Browsing by Author "Kawalilak, Colleen A."

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    A Study of the Interplay between New Graduate Life Experience, Context, and the Experience of Stress in the Workplace: Exploring Factors towards Self-Actualizing as a Novice Nurse
    (2018-04-17) Dames, Shannon Suzanne; Groen, Janet; Raffin Bouchal, Shelley; Kawalilak, Colleen A.
    Prolonged levels of stress and feelings of insecurity in new graduate registered nurse work environments are an expected part of the transition experience, yet we continue to see high rates of emotional exhaustion leading to burnout. There is a significant amount of literature on the sources of new graduate stress. However, research is lacking regarding what makes one nurse more vulnerable than another within similar work environments. This qualitative study explored the interplay of life experiences that enable and disable eight new graduate nurses from engaging in the process of self-actualization or thriving. Three prominent themes emerged as significant factors that influence the new graduates’ ability to engage in self-actualization. Developmental factors were significant in the capacity to manage workplace stressors and included congruence from their childhood experience or time in their young adult life where they engaged in relationships that provided unconditional positive regard, the habitual practice of self-compassion, and the ability to resolve areas of moral and ethical dissonance. Biological factors also buffered the experience of stress in the field, which included age and having a personality suited to their nursing role. Finally, contextual factors included having a trusted mentor at work, feelings of meaning and purpose within another life role, threats of emotional and physical violence in the workplace, workloads that took novice inefficiencies into account, limiting redeployment, and work schedules that allowed for adequate rest between sets. These insights inform nursing curriculum and transition programs by deepening the understanding of the interplay between previous and current contexts and the experience of stressors that are endemic in the workplace.
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    Experiences and Impacts of a Cross-Cultural Professional Development Program from the Perspective of Chinese Visiting Scholars
    (2018-04-20) Fedoruk, Lisa Margaret; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Groen, Janet; Roy, Sylvie; Tweedie, M. Gregory; Benjamin, Amanda D.
    Visiting scholar programs as a practice of internationalization in higher education are an increasingly common form of cross-cultural professional development in the era of globalization. Visiting scholars from China are among the largest group of academics and researchers in the world to engage in international programs and activities; however, scholarship on their experiences is limited. The purpose of this study was to better understand how a group of Chinese visiting scholars made meaning of their experiences, having participated in a 3-month professional development program in Canada, and if these experiences influenced and impacted their teaching practices upon returning to China. I employed a qualitative, descriptive case study to examine the real-life situations that the participants’ experiences were rooted in. I conducted semistructured interviews with 10 participants and constantly compared the data with participant reflective documents and researcher reflective notes to gain an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon. Guided by a transformative learning theoretical framework, I examined the motivations of the Chinese visiting scholars to partake in the program, what constituted significant learning moments and how they were experienced and interpreted, and the resulting impact on participants’ perspectives and teaching practices upon returning to their home higher education institutions. The findings revealed that a fundamental motivation for participants to sojourn abroad was to fulfil an international requirement within their teaching positions and for eventual job advancement. Participants were also motivated to attain cross-cultural professional development by enhancing their teaching practices and English proficiency. An additional finding pertaining to significant learning moments encompassed the challenges surrounding English language proficiency and cultural adjustments within higher education contexts, including student-centred instructional strategies and teaching theories. Through an organically developed community of practice and continuous reflection and dialogue, participants were able to overcome challenges and implement their knowledge upon returning to their home institutions. This qualitative study contributes to the scholarship on international practices in higher education and includes valuable strategies for all stakeholders to incorporate to enhance future cross-cultural professional development programs and prepare future scholars to embark on a similar journey.
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    Fostering Intercultural Competencies in a Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada Program
    (2020-02-10) Amery, Erica Lynn; Roy, Sylvie, 1963 January 6-; Bhowmik, Subrata Kumar; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Callaghan, Tonya D.
    This research aims to add to the scholarly discourse on the topic of fostering intercultural competencies (IC) in Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) programs. This single qualitative case study explored how IC are perceived and fostered in a LINC program and sought to understand the challenges associated with fostering IC. The study’s data sources were: (a) Semi-structured interviews with program administrators, instructors, and students; (b) In-depth analysis of program documents, and (c) Field notes from classroom observations. Findings from the study indicated that students, instructors, and program administrators perceived IC as attitudes, skills, and knowledge. Social interactions were a significant finding; all three groups of participants perceived social interactions as IC. In addition, classroom and out of class activities offered opportunities to foster dialogue and increase cultural awareness, respect, and curiosity, but fostering IC was not a specific objective in the LINC program. The main challenge that students faced in fostering IC was language, while instructors and program administrators reported time, resources, and knowledge as challenges. Stakeholders in the LINC program, as well as researchers, and practitioners and policymakers of LINC programs may find these findings and recommendations useful in developing a curriculum that embeds intercultural education approaches.
