Learning about learning in a liberal arts environment

Operating within the traditions of a classical liberal arts education, the educational studies program at Trinity has recently been reconfigured as an interdisciplinary major. Offering a distinctive opportunity to examine the field of education from an array of academic perspectives, the new major enables students to become deeply informed about the theories, research, and policies affecting a central factor of civic life. Equally distinctive, among top-ranked liberal arts colleges only Trinity’s program provides students hands-on access to nine schools—ranging from Montessori to high school—within walking distance of the campus, offering students a richly varied real-world experience of the demands and dynamics of elementary and secondary education.

According to Assistant Professor of Educational Studies Jack Dougherty, the director of the program, "Our students have a unique opportunity to learn about urban education from an interdisciplinary perspective. Whether they aspire to be educators themselves, researchers, policy makers, or simply better informed citizens, they will develop a richer understanding of education and the many roles it plays in our life."

Melissa G. Marlette ’01, for example, is interested in working in the "policy end of education" rather than becoming a teacher. She came to Trinity with, she says, "an already acute interest in government and public policy." At Trinity, she quickly became interested in how urban politics and policy affect public education, and so she entered the educational studies program— "a perfect synthesis" of her interests, she says. She also has enriched her studies by volunteering at the Breakthrough Charter School in Hartford, which has proven to be "an inspiring place."

As Dougherty notes, "educational studies in a liberal arts environment is a process of discovery for students. They learn that it does not mean only a career in teaching" and at the same time learn about some of their deepest interests in the educational process. As Jeff Mucha (IDP) describes it, "There’s intrinsic interest in what happens in teaching, in the theories, policies, and history of education. And many students want to discover that without acquiring teaching certification."

Although the new major does not lead to teacher certification, students can complete a state-approved teacher preparation program, thanks to Trinity’s consortial arrangement with St. Joseph College in West Hartford. This arrangement allows students to "explore many different avenues of education," according to Whitney Brown ’01, who is serving as Dougherty’s teaching assistant. Students currently pursuing teacher certification concur. "I’ve been able to integrate my interests in English, history, and elementary teacher certification," says Eric Lawrence ’03, an American studies major who also participates in the Trinity-St. Joseph program. He adds, "I came to Trinity because I liked the idea of the liberal arts and the variety it provides."

However, since the consortial arrangement does not serve all students equally well, exploratory discussions are underway within the faculty regarding the prospect of adding a teaching certification component to Trinity’s curriculum in a manner consistent with the College’s liberal arts mission.

A core course in an interdisciplinary framework
At the center of the major is "Educational Studies 200: Analyzing Schools," one of four core required courses. And it neatly exemplifies the program’s interdisciplinary approach as well as the particular learning advantages offered by Trinity’s location in Hartford. Drawing from theories and practices in sociology, psychology, and philosophy, students explore schooling in terms of social contexts, theories of learning, and concepts of justice. Students "test" their understanding in real-life situations by serving as participant-observers in the classrooms of neighborhood elementary and middle schools.

Students do far more than observe, of course: they are actively engaged in working as tutors with individual students and in small groups, they prepare materials for classroom projects, and they work with teachers in planning lessons. For Brown (and others), this "real experience in learning" has been the most exciting aspect of the course. As Assistant Professor of Educational Studies Barbara Henriques (on right in photo) says, "Hartford provides many such opportunities for hands-on community learning—and the educational studies program has also established arrangements with the new schools in the Learning Corridor, further strengthening the educational bonds between Trinity and its neighborhood."

In addition to the core sequence of four courses, students in the program design a thematic concentration drawn from an array of courses in anthropology, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and theater and dance. Throughout the program, students have exceptional opportunities to conduct sophisticated research using Hartford and its neighborhoods as a nearly unique "laboratory." Brown, for example, conducted her research for her senior project on gendered reactions between teachers and students at the nearby Sanchez Elementary School, work she describes as "one of the best things I’ve done at Trinity." And drawing on the resources of a capital city, Marlette focused on "The Aftermath of ‘Sheff v. O’Neill’ in Hartford" the Connecticut Supreme Court’s landmark decision regarding the racial integration of Hartford’s schools. Dougherty is quick to point out that students in the program have access to over a dozen schools in the Greater Hartford area.

Boundless energy and creativity
Much credit for reinvigorating and reconfiguring the educational studies program goes to Dougherty, who came to Trinity in 1999 after receiving his doctorate from the University of Wisconsin—Madison. His boundless enthusiasm and creativity have, his colleagues agree, gotten the program off to a great start. "Jack is a bundle of energy, and from the moment he arrived he has focused sharply on the program," according to Associate Professor of Psychology Dina Anselmi, a faculty adviser of the program. "He has really connected with faculty from all over campus, and, in just a short time, he has given the educational studies program a great reputation," notes Professor of Economics Diane Zannoni, who also serves on the program’s advisory board. Last year, Henriques joined the program and, according to Marlette, has quickly become a "tremendous mentor" for students in the program.

Both Dougherty and Henriques bring to Trinity a great deal of hard-won insights from their years of teaching in K-12 schools, Dougherty in Newark, NJ, and Henriques largely in New Haven, CT. And both are well-published scholars—Henriques on teaching methods and Dougherty on issues of race and education. Henriques and Dougherty were attracted to Trinity because of its strong links to the neighborhood community, which they both see as offering students ideal opportunities to ground teaching theories in actual practices. Dougherty adds that he was also especially impressed with the faculty’s remarkable devotion to teaching—particularly its commitment to "rethinking the box of teaching and pushing its boundaries."

Teaching and social change
Asked what fuels their dedication to education, Henriques and Dougherty present almost complementary responses. For Henriques, education is a "powerful tool for personal change." She believes that, at whatever level, classroom education prompts students to "imagine what their lives might be," and that, she says, enables them to create changes in—and take greater control over—their own lives. Dougherty says his commitment to teaching derives from his passion for social justice. "Teaching is a strategy for effecting social change" by enlarging the embrace of education. And Trinity’s urban surroundings provide a rich environment for engaging students in that essential process. Not only do students learn; they also bring learning to others.

–Mark Warren McLaughlin