mental models represent a person’s view of the world, including explicit and implicit
understandings. Mental models provide the context in which to view and interpret the
 new material, and they determine how stored information is relevant to a given situation.
(…) Mental models not only help us to make sense of the world we see, they can also
restrict our understanding to that which makes sense within the mental model (Kim 1993,
p. 4).
The two levels of learning previously presented—operational and conceptual—can be related to
the two parts of the mental model. Operational learning represents learning at the procedural
level, when one learns the steps to complete a specific task. It can be understood as routines. Not
only does operational learning accumulate and change routines, but routines also affect the
operational learning process. On the other hand, conceptual learning is related to the reasoning
about why things are done in the first place. It sometimes challenges even the nature or the
existence of existing conditions, procedure or concepts and leads to new frameworks in the
mental model. This, in turn, can create opportunities for discontinuous steps for improvement by
reframing a problem in a radically different way (Kim 1993, 1998).

Kim (1993, 1998) highlights that organisational learning, in turn, is more complex and dynamic
than mere amplification of individual learning. Similar to individual learning, organisational
learning is defined as an increase of the organisation’s ability to act effectively. In the model, the
individual learning loop is a process by which beliefs change and these changes are then encoded
into individual mental models. The individual learning cycle affects learning at the
organisational level due to its influence on the shared mental models of the organisation. An
organisation can only learn through its members, but that does not depend on any specific
member, as shown in Fig. 2, where multiple boxes represent individual learning.

According to Kim (1993, p. 11), the memory parts of the organisation that are relevant for
organisational learning are those that constitute the active memory. In other words, “those that
define what an organisation pays attention to, how it choose to act, and what it chooses to
remember from its experiences—that are individual and shared mental models.” Therefore,
“organisational learning is dependent on individuals improving their mental models; making
those mental models explicit is crucial to developing new shared mental models.”

Like to individual learning, in organisational learning there is the weltanschauung beyond the

routines. The weltanschauung of the organisation “determines how it interprets environmental
responses, whether it will act on them, and what specific meaning it will employ if it chooses to
act” (Kim 1993, p. 9). Individual frameworks become embedded in weltanschauung or the
organisation’s worldview. The vision of the organisation in relation to the world evolves slowly
to encompass the current thinking of the individuals within it. Similarly, individual routines that
have proven to be robust over time become a standard operating procedure. The strength of the
link between individual mental models and shared mental models is a function of the amount of
influence exerted by a particular individual or group of individuals

The model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998) also incorporates single-loop and double-loop
learning at the individual and organisational levels, as presented by Argyris and Shon (1996).
Double-loop learning involves surfacing and challenging deep-rooted assumptions and norms of
an organisation that have previously been inaccessible, either because they were unknown or
known but not able to be discussed.
Individual double-loop learning (IDLL) is shown in Fig. 2 as the process by which each
individual’s learning affects individual mental models, which in turn affect future learning.
Organisational double-loop learning (ODLL) occurs when individual mental models become
incorporated into the organisation through shared mental models, which can then affect
organisational action. In both cases, double-loop learning provides an opportunity for improving
discontinuous steps where reshaping a problem can bring radically different potential solutions.
The distinction between conceptual and operational learning and between weltanschauung and
organisational routines are also integrated throughout the different stages. There is a box around
the diagram to emphasize that the entire model is required to represent organisational learning.

Having explored the process of organisational learning and its relation to individual learning, the
theory of transformative learning is introduced in the next section. This brings contributions to
the model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998), which will be addressed in “Expanding the individual
and organisational learning framework to include third order learning” section.

Transformative learning

Several authors suggest transformative learning as an alternative (e.g.: Sterling 2010–2011;

Thomas 2009; Sipos et al. 2008; Moore 2005) when dealing with learning and sustainability.
According to Sterling (2010–2011), in the current context, where there is a call for a re-
examination of assumptions and values, critical thinking, and new creativity, the concept of
transformative learning is surfacing.

However, in the evolution of transformative learning theory it was not initially linked to the great
challenges of social change and sustainability. In fact, it emerged from the work of adult
education by Mezirow (1978). It essentially refers to a qualitative change in the perception and
construction of meaning by students in a specific learning experience in which the student asks
or redrafts their assumptions or habits of thought.

According to Mezirow (1997), transformative learning

is the process of effecting change in a frame of reference. Adults have acquired a

coherent body of experience (…) frames of reference that define their life world. Frames
of reference are the structures of assumptions through which we understand our
experiences. They selectively shape and delimit expectations, perceptions, cognition and
feelings. They define our “line of action” (Mezirow 1997, p. 5).
Sterling (2010–2011) goes further and relates transformative learning to sustainability. In doing
so, he introduces the idea of “levels of knowledge” to highlight that learning may involve and
affect different levels of consciousness. Thus, we can learn at different levels of knowledge and
meaning. Transformative learning is usually understood as learning that touches our deepest
levels of knowledge and meaning, and, in doing so, then influences our most immediate and
concrete levels of knowledge, perception and action.

Such learning is referred to by Bateson (1972) as third level learning. This author distinguished
three kinds of learning and change (in addition to “zero learning”), which correspond to the
increased learning capacity. These levels have been adopted by various learning and change
theoretical scholars, particularly in the systemic learning domain and organisational change, such
as Argyris and Shon (1996)—single, double and triple loop learning.

The three learning levels are summarised and represented in Table 1, with the arrow which
represents a shift to the higher-order of learning. Sterling (2010–2011, p. 24) points out that,
according to Bateson’s and other theories derived from his model, learning levels are seen as
nested systems with a superior learning order which affects the lower levels. “Thus, second
order or meta-learning experience changes thinking and actions in the first order domain,
whilst epistemic learning causes changes in the second and first order domains.”

Kim (1993, p. 2) initially posits that learning encompasses “what people learn (know-how) and
how they understand and apply this learning (know-why).” Learning, therefore, can be said to
“increase one’s capacity to take effective action” (Kim 1993, p. 3).

He uses the learning cycle (observe, assess, design, implement—OADI) as the basis of his
individual learning model. This model is shown in the upper part of Fig. 2, which refers to
individual learning. According to the author,

In the OADI cycle, people experience concrete events and actively observe what is
happening. They access (consciously or unconsciously) their experiences by reflecting on
their observations and then design or construct an abstract concept that seems to be an
appropriate response to the assessment. They test the design by implementing it in the
concrete world, which leads to a new concrete experience, commencing another cycle
(Kim 1993, p. 3).
The author adds memory to the model, which has a key role in linking the organisational and
individual learning. He stresses that it is important to distinguish between learning and
memory. Learning has more to do with acquisition, while memory is related to the retention of
whatever is acquired. To understand the role of memory in the learning process, it is important
to understand the concept of a mental model, which “differs from the traditional notion of
memory as static storage because mental models play an active role in what an individual sees
and does” (Kim 1993, p. 4).