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    Intercultural Capacities and Responsiveness in Higher Education Contexts: Perspectives and Experiences of International Graduate Students
    (2021-01-08) Otoo, Benedict Kojo; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Simmons, Marlon; Boz, Umit; Winchester, Ian; Cottrell, Michael J.
    In this qualitative, single case study, I focused on international graduate students enrolled in a higher education institution in Western Canada to explore their perspectives and experiences on intercultural capacities and responsiveness in higher education contexts. The participants were international graduate students who had been in a Canadian higher education institution for a minimum of one year. Through semi-structured interviews with six international graduate students, document analysis, and a reflective journal, I explored their perspectives and experiences on intercultural capacities and responsiveness in higher education contexts. I sought to understand experiences of international graduate students that included: inclusive integration, alienation, and/or isolation when transitioning into their new academic environment, given their unique socio-cultural backgrounds and learning needs. I examined the responsiveness of higher education institutions to the needs of international graduate students by drawing on intercultural capacities of both the international graduate students and the higher education institution. As an international graduate student myself, I was a researcher–participant in this study. Together, participants and I interpreted and shared our perspectives and experiences through dialogue. The interaction focused on what intercultural capacities meant to them; their significant learning experiences; their intercultural perspectives as international graduate students; and, how the higher education institution supported them in adjusting to their new academic environment.
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    Internationalization & Career-focused Programming for International Students: A Qualitative Study of Universities in Canada
    (2020-01) Reichert, Philipp; Dressler, Roswita; Winchester, Ian; Heilke, Thomas W.; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Corbett, Michael
    The past two decades have seen a rapid increase in the number of international students attending higher education institutions (HEI’s) in countries around the world. The relationship between HEIs, governments, and students are often symbiotic in nature; students consider further education as a platform for career development, HEIs pursue the diversification of income and increased prestige/rankings, while governments’ attention is dedicated to the retention of skilled labour that will support and sustain national economies. Although policy makers promote the position that international students are ideal or “designer” immigrants with their education, language abilities, and cultural experiences, there are indications that international students face a number of challenges in transitioning from studies to career. Recent surveys show that 60 percent of international student respondents indicated that they plan to apply for permanent residency (PR) in Canada after graduation, combined with the increased importance of employability outcomes for international students. Given the importance of employability outcomes for students, this qualitative mixed-methods research examined the career-focused programming provided at Canadian universities. The main research question that guided this study was: What approaches are universities in Canada taking to support international students in the development of professional or career-focused skills? Participants were managers and directors from 7 universities across Canada. Three methods were used to collect data for this study: surveys, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Three key discourses from the interviews emerged: university as a steppingstone for immigration; universities as a source of international student support; and universities as connectors to employers and regions. Research findings indicate that various factors influence career-focused programming for international students including location, size of the institution and other contextual factors. Innovative and engaging career-focused programming, with an intercultural lens provides an excellent leadership opportunity for universities to support their international student population, while simultaneously developing the competencies of domestic students to work in an increasingly global environment.
