Ian Baptiste | St. George's University (original) (raw)

Papers by Ian Baptiste

Using a postcolonial lens, this paper critiques scholarly discourse on the experiences of South A... more Using a postcolonial lens, this paper critiques scholarly discourse on the experiences of South Asian Americans (SAAs) in the United States as being too othering and too homogenized. In most of that discourse, SAAs are treated as objects who may only be reactive to dominant society and culture; their racialized experiences are also muted. Treating SAAs as subjects, this paper presents a way to enrich their experiences, paying particular attention to how those experiences have been racialized. Drawing upon, but also critiquing cultural historical activity theory, the paper presents an alternative way to think about and empirically examine learning. Disciplinary Perspectives and Literature Consulted Using a postcolonial lens, this paper divides the scholarship on the experiences of SAAs 1 into three broad perspectives: historical, historical-materialist, and social-cultural. In this section we briefly describe postcolonial theory and then use it to analyze the three perspectives 2. Postcolonial Theory Postcolonial theory is a dialectic union of Marxism and Poststructuralism that engages the historical condition of postcoloniality to expose the material exploitation and cultural imperialism of colonialism as well as the complicity of the colonized with the colonizer. In so doing, the theory interrogates the bondage of the mind, self, and culture that remains invisible in the aftermath of colonialism; questions and reinterprets the East/West, Orient/Occident divide and modern/traditional binary-with their implication of Western technological and cultural superiority; and critiques "the enduring hierarchies of subjects and knowledges" (Gandhi, 1998, p. 15). All of that is done with the goal of learning from colonialism's past in order to "make, but also to gain, theoretical sense out of that past" (Gandhi, 1998, p. 5).

$Research paper thumbnail of Anatomy of Adults\u27 Learning Experiences: A Phenomenological Inquiry$

Phenomenology is concerned with understanding phenomena from the perspective of those who have ex... more Phenomenology is concerned with understanding phenomena from the perspective of those who have experienced them. From an interpretivist standpoint, the researchers set out to construct a plausible understanding of the phenomenon adult learning. The researchers sought to find out how adults describe their learning experiences and what meanings adults attach to those descriptions. Respondents revealed three interconnecting components of their learning experiences: content (CT), context (CX), and con-fects (CF). Rather than sustaining the notion of adult learning , the researchers found that the more expansive concept the learning experiences of adults provided a more appropriate vehicle to highlight not only the commonalties but also the differences in adults\u27 learning experience

The thesis of Frederick A. Milacci, Jr. has been reviewed and approved * by the following:

New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, 2008

The adult education literature on disruptive behavior of adult learners was reviewed and a survey... more The adult education literature on disruptive behavior of adult learners was reviewed and a survey on disruptive behavior of adult learners was conducted with adult educators. The findings are synthesized in a conceptual framework for understanding the types and causes of disruptive behavior, which fall into the categories of inattention, acting-out, and threatening/harmful/violent. Factors that may contribute to disruptive behavior are the presence of a disability; history of an impoverished social background and/or of exposure to personal violence; personal stressors such as child care and job demands; and, in the learning environment, inadequate instruction, disconnection with the instructor and/or other learners, and ineffective intervention by the instructor. A set of guidelines is offered for preventing and managing disruptive behavior. It is further recommended that research be directed toward identifying interventions that are effective with specific adult education populations and how to train adult educators to deal with disruptive behavior.

The paper argues that a reconceptualization of adult education around lifelong learning and globa... more The paper argues that a reconceptualization of adult education around lifelong learning and globalization requires a rethinking of curricular and research issues. The paper highlights curricular issues involved in creating in such a reconceptualization. It does this by juxtapositioning the objectives and goals of this “new " focus with the CPAE’s Standards for Graduate Programs. Objectives and goals are suggested that revolve around integrated notions of learning that account for the impact of globalization on learning as inseparable from political and social processes.

Adult educators seem hesitant to disempower anyone, including their enemies. This is because our ... more Adult educators seem hesitant to disempower anyone, including their enemies. This is because our humanist moorings makes us believe that all forms of disempowerment is evil. Proposed are rudiments of a pedagogy of ethical disempowerment, which I contend we desperately need.

This essay uses tools of language and philosophical analysis to examine and illustrate the perils... more This essay uses tools of language and philosophical analysis to examine and illustrate the perils of educational niceness. It defines educational niceness as a practice that’s predicated on the belief that it is possible and desirable for educators to share their views with students without imposing their will and opinions upon them (their students). It discusses five symptoms of educational niceness: first, that educational impositions are limited to educators’ behavior; second, that educational impositions stem primarily from educators’ verbal behavior; third, that certain forms of verbal behavior (sharing) are, by nature, non-imposing or less imposing; fourth, that educational impositions stem from intentional actions only; and fifth, that all impositions are, ipso facto, unethical. After exploring each symptom, the paper exposes the philosophical roots of educational niceness, discusses some of its perils, and concludes by suggesting an educational cure—a theory and pedagogy of ...