Mental models represent a person’s view of the world, including explicit and implicit
understandings. Mental models provide the context in which to view and interpret the
new material, and they determine how stored information is relevant to a given situation.
(…) Mental models not only help us to make sense of the world we see, they can also
restrict our understanding to that which makes sense within the mental model (Kim 1993,
p. 4).
The two levels of learning previously presented—operational and conceptual—can be related to
the two parts of the mental model. Operational learning represents learning at the procedural
level, when one learns the steps to complete a specific task. It can be understood as routines. Not
only does operational learning accumulate and change routines, but routines also affect the
operational learning process. On the other hand, conceptual learning is related to the reasoning
about why things are done in the first place. It sometimes challenges even the nature or the
existence of existing conditions, procedure or concepts and leads to new frameworks in the
mental model. This, in turn, can create opportunities for discontinuous steps for improvement by
reframing a problem in a radically different way (Kim 1993, 1998).

Kim (1993, 1998) highlights that organisational learning, in turn, is more complex and dynamic
than mere amplification of individual learning. Similar to individual learning, organisational
learning is defined as an increase of the organisation’s ability to act effectively. In the model, the
individual learning loop is a process by which beliefs change and these changes are then encoded
into individual mental models. The individual learning cycle affects learning at the
organisational level due to its influence on the shared mental models of the organisation. An
organisation can only learn through its members, but that does not depend on any specific
member, as shown in Fig. 2, where multiple boxes represent individual learning.

According to Kim (1993, p. 11), the memory parts of the organisation that are relevant for
organisational learning are those that constitute the active memory. In other words, “those that
define what an organisation pays attention to, how it choose to act, and what it chooses to
remember from its experiences—that are individual and shared mental models.” Therefore,
“organisational learning is dependent on individuals improving their mental models; making
those mental models explicit is crucial to developing new shared mental models.”

Like to individual learning, in organisational learning there is the weltanschauung beyond the

routines. The weltanschauung of the organisation “determines how it interprets environmental
responses, whether it will act on them, and what specific meaning it will employ if it chooses to
act” (Kim 1993, p. 9). Individual frameworks become embedded in weltanschauung or the
organisation’s worldview. The vision of the organisation in relation to the world evolves slowly
to encompass the current thinking of the individuals within it. Similarly, individual routines that
have proven to be robust over time become a standard operating procedure. The strength of the
link between individual mental models and shared mental models is a function of the amount of
influence exerted by a particular individual or group of individuals

The model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998) also incorporates single-loop and double-loop
learning at the individual and organisational levels, as presented by Argyris and Shon (1996).
Double-loop learning involves surfacing and challenging deep-rooted assumptions and norms of
an organisation that have previously been inaccessible, either because they were unknown or
known but not able to be discussed.

Individual double-loop learning (IDLL) is shown in Fig. 2 as the process by which each
individual’s learning affects individual mental models, which in turn affect future learning.
Organisational double-loop learning (ODLL) occurs when individual mental models become
incorporated into the organisation through shared mental models, which can then affect
organisational action. In both cases, double-loop learning provides an opportunity for improving
discontinuous steps where reshaping a problem can bring radically different potential solutions.
The distinction between conceptual and operational learning and between weltanschauung and
organisational routines are also integrated throughout the different stages. There is a box around
the diagram to emphasize that the entire model is required to represent organisational learning.
Having explored the process of organisational learning and its relation to individual learning, the
theory of transformative learning is introduced in the next section. This brings contributions to
the model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998), which will be addressed in “Expanding the individual
and organisational learning framework to include third order learning” section.

Transformative learning

Several authors suggest transformative learning as an alternative (e.g.: Sterling 2010–2011;

Thomas 2009; Sipos et al. 2008; Moore 2005) when dealing with learning and sustainability.
According to Sterling (2010–2011), in the current context, where there is a call for a re-
examination of assumptions and values, critical thinking, and new creativity, the concept of
transformative learning is surfacing.

However, in the evolution of transformative learning theory it was not initially linked to the great
challenges of social change and sustainability. In fact, it emerged from the work of adult
education by Mezirow (1978). It essentially refers to a qualitative change in the perception and
construction of meaning by students in a specific learning experience in which the student asks
or redrafts their assumptions or habits of thought.

According to Mezirow (1997), transformative learning

is the process of effecting change in a frame of reference. Adults have acquired a

coherent body of experience (…) frames of reference that define their life world. Frames
of reference are the structures of assumptions through which we understand our
experiences. They selectively shape and delimit expectations, perceptions, cognition and
feelings. They define our “line of action” (Mezirow 1997, p. 5).
Sterling (2010–2011) goes further and relates transformative learning to sustainability. In doing
so, he introduces the idea of “levels of knowledge” to highlight that learning may involve and
affect different levels of consciousness. Thus, we can learn at different levels of knowledge and
meaning. Transformative learning is usually understood as learning that touches our deepest
levels of knowledge and meaning, and, in doing so, then influences our most immediate and
concrete levels of knowledge, perception and action.

Such learning is referred to by Bateson (1972) as third level learning. This author distinguished
three kinds of learning and change (in addition to “zero learning”), which correspond to the
increased learning capacity. These levels have been adopted by various learning and change
theoretical scholars, particularly in the systemic learning domain and organisational change, such
as Argyris and Shon (1996)—single, double and triple loop learning.
The three learning levels are summarised and represented in Table 1, with the arrow which
represents a shift to the higher-order of learning. Sterling (2010–2011, p. 24) points out that,
according to Bateson’s and other theories derived from his model, learning levels are seen as
nested systems with a superior learning order which affects the lower levels. “Thus, second
order or meta-learning experience changes thinking and actions in the first order domain,

whilst epistemic learning causes changes in the second and first order domains.”

Similarly, this expansion is shown in Organisational Learning (the orange rectangle in Fig. 3).
However, it is important to note that the mere expansion of individual mental models does not
guarantee that the same action will happen in the organisation. In addition, this expansion occurs
in different ways for different individuals in the organisation. Some members’ mental models are
magnified and others remain unchanged. Thus, the organisation needs to promote spaces where
mental models of all internal members are shared. Moreover, spaces need to be opened for
different stakeholders, enabling the expansion of shared mental models. Thus, their interests will
also be considered in decision-making, influencing in the actions of the organisation.

