Dennis Conrad | SUNY: Potsdam (original) (raw)

Papers by Dennis Conrad

International journal of special education, 2017

This retrospective qualitative research utilised ecological systems theory and content analysis t... more This retrospective qualitative research utilised ecological systems theory and content analysis to explore the pre-university experiences and barriers to participation faced by students with disabilities in Barbados and Trinidad. Findings suggested that attitudinal and environmental

Caribbean Curriculum, 2016

Using narrative analysis, critical pedagogy, and employing a phenomenological approach, this pape... more Using narrative analysis, critical pedagogy, and employing a phenomenological approach, this paper explores the experiences and perspectives of its co-researchers regarding their recollections of folktales and responses to a collection of Caribbean folk narratives. The paper also shares the voices of five educators regarding how similar folk narratives might be incorporated into the classroom. The results support the increased use of folk narratives in the classroom. The authors assert that the use of folk narratives offers a means of increasing student engagement, positive identity, and a sense of community, and enhanding learning among participating teachers and learners.

Journal of Education and Development in the Caribbean, 2019

Cultural and Pedagogical Inquiry, 2020

A collaboration of three educators who express themselves in verse, promoting the poetic form as ... more A collaboration of three educators who express themselves in verse, promoting the poetic form as a tool to re-examine the value of education and to define their roles as students and teachers challenging the status quo that often characterizes education.

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 2009

Population growth (Broad, 1997), institutional competition (Daniel & Cox, 2002), and changing lea... more Population growth (Broad, 1997), institutional competition (Daniel & Cox, 2002), and changing learner needs (Willis, Tucker, & Gunn, 2003) are among the issues influencing the increase in online teaching and learning. Related to this, emergent and expanding distance learning technologies have subsequently pitted "brick and mortar" against "online" paradigms. This has resulted in a need for research to clarify the relevance, effectiveness, restrictive and facilitative dimensions of online courses. For example, faculty are increasingly expected and encouraged to develop and teach online courses often with misperceptions about required pedagogical skills and without adequate support and preparation (Choi & Park, 2006). This qualitative study is therefore, aimed at sharing the experiences and perspectives of two novice online instructors' operating within two colleges in the eastern US. These instructors initially shared that a key motivation for the teaching of their online courses was fear of becoming professionally out of date and of 'giving in' to technophobia. This paper reports on the background to-and different approaches adopted towards-developing two online courses as well as providing student perceptions of their on-line learning experience. Findings and recommendations from this research are aimed at providing an insight into some of the fundamental issues that other novice 'online' instructors will need to consider in developing their own technology mediated courses.

This qualitative research paper explores the experiences and perspectives of two long-standing te... more This qualitative research paper explores the experiences and perspectives of two long-standing teachers and poetry enthusiasts who use poetry and Rapso in their classrooms. The researchers use self-study of teaching and narrative analysis to share their stories and explore the ways in which personal and localized materials inform their teaching. They employ a "critical friend" to facilitate verification of the narratives and findings. The emergent themes, while identifying challenges, portray Rapso in the Poetry and the Poetry in the Rapso as rich in relevance and opportunities for nurturing a joy for learning and teaching generally, and reading and cultural identity more specifically. "West Indian children live poetry," asserts the Caribbean Examinations Council (2011, p. 8), yet they are deficient in their appreciation and understanding of this very creative expression. Teachers are encouraged to address this inadequacy by placing the learners' knowledge, aesthetics, and individual sensitivities centre stage. In Trinidad and Tobago, the emphasis on the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) at the primary level-and further high-stakes assessments to come-leaves poetry, as in similar contexts elsewhere, at risk of being marginalized (Hughes, 2007). Many teachers who may have used poetry in their pedagogy are inclined to yield to the pressure of time and resistance from colleagues and parents. There is a need to encourage such teachers to continue their use of poetry, while practising cultural modelling and student-centred pedagogy that incorporates popular oral literary and communicative styles. We assert that rather than continue the emphasis on Eurocentric poetry, still common in many former colonies, this love and use of poetry can also be used to explore and embrace local art forms as well as problematize local sociocultural and socioeconomic issues. Dennis A. Conrad et al. 2 Poetry to Rapso: The Context Education has for a long time been espoused as the most effective tool for the future development and progress of nation states. Given this assumption, the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago has committed itself to ensuring that all of its citizens, regardless of their gender, class, culture, and ethnic origin, are given the opportunity to access positive learning opportunities (Trinidad and Tobago. Ministry of Education [MOE], 2008). To this end, it has invested heavily in its education system, and has ambitious plans for improving quality as it seeks to achieve developed nation status by the year 2020. However, an analysis of National Test results for 2005-2009 showed that 53% of Standard 1 and 57% of Standard 3 students performed below the standard in Language (De Lisle, Smith, & Jules, 2010). This approach to the selection of students for secondary education and that of its forerunner, the Common Entrance Examination, follow the College Exhibition model of the colonial period. De Lisle (2012) contends that despite concerns inherent with high-stakes models, high societal legitimacy, expectations, and values continue to be associated with these tests. As such, there is an overarching emphasis on test scores for secondary school entrance, which compromises reform initiatives, including more student-centred and culturally responsive pedagogy. Literacy One critical reform initiative is in the area of literacy, which is central to facilitating national, community, and personal growth. Students facing significant challenges with reading, or those who have been disaffected based on their experiences, are subsequently at a higher risk of reading underachievement in secondary schools (Stanovich, 2000). In Trinidad and Tobago, as elsewhere, this group is largely comprised of boys from low-income families (Allington, 2006; Miller, 1994). One important approach to addressing this literacy challenge has been the shift in pedagogical style from teacher as "dispenser of knowledge" to more constructivist or interactive roles. This incorporates the learners' sociocultural background, prior knowledge, skills, and abilities within a more relationally engaging classroom context that facilitates cultural modelling, student centred pedagogy, and the use of oral traditions (Accioly de Amorim, 2009; Freire, 2000). Using poetry for literacy development. Poetry offers an approach to literacy development that incorporates performance, self-reflection, culturally and socially relevant curricula, accessible resources, and

