Biographies a reading approach in esl towards the resilient learning dissertation nov 2014

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Dissertation submitted to the Department of Graduate Studies Education Department University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras Submitted as partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Doctoral Degree in TESL

By Pablo Fern谩ndez-Col贸n MA, BA, in TESL (1985, 1980) March, 2015

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

DEDICATION:

Dedicating a book or a publication is not just a literary formalism. It is the genuine and sincere wish for those whom the book or publication is dedicated to, feel the same and profound satisfaction of as the person who dedicates it feels. This already is my personal style of presenting my books, and this one, which is my Dissertation for the Degree of Doctor in TESL (Ed.D.), as well as my other publications, in a much more special way yet.

This Dissertation is dedicated to those who were phisically, menthally and emocionally afected by the September 11 of 2001 sucesses, whom today, almost thirteen (13) years later of that desastrous morning, feel the closing of a painful circle caused by that terrorist deed.

But in a very much more special way yet, to those who survived that event and to the families and beloved ones of the deadly victims of 9/11.

Dedicated on: September 11, 2014.

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

This Dissertations as all other academic writings, exercises and proposals for the Doctorate Degree in TESL would have not been a reality today without the help and collaboration of many whom have helped me to be where I am today, finalizing this professional as well as academic journey. Thanks to all of them.

Dr. Reinaldo Berríos Rivera and Dr. Nydia Lucca Irizarry, Professors at UPRRP, lecturers of Qualitative Research Courses who inspired my thoughts to write this Dissertation and also co-authors of the textbook: Investigación Cualitativa Fundamentos,diseños y estrategias (2009) as a valuable investigation resource to the fulfillment of this Dissertation.

To all my professors and classmates of the Department of Graduate Studies in the Faculty of Education, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus.

In a very special manner, to Dr. María Antonia Irizarry, widow of Turpin, for her outstanding academic and motivational support, counseling and guidance in all

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

the way through of my graduate studies both at Master’s as well as Doctorate Level in TESOL, and also Member of my Dissertation Comitee at the UPRRP. Finally, but not less important, to Dr. Elizabeth Torres, Chairperson of my Dissertation Project and all the rest of my Dissertation Comitee Members: Dr. Elsie Candelario and Dr. Joseph Carroll Miranda.

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

ABSTRACT

In this Dissertation there is a proposal for a Personalized Model of Education based on principles regarding the Theory of Resilience or Resiliency applied to ESL Reading approaches; in addition to definitions of terms such as resilience, resiliency, cognitive processes, bi-cognitive process, multiple intelligences, origin, evolution and social functions of resilience, traditional model of learning, a model of energy-based learning, personalized education and also the introduction of the concept of Inner Intelligence, is proposed as a paradigm for the resilient learning. Biographies as Qualitative Approach is also reviewed and proposed as an educational tool for developing resilient behaviors in ESL students.

Different sources and theorists concerning human learning as well as the cognitive development theories are also been reviewed in this dissertation. Philosophical positions such as Plato's and Aristotle's conception of matter, ideas, and perception are also been included in the review of literature.

New theories concerning universal learning and knowledge such as Quantum Vacuum, the Theory of the Seven Strings suggesting the idea of a source of eternal knowledge as

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well as principles concerning the concept of Flow Theory as alternative learning processes are also included. In addition an overview of The Mindsets Theory is been part of the research of literature as recent tendencies towards cognitive development and adaptative learning tools to improve productivity in academic as well as other overall scenarios.

Recommendations on the application of an Investigation-in-action qualitative method in addition to principles of Emergent Theory Aproach procedures used as a qualitative research methodology have been applied within the review of literature.

In terms of Methodology, the use of Biographies as an ESL Reading approach is been used as a Qualitative Method validating their contributions to sustain the resilience theory as well as the Inner knowledge proposals; herein presented as main dish in this exquisite work of cognition, recognition, bi-cognitive development of the brain as a whole unit and seeing the human being as an integrative instrument of knowledge, wisdom and evolution of the thought.

The development of Spiritual, Social, Emotional and Service Intelligences are also reviewed as cognitive tools in whole person growth. Moreover, experience or Experiential Learning is also seen as main key to the adaptation as well as transformation capabilities as well as Human Development.

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In culmination of the dissertation, further research is been considered in the field of Personalized education or Personalized teaching as a tool to improve learning. In our case, molding and improving the reading approach in ESL as a whole life orientation to foster life-long learning.

In terms of educational implications regarding the use of biographies as reading approach in ESL, biographical literature is been used towards the resilient learning and teaching processes as well as human development.

Pablo Fern谩ndez Col贸n November 7, 2014.

Key words: ESL teaching and learning, Reading Approach, Resilience, Learning Styles, Cognition, Bi-cognition, Inner Knowledge, Experiential Learning, Human Development, Multiple Intelligences, Spiritual Intelligence, Social Intelligence, Emotional Intelligence, Service Intelligence, Mindsets, Flow Theory, Personalized education, Personalized teaching, Investigation in Action Research Approach, Emergent Theory Approach, Use of Biographies as Qualitative Approach, Qualitative Designs.

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Table of Contents

DEDICATION

**********************************************

2

ACKNOWLEDMENTS ******************************************** 3-4 ABSTRACT *****************************************************

5-7

Table of Contents *************************************************

8-14

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Introduction: ***********************************************

15-16

Aim: ***************************************************** 16 Purpose of the Study: ****************************************

16-17

Rationale ************************************************** 17 Statement of the Problem Research Questions

**********************************

****************************************

Justification of the Study

**********************************

Biographies as a Qualitative Approach in ESL: Methodology

****************

**********************************

18 19-20 20-22

22-24 24

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Definition of Terms:

*********************************** 24-31

Summary of Chapter 1 and Transition to next chapters

*********** 32

CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE Introduction: **********************************************

33

Resilience: Its Origin and Evolution: ***************************

34

Origin of the Term:

***************************

34-37

Evolution of Resilience Theory:

***************************

37-38

Resilience: From Theory to Practice: ***************************

39-41

Theories on Learning Processes Considered: *********************

41-44

Theories on Teaching and Cognitive Processes Considered: *********

44-45

Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences: ******************************

45

Bi-Cognitive Development in Education: ************************

45-47

A model of Resilience: *************************************

47-50

Theories on Cognitive Processes Considered:********************

50-52

The Inner Knowledge (First Stage): ***************************

52

A model of Resilience (First Stage): **************************

52-55

A Model of Resilience based on the Theory of Energy (flujo) or Flow (First Stage):

***************************************

55

Traditional Learning Model: **********************************

55-57

Energy Based Model of Learning ******************************

57-61

Multiple Intelligences applied to Resilience: **********************

61-62

The Inner Knowledge: A Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and

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Teaching Processes: (Second Stage) ***************************** 62 Conceiving Inner Knowledge as a paradigm in the Resilience Learning: ***************************************** 62 Applying an Investigation-in-Action Methodology as Qualitative Research ***************************************** 62-63 The Inner Knowledge/Inner Intelligence Theory: (Second stage)

***************************************** 63 Kolb's Learning Styles and Experiential Learning Model:

**********

63-67

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience:

****************

67-71

Educational Implications of Flow Theory:

***************

71-72

*********************

72-75

Mindset Theory by Carol Dwerk

Educational Implications of Mindset Theory: Global Mindset:

***************

75-76

***************************************

75-76

The Inner Knowledge: a proposition for understanding both internal or genetic learning and external (adquired and adapted) as a paradigm in the Resilient:

***************************************** 76

Conceiving Inner Knowledge as a paradigm in the Resilience Learning (Second Stage):

***************************************** 76-78

Integrating Inner Knowledge to Resilient learners (Second Stage):

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**********************************************

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78-84

Inner Knowledge: from an autobiographical viewpoint (Second Stage): **********************************************

84-86

A Final View on Inner Knowledge (Third Stage Analysis): *********************************************** 87 Quantum Physics and Relativism Theory (Third Stage): *********************************************** 87-88 Defining Inner Knowledge/Inner Intelligence in Synthesis (Third Stage): *********************************************** 88-97 Summary of Chapter 2 and Transition to next chapters *************** 97

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY: BIOGRAPHIES: A READING APPROACH IN ESL TOWARDS THE RESILIENT LEARNING Introduction

**************************************** 98

Teaching Objectives **************************************** 98-99 Why the use of Biographies as As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes? **************************************** 99-100 Research Design: Biographies as Research Design in Education: **************************************** 100-101 Participants (Population)

********************************** 101-104

Data Collection

**************************************** 104

Final Questionaire

**************************************** 104-107

Cognitive Questions **************************************** 108 Data Analysis: Findings ************************************** 108 Further Applications **************************************** 108-109

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Summary of Chapter 3 and Transition to next chapters ************** 109-110

CHAPTER 4: BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes Introduction

**************************************** 111-112

Teaching Biographies as part of the ESL Curricula: **************** 112-113 Demonstrative Class using Biographies/Memoirs:

**************** 113-114

Why a Personalized Educational Model in TESL is needed? ********* 114 Summary of Chapter 4 and Transition to Chapter 5 **************** 115-117

CHAPTER 5: DESIGNING A LIFE-LONG LEARNING PERSONALIZED EDUCATION MODEL THROUGH BIOGRAPHIES AS A READING APPROACH IN ESL

Introduction

***************************************** 118-119

Defining Personalized Education Postulates: ***************** 119-120 Educational Implications of Personalized Education *********** 120-121 Assessing a Personalized Education Model for Resilient learning through Biographies

***************************************** 121-123

Summary of Chapter 5 and Transition to Chapter 6: ********** 123-124

CHAPTER 6: FINAL CHAPTER: CONCLUSSIONS, STRENGHS, LIMMITATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS A Final View on Biographies: a Reading approach in ESL ****** 125 Recommendations for Further Research

***************** 125-126

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Limitations and Strengths of the Study A Final Word

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********************* 126

********************************* 126-127

REFERENCES References

*********************************************

128-142

APPENDICES Appendix A: Una propuesta para un Modelo de Educación Personalizada ********************** 143-155 Appendix A (2): Questionaire for identifying students academic interests and preferences for a Personalized Educational Model **** 156-160 Appendix B: Frida Kalho –Biography

********************** 161-167

Appendix C: Nick Vujicic –Biography

********************** 168-170

Appendix D: Certificate of Completion CIPSHI

****************

171

Appendix E: Demonstrative Class on the use of Mental and Conceptual Maps in 7th to 11th ESL students

*********************

172-174

Appendix F: Teacher Lesson Plan for the use of Mental and Conceptual Maps in 7th to 11th ESL students

*********************

175-183

FIGURES Figure 1: Model of Social Intelligences

********************

184

Figure 2: The conception of Personalized Education (P. E.) in Garcia Hoz

********************

185

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Figure 3: A Model of Resilient Learning

*************

186

Figure 4: Models of Traditional and Energy Based Learning Diagrams **************************

186

Figure 5: Model of Energy Based appyed to Resilient Learning *****

187

Figure 6: Diagram comparing Levels of Intelligence

********

188

**************

188

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES ****************************************

189

Figure 7: Comparison of Levels of Intelligence

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Introduction: The concept of Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence as a paradigm in the resilience learning and teaching processes is presented in this dissertation as an alternative teaching/learning experience, seeing it as a tool to develop life-long term learning experiences with the goal of developing resiliency in all-ages students.

Learning, as a continuum or as a life- long process, is herein sustained by a vision of experience-based or an experiencial learning one. Focusing this experiencial learning process within a resilient learning or learning for life experiences, the methodological goals within this educational framework will go far beyond the K-12 or even the university level, graduate or post graduate learning/teaching settings: The model herein presented represents a macro or global vision of life itself as the educational environment.

Learning as a process of living, of survival, overcoming adversities, limitations, illness, poverty, loses, handicap; in other words, risk factors in life. Of couse, with the ultimate goal of obtaining a positive outcome as result of the teaching/learning experience. The outcome moral value: service.

The development and mastering not just of academic or subject matters objectives, in our case, TESL, but a vision of life goals achievement, resulting in

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wealthbeing adaptative skills, that is; in the service intelligences as result (Combariza, 2012).

Aim: This dissertation aims to present a literature review of the main theories on Resilience, their evolution, and Multiples Intelligences involved in the Theory of Resilience. To Propose and develop a Model of Resilience, suggesting possible Paradigms in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes. The concept, methodology and educational bases of a Personalized Education Model or Personalized Teaching will be suggested as an important element in the Inner Knowledge Paradigm in TESL and beyond TESL.