One way of achieving this is through the dialogic process and pluralism (e.g.: Waddell 2007;
Floyd and Zubevich 2010; Wals and Schwarzin 2012). Wals and Schwarzin (2012) suggest that
dialogic interaction is a key element for achieving a transition towards sustainability in people,
organisations and society as a whole. They argue that dialogue or dialogic interaction is a
concept that has been quite central in the fields of social and transformative learning for quite
some time and it is central to increasing a new generation of members of society who act as
stewards of the earth and its communities.

Regarding pluralism, Floyd and Zubevich (2010, p. 67) suggest that, “the more perspectives on
an issue we can integrate, the better and more holistic our solution will be.” However, they call
attention to the fact that, “this is not simply a matter of giving every perspective equal voice.
Rather, it is about critically reflecting on the relative merits (and shortcomings) of each
perspective, and drawing out the partial truths of each”. Thus, the dialogical process and
pluralism also appear to be of fundamental importance in the proposal of this study.

Another addition made to the model refers to the understanding of how the learning process
occurs. Transformative learning works with the notion of building knowledge, rather than
transference as proposed by Kim (1993, 1998) in his model. In this sense, to represent such a
construction that occurs in the transition to the third level of learning, the idea of a spiral was
used instead of arrows. This was done in an effort to represent the construction or even the
emergence of a new shared mental model, being that this model is more comprehensive and has
transformative power.

Methods

In order to apply the proposed new framework, a case study was developed in the Economics for
Transition program in an educational institution (called College Z here to preserve its identity)
whose proposal is to promote “transformative learning for sustainable living”. This case was
chosen because the study aims to identify if, in fact, the proposed elements in the expansion of
the model proposed by Kim (1993, 1998) for the inclusion of the third level of learning were
occurring in a program related to the management field of an institution which promotes the
transformative learning.

The triangulation technique was used to collect data, using three sources of evidence: deep
interviews, documentation and observation. Eight deep interviews were conducted with
coordinators and professors of the program (both those internal to the College Z and those
working for partner organisations), in February and March of 2014. All interviews were
recorded and transcribed. Additionally, 12 relevant documents for research were surveyed. A
third source of evidence was direct observation, during the visits made to the College Z in
February and March of 2014. On-site observations, along with interviews and analysis of
documents, made it possible to triangulate the data. Tables 2 and 3 show the subjects
interviewed and documents analysed, respectively.

Table 2

Performed interviews
 Interview Interviewed
number

1 Dean of College Z

2 Professor at the College Z and co-responsible for the development of the Economics for
Transition Program. It is also the manager of Worldwide College Z

3 Professor of the College Z and Coordinator of the Economics for Transition Program

4 Professor at the Business School of the University Y and Professor of the Economics for
Transition Program

5 Co-founder of OPA and professor of the Economics for Transition Program

6 Director of Finance and Business of OPB and professor of the Economics for Transition
Program

7 Professor of the University Y; Former student of the College Z and professor of the
Economics for Transition Program

8 Volunteer at the College Z

Source: The authors

Table 3

Analyzed documents
Number of the Description
document

1 Program Specification of the Economics for Transition Program

2 Program Approval document

3 Student Handbook

4 Institutional Website of College Z

5 Institutional Website of University Y

6 Quality Manual of College Z

7 Institutional website of Organization Partner A (OPA)

8 The Happy Planet Index: 2012 report—a global index of sustainable well-being
—of OPA
 Number of the Description
document

9 Institutional website of Organization Partner B (OPB)

10 Strategic planning 2014/2017 of OPB

11 Who we are and what we do—of OPA

12 Institutional Video of OPA

Source: The authors

For data analysis, content analysis was used. In the next section, the main results are discussed.

Results and discussion

Initially, before discussing the main results and analysis, it is important to highlight some
particularities of the educational institution studied and the program where the study was
conducted. Then an analysis of individual and organisational learning process is presented.

College Z

College Z was founded in 1991. It is located in a town with 7500 inhabitants, in Devon County,
in southwest England. Its campus is located in a beautiful estate, surrounded by nature. Despite
being a small college, it has excelled and is recognised worldwide due to its focus on
environmental issues and differentiated teaching methods. It receives students from around the
world. Currently, the institution offers programs from Short Term to Vocational Programs and
Postgraduate studies.

The institutional values of College Z are (document 4):

 Community—living, working and learning together;

 Respect for all living systems—an ecological worldview
 Healthy body—healthy mind
Such values guide activities in the institution. Thus, all the programs are in groups of a maximum
of 20 participants, focused on the interaction between students, professors and facilitators of the
program. Various teaching methods are employed to ensure both, groups and individuals,
learning opportunities and “a real sense of co-creation and belonging” (document 4).

The key elements of College Z’s holistic educational approach can be summarised (documents
1, 3, 5 and 6):

 Community living and working within the residential setting of Z College;

 Acknowledging and developing the whole person—intellectual, emotional, ethical and
practical;
  Valuing transdisciplinary approaches and different ways of knowing (analytical, sensory
perception, feelings and emotions, and intuitive);
 Emphasis on embodiment and practical action in participants own lives;
 Engaging with a range of teaching and learning methods from lectures and seminars to
participatory and experiential learning methods as well as reflective inquiry;
 Developing a blended learning approach, which complements Z College’s approach to
transformational learning through living and working together, with online learning and
networking;
 Attracting participants, teachers and practitioners from all over the world.
The organisation now has a small team of about 20 people, among staff and professors, many of
them working on a part-time basis, as well as visiting professors, collaborators and facilitators.
Some of the staff and the professors live on campus (document 4).

Additionally, it is important to note that during the courses, most students live on campus and are
involved in daily activities. The proposal that students live in community, participating in the
daily activities and providing services to each other is essential in the College Z’s teaching–
learning process. As stated by one of the program professors, “living in community is, at least
fifty percent, or even one hundred percent of the learning here” (Interviewee 2).

The economics for transition program

The postgraduate program in “Economics for Transition” is about “creating an economic system
fit for the ecological, social, economic and ethical challenges of the 21st century as we make the
great transition to low carbon, high well-being and resilient economies” (document 1).

The program was created for the purpose of being an alternative proposal to the mainstream.
Thus, since its creation it has had a different view of economics and its relationship to society
and the environment.