International Journal of Special Education, 2012

This quantitative study investigated the opinions of primary school teachers regarding the integr... more This quantitative study investigated the opinions of primary school teachers regarding the integration process in Barbados and Trinidad. It utilized a cross sectional survey design and inferential statistics. Data collection was facilitated through the Opinions Relative to Integration Scale developed by Antonak and Larrivee (1995). Four research questions were addressed: (1) what are teachers' attitudes towards the integration of students with disabilities? (2) what differences exist between teachers' attitudes in Barbados and Trinidad? (3) what differences exist between males and female teachers' attitudes towards the integration of students with special needs? (4) do novice and more experienced teachers differ in their attitudes toward the integration of students with disabilities? Results suggested that Barbadian and Trinidadian express ambivalent attitudes towards including students with disabilities in regular education settings. Implications for teacher training are discussed.

Studying Teacher Education, 2010

Childhood Education, 2006

This study shares the perspectives and experiences of members of staff from two established speci... more This study shares the perspectives and experiences of members of staff from two established special education institutions in Trinidad and Tobago on the issue of how they are responding to national calls for inclusive education. Methodology within the case study tradition included narrative analysis of responses to open-ended questions, observations, document analysis, and the critical experiences of the co-researchers. Findings reveal resilience as one characteristic displayed by the staff of special schools in addressing inclusive education. There is also a concern about whether social justice is possible with an inherited elitism. Staff identified challenges, which include building and sustaining collaborative relationships, resourcing and utilizing technology for education, culturally responsive teaching, early identification and intervention, and teacher preparation. Recommendations for moving forward include more local and Caribbean-wide practices that address culturally responsive curricula, action research-based interventions, a continuum of professional development systems targeting teacher dispositions, and public mobilization regarding the role of education in social justice. Worrell, 2006). Yet, initiatives of the Ministry of Education (MOE) expect regular and special schools to be partners in the inclusive process. This position is perceived to be reasonable regardless of the resources provided to support inclusive practice. It is the teachers and school leaders' challenge to generate a positive and responsive environment that determines the success of inclusion and social justice (Gause, 2008). Key Concepts Inclusive education As Caribbean and Trinbagonian [from Trinidad and Tobago] educators and special educators, we might view-inclusion‖ as a meeting of rivers and the seas. Here, currents that represent human rights and capital, social justice, meritocracy, and economic productivity meet, merge, and displace. Within these cross currents we seek to delineate between the rhetoric and the reality of inclusive practices; more specifically, disability inclusion. We celebrate the case for addressing exclusionary practices based on race, ethnicity, social class, gender and orientation, religion, and age. Indeed, we applaud the recognition that inclusion and inclusive education are not limited to issues of persons with disabilities. However, we argue that as special educators there is need to move beyond the rhetoric of inclusive disability education to making this a reality, and to help the case for a broader conceptualization of inclusion that facilitates citizenship education committed to a democratic society. This is especially so in multi-ethnic, developing, or less developed countries such as Trinidad and Tobago. Here, we are still wrestling with a politics of difference, and the postcolonial burdens of power, privilege, and elitism-very slow in relinquishing their holds. In such a context, we need progressive educators who are committed to social action, responsive research, and pedagogy aimed at promoting a democratic society and teaching the-other‖ (Ladson-Billings, 2001; Ladson-Billings & Tate, 2006). We affirm that while we want progressive educators, they should not be crusaders in the classroom, but facilitators helping learners to explore values, actions, and their consequences (Banks, 2006). These activities are just as critical to the rich academic diversity in our classrooms. For example, students should be encouraged to explore differences and to recognize that this is normal; notwithstanding the fact that for some learners, skill diversity is significant enough to warrant specially designed instruction to realize educational equality (Banks & Banks, 2006).

Research in Educational Administration & Leadership, 2019

Article Info The paper "Thinking of, Knowing, and Doing Social Justice Leadership: Principals' pe... more Article Info The paper "Thinking of, Knowing, and Doing Social Justice Leadership: Principals' perspectives" explores the understanding and practice of principals regarding social justice leadership. The study adopts phenomenography as its methodology and presents findings gleaned from the semistructured interviews of 11 principals in Trinidad and Tobago. Findings indicate that principals were generally unaware of a social justice leadership orientation, but values of fairness and equity, for instance, were common in their understandings. Social justice leadership roles were conceptualized as multifaceted, difficult and requiring strategy and caution, but emphasized a need for self-investment and collaboration. It was found that principals' unclear conceptualizations translated into guesswork when practicing social justice leadership from which emerged unique ways of 'doing' social justice. Findings point to the need to place social justice atop Trinidad and Tobago's school improvement agenda.

Postgraduate Medicine, 2000

Comparative Education Review, 2007

EJ758510 - School Leadership in Trinidad and Tobago: The Challenge of Context.