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    Perspectives on Correctional Education: Engaging the Voices of Instructors and Incarcerated Students
    (2021-01-05) White Prosser, Christina; Dressler, Roswita; Adorjan, Michael C.; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Brown, Barbara; Ricciardelli, Rose
    Correctional education plays a vital role in rehabilitating incarcerated individuals in the correctional system in Alberta, Canada. Which types of programs and correctional learning experiences impact and facilitate this rehabilitation is largely unknown. Through a case study, I gained the perspectives of both incarcerated learners and their instructors to develop a detailed understanding of learning experiences at one Alberta correctional centre. Participants were asked to reflect on their teaching and learning experiences within several correctional education programs. In order to understand which correctional education programs were distinguished as effective by study participants, the four dimensions of Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning Domains – factual knowledge, conceptual knowledge, procedural knowledge, and metacognitive knowledge – were used to frame the incarcerated students’ learning experiences in each program (Forehand, 2005). Participants’ views provided a deeper understanding of how factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive knowledge acquisition provide students with diverse skill sets, increased self-confidence, and the tools to plan for a future once released from the correctional system. The research also revealed the instructors’ intentions to create an ideal learning environment through their curriculum and instructional design, and their observations on the impact of the curriculum on knowledge acquisition and application. Participants shared how education can serve as a catalyst for behavioural change through complex and sometimes difficult learning experiences. Drawing from the theoretical frameworks of transformational learning and desistance theory, this study illuminates participant perspectives on how education impacts student self-concept, supports desistance from crime, and, by extension, contributes to the rehabilitative process and decreasing recidivism. This research endeavours to inform learners in correctional centres, instructors who teach correctional education courses, the correctional and educational systems that administer correctional education, and society as a whole.
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    Transformational Approaches to Cultivating Environmental and Cultural Reconciliation Through Post-Secondary Field Schools
    (2021-01) Brown, Sarah Elizabeth; Lowan-Trudeau, Gregory; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Lund, Darren E.; Louie, Dustin William; Thompson, Judy
    This research study explored socially engaged transformational education through consideration of educational responses to the current challenges and opportunities of cultural and environmental reconciliation. There is an emerging educational phenomenon of post-secondary courses focused on reconciling relationships between Indigenous and Settler Canadians and our collective relationship to the earth. Many of these courses are intercultural, immersive, experiential, Land-based, and transformational in their teaching and learning approach. The theoretical framework that I applied to organize and broaden understanding of this educational phenomenon is that of socially transformative, critical adult education. This theory is informed by critical pedagogy, ecojustice education, and transformational learning theories. These approaches suggested that adult education should provide learners with opportunities to explore and transcend any ideologies imposed upon them. My theoretical framework is also informed by academic explorations of decolonization, Indigenization, and reconciliation. Areas of literature reviewed for this study include adult environmental education, ecojustice education, Indigenous Land education, transformational learning theory, and research on truth and reconciliation and decolonization at the post-secondary level. There are strong common threads that support the synthesis of these fields of study in my doctoral research and dissertation. In order to contribute to a deeper understanding of this emerging educational phenomenon of field courses focused on environmental and cultural reconciliation, I interviewed leading educators who facilitate the field schools, Indigenous cultural advisors that partner with them, and students who took the courses. An overarching reconciliation methodology was developed, informed by narrative and Indigenous methodologies with attendant methods for each. In order to equip citizens with the knowledge, skills, and leadership necessary to address the complex challenges of cultural and environmental reconciliation, post-secondary educators and institutions must become aware of their role in perpetuating the current problems, as well as imagine new possibilities to address them in effective ways. In this way, post-secondary institutions can become healthier ecosystems to nurture the growth of current and upcoming efforts by educators to address the complex challenges of environmental and cultural reconciliation.
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    Understanding the Experience of International Students in Cooperative Education
    (2020-12-16) Rempel, Matthew; Kawalilak, Colleen A.; Jacobsen, Michele; Winchester, Ian
    Canadian post-secondary institutions are experiencing significant growth in their international student populations. At the same time, there is a rising demand for work-integrated learning and specifically co-operative education (co-op) programs. The convergence of these topics has created a dramatic spike in the number of international students participating in co-op. The purpose of this research was to learn from the experiences of international students in co-op to provide evidence and recommendations that might help inform higher education and co-op departments in Canada in their approach to supporting and enabling the success of international students. A mixed-method approach was utilized to collect quantitative and qualitative data from international students who had completed co-op at the college level in Ontario. A survey instrument was developed, and semi-structured interviews conducted from a subset of the survey respondents. The results were reported independently on both data sets and then amalgamated into a critical discussion of the findings and relevant literature. The data and findings are presented and organized into themes of preparedness for co-op, experiences during co-op, and the contribution of co-op departments. The recommendations provided call for more research on this topic as well as leveraging experiential learning and alumni and employers in co-op preparatory curriculum. International students are not a homogeneous group and, as such, require tailored supports and interventions, which include individualized services and education such as workshops, one-on-one advising, and the development of tools that enable students to self-identify their readiness and requirements prior to co-op. Lastly, it is recommended that co-op departments are appropriately resourced to meet the needs of international students and enable them to be successful in co-op.