The main objectives of the program include (documents 1 and 5):

 To develop students’ knowledge and reflective understanding of transition pathways to

low carbon, high well-being and resilient economies;
 To acknowledge and develop the whole person as a participant in co-creating these
transition pathways;
To develop and enhance the individual’s cognitive/intellectual skills; key transferable skills; and
practical skills for sustainable living, working and ecological citizenship.

The challenges facing society that the program will address include (document 1):

 the triple crunch of climate change, financial crises and peak oil;
 the crises in ecosystem health and social well-being across the globe;
 the inter-connected nature of these crises and how they are systemically linked with the
global economic model;
 the significant opportunities for transformational and sustainable change that these
multiple crises provide.
The Program Specification highlights the distinctive features of the program. The most important
are: new paradigm thinking and practice, unique holistic educational model, collaborative
approach, and flexible learning (document 1).

The new paradigm refers to a “radical economic model (…) that has inspired a whole generation
of thinkers and practitioners in new approaches to economics to address the inter-related
sustainability challenges of our times” (document 1). The program is also “inspired by the well-
established and successful MSc in Holistic Science by offering new paradigm thinking and
practice in economics based on contemporary scientific understanding of systems ecology and
complexity theory applied to the socio-economic domain” (document 1).

It is important to emphasize that the postgraduate degree in Economics for Transition was
developed in partnership with three other organisations:

 University Y: Is also located in southwest England. It is the main institution which

provides thee postgraduate diploma for College Z’s programs and also provides
professors. With over 26,900 students, it is the 15th largest university in the UK in total
number of students. It also has nearly 2900 employees making it one of the largest
employers in the southwest of England (HESA 2014).
 The Organisation Partner A (OPA): Seeks to inspire, encourage, connect, support and
train communities as they self-organise around the transition model, creating initiatives
that rebuild resilience and reduce CO2 emissions. It works by creating a healthy human
culture that meets the human needs of a community, means of subsistence and fun
(document 9).
 Organisation Partner B (OPB): Is a think tank in the United Kingdom, which seeks to
promote social, economic and environmental justice. It aims to “produce a great
transition—to transform the economy so that it works for people and the planet.” Its
mission is to “relaunch the change to a new economy through big ideas and a new vision”
(document 7).
Third order individual and organisational learning

With regard to the Individual and Organisational Learning Framework for the inclusion of the
proposed third order learning (Fig. 3), the main results are described below. At the individual
level, it was observed from the case study that individuals who are now part of College Z went
through a magnifying process of their reference frames.

Results show that most of the directors/coordinators and professors that are now part of the
organisation went through a learning process to the third level before becoming employees of the
College Z. Therefore, given the difficulty of changing the deep organisational structure and in
view of the incompatibility of how these individuals came to understand the issue of
sustainability and how this issue is addressed by the programs related to the field of management
in general—that are mainstream—they looked for an organisation that was more compatible with
their beliefs. Thus, by passing through the transformative learning process, these individuals
migrated to an organisation whose values, since its formation, are related to the transformation to
sustainability—College Z.
Most of these individuals studied at traditional schools within the mainstream, where they had
their first experiences in the market. However, over the years based on their experiences and
studies, they changed their view about the world—expanding their vision in relation to
individuals, organisations and sustainability. The words of two professors of the program
highlight this process:

My background is actually in mainstream economics and I’ve worked all my life in

economics and spent some time in international development where I had kind of the
insight, or realisation that the economic development we were pursuing was not creating
desirable solutions, and that, in fact, that was a huge wealth in many of the countries that
I worked, which wasn’t recognised, which was the kind of the health and wealth of
community and the connection to place and the spirit of the people, so I thought we had
to look at transforming our economic model here, back in the west. So, I’ve worked in
different forms (Interviewee 2).
Well, I became aware and concerned about environmental issues fifteen years ago (…) I
was working in a bank that the current financial economic system, if you like, is clearly
incompatible with environmental protection or, you know, preventing environmental
harm and, so I became interested in it. And I did it for the Master’s degree in the
balances of economics on the environmental policy in the economics (…) So I just, you
know, got more interested in it (Interviewee 6).
For a few individuals, part of this process occurred within College Z, such as the co-creator of
the program. But for the majority, this change took place due to their experiences in other
organisations, including traditional universities, such as the director of College Z. Being on the
third level of learning, they migrated to an organisation with College Z’s characteristics so they
could develop their work. Thus, it was observed from the data collected that there was in fact an
extension of frameworks of individuals who are now part of the College Z.

With regard to the organisational level, the results show that there are promoting spaces in which
the mental models of all the internal members are shared, along with different stakeholders,
allowing for the amplification of shared mental models. It is important to remember that the
Economics for Transition program as already noted, was developed in partnership with
stakeholders (University Y, OPA and OPB).

One of the interviewee’s comments on the creation process reflect this:

Some colleagues at [Z College] had the idea, the time was right to develop a Master’s
degree, in what we might loosely call a sort of an alternative to mainstream (…) And so,
what they did, was they thought about, they knew the university would have to be
involved because they didn’t have degree ordering power, so the university will need it,
because we could order degree. So they approached us, they also approached the [OPB]
in London (…) they’re basically a NGO who’s interested in alternatives to mainstream
economics. (…) And then the [OPA]. (…) Z College then basically invited us to a
workshop and we basically engaged in a brainstorming exercise, thinking about what we
wanted to achieve, how we could achieve it, what the loose terms for the course content
would be (Interviewee 4).
In addition to participating in the program creation process, these partners have also worked in
the teaching–learning process, contributing in different ways. As previously mentioned,
professors from University Y mainly contribute to academic knowledge, providing support in
relation to research methodology and supervision of dissertations. Professionals from the other
two organisation partners (OPA and OPB) help primarily with practical knowledge, bringing
examples and experience in transition projects and in relation to the new economy,
respectively. The following excerpts illustrate this:

[Y University] leads on and provides support and supervision for the dissertation that
forms part of the Economics for Transition Master’s programme. This includes guidance
on choosing and planning your dissertation; workshops on research methods related to
the dissertation; and identifying suitable supervisors from the [Y] Graduate School of
Management and other departments at the University, as appropriate (document 4).
Pioneers from [OPA] regularly visit the College and have taught in short courses and the
postgraduate programmes. As the Transition movement has spread throughout the UK,
Europe and far beyond, the OPA has emerged as a growing social movement supporting
communities worldwide to develop and implement action plans towards becoming low
carbon and resilient communities, organisations and businesses (document 4).
[OPB] combines rigorous analysis and policy debate with practical solutions on the
ground towards increased wellbeing and environmental sustainability. It works with all
sections of society in the UK and internationally to create more understanding of the new
economics and to develop strategies for desirable change. (…) Core staff and fellows of
[OPB] have been involved with co-designing the programme and will provide a number
of the key teachers (document 4).
Another important aspect observed in the study was that the College was designed to be a
learning community. Thus, all members participating in the college are involved in this learning
community and have a responsibility in relation to their learning experience and that of others.
According to College Z’s Quality Manual, “the boundaries of this experience are not restricted to
the subject matter of their particular focus of study and extend to a shared responsibility for the
learning and living environment”. It adds that, for this, College Z strives to “provide different
spaces, styles and opportunities for learning. This diversity extends to creating different ways of
interacting with other community members and in being of service to the community, the planet
and ourselves” (document 6).