Purpose of the Study: Among the purposes of this study are the following: 1- Review the multiple theories concerning learning, cognition, multiple intelligences and other new tendencies oriented to develop the resilient learning/teaching processes, such as spiritual, social, emotional, experiencial and service intelligencies.

2- Review, expand and develop a theory of the resilient, seeing learning as a lifelong experience of human development.

3-Review, expand and develop a personalized model in education; in our case, focused in the ESL learning and teaching processes.

4- Review, expand and suggest a Questionaire on ESL students’s interests and

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preferences in search of a Model of Personalized Education in TESL as a tool for knowing and personalizing students’s learning styles, following an Investigationin-Action Qualitative Research.

5-Through the use of Biographies as a Qualitative Approach, develop resilient behaviors in all- ages ESL students by the use of readings of resilient characters.

6-Recommend possible learning/teaching environments to foster life long oriented and resilient behaviors in K-12, University level, undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate students withing the ESL scenario.

6-Emphazise the concept of experiencial learning, seeing it as a life-long experience which goes beyond formal-academic environments.

In synthesis, to set a Proposal for developing a Model of Resilience, suggesting possible Paradigms in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes, applied to the use of Biographies as a Qualitative Approach in ESL.

Rationale: During centuries the concept of learning, and consequently, teaching processes have been hypothezised, theorized, and simply debated in the academic arena. The ideas of great teachers such as Plato, Aristotle, and theorists on the animal and/or human behavior such as Piaget, Pavlov, Skinner, Social learning theorists as Bandura among others, have also been in the public as well as academic debate. Furthermore, theories on Resilience and the resilient learner are nowadays on stage.

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Statement of the Problem: A model of how Resilient learn and how to teach them seems to be a problem that requires study and deep considerations. Because of this reason, this dissertation presents a macro or global framework, where the interaction of multiple intelligences, cognitive and bi-cognitive styles of learning and new tendencies such as Flow and Mindsets theories provide multiple environments where resilient behaviors can take place both inside the school settings and far beyond.

School or formal education should be seen as an experiencial laboratory where learning is seen as a life-long experience of human development and not only as a subject-matters related and limited skills-mastering processes. As Howard Gardner suggests, education is a whole or life-long process where learning takes place; in short words, humans never stop learning (Gardner, H., 2011). Moreover, Gardner expresses that after the multiples intelligences have been formulated, learning through a personalized view is needed and Personalized Education is a must in today’s teaching/learning processes (Gardner, H., 2011), also in: http://www.rtve.es/television/20111209/inteligencias-multiples-educacionpersonalizada/480968.shtml, and (Bernardo, J. C., et al, 2011).

This Dissertation is oriented in the search of a Personalized Education Model among ESL students to develop their resiliency. A Qualitative Method through the Use of Biographies (Lucca Irizarry & Berios Rivera, 2009) will be considered as a tool on the quest of possible answers to this phenomenological aspect in life as a main goal or purpose.

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Research Questions: The literature review (Chapter 2) presents a macro visualization of learning and cognitive theories that are studied and presented in this dissertation as theoretical frameworks in search for answering the questions formulated next.

Questions such as: When does the Cognitive Processes initialize in human beings? How do humans learn? Is there a knowledge conscience prior to birth? Is there a social learning, passed over generation to generation? Are humans nowadays more intelligent than before? Are there privileged minds? Can humans develop knowledge at a higher level? And many other unanswered questions.

Furthermore, questions surge among intellectualists in terms of: Where does knowledge come from: within or outside us through the five senses? (ADN Decodification Studies [1953], Theory of Relativism of Einstein, A.) Is it possible there exists a cosmic energy which is an eternal source of knowledge? (Theory of the Vacuum Empty- Quantic Space: Quantum Theory, Theory of the Eleven Strings). Can human access such kind of universal knowledge or wisdom? If so, Can all humans develop higher learning capabilities than the average ones? And finally, How does the resilient learning processes affect resilient themselves and others’s?

It seems humans express more questions than available answers in terms of the learning and teaching processes. Nevertheless, there are still spaces for new proposals on this field. It is why the concept of Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence will be herein suggested or proposed as a paradign in the resilient learning and teaching experience processes, seeing these processes as a life-long or experiencial learning phenomena.

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In terms of ESL approaches used in Reading, Can the reading of Biographies help to improve learning in ESL students? Moreover, Can the process both of Teaching as well as Learning can help to develop resilient behaviors? Finally, Can biographies as a Qualitative Approach be used towards fostering life-long learning in and out ESL classrooms?

Justification of the Study: The Inner Knowledge: a paradigm in the Resilience learning and teaching processes surges within the consideration of long struggles between those who believe or have believed there is nothing written on our thinking tables or tabula rasa theorists (Aristotle, John Locke, others) and new theorists who consider the possibility of innate capabilities for learning in humans as long as men exist on earth. This last vision within the scoupe generation to generation genetic learning transmission as a tool for living and evolution.

Still others suggest ancient alien visitors have come to our planet Earth and have brought humans ancestral knowledge such as ability to build huge structures such as the Pyramids and great temples of legendary cultures such as Mayans, Incas, Aztecs and others that no longer exist; (Acient Alien Astronauts Theory [2013], Fern谩ndez-Col贸n, P., Vidas , 2012); resulting in supernatural powers such as levitation, telepathy and the ability to travel in time as a sample (Quantic Physics and Quantic Chemistry Theories; Quantum Physics, 2013). Maybe these assumptions are lacking of evidence, but their historic legacy is certainly there as testimony of higher intellectual cultures (http://ancientastronauttheory.com/).

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The Inner Knowledge, as it is called in this dissertation, suggests the possibility humans have to be self-taught; to have capabilities within themselves which guide them in the learning processes; extra sensorial skills to communicate, reconstruct their experiences and knowledge, and many other psychic development such as been able to know future events, find hidden evidences and the ability to “read� others’ minds as well among other phenomenological experiences.

If humans are able to develop higher cognitive and extra-sensorial capabilities, through the use of these virtues or high-level skills, with a resilient behavioral approach many who suffer, who are disabled or handicapped, who live under limitations, poverty, social dispairs and so, would be able to receive the invalorable apportations that service intelligences, as Helena Combariza expresses in her study of resilient behaviors (Combariza, H., 2012).

And probably these abilities have been present in humans for centuries and millenniums ago, since men exist, (Winslow, P., 2014). A long ago colloquial phrase says: knowledge is within us (unknown source) that suggests that the learning processes start just right there; in our ownselves.

If it were the case, a consideration regarding this possibility is herein proposed as a paradigm for explaining and guiding both the learning as well as the teaching processes.

In addition, Resilience learning processes or Resilience Theory as a Framework for Teaching Human Development as it has been called by Toomey, Brennan & Friesen (2013), can set the new paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes. The

concept of Human Development is also presented by David Kolberg (Kolberg, D., 1984).

These and many other aspects molded within the Resilience Model of the learning

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experience will be fully presented, expanded, developed and propossed in the following chapter: Review of Literature. But, let’s first briefly introduce the concepts to be sustained as fundamentals for presenting a model of a Personalized Education within the Resilience Theory.

Essencial elements concerning P.E. (Personalized Education) as suggested by García Hoz (1970, 1981, 1988, 1991, 1994, 1995), Gardner (2011) and Orengo (2013) will be also reviewed. On the other hand, fundamental elements concerning Resilient Learning are considered as it has been propossed by Kotliareco, Cáceres-Orellana, HollAlvarez & Combariza (2006, 2012), orienting its results into the concept of Service Intelligence or Inteligencia de Servicio as Helena Combariza (2012), named it in Spanish.

Biographies as a Qualitative Approach in ESL: The process of self-taught has a long history. There are plenty of humans who, during their lifetime, have learned by themselves different skills: musical, academic, and intellectual, politic, and artistic as in literature and poetry and so on. In Puerto Rico’s history, there is the case of Luis Muñoz Rivera, our first Resident Commisioner at Washington, D.C., Ramón Emeterio Betances, the teacher of the Americas as he is known in the Latin American communities, Pedro Albizu Campos, a social leader and politician who fought for the independence and freedom of Puerto Rico, and our well remembered and loved teacher, Eugenio María de Hostos, father of our educational philosophy, in memory of whom our Faculty of Education building (UPRRP) honors his name.

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There is no doubt concerning the great wisdom and intellectualism these Illustrous men had, and how their knowledge has impacted others even nowadays.

Worldwide well known cases of people who demonstrated to have a special inner knowledge and wisdom, are Nelson Mandela, who became President of South Africa after being put into prison and obtained the Nobel Prize; Winner of World Peace; Indira Gandhi, spiritual leader and social reformer of India, and Víctor Frank, a psycoanalist of Austria who lived during the concentration camps of the Nazzi Germany during World War I and became free after the war, who created the concept of logoteraphy. And, why not: Mother Theresa of Calcuta, a religious woman who fought poverty, social despair, and hunger among many, becoming a Nobel Prize Winner for the world peace too.

Probably the most mentioned as being a resilient person, even when there was not such designation of the term, was Frida Kalho, an admirable woman from whom these words: “…I do not need my legs if I have wings that make me fly…” (translation by author) from: …“NO NECESITO PIERNAS…TENGO ALAS PARA VOLAR”! (see Appendix B). Certainly Frida is the very best of Resiliency.

In recent years, there is the resilient vivid case of Nick Vujicic, who was born without arms and legs (Appendix C). A common characteristic in these men and women’s experiences was that they have made their marks, footprints, as people who developed a higher intelligence, social involvement and empathy towards others; even when they had to cross their dry deserts and survived. Not only survived their humiliation, disgrace and ignominy, but they overcame all their limitations and struggles in their lifetime, showing others how to “produce fruits on any ground” (Mathew 13; 8 RV 1960), even at the desert. These extraordinary citizens of the world and of humanity

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showed characteristics that evidence they belonged to a group of people who are named Resilient or who shared Resilient behaviors.

Methodology: The methodology to be used in this dissertation as it is presented and described in details in Chapter 3: METHODOLOGY, is a Qualitative one; (Lucca-Irizarry & BerrĂ­os-Rivera, 2003, 2009), using a Biographical Approach, proposed as an ESL Reading tool to develop the Resilience in our students, from young children to adults as well, with the objectives already presented in the Aim. Within the use of Biographies in its broad sense: Life histories, Autobiographicals, Personal narratives or Personal Views of both life and experience on the narrative, (Lucca-Irizarry & BerrĂ­os-Rivera, 2003, 2009: Chapter 6: pp.188-221), will be heard directly from the experiences lived by these characters, in order to provide living examples of Resilient persons as instruments to develop both the learning as well as the teaching processes in the Resilient (Chapter 4: BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes).

Definition of Terms: The terminology introduced herein and expressed in the next lines are the more relevant terms to be used in this dissertation.

Resilience or Resiliency: Resilience, which is defined as the capabilities humans have to overcome, reconstruct or re-shape their learning as a product of their own experiences (Combariza,

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2006, 2012, Rutter, 1930, and others), in terms of self-teaching subjects provide an educational ground to implement this paradigm. Resilient people are example of humans who have developed this inner knowledge to overcome their limitations, difficulties and disgraces in their lives.

Resilience or Resiliency is also defined as follows: [in] children who experience trauma or other circumstances that put them at risk yet emerge from their challenges with positive developmental outcomes (Garmezy, 1985; Rutter, 1987; Sameroff, 1993).

Another description of resilient (children and adults) is the following: The social circumstances of substantial numbers of children are declining in contemporary society. The developmental processes of these children, and of the adolescents and adults they become, are put at risk by circumstances of poverty, violence, discrimination, abuse and neglect, and parental mental illness or substance abuse (Institute of Medicine, 1989; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1991).

Resilience is the capability of a human being to overcome his/her dificulties and at the same time learn from his/her errors. It is the capacity (capabilities) of an individual or social system to live well and to positively develop, among the difficult life conditions they may have, and much more, to get out strengthened and transformed from them (Combariza, 2006, 2012).

The term Resilience is also applied to characterize or define those people whom eventhought being born and lived under high risk situations, they have been psychologically healthy and successfully developed (Rutter, 1930).