Canadian journal for the study of adult education, 2000

This article challenges a popular assumption in adult education that all forms of coercion are ev... more This article challenges a popular assumption in adult education that all forms of coercion are evil; it begins to articulate a pedagogy of coercive restraint for use when faced with perpetrators of social injustices. The author clarifies the need for such a pedagogy based on critiques of adult education theories and practices. Forms and levels of restraint appropriate to different levels of conflict are described. The pedagogy of coercion is then situated within the broader pedagogy of mobilization, with suggestions for development of the ideas. Resume Cet article remet en question la croyance populaire voulant que toute forme de coercition soit necessairement reprehensible. On y articule une pedagogie de la contrainte physique a utiliser dans les cas d'injustice sociale. En se fondant sur les critiques formulees a l'egard de la theorie et la pratique de l'education des adultes, l'auteur soutient qu'une telle pedagogie repond a un besoin. Il decrit les formes et ...

2 Feature Article composition of their students vary from class to class, and teachers enjoy vary... more 2 Feature Article composition of their students vary from class to class, and teachers enjoy varying collégial and institutional support in different situations. Accord-ingly, the prudent teacher will attempt to analyze each situation to ascer-tain what is her best course of action in that ...

Via a critical appropriation of ideas from cultural historical activity theory (CHAT), this paper... more Via a critical appropriation of ideas from cultural historical activity theory (CHAT), this paper addresses three shortcomings in adult learning theories: insufficient guidance regarding how to systematically analyze learning that occurs in everyday life; 2) absence of mechanisms for overcoming subject-object dualism; and 3) insufficient analytic consideration for collective subjects. Introduction Although dominant theories of adult learning (such as self-directed or transformative learning) make general claims about how adults learn, the authors of this paper find in them little guidance regarding how to systematically observe and analyze learning that occurs in the everydayness of life. Moreover, theories of adult learning are beleaguered by a subject-object dualism that continues to plague classical behaviorist and cognitivist learning theories (Engestrom, 1999; Vygotsky, 1978). In most adult learning theories, the subject and object of learning remain conceptually (and often phy...

Paper presented at the 50th Annual American Association of Adult and Continuing Education confere... more Paper presented at the 50th Annual American Association of Adult and Continuing Education conference, Baltimore, MD, Oct 17-20, 2001. ... Dr. Ian Baptiste 305B Keller Building University Park, PA 16902 Telephone: (814) 865-1958 E-Mail: ieb1@psu.edu

Phenomenology is concerned with understanding phenomena from the perspective of those who have ex... more Phenomenology is concerned with understanding phenomena from the perspective of those who have experienced them. From an interpretivist standpoint, the researchers set out to construct a plausible understanding of the phenomenon adult learning. The researchers sought to find out how adults describe their learning experiences and what meanings adults attach to those descriptions. Respondents revealed three interconnecting components of their learning experiences: content (CT), context (CX), and con-fects (CF). Rather than sustaining the notion of "adult learning", the researchers found that the more expansive concept "the learning experiences of adults" provided a more appropriate vehicle to highlight not only the commonalties but also the differences in adults' learning experience. Purpose of the Study Our ability as educators to assist learners would be enhanced by knowing how learners construe and construct learning experiences. Two bodies of literature tha...

Canadian Journal For the Study of Adult Education, May 1, 2000

EJ606024 - Beyond Reason and Personal Integrity: Toward a Pedagogy of Coercive Restraint.

International Journal of Lifelong Education, 1999

At a time when our world is growing more and more unequal, many adult educators are embracing pra... more At a time when our world is growing more and more unequal, many adult educators are embracing practices (such as lifelong learning) which divert their attention away from serious human plights to narrow personal and technical considerations. In this paper, I attempt to refocus our ...

Paace Journal of Lifelong Learning, 2003

The authors of this paper agree with critics that it is unrealistic to expect adult literacy prog... more The authors of this paper agree with critics that it is unrealistic to expect adult literacy programs (indeed any educational program), by themselves, to alleviate poverty . But it seems reasonable to expect that adult literacy has an economic contribution to make. Grounding our work in an analysis of adult literacy programs that are funded by the United S tates

International Journal of Lifelong Education, 1999

$Research paper thumbnail of Anatomy of Adults\u27 Learning Experiences: A Phenomenological Inquiry$

The thesis of Frederick A. Milacci, Jr. has been reviewed and approved * by the following:

New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, 2008

Canadian journal for the study of adult education, 2000

Phenomenology is concerned with understanding phenomena from the perspective of those who have ex... more Phenomenology is concerned with understanding phenomena from the perspective of those who have experienced them. From an interpretivist standpoint, the researchers set out to construct a plausible understanding of the phenomenon adult learning. The researchers sought to find out how adults describe their learning experiences and what meanings adults attach to those descriptions. Respondents revealed three interconnecting components of their learning experiences: content (CT), context (CX), and con-fects (CF). Rather than sustaining the notion of "adult learning", the researchers found that the more expansive concept "the learning experiences of adults" provided a more appropriate vehicle to highlight not only the commonalties but also the differences in adults' learning experience. Purpose of the Study Our ability as educators to assist learners would be enhanced by knowing how learners construe and construct learning experiences. Two bodies of literature tha...

Canadian Journal For the Study of Adult Education, May 1, 2000

EJ606024 - Beyond Reason and Personal Integrity: Toward a Pedagogy of Coercive Restraint.

International Journal of Lifelong Education, 1999

Paace Journal of Lifelong Learning, 2003

International Journal of Lifelong Education, 1999