The Quality Manual clearly states that the learning community is central to College Z:

The practice of a learning community remains at the heart of the learning experience at
[Z College]. This commitment to community has a number of manifestations. These
include, but are not limited to, the acknowledgement that everyone at the College be they
students on any programme or course, volunteers, staff (either faculty or non-faculty),
visiting teachers or facilitators, all have a significant contribution to make to their own
and one another’s learning experience (document 6).
This is one of the distinct aspects of College Z. A professor from University Y highlights this
difference, arguing that it provides a unique and complete experience for the students: “The other
important thing is (…) that the students reside there, they share the cooking, the cleaning, that’s
kind of thing, so it is very much a whole experience” (Interviewee 4). He adds that “this is a
major feature of the College Z programs”, highlighting the fact that, without it, “they could not
reach the same things that they reach up there” (Interviewee 4).

In this sense, the involvement of different actors is part of College Z’s strategy and teaching–
learning process. As stated in some documents, it “attracts participants, teachers and practitioners
from all over the world and this international flavour has always been an important element of
the [Z College] experience” (documents 1 and 3).

The diversity of actors and perspectives is highlighted in various documents and excerpts from
interviews, as illustrated in the following example:

[Z College] attracts people from all walks of life from across the globe—from business
leaders and entrepreneurs to policy makers and social and environmental activists. (…)
It provides a unique opportunity to study with leading thinkers and academics, activists
and practitioners in the new economy from a range of different perspectives (document
1).
The main actors involved in the College Z’s learning community are: students from different
programs (both short programs as other postgraduate programs developed at College Z);
employees; internal and external professors (visiting faculty); volunteers; alumni and a network
of partners (local and international).

Conclusions

This article aimed to present a proposal to expand the integrated model of organisational learning
proposed by Kim (1993, 1998), for the insertion of transformative learning in programs related to
management. It also sought to present the results of a case study for the application of this
framework in a program related to the management area.

Thus, a new framework was proposed expanding the integrated model of organisational learning
for the insertion of transformative learning. The main contributions of the model are to highlight
of the need to expand individual frameworks, which happens through critical reflection, in order
to achieve transformative learning. Similarly, at the organisational level, the expansion of shared
mental models and organisational learning of third level needs to promote spaces where mental
models of all internal members are shared and open spaces for participation of different
stakeholders. Dialogical process and pluralism help this process and were identified in the case
study.

These aspects were observed in the case study, showing that it is possible to promote
transformative learning in programs related to the management area. However, in order to do so,
there must be both the willingness and openness of the people and the organisation, so they can
go through a transformative learning process. Therefore, if business schools aim to promote
transformation, they must become organisations that foster learning beyond the first level,
making room for the paradigm shift and the emergence of new ways for society. For this, as
learning organisations, they need to go through a process of third order learning (epistemic
learning), changing themselves, to promote individual transformative learning, profound changes
in other organisations and to be agents of change in society.

References

1. Argyris C (1964) Integrating the individual and the organization. Wiley, New
York]
2. Argyris C, Shon D (1996) Organizational learning II: theory, method and practice.
Addison-Wesley, Reading]
3. Barbieri JC (2007) Gestão ambiental empresarial: conceitos, modelos e
instrumentos. Saraiva, São Paulo]
4. Barin-Cruz L, Pedrozo E, Estivalete VFB (2006) Towards sustainable
development strategies: a complex view following the contribution of Edgar
Morin. Manag Decis 44(7):871–891
5. Bateson G (1972) Steps to an ecology of mind. Chandler, San Francisco]
6. Batie S (2008) Wicked problems and applied. Am J Agric Econ 90(5):1176–1191\
7. Carvalho SLG, Brunstein J, Godoy AS (2014) Um panorama das discussões sobre
educação para a sustentabilidade no ensino superior e nos cursos de
Administração. In: Brunstein J, Godoy AS, Silva HC (eds) Educação para
Sustentabilidade nas escolas de Administração. RiMa Editora, São Paulo, pp
201–228]
8. Demajorovic J, Silva HCO (2012) Formação Interdisciplinar e Sustentabilidade
em Cursos de Administração: Desafios e Perspectivas. Rev Adm Mackenzie
(RAM) 13(5):39–64]
9. Dias R (2006) Gestão Ambiental: responsabilidade social e sustentabilidade.
Atlas, São Paulo]
10. Floyd J, Zubevich K (2010) Linking foresight and sustainability: an integral
approach. Futures 42:59–68]
11. Gladwin TN, Kennelly JJ, Krause TS (1995) Shifting paradigms for sustainable
development: implications for management theory and research. Acad Manag
Rev 20(4):874–907
12. Graaf HJ, Musters CJM, Leurs WJ (1996) Sustainable development: looking for
new strategies. Ecol Econ 16:205–216
13. HESA—Higher Education Statistics Agency (2014) https://www.hesa.ac.uk/.
Accessed 21 Mar 2014
14. Hopwood B, Mellor M, O’brien G (2005) Sustainable development: mapping
different approaches. Sustain Dev 13(1):38–52
15. Kim DH (1993) The link between individual and organizational learning. Sloan
Management Review, Cambridge, pp 37–50\
16. Kim DH (1998) O Elo entre a Aprendizagem Individual e a Aprendizagem
Organizacional. In: Klein DA (ed) A gestão estratégica do capital intelectual.
Qualitymark, Rio de Janeiro\
17. Leal-Filho W (2000) Dealing with misconceptions on the concept of
sustainability. Int J Sustain High Educ 1(1):9–19\
18. March JG, Olsen JP (1975) The uncertainty of the past: organisational learning
under ambiguity. In: March JG (ed) Decision and organisations. Blackwell,
Oxford\
19. Mezirow J (1978) Perspective transformation. Adult Educ 28(2):100–110\
20.Mezirow J (1997) Transformative learning: theory to practice. New Dir Adult
Contin Educ 74:1–12\
21. Moore J (2005) Is higher education ready for transformative learning? A
question explored in the study of sustainability. J Transform Educ 3(1):76–91]
22. Palma LC, Oliveira LM, Viacava KR (2011) Sustainability in Brazilian Federal
Universities. Int J Sustain High Educ 12(3):250–258]
23. Prange C (2001) Aprendizagem organizacional: desesperadamente em busca de
teorias? In: Easterby-Smith M et al (eds) Aprendizagem Organizacional e
Organização de Aprendizagem. Atlas, São Paulo
24. Senge PM (1990) A quinta disciplina. Editora Best Seller, São Paulo
25. Sipos Y, Battisti B, Grimm K (2008) Achieving transformative sustainability
learning: engaging head, hands and heart. Int J Sustain High Educ 9(1):68–86\
26. Sterling S (2010–2011) Transformative learning and sustainability: sketching the
conceptual ground. Learn Teach High Educ 5:17–32Google Scholar
27. Steurer R, Langer ME, Konrad A, Martinuzzi A (2005) Corporations,
stakeholders and sustainable development I: a theoretical exploration of
business–society relations. J Bus Ethics 61(3):263–281]
28.Stubbs W, Cocklin C (2008) Teaching sustainability to business students: shifting
mindsets. Int J Sustain High Educ 9(3):206–221\
29. Thomas I (2009) Critical thinking, transformative learning, sustainable
education, and problem-based learning in universities. J Transform Educ
7(3):245–264\
30.Veiga JE (2005) Desenvolvimento sustentável—desafio do século XXI.
Garamond, Rio de Janeiro\
31. Waddell S (2007) Realising global change: developing the tools; building the
infrastructure. J Corp Citizensh 26:69–84\
32. Wals AEJ, Schwarzin L (2012) Fostering organizational sustainability through
dialogic interaction. Learn Organ 19(1):11–27
 Transformative Learning: The Role of Research in Traditional Clinical Disciplines
Michael Tims