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Helena Combariza (2012) in her presentation (ppt) Compensar: El Arte de Formar Servidores, presents a model of Service, where she applies the concept Resilience to Service Intelligence and describes it as the interaction of a variety of other intelligences: Spiritual, Practical, Presential, Virtual, Rational and Emotional. In addition, Helena places these intelligences in three levels of achievement: Basic, Inter (or intermediate) and Advanced. (See Pictures, Figure 1).

Previously in April 14, 2011, Combariza expressed herself towards origins of the concept of Resilience as follows: “…This term was initially related to engineering applications; as the capability (or capacity) of a material to regain its shape after been subject to pressure which has deformed it previously” (http://prevencioncolonia.blogspot.com/).

The origin of the term Resilience is resilio as the capability or capacity of returning to the original form or state (http://www.discyresiliencia.com/wpcontent/uploads/Tesis.pdf). Based on this Engineering view of Resilience there, then, are resilient cars, metals and materials. Still other definitions are applied as an adaptation of the term within expanded applicational scenarios such as ecological and environmental environments (Collins English Dictionary, 10th Ed.).

Two additional terms that also fit into the Resilient Theory are: Experiential Learning as postulated by Kolb, D. (1984), and Modification of Cognition or Cognition Modification theories as presented in the Thesis of Diaz-Rey and Parra-Sequeda (2007).

Moreover, Dweck, C., (2006, 2010, 2012) in Mindsets establishes: “In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of

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learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment. Virtually all great people have had these qualities” (Dweck, C., 2012), also in: http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/themindsets/index.html.

For the purpose on this dissertation, Resilience or Resiliency is defined in the following terms: Resilience or Resiliency simply is a term that describes both people as well as any living thing or things, including animals, plants, or any other category or species that may surge in future, which or whom no matter the difficulties that may appear in their existential trajectory, this is, in their lives or lifetime, they are restored, reshaped, overcome their adversities and finally, end their bad experiences with successful results: Serving others as positive outcomes or results of their resilience experience.

In this definition, the writer does not limit the application of the term (Resilience) to humans only, but also to animals and plants which have shown similar characteristics of positive outcomes (in Spanish: superación) as humans, after having positively overcome their crisis (Translation from: Restore your Existential Circuits: A Model of Resiliency; Fernández-Colón, P., 2011).

In the following lines the first conceptions of Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence is described as an essencial key element in the Resilient learning process.

Inner Knowledge (Inner Intelligence) The first conception of Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence (I.I.) has been proposed by Robert Collier, The Secret of the Ages, (http://helpinghealing.com/blog/inner-intelligence/). In his own words he expressed: Inner Intelligence (I.I.): “You don’t need to concern yourself consciously for it to work properly because the task is dispatched on deeper levels of your subconscious mind by the inner intelligence.”

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“Living beings are equipped with an inner intelligence that supervises, repairs, operates and builds their bodies from the ground up, and it’s at work in every one of the trillions of cells in your body”.

Inner knowledge can describe resilient people as long as they have developed their auto didactical (self-improved or self-taught) capabilities. Inner strengths, innate and acquired understandings, Inter-personal, Intra-personal Intelligences (Gardner, H., 1994, The Theory of Multiple Intelligences) or Social Intelligences; new term recently conceived as well as Emotional Intelligence (Guerri, M., 2013) by a group of psycholinguistics and social-linguistics (Mayer & Salovey, et al; 2001) as the combination and modification of Gardner’s Inter-Personal and Intra-Personal Intelligences.

Types of intelligences: Resilient subjects appear to have within them a sum of various types of intelligences: spiritual, emotional, musical, artistic, intra-personal and with the adaptative or social intelligences [inter-personal], rational, spatial, presencial, virtual (which can be socially acquired, developed, perfected and learned) as product between their interactions with their environments (social, religious, educational, cultural, etc.) and others.

Experiences-based learning: Experiences-based learning is also considered as a characteristic present on the resilient learning process. The possibility of other inner intelligencies, as product of their own experiences and memories (flujo) as defined and explained by Csikszent, M., (2009): “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience” as a flow, stream, energy-based, reconstructive or elastic intelligences usually named for centuries as “wisdom” or moral

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intelligences, appear to occupy a significant and pragmatic purpose for the resilient in order to be successful in life.

Moreover, their abilities to interact, help, and support others have a much more and deeper nature. Much more than intra-personal, social, spiritual, maybe with the sense of it been a gift, a virtue, provide them with a “don de gente” humanship, sensitivity, caring for others and other things beyond just humans.

A sense of well being, of not being attached or not having the need to be attracted to material things and possessions; (in Spanish: desprendimiento) defined by Kolberg, D. (1984), as Moral Development; that missionary spirit of helping others, giving their bests, sharing their bread with others, seems to be an extraordinary experience of evolved or enlighted beings. In India’s terms, it could be said “as having reached illumination” as Ghandi, Budda, Christ, Mahoma, Mother Theresa of Calcuta, Saint Augustine, and many other spiritual teachers of ancient times, had reached. The presence of light over their heads is considered as physical phenomena, which accompany them - not always - but when needed, as the case of Moses, in the Book of Exodus, (The Bible); a sublime dedication in serving others instead of serving themselves.

Inner-Mind/Head (Ori-inu).

Finally, another conception of Inner Knowledge and how it is related to the Resilient, in terms of its capabilities for deeper knowledge and service appears in Funso Aiyegina & Rawle Gibbons: Orisa (Orisha) Tradition in Trinidad, (2000). This text suggests the concept of INNER-MIND/HEAD (Ori-inu) as a conception of an African religious tradition practiced by the Orisa-Yoruba followers in Trinidad. During its

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influence or manifestation the individual was connected with an Inner Intelligence or Inner Mind/Head, called Ori-Inu: “…when he publicly prayed to them (the catholic Saints), his inner-mind/ head …(Ori-inu) which is regarded by the (New World’s, Caribbean Africans) …to be by far more powerful than the actual head (mind), In spiritual matters, was praying to the equivalent Orisa (or African Saints).” The results were in favor of the followers’ needs.

The importance or relevance of this reading to the concept of INNER KNOWLEDGE, or Inner Intelligence which is been propossed and redefined here, is in terms of African religious ceremonies, through which certain individuals are capable of transcending and obtaining “information” or knowledge that go far beyond human rationality or human natural senses.

Personalized Education: Personalized Education as defined by García-Hoz (1991, 1992, 1994, 1995) is seen as: Personalized Education as an educational Model is founded on the premises that human beings as persons are capable of exploring, changing and transforming the world.

The essencial characteristics that support the P.E.M., seeing humans as persons, are: singularity – originality – creativity, autonomy – liberty – responsability, openess – comunication and trascendency. (Victor García Hoz: Educación Personalizada, 1994).

Personalized Education (P.E.), is the intentional perfection of the human person by: its own concious and free activity; the friendly commonwealth and a well realized activity” García Hoz (1993, pp. 35 and 43). García Hoz sees P.E. as an integrative human

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behavioral process (to be human or being human) looking towards achieving it (perfection) not only as an individual but as a common or well being goal.

Rita Ferrini interprets and presents the concepts of P.E., seeing it as an educational modality which facilitates the human growth in the actual or living performance of the Personalized Education characteristics: Singularity– creativity – originality, Autonomy– liberty, Openess – comunication as fundamental values in the learning processes which are mediated by conversation.

Ferrini R. (2000).

Summary of Chapter 1 and Overview of Reminder of the Dissertation: The figurative or metaphoric words previously used: “don de gente”, enligted, evolved, etcetera, just give us an idea of the greatness of serving others, to be part of humanity, without pretending power, outstanding, egocentricity, but in the contrary: simplicity, modesty, naturality and a sense of or as having a purpose in life. These introductory words describe a Resilient. In this consists the idea of developing a personalized teaching model based on the Theory of Resilience.

In this Introductory Chapter the concepts of Resilience, Multiple Intelligences and their effect on resilient subjects, and the concept of Personalized Education were briefly presented and defined. An overview of a new paradigm in the Learning and Teaching Processes on Resilience: The Inner Knowledge was also introduced.

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In the next chapter, REVIEW OF LITERATURE, the evolution or progression of Resilience or Resiliency Theory will be traced, from its first proponents or theorists, until the newest theorists on the phenomenology of Resiliency.

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE:

Introduction: In this dissertation, a broad theoretical review on different learning, cognitive and multi-intelligences integration, and their contributions to human development as they help to conceptualize a paradigm in the resilient learning and teaching processes will be carry on. Basic but essencial elements on how to construct a pedagogical framework for the use of Biography as a qualitative research methodology will be aimed within ESL allages learners; this, with the purposes of developing a personalized view of education, with the goal of developing resilient behaviors in students, through the reading of biographies.

The literature to be herein reviewed will be focused on these premises, considering the resilient behavior as an ultimate life achievement in ESL and far beyond.

A progressive procedure while presenting the review of literature will be developed, with the intention of following an investigation-in-action in addition to principles of Emergent Theory Aproach procedures used within the qualitative research methodology.

Having introduced these important considerations to clarify our goal in the progress of this investigation, the concepts, as they relate to the specified theoretical frames and their relevance within our purpose, will be herein reviewed.

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Resilience: Its Origin and Evolution: The first concept to be reviewed and to be broadly defined is resilience and how it has evolved from its origin. From one applied to the individual (first stage of R.) a second stage, applied to society or collective (second stage of R.), and a third stage or transformational resilience (Third stage of R.), in terms of social responses to needs of both individual (1st Stage), groups or the collective (2nd Stage), as it is transformed in the formulation of public policies and programs to be implemented to attain the needs of resilient.

Origin of the Term: In its origins; during 1620â&#x20AC;&#x201C;30; it was defined as: < Latin resili ( Ä&#x201C;ns ), present participle of resilÄŤre to spring back, rebound (see resilient) + -ence. Resiliency was expressed as: the state or quality of being resilient (Collins English Dictionary, 10th Ed.).

Resilience, as a psychological phenomena in personal growth applications has been established by three major precursors of the term in the XX Century: Rutter (1992), as well as Kotliarenco (1997) and Kolberg (1994) among others. Based on their definitions are the ones that concern to the purpose of this study. A fourth important proponent and defender of the Theory of Resilience in the XXI Century has been Helena Combariza (2006, 2012).

Resilience, which is defined as the capabilities humans have to overcome, reconstruct or re-shape their learning as a product of their own experiences (Combariza, 2006, 2012, Rutter, 1930, and others), in terms of self-teaching, subjects provide an educational ground to implement this paradigm. Resilient people are example of humans

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who have developed this inner knowledge to overcome their limitations, difficulties and disgraces in their lives.

Resilience or Resiliency is also defined as follows: In children who experience trauma or other circumstances that put them at risk yet emerge from their challenges with positive developmental outcomes (Garmezy, 1985; Rutter, 1987; Sameroff, 1993).

Another description of resilient (children and adults): â&#x20AC;&#x153;The social circumstances of substantial numbers of children are declining in contemporary society. The developmental processes of these children, and of the adolescents and adults they become, are put at risk by circumstances of poverty, violence, discrimination, abuse and neglect, and parental mental illness or substance abuseâ&#x20AC;? (Institute of Medicine, 1989; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1991).

Resilience is the capability of a human being to overcome his/her dificulties and at the same time learn from his/her errors. It is the capacity or capabilities of an individual or social system to live well and to positively develop, among the difficult life conditions they may have, and much more, to get out strengthened and transformed from them (Combariza, 2006, 2012).

Michael Rutter (1930, 1992/1993), one of the two first 20th Century pioneers on Resilience, signals it as: to characterize or define those people whom even thought being born and lived under high risk situations, they have been psychologically healthy and successfully developed (Rutter, 1930). Rutter also sees Resilience as: the combination of social and intra- psychic process which facilite or make possible for living positively well in a hostile and insane environment (Rutter, 1992). Finally, he considers that foundations

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or pilars of Resilience are both constitutional as well as environmental (Rutter 1990, 1993).

A second 20th Century pioneering proponent on Resilience Theory is María Kotliarenco (1997). She sees Resilience as Rutter’s vision. In addition she considers Resilience as a life-long process that takes place in children and adolescents as well as adults as product of their interactions with their environment during certain times or circumstances of opposition or Risk factors as later called by Fernandez-Colon, P.,(2006).

Both Rutter and Kotliarenco have been working in children as well as adolescent interventions and have a solid bibliographical repertoir. They have been working with Resilience, not just theorizing on it. Their work have contributed to humanize the concept as it is transformed in the attention of resilient needs, especially the children and youth. http://www.discyresiliencia.com/wpcontent/uploads/Tesis.pdf .