Abstract
“To be an agent of change, you must understand the process of change and provide both the
catalyst and the support necessary for transformative learning.”
– Mezirow (1997)1
The Maryland University of Integrative Health (MUIH) offers graduate degrees and certificates
in a wide range of wellness fields, including acupuncture, Western herbal medicine, Chinese
herbal medicine, yoga therapy, nutrition, and heath coaching and promotion. In its on-campus
Natural Care Center and its community outreach settings, the university provides health care
using student interns and professional practitioners, and it delivers more than 35 000 clinical
treatments and consultations each year. Students ground their academic training in this
integrative health setting. The ideas that follow in this article, although applicable across
disciplines, are based on the author’s experience with students within the herbal program, the
clinical students in particular.

Unlearning: Preparing Students for Research

One of an educator’s main tasks is to develop an intellectual openness in students that is
necessary for transformative learning to take place. To define transformative learning and
provide a context for this article, the author uses Mezirow’s ideas about education: “…
[education allows students to) transform frames of reference through critical reflection of
assumptions, validate contested beliefs through discourse, take action on one’s reflective insight,
and critically assess it.”1 He held that transformative learning could reveal “why our
assumptions have come to constrain the way we perceive and understand our world.” An initial
step in removing the constraint of assumption is to employ the process of unlearning in the
classroom.
Although the concept of unlearning began within the realm of organizational behavior
theory,2,3 this article redefines the process firmly within educational theory and discusses the
theory’s pedagogical underpinnings. In this educational context, unlearning in its simplest form
can be described as the process through which students learn to ask questions about subjects on
which they are passionate, and through critical reflection, to reconstruct and validate a new
understanding based on observations and information generated by the original questions. They
should be able to return to the original question in an iterative fashion to refine the discovery
practice. This process can be said to open the student to greater possibilities and to a willingness
to use inquiry-based tools in their professional practices.
Historically, MUIH’s students have not always viewed research as a viable skill to be deployed
in their clinical practices. Its herbal graduates have the option of working as clinicians,
educators, researchers, or product developers in the herbal-supplement industry. The curriculum
is deeply immersed in tradition and helps practitioners become effective healers. What do
constructs of reductive scientific inquiry have to do with healing presence, patient-centered
treatment, or wellness? MUIH’s educators must reframe the benefits of research as a tool that
supports students’ roles as teachers, problem solvers, and integrative health practitioners.
Placing an emphasis on generating and applying compelling questions about their fields of study
has become a fulcrum for MUIH’s students in becoming independent thinkers. However, each
student needs to move beyond merely asking questions that are at the core of integrative health
practice to designing methods for investigating data generated by the questions, evaluating that
data, and continuing to probe a set of dynamic conditions iteratively. For inquiry-based learning
to truly catalyze change, unlearning must increase a student’s ability to improvise, be
comfortable with that practice, and to accomplish innovative problem solving. If students do not
move beyond their assumptions, their “stuckness,” they cannot truly contribute unique and
effective solutions.
Developing the ability to improvise and innovate are clear and positive indications that
unlearning has occurred, and MUIH’s educators have found that integrating research methods
into class and group projects can accelerate the unlearning process. Inserting research projects
into the classroom provides the support and guidance necessary for students to engage and retain
large amounts of new information. It also helps them to become increasingly self-directed within
the larger efforts of a community of learners. Within this environment in which they cocreate
their educational experience to make it serve them intellectually and professionally, students
actively engage the vital questions that drive their professional growth.

Unlearning: What Pedagogical Research Tells Us

The pedagogical elements of unlearning rely on (1) inquiry-based learning to drive change in
students’ thinking incrementally, (2) a social system of discourse and discovery, (3) an iterative
process for asking increasingly incisive questions, and (4) authentic assessments that allow
students to master skills that serve them in their specific disciplines.
Perry4 spoke of overcoming the limits of prior knowledge when he noted that the acquisition of
critical-thinking skills involved incremental reorganization of how students view knowledge, as
follows:

Dualism
In an initial dualistic view, students tend to see the world in terms of good-bad, right-wrong, and
black-white distinctions. Students believe that knowledge is unambiguous and clear and that
teachers will impart facts. They may be frustrated when the teacher provides conditional
answers.

Multiplicity
Eventually, students realize that experts disagree and that facts can contradict one another.
Multiplicity means that everything becomes a matter of perspective, and all opinions are equally
valid. However, students may not yet be able to evaluate different perspectives or provide
evidence to support their own views.
Relativism
Relativism represents a more sophisticated, third stage of development, in which students begin
to ground their views with examination and reflection and to support those opinions with
evidence. They also recognize that some perspectives have more validity than others.

Commitment
In the final, committed stage, students make choices and decisions in the outside world that are
informed by relativistic knowledge.
A core facet of MUIH’s program is the integration of holistic, traditional wisdom with the
Western, evidenced-based, scientific models as entry points into the stimulation of students’
growth. Do the data from 2 approaches answer the same questions? What are they? Can data
from one model be explained more clearly by the other model? Where is the overlap? What are
the respective end points of each line of inquiry? Where does the accepted state of
understanding, either traditional or evidenced-based, break down? When multiple, integrated-
health models are used, the students’ ability to simultaneously hold potentially conflicting points
of view is often challenged and a transitional state materializes.
To accelerate the transitional stages of Perry’s scheme, Nelson5 suggested that teachers must
make students’ uncertainty explicit through inquiry-based learning. Initially, this learning might
require engaging students in visual deconstruction of research data found in graphs, tables, and
images or having them identify the end point of each line of inquiry. As they become more adept
at critical evaluation of various lines of thought and when they know that being right is not an
end to itself, they begin to understand which questions best serve them in their particular
circumstances—clinic, medicine-making, or herbal formulary.
A unique feature about MUIH’s community is that the students are predominantly female. In
some ways, this fact requires a counterintuitive method of introducing a hard-science approach
associated with research. Belenky6 has proposed that the way women learn in a classroom is
social and, thus, inherently constructed. Educators need to understand that preferred methods of
knowing and learning for these students may be cooperative rather than competitive and may
need to indicate to students that learning to question does not require argument but may require
accepting conflicting data.
Astin7 has pointed out that students’ involvement, fostered by student-to-student and student-to-
faculty interactions, predicts students’ success more accurately than does the course curriculum.
This finding suggests that collaborative research projects are more important as opposed to the
typical, isolated, graduate school project.
Work by Lev Vygotsy8 also points to the role of social interactions in the reconstruction of prior
knowledge into new thinking. He has found a distinctly greater improvement in students who
learned through interacting with others versus students who learned without help. Therefore,
MUIH encourages students to get their hands on a project and to respond to the challenge of
solving an interesting problem as a community within the classroom. The natural state of
relativism found in group processes lends itself to making explicit the assumptions each
individual brings to the process.
Optimizing retention of new material is also a benefit of course-based inquiry projects. Bernstein
et al9provided evidence that structured guidance was necessary for beginning and intermediate
learners to boost knowledge retention via long-term memory. MUIH’s students come from a
variety of undergraduate and life experiences. The support within the classroom builds a scaffold
that helps them shape a complex understanding from the flow of information. As they acquire the
ability for self-guided discovery, these learners are able to work more independently.
Data from cognition research indicate that discipline-based expertise is gained using organized
pattern recognition, because that process supports meaningful and efficient interpretation of the
structure of a problem to be faced.10 By following questions, not procedures, students begin to
discern which posed questions open up the conversation into the meatier portions of the problem
and to transition from learning about the discoveries of others to making their own discoveries.
MUIH’s faculty members also model how to pinpoint what they do not know, combining their
expertise when asking questions about their own research interests. This give-and-take between
faculty members creates a body of questions that can then be prioritized by a number of
concerns: (1) What is the foundational knowledge that is missing?; (2) What are the goals that
might be achievable?; and (3) What are the questions that can be answered in a reasonable
timeline? When students attempt the same exercise, the iterative learning approach supports their
capacity to refine their passions and curiosity into an inquiry-based architecture of questions and
then methods. Assessment measures how well they unzip the important problems

The ultimate aim in asking students to take part in research embedded in coursework is to
provide assessments of their abilities that are more closely linked to discipline-specific
experience. Maclellan11found that the aim of authentic assessment was to link the student’s
experience more closely to discipline-specific processes and to provide metacognitive feedback.
Whether students are focused on client assessment, public health policy, or herbal product
development, the assessment should provide them with an opportunity to learn and to map their
own mastery.

Mastery: A Variation on a Theme

Because students’ exposure to research experience is embedded into coursework, it is
unnecessary for them to pursue a full-scale, individual project, although a track is available for
those students wishing to produce original research. The goal of most clinical students, however,
is to develop the necessary skills to work with clients. A brief clarification of the timeline for the
experience of embedded research and a discussion of students’ outcomes from the coursework
should help explain how the unlearning process helps them become more independent, complex
thinkers. The discussion that follows covers only the coursework for the clinical track.
MUIH’s faculty has adapted Benjamin Bloom’s approach to mastery12 for students’
introductory coursework. Unlearning can happen on multiple levels, with the initial goal being
the fostering of critical self-reflection, questions, and subsequent discourse. An early-stage
vehicle for measurement uses journals to eliminate the need for the pre- and posttesting found in
formative assessment. Students capture an evolving set of questions generated by the central
theme of a specific course. The instructor collates the earliest questions generated by the students
using Bloom’s taxonomy. This practice not only documents prior knowledge but also tracks
changes in critical thinking as a student’s questions become more incisive.
In another early course of MUIH’s program, students produce an herbal monograph on a
medicinal plant. This monograph is a review of pertinent information from both traditional and
evidenced-based sources on the ethnobotany, botany, and chemical analysis for commercial
handling, therapeutics, and toxicology of a specific medicinal plant.
Later in the program, in subsequent class projects, students use the collected information to
determine if the literature can substantiate a product’s claims and what data might be needed to
clarify clinical efficacy and safety via gap analysis. They decide at which level the body of
evidence will support a product’s claims (ie, general health, structure-function, or therapeutic).
The US Food and Drug Agency (FDA) maintains that an acceptable label claim does not suggest
treatment or prevention of a disease; rather that a product label may state that it helps maintain
normal function. If no contemporary, evidence-based data are available, they may need to
translate evidence from traditional knowledge into structure/function claims in accordance with
the FDA’s guidelines.
Clinically oriented students use gap analysis to plan a clinically oriented study that strengthens
the supportive data for use of that particular herb or treatment strategy. The increasing
complexity of analysis that surrounds an initial piece of scholarship acts to dislodge simple
approaches that reflect prior thinking habits. And the process of creating new knowledge is risky
for students, because it can be challenged or be shown to be incomplete.
As they work together, a group’s efforts, much like a crowd-sourced solution, reveals outside-
the-box thinking and a range of considerations necessary to ensure that the final ideas have been
rigorously vetted. The instructor can certainly play a role with well-timed questions. However,
the students accomplish the work, providing them a chance to own a piece of the solution.
During their final year, students create a unique herbal product to support a specific wellness
issue that is different from those currently found on the market. The formulation must contain at
least 3 herbs and be accompanied by a biomedical and traditional rationale for their
compositions. The work is organized as a group project, and the final product must take into
account a complex array of information, including (1) a physiological investigation and
understanding of all inputs (sleep, diet, and environment) and processes (bodily functions); (2)
historical contextualization of the input and process; (3) identification of the targeted herbal
actions, with a contemporary and historical rationalization for each; (4) compilation of the
specific formula, including developing synergistic and formulation rationales and identifying
possible core, peripheral, and catalysts herbs; (5) development of the dosage, herbal form, and
safety information; and (6) performance of research into and development of an understanding of
marketing legalities and product claims.
Students learn to use principles of modern herbal medicine to determine how best to support
wellness; they evaluate various herbal actions to choose those best suited for wellness; and they
apply experiences and concepts to formulate herbal medicines effectively. This learning sets the
foundation for clinical assessments when they begin to see clients.
In the last phase of their training, students act as clinical interns and see clients in pairs,
supported by postvisit discussions with supervisors and peers. They must choose a case in which
at least 3 interactions with the client occurred to write a case study using the CARE
protocol.13 This case study is expected to be publishable in a peer-reviewed journal. Students
also must present this same case study concisely and effectively to their peers to demonstrate a
foundational understanding of how to assess clients and create plans for enhancing wellness. As
critical assessors of their fellow students’ presentations, they also benefit from peer learning.