Other proponent and defendant of the Resilience Theory is E. Groterberg, (2004), who sees Resilience as the human capability to face, overcome and finally, to come out strengthed and transformed from adversal experiences in life.

In the article: Resilience Theory as a Framework for Teaching Human Development within HBSE by Alaine Toomey, Eileen M. Brennan, and Barbara Friesen (2013) in the link: http://www.rtc.pdx.edu/PDF/pbResilienceTheory.pdf , they present how

Resiliency is been applied in helping children and adolescents by diferent organizations.

They say: “…The developmental processes of these children, and of the adolescents and adults they become, are put at risk by circumstances of poverty, violence, discrimination, abuse and neglect, and parental mental illness or substance abuse

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(Institute of Medicine, 1989; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1991). Theoreticians and researchers have recognized and responded to these challenges by examining resilience in children who experience trauma or other circumstances that put them at risk yet emerge from their challenges with positive developmental outcomesâ&#x20AC;? (Garmezy, 1985; Rutter, 1987; Sameroff, 1993).

According to these three researchers on R, they see R in the following conceptualization: Resilience Theory as a Framework for Teaching Human Development within HBSE; a Health and Human Based Services on Education Programs or Organizations - (as the Institute of Medicine, 1989; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1991). They clearly expressed their aim in their paper when it is said: The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for teaching human Development â&#x20AC;Śhttp://www.rtc.pdx.edu/PDF/pbResilienceTheory.pdf .

As it has previously been presented, Resiliency has been evolving from its original postures and definitions and has become a social instrument for helping children, adolescents, adults, and in a broader scope, whole communities under adverse living developmental conditions.

Evolution of Resilience Theory: As previously introduced herein and briefly defined in Chapter 1: Introduction, Resiliency has been presented in three stages: 1- Individual resilient, 2- Group or social resilient and 3- apportation for solving social problems or Service.

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During the Opening Session of the Latinamerican Seminar of Resiliency (Buenos Aires, Oct. 26-27, 2000), Resiliency was defined as “the obstination of life over all forms of death. Perhaps someone has the sensation that life is full of obstination, life is resilient, having a singular power, moreover, it is a transformer of death itself,… where both life and death represent different ways of human, social, universal and global evolution” (translation by autor).

A Thesis presented on the social work discipline, brings the concept of Resilience as a Paradigm to face or aboard the social problem of the disabled or handicap population in terms of providing functional tools to help them overcome their physical limitations and positively transform their adversities into positive results (Renzi, D., 2010).

In this Thesis a voluminous amount of definitions of Resiliency are presented. But it is on the Second Chapter that the concept of Resilience as a Paradigm is considered.

Same title as the Thesis’s one; after considering the functions and responsibilities of Social Workers in benefit of others, Renzi proposes three stages in the evolution of Resiliency; they are: 1- The First Stage of Resilience Theory: Individual Resilience as sustained and defined by Kotliarenco, Wolin among others theorists. 2- Second Stage: Social Resilience (Suárez Ojeda among others), and 3- Third Stage: Theory of embrace and psychological contributions (Cyrulnik, V. Frank, among others).

Because the main purpose of this dissertation is to propose a model for the learning and teaching processes based on the Paradigm of Resilience within a reading of biographies in ESL, additional references related to the definition of Resiliency are not included; but indeed, they (additional definitions on Resilience or Resiliency) are suggested for further reviews at the end of the writing within a life-long learning framework.

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Resilience: From Theory to Practice: As it is previously expressed in the Third Stage on the evolution of the concept of Resilience, suggested readings will be reviewed in this chapter as long as they provide vital information, tools, techniques and practical applications regarding Resilience as a Paradigm for social change and service; this is Transformational Resilience or (3rd Stage R.).

At the 2º Foro Social de Información, Documentación y Bibliotecas 7 y 8 de septiembre de 2006 Auditorio del Instituto de Investigaciones Antropológicas de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México - UNAM – México, DF, Eje: 2: Responsabilidad social y ética del profesional de la información, a qualitative investigation or research article was presented in this 2nd Social Forum of Information, Documentation and Libraries at the UNAM convention at Mexico, September 2006.

The article alluded in the Social Forum is entitled: La animación a la lectura en una comunidad desplazada en Colombia, una experiencia de compromiso profesional, social y político del bibliotecólogo y de lecciones aprendidas (Uribe- Tirado, A., et al.

2006).

These researchers in the educational field of Library Sciences, who are mainly librarians, presented an etnographical fieldwork in a marginated (displaced) Colombian community: Alto de la Virgen (Medellín, Colombia), where students of this field developed a social project based on the use of reading as an educational approach to social empowerment: This is, a reading and empowerment educational project with the objective of generating, thru Reading and its corresponding implications and by-products (e.i., reflexion), in order to provide to this community’s children a living space for

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relaxation and recreation, focused on improving their self esteem, providing a catharsis as it is needed to face their dehumanized or inhuman conditions of living, as to avoid the loosing of their great values and potentialities because of their injustice social situation (Translation of author). The article considers that there have been more than 200,000 displaced families, just in Medellin, Colombia. http://www.cec.org.co/img_upload/6e6f7469636961732d2d2d2d2d2d2d2d/Conclusiones _Informe_Desplazados.doc.

The importance of this fieldwork, based on the Paradigm of Resilience, is the implementation of social or community-based programs in Latin America in response to improve empowerment and empathy among resilient social groups (3rd Stage Resiliency).

The contributions of Helena Combariza (2012) in order to develop an adaptation of the Resilience Theory into the labor world, “la Inteligencia del Servicio” or Service Intelligence (serving others) is a clear transformation of the transition from theory into practice of the Resilient Theory or Resilience Theory (3rd Stage R.). As many other theorists previously presented in this chapter, Combariza has demonstrated to be among the leaders or “big ones” in the R. T. in the 21st Century.

A valid contribution to this transition from theory to practice (3rd Stage R.), has been the huge efforts of the Latin American organizations and support groups, especially in the discipline of Social Work, helping resilient children and adolescent (1st Stage R.) to overcome their adverse living conditions as it has already been presented in this chapter.

A last big effort in developing community-oriented projects (3rd Stage R.) is the work of librarians working with displaced communities in Colombia, mainly in Medellin

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(2nd Stage R.) as it was discussed previously; specially with children and adolescents (1st Stage R.).

Empowerment techniques are being used to transform socially depressed communities (2nd Stage R.) in order to help them gain a better quality of living, as well as educational tools to help them reaching their dreams (3rd Stage R.).

The following areas of interest related to the purpose of this dissertation are to be reviewed and discussed next in the following paragraphs. These theories are enclosed in the following contexts: Resilient have learned to use both external (adaptative) as well as internal (inner, innate or own built) intelligences.

Recapitulating the material already reviewed on resiliency, reading as an educational tool for 3rd Stage Resiliency or transformational resilience has been initially established as we progress in the investigation-in-action research in the literature review.

Theories on Learning Processes Considered: One of the major proponents on human learning of all times has been Plato (428427, A.D.), a Greek philosopher who interpreted the learning processes as reflections of the reality with the illustration of the man inside the cave. He suggested that reality was not what men were living in, instead, they were not free; the men were inside a cave, where what they saw, thought, interpreted as reality was simply the reflections or shadows of reality itself, which was outside the cave, the real world.

The theory of Platoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s conception of the Ideas and how they interact and are been transformed by such interactions among them, consists the process of learning. (Salvat Encyclopedia, Vol. 10, pp. 2663-2664). Plato considered the origin of the learning

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processes as internal, from the soul. Arjé is the Greek term used by Plato and other Greek philosophers (Cratilo, Socrates, Parmenides and Heraclito among others), suggesting that the Arjé (Soul), or eternal source of knowledge, internal knowledge, in combination with the ideas are the beginning and eternal source of the universes and through the process of Reminiscience or re-acknowledgement of the ideas, the human soul’s “true” knowledge is recovered; this, because of the senses imprecisions, especially the eye (vision, visual process of learning through senses), have lost or misinterpreted (the original and eternal) knowledge (p.2663); inner knowledge.

Finally, Plato suggested that the Arjé or soul in addition to be eternal (eternal source of knowledge) is intelligent, organized and guides the universe in search of a finality or common good [bién universal], (translation by author), ( p.2663).

Aristotle the Estagirita (384-322 A.C.), disciple of Plato, reorganized Plato’s as well as other’s contemporary Greek philosophical ideas of the learning processes; and expanded their contributions to the development of a scientific approach - inductive learning (in search of individual acknowledge through observation), expressing the concepts of matter, (material logic, great logic) movements and induction as evolution of the deductive (the eternal concept of matter or great matter) evolving through movement, within its four secondary states or manifestations: forms or elements; earth (ground), air, fire and water. (Salvat Encyclopedia Vol. 1, pp. 276-277).

It is interesting the teaching method used by Aristotle, The Estagirita: learning while having a walk in the garden. In 335 A.D., he established the Liceo or escuela peripatética; (learning or discussing while walking academy) (p.276).

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In the opening of the 20th Century, Albert Einstein, in his Theory of Relativism (1916) studied the physical properties of the element Mercury, as its perihelion state of gas or perihilio de Mercurio as a process on which the luminance (luminance rays) of this gas’s deviation (movement away) while passing by the sun, sustained his experimental theory. Basically, it suggested a new conception of universal rules in physics and mathematics. He sees the universe as a moving matter; where matter in its two basic aspects: mass and energy, in the presence of movement at light speed, decreases, and vice versa: in relaxation it increases (e.i; Elasticity) Salvat, Editores, (1972), Vol. 4, pp. 11521153.

The importance and application of Einstein’s relativism theory consists on the possibility of multiple states of matter and energy, with the capability of moving from a static object, matter on inertia, into moving or multiple ones. Einstein proposed that “time and space” means anything unless they are measured and perceived by the observer, with the help of Lorentz’s equations and measure instruments¹. Where the speed of light remains constant and independent. That is, every observer transports his/her own space and time (p. 1152). If it so, learning capabilities of humans may have multi-time/space dimensions; suggesting it in theory, the ability of time as well as space traveling1.

Lorenz, Hendrik Antoon (1853-1928) a Holand physician and mathematics professor at the University of Leiden (1878) initiated the studies on space-time coordinate transformations, base for relativism theory of Albert Einstein. Lorenz is responsible for the electro-mechanic theory on matter (Salvat Encyclopedia Vol. 8, p. 2041).

1

Lorentz’s equations and measure instruments: In allusion of Michelson’s theory: (Where) speed of light remains a constant and independent from space and the movement of matter or its inertia.

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Resent 21st Century theories on Quantic or Quantum Physics and Quantum Chemistry, suggest the possibility of what is called: The Quantic vacuum or simply the empty web (www.history.com/cuanticvacum. http://searchciomidmarket.techtarget.com/definition/quantum-theory, http://www.tendencias21.net/LaTeoria-Cuantica-una-aproximacion-al-universo-probable_a992.html).

According to these 21st Century theories, there are Eleven Strings or Theory of the Eleven Strings (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/string+theory), Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 2003-2012.

What these Quantic Vacuum theories suggest is the possibility of a cosmic source of knowledge as well as energy. The implications of having that kind of source of knowledge in the cosmos, take us go back into Plato’s and Aristotle’s conception of an eternal source of knowledge as primera material or First Matter.

If these conceptions of energy, matter, space and time variation and their properties, (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/elegant-universe.html) as well as manifestations are correct, the concepts and parameters on how humans learn suggest important considerations on how we teach too.

Recapitulating the relevance of these first learning theories earlier presented, a personalized educational model for resilient learners is taking shape, as we progress in the review of concerned literature.

Theories on Teaching and Cognitive Processes Considered: In the following paragraphs a variety of different theories concerning both teaching and cognitive processes are considered and reviewed. The integration of these

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theories are connected to the concepts of Personalized Education, Resilient Learning and Experiential Learning as important theoretical bases for developing a Personalized Model of Resilient Learning as the resulting methodology to be presented in Chapter 3.

Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences: Howard Gardner (1994) developed the concept of multiple intelligences as explanation to the mind structures and processes of learning. He classified these intelligences in seven (7) types or different intelligences: they are 1- Linguistic 2- Logic 3- Musical 4- Visual-spatial 5- Kinesthetic – Corporal kinetics 6- Interpersonal 7- Intrapersonal Gardner suggests the possibility of other types of intelligences but they were not included at this time (Gardner, 1994).

Bi-Cognitive Development in Education: In the Thesis for Master’s Degree in TESL: Cultural Aspects in the Teaching of English as a Second Language in Puerto Rico: Cognitive Styles and their Implications (Fernández-Colón, P., 1985) the author worked the concepts of Ramirez and Castañeda: Bi-cognitive Development (Ramirez & Castañeda, 1974) as well with other theories

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concerning Brain Specialization. Springer & Deutsch (1981), MacLean (1978), Nine-Curt (1980, 1983), Johnson (1983) and others.

These brain specialization theories were based on different functions of the right and left hemispheres. Consequently, suggesting different learning styles as well as teaching styles. Ramirez & Castañeda (1974) presented a view much more advanced than other theorists when they proposed a Bi-Cognitive Development Theory on the Learning and Teaching Processes in addition to cultural differentiation. Inclusively, they designed both students as well as teachers assessing methods on their preferred cognitive styles (Ibid). These both students as well as teachers’s assessing instruments were included as appendixes in this Master’s Degree Monograph (Fernández-Colón, P., 1985).

A common aspect presented in all these studies and others alike, consisted in the importance of cultural diversity, as well as preferences for one or other cognitive style, Cultural Democracy in Education as Ramirez & Castañeda (1974) named it.

Nine-Curt, C.J., (1980), was also in the debate for their cultural preferences in learning as well as teaching styles based on cultural orientation and preferences among ESL puertorican students (Nine-Curt, 1980, 1982, 1983).

Brown I. C., (1980), discussed the importance of Understanding other Cultures as well. Cheyney, A.B., (1976), suggested techniques used in Teaching Children of Different Cultures in the Classroom.

In the following electronic publications’ link: www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/, Fernandez-Colon, P., (2011, 2014) presents the concept of an energy-based theory for molding a teaching-learning model applied to Resilient Learning. He sees life-long learning as an electrical system of energy, where the

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resilient repairs his/her existential short-circuits or interruptions of flow following the same procedures as an expert in electricity or perito electricista repairs them; revising, making flow or current tests to identify where the electrical problems within the electrical system are, disconnecting local areas of the systems momentarilly to prevent been electrocuted while repairing the malfunction which causes the electrical failure. After cautiously repairs, taking all cautions and security measures, the system is restored; all bulbs turn in and the light comes all over where there previously was a lack of light, been the place in darkness (Fernandez-Colon, P., 2011, 2014).

A Proposal for a Model of Resilience will be discussed in the following paragraphs; based on this theory of multiple levels of energy and the theory of flow or Stream learning (TeorĂ­a del Flujo). As it has previously been reviewed, the Resilience Theory will serve as fundamentals for developing a new view on the learning and teaching processes as a paradigm for Resilient subjects.

A model of Resilience: In this section, in-depth considerations to the Resilience Theory and how it molds the cognitive processes in humans (and also in animals, plants, living things, etc.) will be reviewed and also discussed; as previously stated, with the goal of developing a personalized model of education for resilient learners.

Studies conducted with resilient subjects have been reviewed already. Concepts of Resilience, energy-based models of the cognitive processes and a new sight in how the learning, in general terms works in resilients is shown in Illustration 1.

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Illustration 1: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Col贸n, P., 2006).

In the unpublished document entitled: Repara tus circuitos existenciales: Un Modelo de Resilencia (2011): RESTORE YOUR EXISTENCIAL CIRCUITS: A Model of Resiliency, (Translation by author), revised in 2013, Fernandez-Colon considers Resilience and Energy in terms of cognitive development. Personal experiences and autobiographical considerations and reflections (auto-reflections) contribute to describe the phenomenology.

In the following diagram, a Model of Resilience is visualized as it was conceived by a group of students on Cognitive Development (UPRRP, Nov. 16, 2006).

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(Ilustration 2: Prof. Pablo Fern谩ndez Col贸n, UPR, Dept.of Graduate Studies, Pedagogy, 2006. Translation)

Based on the sub-group discussions in class concerning cognitive development theories, the previous diagram resulted as a Model of Resilience. The integration of different elements that affect learning in the lifetime experiences of (the) resilient, Incidental Elements in the Cognitive Process of Learning (Through Lifetime Experiences) and consequently, in their cognitive processes, are identified: Limitations (physical, emotional, intellectual, psychological, others). Environment (field of experiences, inner, external, interaction of both), Culture (traditions, music, social patterns, learning styles, meals, art, language, etc) Modeling, Heritage and Others, are described as elements that interact with and, consequently, affect both positively or negatively the overall development of the resilient (p.77).

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Recapitulating, the investigation-in-action methodology as it is been used in the review of literature, the idea of developing a personalized model of education within resilient learners, is certainly taking shape, of course, as the investigation progresses.

Theories on Cognitive Processes Considered: Ausubel (1968) in Education Psychology: a Cognitive View developed his cognitive theory. He defined cognitive processes or cognition as: …differences in intellectual patterns, in modes of organizing, classifying, and assimilating information about the cultural environment (p. 170).

Witkin et al., (1962) conducted an experiment in order to “explain the way people perceive both themselves and their world” (as cited in Fernandez-Colón, P., (1985, p.15).

The purpose of Witkin’s work was to determine field sensitivity or how the subjects perceived their environment. Ramirez and Castañeda used Witkin’s finding to determine the way students learn and perceive their environment. They named it as field dependent (external, adaptative, visual oriented) and field independent (inner, internal, own-body oriented) Ramirez & Castañeda, (1974), Fernandez-Colón P., (1985 p.16).

Brown (1980) studied Witkin’s work and explained that “a field independent person perceives a particular, relevant item or factor in a field of distracting items” (p.91). On the opposite position, field dependent subjects perceive their total environment or field as a “unified whole” (p.91). Ramirez and Castañeda expressed this conception as: “The perception of a field-dependent subject is determined by the overall organization of the field” (p.67). Cited also in Fernandez-Colón P., (1985 p.16).

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Based on these findings on how humans organize, explain, classify and perceive their environment, Trotter (1976) designed a table describing activities controlled by each hemisphere on the human brain (Brain Specialization); p.218. (See Table 1) ACTIVITIES CONTROLLED BY EACH HEMISPHERE Left Hemisphere

Right Hemisphere

1. Speech, Verbal

1. Spatial, Musical

2. Logical, Mathematical

2. Holistic, (Whole)

3. Linear, Detailed

3. Artistic, Symbolic

4. Sequential

4. Simultaneous

5. Controlled

5. Emotional

6. Intellectual

6. Intuitive, Creative

7. Dominant

7. Minor, Quiet

8. Wordy

8. Spiritual

9. Active

9. Receptive

10. Analytic

10. Synthetic, Gestalt

11. Reading, Writing, Naming

11. Facial Recognition

12. Sequential Ordering

12. Simultaneous Comprehension

13. Perception of Significant Order

13. Perception of Abstract Figures

14. Complex Motor Sequence

14. Recognition of Complex Figure

Trotter (1976) activities controlled by each hemisphere on the human brain (Brain Specialization)

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Based on this early studies on brain specialization, there are nowadays a huge gamma of learning or cognitive theories and in correlation to them, proposals for different or multiple intelligences as Gardner (1994), Combariza (2012) and others.

Within these are the works of Leslie Hart, (1983), Human Brain and Human Learning.

In recent years the use of Mental and Conceptual Maps, (Novak, J. D. (1998), Learning, Creating, and Using Knowledge: Concept Maps as Facilitative Tools in Schools and Corporations. as well as the studies conducted by Buzan, T., (1996), The Mind Map Book, are being used withing the methodology which points towards the enhancement of learning skills in students (through Differentiated methodology) as established in the Puerto Rico Core Standards for the English Program, 2014. But we are still far from Personalized Education in our ESL methodology.

The concept of Inner Intelligence or Inner Knowledge is reviewed and discuss in the next paragraphs now on and how it helps to develop a Personalized Education.

The Inner Knowledge (First Stage): A model of Resilience is herein considered in terms of the Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence theory.

A model of Resilience (First Stage): In this section of this second chapter, in-depth considerations to the Resilience Theory and how it molds the cognitive processes in humans (and also in animals, plants, living things, etc.) is discussed.

Studies conducted with resilient subjects have been reviewed already. In this authorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s previous works, available at: www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/

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Concepts of Resilience, energy-based models of the cognitive processes and a new sight in how the learning, in general terms works in resilients will be served as the main dish of this work.

In the book (unpublished document) entitled: Repara tus Circuitos Existenciales: un Modelo de Resilencia (2011), (Restore yourExistential Circuits: A Model of Resiliency), (Translation by author), revised in 2013, the author considers Resilience and Energy in terms of cognitive development. Personal experiences and autobiographical considerations and reflections (auto reflections) contribute to describe the phenomenology.

As it was seen in Ilustration 2: Model of Resilience, (p. 47), and visualized as it was conceived by a group of students on Cognitive Development (UPRRP, Nov. 16, 2006), as previously introduced, based on the sub-group discussions in class concerning cognitive development theories, the previous diagram resulted as a Model of Resilience as an investigation-in-action approach product. As also cited before: â&#x20AC;&#x153;The integration of different elements that affect learning in the lifetime experiences of the resilient, named as Incidental Elements in the Cognitive Process of Learning (Through Lifetime Experiences) and consequently, in their cognitive processes, were identified: Limitations (physical, emotional, intellectual, psychological, others). Environment (field of experiences, inner, external, interaction of both), Culture (traditions, music, social patterns, learning styles, meals, art, language, etc) Modeling, Heritage and Others, and described as elements that interact with and, consequently, affecting both positively or negatively the overall development of the resilientâ&#x20AC;? (p.77).

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The second aspect in the resilient cognitive development is the combination of the incident elements previously mentioned and their interactions between them and the subject; resulting in the concept of Risk Factors.

As reviewed and briefly discussed in previous sections of this second chapter, literature review, this interaction of incident elements in the cognitive proceses, properly called: Limitations, Environment, Culture, Modeling, Heritage and Others form what is herein named as Risk Factors (as mentioned in diverse readings discussed also in http://www.monografias.com/trabajos5/laresi/laresi.shtml).

The combination and interaction, of Incident Elements with the presence or impact of the Risk Factors, basically define the nature of Resilience as it has been already reviewed. Once the subject identifies him/hersef as resilient, or in its defect, he or she is identified by others (not by them themselves), interact the Inner conscience and knowledge they have of themselves: YOU (myself, yourself, yourselves, themselves, ourselves, etc.), Identity and Own Consciousness.

These Risk Factors, represent electrical failures - short circuits, or Existential crisis as it is named in this source, resulting from both inner and external conflicts on subjects, which have not been repaired or restored; end in a lack of identity or personal esteem among other intra and inter personal conflicts.

As long as subjects (individuals, collectives, communities, etc) have learned to overcome these incident elements and the risk factors on them (and in them), and also (having) overcome them successfully, the Results are: Empathy, Positive upcoming or outcome, Total Integration, Positive Evolution Development and Service toward others as many other altruist manifestations (p. 57).

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Recapitulating: from 1st Stage Resilience, or in individuals, as they are reflected in others (not them themselves), or 2nd Stage Resilence, the 3rd Stage Resilience can be directly related to RESULTS shown in the diagram. From 1st Stage R., into 2nd Stage R., been transformed as final product; into a 3rd stage of R.

A Model of Resilience based on the Theory of Energy (flujo) or Flow (First Stage): After having described the nature of Resilience previously, in a Model of Resilience, a second step towards the cognitive development processes and learning nature of the resilient is discussed next.

“As part of the personal experiences lived by this author”, as expressed by the reviewed author, (Fernandez-Colon, 2006, 2013) for a period of more than twenty five (25) years in the TESL discipline, and having taught to children, adolescents and adults as well (see autobiographical notes at end of this paper, available at www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/), a model of Resilience learning is suggested and hypothesized in this section; of course, seeing it as a progression of an investigationin-action methodology, applied within the review of literature.

Traditional Model of Learning: Each circle represents a stage of development in the individual, as a completed one.

Energy based model of learning: the circles are spirals connecting both previous and present stages of human development; not closed or separated but interlinked one to the other. (Translation by author) (Fernandez-Colon, P., 2014)

Illustration 3: Models of Energy and Traditional Learning (Fernández-Colón, P., 2006, 2014).