Final Thoughts
MUIH’s assessment process starts with revealing a progressive change in the taxonomy of a
student’s questions, followed by producing a gap analysis of his or her herbal monograph to
uncover what the student does not know and to help him or her explore potential methods for
finding answers.
Having students develop an herbal product not only increases their integration of physiology,
phytochemistry, and traditional formulation but also grounds the process in a multifaceted
context that belies simple answers, requiring both complex questions and the ability to hold
conflicting data.
The final case study asks students to create a narrative about the diagnostic process and patient
outcomes. It relies on “writing as thinking” in a discovery process and emphasizes how to
articulate clinical experience in the language of traditional wisdom and evidenced-based science.
In addition to the inclusion of research in developing critical thinking skills, a core, clinical
practice encourages students to cultivate a healing presence. MUIH’s integrative practitioners are
a learning community of healers, and this set of core values appears in that community in
numerous guises. Among them, faculty inspire students to (1) inspire others in its community
through actions and words; (2) appreciate and foster inner wisdom; (3) understand deeply the
unique gifts and medicine that they, the healers, carry in their beings; and (4) cultivate the virtues
of compassion, service, humility, and stillness.
MUIH’s efforts to ingrain a culture of inquiry into both classroom and independent research
serves to enhance students’ self-awareness about the constraints of their own a priori thinking
and to nurture a deeper trust in their own informed intuition. Can they dance with the uncertainty
of not knowing?
When students struggle with the messiness inherent in solving problems, inside and outside of
clinical settings, they are challenged to think for themselves. Can they then integrate answers
found in both traditional wisdom and evidence-based science to generate new knowledge?
Ultimately, it is through this process that MUIH supports each student’s efforts to map out his or
her own success in the world.
References
1. Mezirow J. Transformative learning: theory to practice. New Dir Adult Contin Educ. 1997;1997(74):5–
12.

2. Hedberg B. How organizations learn and unlearn. In: Nystrom PC, Starbuck WH, editors. Adapting
Organizations to their Environments. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press; 1981. (Handbook of
Organizational Design; vol 1).

3. Klein JI. Parenthetic learning in organizations: toward the unlearning of the unlearning model. J
Manage Stud. 1989;26(3):291–308.

4. Perry WG., Jr . Forms of Ethical and Intellectual Development in the College Years: A Scheme. New
York, NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston; 1970.

5. Nelson CE. Skewered on the unicorn’s horn: the illusion of a tragic tradeoff between content and
critical thinking in the teaching of science. In: Crowe LW, editor. Enhancing Critical Thinking in the
Sciences.Washington, DC: Society of College Science Teachers; 1989.

6. Belenky MF, Clinchy BM, Goldberger NR, Tarule JM. Women’s Ways of Knowing: The Development of
Self, Voice, and Mind. New York, NY: BasicBooks; 1986.

7. Astin AW. What Matters in College: Four Critical Years Revisited. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass; 1997.

8. Vygotsky LS. Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Cambridge, MA:

Harvard University Press; 1978.

9. Bernstein DA, Penner LA, Clarke-Stewart A, Roy EJ. Psychology. 6th ed. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin;
2003. p. 221.

10. Elstein AS. What goes around comes around: return of the hypothetico-deductive strategy. Teach
Learn Med. 1994;6(2):121–123.

11. Maclellan E. Assessment for learning: the differing perceptions of tutors and students. Assess Eval
High Educ. 2001;26(4):307–318.

12. Bloom BS. Mastery learning. In: Block JH, editor. Mastery Learning: Theory and Practice. New York,
NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston; 1971. pp. 47–63.

13. Gagnier JJ, Kienle G, Altman DG, Moher D, Sox H, Riley D CARE Group. The CARE guidelines:
consensus-based clinical case reporting guideline development. Glob Adv Health Med. 2013;2(5):38–\
 St. Paul University Philippines
Tuguegarao City, Cagayan 3500

GRADUATE SCHOOL
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN TEACHING
MAJOR IN BIOLOGY

REQUIREMENT IN CURRICULUM
DESIGN, THEORY AND ANALYSIS
( LITERATURE REVIEW ON RESEARCHES/ ARTICLES IN
TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING)

Submitted by:

MAGGIE TABISAURA GUZMAN

Submitted to:

INICIA C. BANSIG Ph. D

Professor
 St. Paul University Philippines
Tuguegarao City, Cagayan 3500

GRADUATE SCHOOL
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN TEACHING
MAJOR IN BIOLOGY

REQUIREMENT IN CURRICULUM
DESIGN, THEORY AND ANALYSIS
( CSM)

Submitted by:

MAGGIE TABISAURA GUZMAN

Submitted to:

INICIA C. BANSIG Ph. D

Professor

St. Paul University Philippines

Tuguegarao City, Cagayan 3500
 GRADUATE SCHOOL
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN TEACHING
MAJOR IN BIOLOGY

FINAL EXAMINATION
IN
CURRICULUM DESIGN, THEORY AND
ANALYSIS

Submitted by:

MAGGIE TABISAURA GUZMAN

Submitted to:

INICIA C. BANSIG Ph. D

Professor