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Traditional Learning Model: In illustration #3, presented above, the author presents a graphical description of how the learning process (as general or life-long learning) is developed through the whole life. A conception of Traditional Learning Model suggested by inner-to –outer separated circles representing life cycles in humans as completed, closed ones, may suggest the “wrong” idea of not having existential crisis (bad or not corrected situations during a lifetime). They are represented by the closed and separated circles.

Understanding that, as in trees, each circle from the inner to the outer represents years or stages of development in humans.

Piaget wrote about the Growth stages in children, Piaget, J: The Moral Judgment in the child, he postulated infancy as “… the creative stage for excellence in the child; concluding the quote: “I always dreamed been child forever” or “I always wanted to be a child forever”.

In the following work, Stages of Cognitive Development, by W. Ibarra Viñas (posted on: www.monografias.com by conduct of: Idilio W. Ibarra Viñas: Etapas del desarrollo cognitivo), Ibarra analizes Piaget’s theory and concludes with the notion of a successful adaptation and organization development in children based on Piaget’s Theory of Psychogenesis. Piaget distinguished an organic adaptation and a functional adaptation, which constitute the process of intelligent adaptation, considering it as the most evolved example of adaptative intelligence. While describing the concept of Organization, Piaget described it as “the process through which, in its virtue, intelligence, as a whole, internally relates within its parts; (internal parts) called schemes or esquemas” (19:114115) as cited in www.monografias.com by Ibarra.

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The perfect conception of cognitive development in humans since their infancy is the same idea Paolo Coelho in “Cerrando Círculos” proposes. He explains and as cited: “we can not be children forever; or lately developed adolescents. External changes may symbolize internal processes of the outcoming”, Coelho, P., 2010 (Translation by author).

When Coelho expresses himself concerning the crisis in the lifetime of humans, and problem solving: In his words, he establishes: “Life is always forwards, never backwards; if you keep leaving doors opened as if there were the chances of taking back passed or unsolved situations, you will never get rid of them, nor live present to the fullest happiness. And finally he signals out: “if you are able to face and repair them now, do it, but if you cannot face them already and now, leave them, close those chapters of your life” (Translation by author).

In summary, Coelho represents the Typical or Traditional model of learning. In this review of literature such attitude towards life is challenged by Fernandez-Colon, P., (2006, 2014). The Energy Model of Learning (Illustration 3), circles are not closed and isolated one from the other. As a different paradigm, the energy model is represented in spirals, not closed circles, representing life cycles.

Energy Based Model of Learning:

Moreover, The Energy Based Model suggests that as any electrical circuit or wired structure or infrastructure, the current runs throughout the entire system, “life as a circuit”. Traditional Model of Learning: Each circle represents a stage of development in the individual, as a completed one.

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Energy based model of learning: the circles are spirals connecting both previous and present stages of human development; not closed or separated but interlinked one to the other. (Translation by author) (Fernandez-Colon, P., 2014). The spirals interconnected and centered from inner – to – outer rings can be menthally and cognitively reinvented, reconstructed, or revisited through time. In simple words, you have the freedom to go back and forth, (as menthal retroactivity or rethinking, reevaluation of living experiences process) as needed. Life, as an only one direction or chronological, historical event is always forwarded. But seeing it as a reflective or rethinkable process, it is not always forwarded; it may need some restoration, readaptation, rethinking and reconstruction.

In other words, life experiences are re-lived, re-thouth and re-interpreted as in an alternate current (A.C.) electrical system; from a positive to a negative polarity as it is needed; where electricity or energy runs both forward and backwards, in alternate cycles.

Same happens in the mind. Mind not always runs in only one forwarded direction; it is elastic. As it enlarges or shortens the living experience, it re-bounds back and forth.

Life is an elastic or alternatively (A.C.) current system of thoughts, reconsiderations, mental and cognitive as well as mental accommodations. Life is not always seen as a conclusive or closed circle of experiences. It is not always objectively seen; it is much of the time, a subjective, individually interpreted, unique personal reality.

Humans are seen as energy systems; experiences throughout lifetime can occasionally turn into interrupted failures on energy, producing, in this metaphoric expression or allegoric sense, a “short circuit”. When it happens, the presence of a

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licensed electrician, capable of restoring and re-establishing energy in the whole system (electrical string, current or flow) is needed. Otherwise the entire electrical system: YOU, will fail and, finally, collapse as proposed by Fernández-Colón, P., in Restore Your Existential Circuits: A Model of Resilience (2011, 2013).

The following diagram sets a solution for the existential energy systems that may happen in a lifetime period also in Fernández-Colón, P., Restore Your Existential Circuits: A Model of Resilience (2011, 2013).

Illustration 4: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006). Previously shown as Illustration 1: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006).

In the diagram presented above, illustration 4, (Previously shown as Illustration 1: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006), a Model of Energy applied to the Resilient Learning represents both the Risk Factors (represented

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by interrupted lines of energy; short circuits) as well as the Incident Elements. Originally, Fernandez-Colon, (2006) illustrated the concept as a reinterpretation of the Energy Based Learning Model (p.55), suggesting later this model of resilient learning.

The flow or “flujo” streaming of energy is interrupted, permitting partial flow of energy throughout the entire system; not a perfect and uninterrupted one. Suggesting with this illustration, that life experiences are not always perfect or fulfilled.

This model suggests that humans, as any other living thing or animals, are subjects to despairs in their lifetime. The possibility of loosing self energy, a vital source of happiness, well being, enthusiasm, desires in life, etc., is always present as product of interacting with Risk Factors. But the existence of possible failures in the electrical life system, need to be restored. You cannot just keep going forwards in your truncated or accidental life, you certainly need to repair your existential circuits, otherwise the light of life in you will turn into a blackout, Fernández-Colón, P., (2011, 2013).

In synthesis, the resilient are those licensed electricians who have learned by their own experiences and stuggles in life, to repair their existential short circuits, restoring the flow of energy “flujo, corriente” or vital current in their electrical system. When they do not possess or have the needed expertise or knowledge, (internally builded), they just ask for help on others (externally oriented); without worrying themselves. They have learned that short circuits are always present in life and you, as resilient, have to have the courage to face them anytime, anyhow, and anywhere. In this consists their secret key to success, and not only to succeed, but also help others to succeed, too.

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Multiple Intelligences applied to Resilience: As it has been reviewed and explained on the previous sections, resilient subjects seem to have, or to have developed, capabilities within themselves; both internal, fieldindependent as external or field dependent (Ramirez & Castañeda, 1982, 1983) which have helped them to overcome their limitations and risk factors, and at the end, succeeded with the additional virtue of been capable to help others as well (Ruther, Kolarenco, Combariza, others).

Obviously, as it has been evidenced, they develop multiple intelligences in their cognitive processes of learning, adaptation, and as said before, ability to succeed.

Gardner’s seven Intelligences: Linguistic, Logical, Musical, Visual – Spatial, Kinesthetic – Corporal kinetics, Interpersonal and Intrapersonal, known as Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences Theory, (1994). As it was also reviewed in this chapter, plus the combination of the last two (Interpersonal and Intrapersonal intelligences) as there it has been formed the concept of a new intelligence: Emotional Intelligence, as proposed by Mayer, Salovey, Caruso & Sitarenious (2001) and Guerri, (2013). In addition to these theories of intelligences, Social Intelligence as well as Spiritual, Practical, Presential, Virtual, Rational and Emotional; all (these) grouped as Service Intelligence(s) have also been combined, as presented and proposed in Combariza, (2012).

Fernandez-Colon, P. (2006) suggests another one: Inner Intelligence or Inner Knowledge (see next sections: Second and Third Stages of analysis). “The more, the best”, as it is commonly said. Still another learning theory is suggested: Experiential Intelligence or Inteligencia Experiencial o Aprendizaje Experiencial as it is called in Spanish by Begoña, M., cited in and defended by Combariza X, (2003, 2005), and as also

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cited by Diaz Rey and Parra Sequeda (2007), and by Fernandez-Colon, P., (2013: pp.1113), INNER KNOWLEDGE: A Paradigm in the Resilience Learning (unpublished document), in order to suggest a new theory: The Inner Knowledge Theory; having focused the Resilient Theory as a model of this phenomenological methodology in the learning and Teaching Processes.

Recapitulating: Philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle, socio-linguistics and psycholinguistics and their theories such as Ausubel, Edmund Husserl (1859-1938), Vikosky, Bandura and others are also considered in the elaboration of Inner Knowledge or the theory of Inner Intelligence (second stage) in the next paragraphs. New theories concerning universal learning and knowledge such as Quantum Vacuum, the Theory of the Seven Strings suggesting the idea of a source of eternal knowledge as well as principles concerning the concept of Flow Theory or TeorĂ­a del Flujo as alternative learning processes are also included.

THE INNER KNOWLEDGE: A Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes: (Second Stage)

In this section, the Inner Knowledge: A Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes will be deeply considered. INNER KNOWLEDGE: A Paradigm in the Resilience Learning, in order to suggest a new theory: The Inner Knowledge Theory; having focused the Resilient Theory as a model of this phenomenological methodology in the learning and Teaching Processes, as expressed earlier. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s conceive I.K., as a paradign in the resilient learning.

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Conceiving Inner Knowledge as a paradigm in the Resilience Learning:

The Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence, as it is proposed by Fernandez-Colon (2006, 2013) is in- depth considered now on, (as we progress in the investigation-inaction research as it has been applied within the gathering of information), after having reviewed other authorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views of Inner Intelligence and how it is related to other intelligences and recent 21st Century theories concerning energy-based concepts.

Applying an Investigation-in-Action Methodology as Qualitative Research As an investigation-in-action methodology is been applied within the review of literature, deeper considerations are now considered within the Inner Intelligence theory.

Following the recommendations of the American sociologists Barney G. Glaser and Anselm L. Srauss (Glaser & Strauss, 1967), within what they named Emergent Theory Approach, and how this approach developed two decades later (Srauss & Corbin, 1998).

In general terms, in order to follow their recommendations while a conceptual arrangement (p.19) is followed in order to develop a step-by-step analysis of the information, in our case, the review of literature, the conceptual arrangement can be conducted in various ways, but at least the three ways, which are: by themes, by steps or stages, and by characters or behaviors (Lucca Irizarry & BerrĂ­os Rivera, 2009, 554) can be set as example.

In our case, analysis of the information herein reviewed has been arranged and discussed by themes (learning, cognitive, bi-cognitive, multiple intelligences, etcetera) and explaining the interactions among them (by steps or stages) in a progressive way, to see how a theory is taking form as the result of the combination of the ways as they

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combine and interact as well as the characters and their behaviors (in our case, resilient, resilient behaviors) interact.

The Inner Knowledge/Inner Intelligence Theory: (Second stage) Previously in this Chapter, A PROPOSAL FOR A MODEL OF RESILIENCE was considered. Major definitions as well as a variety of models or theories on learning and cognitive development in humans; such as Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, Combariza’s Service Intelligences as well as Experiential Learning Theory postulated by Ausubel, Husserl, Begoña and others have been considered and reviewed.

As expressed before, these contributions will be interpreted herein and applied in this section or second stage of literature analysis, in order to suggest a new theory: The Inner Knowledge Theory; having focused the Resilient Theory as a model of this phenomenological methodology in the learning and Teaching Processes. Additional theories will also be included and discussed herein. But let’s first recall the origins of the concept as Inner Intelligence, as it was considered by other authors, prior to FernandezColon, but with new theorists this time.

Kolb's Learning Styles and Experiential Learning Model: One of the theories considered in previous chapters is Kolb's Learning Styles and Experiential Learning Model (Kolb, 1984). According to Kolb, learning takes place due to the interaction of experience and how humans transform the experience into knowledge:

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Learning is the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience. Knowledge results from the combination of grasping experience and transforming it.â&#x20AC;? - Kolb (1984, 41).

Moreover, Kolb defines Experiential Learning as relating to or resulting from experience (1984, 41).

In order to propose his experiential learning theory, David Kolb identifies it within six (6) principal descriptors or characteristics (classifications):

1- Learning is best conceived as a process, not in terms of outcomes.

2- Learning is a continuous process grounded in experience.

3- Learning requires the resolution of conflicts between dialectically opposed modes of adaptation to the world (learning is by its very nature full of tension).

4- Learning is a holistic process of adaptation to the world.

5- Learning involves transactions between the person and the environment.

6- Learning is the process of creating knowledge that is the result of the transaction between social knowledge and personal knowledge.

as described in http://www.cisne.org/Aprendizajeexperiencial/ .

In addition of the six characteristics presented previously, Kolb also describes the experiential learning as appears in the following two diagrams.

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Illustration 5: Kolb's Learning Styles and Experiential Learning Model. Kolb, (1984).

Illustration 6: Kolb's Learning Styles and Experiential Learning Model. Kolb, (1984).

Kolb's learning model is based on two continuums that form a quadrant: the Perception Continuum and the Processing Continuum (see previous illustrations 5 and 6).

66

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1- Processing Continuum: Our approach to a task, such as preferring to learn by doing or watching.

2- Perception Continuum: Our emotional response, such as preferring to learn by thinking or feeling.

As it is described in both diagrams, Kolb sees learning as a cycle, interactions, expositions and reactions to external as well as personal (as he called it) processes on the learning experience.

In his own words:  

 

Concrete experience (feeling): Learning from specific experiences and relating to people. Sensitive to other's feelings.

Reflective observation (watching): Observing before making a judgment by viewing the environment from different perspectives. Looks for the meaning of things.

Abstract conceptualization (thinking): Logical analysis of ideas and acting on intellectual understanding of a situation.

Active experimentation (doing): Ability to get things done by influencing people and events through action. Includes risk-taking.

Depending upon the situation or environment, the learners may enter the learning cycle at any point and will best learn the new task if they practice all four modes. (Kolb, 1984, as cited in: http://www.cisne.org/Aprendizajeexperiencial/ ).

Kolb called this Experiential Learning “since experience is the source of learning and development” (Kolb, 1984). Each ends of the continuums (modes) provide a step in the learning process: Feeling, Watching, Thinking and Doing are the four pillars of interaction, which take place in a “continuum” or cycling process, resulting in Experiential Learning. Both Concrete as Abstract; experiences and cognition or

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conceptualization interact within the process of Reflective Observation, resulting in Action or Active Experimentation. Kolb, (1984) also discussed in (http://www.cisne.org/Aprendizajeexperiencial/ ).

The Experiential Learning Theory of David Kolb has influenced educators and psychologists, because his model of interaction in the process of learning is considered not just as a model but much more: as a model learning program (ibid). The implications of Kolb’s model of Experiential Learning as well as his descriptive interacting and cycling processes have been used with adults’ learning and teaching programs as studied and applied by Coffield, F., Moseley, D., Hall, E., & Ecclestone, K. (2004).

“This matrix provides a learning cycle that involves four processes that must be present for learning to occur. Note that this part of Kolb's model is more useful in that rather than trying to pinpoint a learning style, he provides a model learning program”.

As cited in: http://www.cisne.org/Aprendizajeexperiencial/ .

Another theory that is also included herein is the Flow Theory.

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience:

Mihaly Csikszent's Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (2009), proposes another view on the concept of Experiential Learning. As it appears in the presentation of his book, it is said: “…investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness called flow. During

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flow, people typically experience deep enjoyment, creativity, and a total involvement with life”.

In this new edition of his groundbreaking classic work, Csikszent demonstrates the ways this positive state can be controlled, not just left to chance. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience teaches how, by ordering the information that enters our consciousness, we can discover true happiness and greatly improve the quality of our lives (Csikszent, M., 2009).

As directly cited, “…investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness called flow.

During flow, people typically experience deep enjoyment, creativity, and a total involvement with life” Csikszent (2009). Based on these words the main objective in human learning as considered by Csikszent is the experiences of profound enjoyment of life, human creativity and a complete interaction or “involvement” in the living experience (paraphrased). In addition, Mihaly Csikszent defines “Flow” (Flujo) as an experiential learning (comparing Kolb’s definition and Mihaly Csikszent’s).

Furthermore, the introduction to M.C. “Flow” is clearly expressed in (this previously cited) words: “Csikszentmihalyi (sic) demonstrates the ways this positive state can be controlled, not just left to chance. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience teaches how, by ordering the information that enters our consciousness, we can discover true happiness and greatly improve the quality of our lives”.

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Other terms also used in allusion to “flow” are: Fluir (Kairós) http://ebookee.org/Flow-The-Psychology-of-Optimal-Experience_248945.html , http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/mihaly-csikszentmihalyis-theory-of-flow1674, and http://www.cgu.edu/pages/1871.asp or simply, as herein translated: “Flujo” as learned from Dr. Marco Antonio Martínez (2006) in the Development of Cognition and Cognition Theory courses at the University of Puerto Rico. So, let’s see how Flow, Fluir, Kairós or Flujo is defined.

Flow first came to Mihalyi Csikszent’s attention while he was studying artists for his postgraduate thesis. As they worked the artists seemed to go into a trance-like state. To his surprise he found that the finished product was less important to them than the process of doing the work itself. External rewards were less important than intrinsic pleasure, an observation that went against the grain of psychological thinking at the time.” As cited in http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/mihaly-csikszentmihalyis-theory-offlow-1674 . In this same site a direct definition of Csikszent is given: “Csikszent defines flow as the state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it.”

Taking this site as a source, on Flow studies, the author expreses: “At first it seemed that this state might be confined to rules-based activities such as games and creative professional activities such as art or music”.

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However, in the following years thousands of interviews by his research team at the University of Chicago and other colleagues around the world revealed that flow was experienced by people from all walks of life and across many different cultures. “What people did and why they did it varied immensely, but the quality of the enjoyment produced by investing attention in an activity was remarkably similar.”

The similarity in experiences pointed to the following: “The research found that when they were asked what made the experience enjoyable, people cited at least one, and often all, of the following factors. Mihaly Csikszent commends them to readers as knowledge that will help them ‘achieve control of consciousness and turn even the most humdrum moments of everyday life into events that help the self grow.’

According to the author, Flow involves the following:      

A challenging activity that requires skills: This requires a fine balance: too high a challenge will produce anxiety; too easy an activity will produce boredom.

Clear goals and feedback: Good, immediate feedback allows the individual to know they have succeeded. Such knowledge creates ‘order in consciousness’.

Concentration on the task at hand: When one is thoroughly absorbed in an enjoyable activity there is no room for troubling thoughts.

A sense of control: Here the actuality of being in control is not as important as the subjective sense of exercising control in difficult situations.

Loss of self-consciousness: The individual feels he or she is merging with the activity.

Transformation of time: Seconds may seem like hours. Hours might seem like seconds.

As it appears in: http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/mihaly-csikszentmihalyistheory-of-flow-1674.

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In summary, Flow represents that moment of personal enjoyment, satisfaction, a state of well being and as a by-product, productivity, creativity, and in M.C. own words: “knowledge that will help them ‘achieve control of consciousness and turn even the most humdrum moments of everyday life into events that help the self grow.’ – ibid.

Educational Implications of Flow Theory:

In terms of educational implications, the Flow theory proposes among other positive benefits the following ones: “1. The most influential teachers were found to be those who always continue to nurture their interest in their subjects and do not take their ability to convey that enthusiasm for granted. Learning was found to flourish where the cultivation of passionate interest was a primary educational goal.

2. Attention should be paid to ‘conditions that enhance the experience of maximum rewards’. Everything should be done to minimise (sic - minimize) the impact of rules, exams and procedures and to focus on the inherent satisfaction of learning.

(In a more recent interview, Csikszent has stated that although it makes some sense to work on students’ weaknesses, it makes even more sense to work on their strengths, ‘Because once someone has developed strengths, then everything else becomes easier.’).

3. Teachers must read the shifting needs of learners. The flow state is not a static one: once a skill has been mastered it is necessary to add more complexity if the student is not to become bored – there must always be a close fit between challenges and skills. The

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teacher’s sense of timing and pace, of when to intervene and when to hold back, is therefore crucial. There must be freedom wherever possible for the student to control the process, but teachers must also draw on their experience to channel students’ attention: http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/mihaly-csikszentmihalyis-theory-of-flow-1674

Finally, as an innovative technology, Csikszent has also launched a lighter version of his Flow Theory to be downloaded to i-phones: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience: eSpresso Summary [Kindle Edition], copyright © 2012.

Another author considered in here is Carol Dweck and her theory on Mindsets, ©2006-2010.

Mindset Theory: by Carol Dweck

On The Mindset Theory, proposed by Carol Dweck, there are two main aspects concerning this theory: a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. Mindset “is a simple idea discovered by world-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck in decades of research on achievement and success—a simple idea that makes all the difference” as cited in: http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/themindsets/index.html.

Dweck defines Mindset and also suggests two stages: a fixed mindset and a growth mindset in http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/about/index.html,. In her official site Carol Dweck expresses: “Mindsets are beliefs—beliefs about yourself and your most basic qualities. Think about your intelligence, your talents, your personality. Are these qualities simply fixed traits,

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carved in stone and that’s that? Or are they things you can cultivate throughout your life?” Furthermore, she defines these two stages of mindset as follows:

People with a fixed mindset believe that their traits are just givens. They have a certain amount of brains and talent and nothing can change that. If they have a lot, they’re all set, but if they don’t... So people in this mindset worry about their traits and how adequate they are. They have something to prove to themselves and others.

While defining the second stage, she says: People with a growth mindset, on the other hand, see their qualities as things that can be developed through their dedication and effort. Sure they’re happy if they’re brainy or talented, but that’s just the starting point. They understand that no one has ever accomplished great things—not Mozart, Darwin, or Michael Jordan—without years of passionate practice and learning” (Dweck, C., 2012) and in: http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/themindsets/index.html.

In general terms, Carol Dweck suggests that humans are capable of developing higher levels of learning when both genetic (innate) capabilities are combined with “passionate practice and learning”. (Ibid).

Based on Dweck’s Mindset Theory, there are individual differences among people as differences in learning styles and consequently, different possibilities of how the learning processes take place in individuals: “Since the dawn of time, people have thought differently, acted differently, and fared differently from each other. It was guaranteed that someone would ask the question of why people differed why some people are smarter or more moral – and whether there was something that made them permanently different. Experts lined up on both sides. Some claimed that there was a strong physical basis for these differences, making them unavoidable and unalterable. Through the ages these alleged physical differences have included bumps on the skull (phrenology), the size and shape of the skull (craniology), and, today, genes.” (ibid).

When Dweck cites Binet in Modern Ideas about Children, she expresses the following:

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“Others pointed to the strong differences in people’s backgrounds, experiences, training, or ways of learning. It may surprise you to know that a big champion of this view was Alfred Binet, the inventor of the IQ test. Wasn’t the IQ test meant to summarize children’s unchangeable intelligence? In fact, no. Binet, a Frenchman working in Paris in the early 20th century, designed this test to identify children who were not profiting from the Paris public schools, so that new educational programs could be designed to get them back on track. Without denying individual differences in children’s intellects, he believed that education and practice could bring about fundamental changes in intelligence.”

After analizing Binet’s words, Dweck concludes: “Who’s right? Today most experts agree that it’s not either/or. It’s not nature or nurture, genes or environment. From conception on, there’s a constant give and take between the two. In fact, as Gilbert Gottlieb, an eminent neuroscientist put it, not only do genes and environment cooperate as we develop, but genes require input from the environment to work properly.” as cited in: http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/whypeoplediffer/index.html.

In summary, Carol Dweck suggests the diference between fixed mindset and growth mindset consists in the following: “Believing that your qualities are carved in stone—the fixed mindset—creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over. If you have only a certain amount of intelligence, a certain personality, and a certain moral character, well then you’d better prove that you have a healthy dose of them. It simply wouldn’t do to look or feel deficient in these most basic characteristics”. But, while defining the second one, this is, the growth mindset, she expresses: “There’s another mindset in which these traits are not simply a hand you’re dealt and have to live with, always trying to convince yourself and others that you have a royal flush when you’re secretly worried it’s a pair of tens. In this mindset, the hand you’re dealt is just the starting point for development. This growth mindset is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts. Although people may differ in every which way—in their initial talents and aptitudes, interests, or temperaments – everyone can change and grow through application and experience.” in http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/whatdoesthismeanforme/index.html.

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Concluding her thought, it can be said that both aspects of mind: fixed and growth, are needed to be successful in life, seeing learning as a continuing process through the whole life. Dweck answers, Mindset is needed as follows:

Mindset explains:     

Why brains and talent don’t bring success How they can stand in the way of it Why praising brains and talent doesn’t foster self-esteem and accomplishment, but jeopardizes them How teaching a simple idea about the brain raises grades and productivity What all great CEOs, parents, teachers, athletes know

(In:http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/about/index.html ).

Educational Implications of Mindset Theory: Applying Mindset theory to the educational experience, Carol Dweck simply restates: “Teaching a growth mindset creates motivation and productivity in the worlds of business, education, and sports. It enhances relationships. When you read Mindset, you’ll see how”, as it is cited in http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/about/index.html.

Global Mindset:

While, applying Mindset to Global organizations and business around the whole world, the term mindset is seeing as follows: “Individuals differ in how they sense and interpret the world around them. So do organizations. And these differences matter. They matter because it is how we perceive our environment as well as ourselves that determine which of the

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multitude of opportunities and problems we go after and how we do so”, in http://www.theglobalist.com/cultivating-a-global-mindset/.

Moreover, while expanding the definition of Global Mindset, it is expressed as follow: “We would define a global mindset as one that combines an openness to and awareness of diversity across cultures and markets with a propensity and ability to synthesize across this diversity”.

Let’s now see a proposal for understanding Inner Intelligence as Fernandez-Colon (2013) conceives it.

The Inner Knowledge: a proposition for understanding both internal or genetic learning and external (adquired and adapted) as a paradigm in the Resilient:

After having reviewed, explained and expanded different theoretical views concerning on: How humans learn? How they react and interact with their environment?

How can they improve their learning capabilities? And many others alike as were introduced at the beginning of this dissertation (see Chapter One: Introduction), it is now time to develop, illustrate and explain this author’s theory concerning Inner Knowledge.

Conceiving Inner Knowledge as a paradigm in the Resilience Learning (Second Stage):

In this dissertation, Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence is suggested as a new, or more than new, a redefined approach to the learning processes in humans. After having reviewed the included theories in terms of their applications, interpretations and

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contributions to the learning and teaching processes, following (Strauss & Corbin, 1998), a basic characteristic is sustained by all theories, including the Inner Knowledge: Humans are capable of learning through their whole lives or existentiality and a second one: learning is carried out through mainly two courses in life: what we bring (genetically) and what we acquire (adaptation processes) as product of interacting with our environment.

But moreover, the Inner Knowledge, or the process of learning from within, presents a new paradigm in the learning as well as teaching processes, especially seeing through the resilient experience.

Recalling the general principles on Resilience Theory already reviewed, but now within a personal insight in the process (Second Stage Analysis). After having discussed the following diagrams already (Model of Resilience or Resiliency, and both Models of Learning: Traditional and Energy (energy-based) Models suggested by Fernandez-Colon, (2006, 2013), previously shown as illustrations 1 and 2, a definition of Inner Knowledge will be easily understood.

Illustration 2: Model of Resilience by Fernรกndez, P., and others [Translation] (2006)

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As previously discussed in this chapter, a Model for Resilience Learning was suggested by a sub-group of students of EDUC 8056 on Cognitive Development (UPRRP, Nov. 16, 2006) as shown in illustration 2. The importance of this model is the fact that it summarizes different concepts related to Resilience Theory and presents the interactions of both internal and external risk factors as many other incidental elements that affect the cognitive processes as well as the learning capabilities; seeing the learning process as a lifetime phenomena (Second Stage Analysis).

Integrating Inner Knowledge to Resilient learners (Second Stage):

Recalling previous concepts, the resilient is described as a person or persons who interact with existential factors (positive and negatives) during their lifetime. In the following quote it is briefly described: “Based on the sub-group discussions in class concerning cognitive development theories, the above diagram resulted as a Model of Resilience. The integration of different elements that affect learning in the lifetime experiences of (the) resilient, and consequently, in their cognitive processes, are identified: Limitations (physical, emotional, intellectual, psychological, others). Environment (field of experiences, inner, external, interaction of both), Culture (traditions, music, social patterns, learning styles, meals, art, language, etc) Modeling, Heritage and Others, are described as elements that interact with and, consequently, affect both positively or negatively the overall development of the resilient”.

Extract taken from Fernández-Colón, P., (2011), Restore Your Existential Cricuits: A Model of Resiliency, revised in 2013 (p.77), obtainable at www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/.

On the next diagram (Illustration 4: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006), is recalled as it was already presented. In the

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diagram presented below, illustration 4, a Model of Energy applied to the Resilient Learning represents both the Incidental Elements as well as the Risk Factors (represented by interrupted lines of energy; short circuits). The flow or “flujo” streaming of energy is interrupted, permitting partial flow of energy throughout the entire system.

“This model suggests that humans as any other living thing or animals, are subjects to despairs in their lifetime. The possibility of loosing self energy, a vital source of happiness, well being, enthusiasm, desires in life, etc., is always present as product of interacting with Risk Factors. But the existence of possible failures in the electrical life system, need to be restored. You cannot just keep going forwards in your truncated or accidental life, you certainly need to repair your existential circuits, otherwise the light of life in you will turn into a blackout”.

(Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006).

Illustration 1: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006).

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As also mentioned earlier in this chapter, Illustration 1: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Colón, P., 2006). this diagram represents the following: “In synthesis, the resilient are those licensed electricians who have learned by their own experiences and stuggles in life, to repair their existential short circuits, restoring the flow of energy “flujo, corriente” in their electrical system. When they do not posse or have the needed expertise or knowledge, (internally), they just ask for help on others without worrying themselves (externally). They have learned that short circuits are always present in life and YOU, as resilient, have to have the courage to face them anytime, anyhow, and anywhere. In this consists their secret key to success, and not only to succeed, but to help other succeed too”.

Comparing the findings discussed in this chapter, there can be established some similarities in terms of Combariza’s Service Intelligence (2012), Kolb's Experiential Learning and learning model, (1984) based on two continuums that form a quadrant: the Perception Continuum and the Processing Continuum, emphasizing the interaction of both in the human learning process (Life-long learning), Mihaly Csikszent's Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (2009), which proposses another view on the concept of Kolb’s Experiential Learning, and finally, The Mindset Theory, proposed by Carol Dweck, there are two main aspects concerning this theory: a fixed mindset and a growth mindset ©2006-2010; which are also interpreted in the Inner Knowledge or Inner Intelligence Theory as herein proposed.

All these theorists have suggested the importance of developing both internally oriented as well externally-oriented learning as it was also reviewed in Ramírez & Castañeda’s Bicognitive Development Theory (1974). The psychological investigations also discussed on Brain Specialization Theory, Springer & Deutsch (1981), MacLean (1978), Nine-Curt (1980, 1983), Johnson (1983) and others as well as Brown (1980)

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discussed the importance of Understanding other Cultures as well. Cheyney (1976), who suggested techniques used in Teaching Children of Different Cultures in the Classroom, too.

Based on these findings on how humans organize, explain, classify and perceive their environment, (Trotter, 1976), designed a table describing activities controlled by each hemisphere on the human brain (Brain Specialization); p.218 as previously presented.

But, no one seemed to have applied the notion of Inner Knowledge as it is suggested here in this Dissertation. Even Ausubel (1968) in Education Psychology: a Cognitive View has developed his cognitive theory. He defined cognitive processes or cognition as: …differences in intellectual patterns, in modes of organizing, classifying, and assimilating information about the cultural environment (p. 170) and Witkin et al., (1962) conducted an experiment in order to “explain the way people perceive both themselves and their world” (as cited in Fernandez-Colón, P., (1985, p.15). The purpose of Witkin’s work was to determine field sensitivity or how the subjects perceived their environment (as field dependent and field independent as later on theorized by Ramírez & Castañeda (1974, 1976).

As been already given the definition of I.K. once more: The Inner Knowledge, as it is called in this dissertation, suggests the possibility humans have to be self-taught; to have capabilities within themselves which guide them in the learning processes; extra sensorial skills to communicate, reconstruct their experiences and knowledge, and many other psychic development such as been able to know future events, hidden evidences

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and the ability to “read” others’ minds as well. (See also: Transformación de Hombre a Angel, Fernández-Colón, P., (2007) also available at www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/.

And probably these abilities have been present in humans for centuries and millenniums ago, since men exist. As also mentioned in Chapter One: A long ago colloquial phrase says: knowledge is within us (unknown source) that suggests that the learning processes start just right there; in our own self. If it were the case, a consideration regarding this possibility is herein proposed as a paradigm for explaining and guiding both the learning as well as the teaching processes.

As it also was discussed earlier in this work, early notions such as Plato’s and Aristotle’s conceptions of reality, how knowledge is acquired and how humans develop inner knowledge were also reviewed. The theory of Plato’s conception of the Ideas and how they interact and are been transformed by such interaction among them consists the process of learning (Salvat Encyclopedia, Vol. 10, pp. 2663-2664).

Recalling information; as it has been already discussed, Plato considered the origin of the learning processes as internal, from the soul. Arjé (Alma). Seeing Arjé as the Greek term used by Plato and other Greek philosophers (Cratilo, Socrates, Parmenides and Heraclito among others), suggesting that the Arjé or eternal source of knowledge, in combination with the ideas are the beginning and eternal source of the universe(s) and through the process of Reminiscience or re-acknowledge of the ideas, the human soul’s “true” knowledge could be recovered; this because of the imprecision’s senses, especially the eye (vision, visual process of learning through senses), have lost or misinterpreted (the original and eternal) knowledge (p.2663).

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Finally, Plato suggested that the Arjé or soul in addition to be eternal (eternal source of knowledge) is intelligent, organized and guides the universe in search of a finality (finalidad) or good [bién universal] (p.2663). If this last sentence is seen in Combariza’s (2012) terms: Service Intelligence, a correlation with the Resilient experiences and Plato’s concepts of finality and universal good fix well together; and in Gallegos (2006) definitions of Spiritual Learning in Aprendizaje Espiritual and also discussed in Inteligencia Espiritual y Educación Holista by Vicky Damián (2010).

As also cited in Chapter One, Aristotle the Estagirita (384-322 A.C.), disciple of Plato, reorganized Plato’s as well as other’s contemporary Greek philosophical ideas of the learning processes; and expanded their contributions to the development of a scientific approach - inductive learning (in search of individual acknowledge through observation), expressing the concepts of matter, (material logic, great logic) movements and induction as evolution of the deductive (the eternal concept of matter or great matter) evolving through movement, with its four secondary states or manifestations: forms or elements; earth (ground), air, fire and water. (Salvat Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, pp. 276-277).

This inductive or externally-oriented learning feature (Ramirez and Castañeda, 1974), can be compared to Dweck’s Mindset theory (2006-2010) as the Experiential Learning Theory of David Kolb (1984, 1999, 2000).

It is interesting the teaching method used by Aristotle, The Estagirita: learning while having a walk in the garden. In 335 A.D., he established the Liceo or escuela peripatética; learning or discussing while walking (p.276).

Recalling: These have been precursors of developing a theory on Inner Knowledge, but of course, terms such as “Cognitive processes, Ausubel (1968) in

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Education Psychology: a Cognitive View, Bi-cognitive Development (Ramirez & Castañeda, 1974) as well with other theories concerning Brain Specialization; Springer & Deutsch (1981), MacLean (1978), Nine-Curt (1980, 1983), Johnson (1983) and others Multiple Intelligences of Howard Gardner (1994), including others intelligences suggested as new term conceived recently as well as Emotional Intelligence (Guerri, M., 2013) by a group of psycho-linguistics and social-linguistics (Mayer and Salovey, 2001) as the combination and modification of Gardner’s Inter-Personal and Intra-Personal Intelligences have also been integrated in this author’s Inner Knowledge Theory redefinition.

Even thought manifestations of Resilient behaviors (1st Stage R.) have been attributed to many people during ancient times, the term Resilience, as it has been used

by Rutter (1930), during the 1987 and 1990’s to present, implications both on Education as in Social Work fields are taking force. As it was previously reviewed in Chapters One and earlier in this Chapter 2: “The social circumstances of substantial numbers of children are declining in contemporary society (2nd Stage R.).

The developmental

processes of these children, and of the adolescents and adults they become, are put at risk by circumstances of poverty, violence, discrimination, abuse and neglect, and parental mental illness or substance abuse” (Institute of Medicine, 1989; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1991). Consequently, taking action in terms of social or environmental views as well as government involvement as it was reviewed: “Finally, he (Michael Rutter (1930, 1992/1993) considered that foundations or pilars of Resilience are both constitutional as well as environmental (Rutter 1990, 1993). This is; it is not just a

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matter on environmental interactions with humans or resilient people, but that is is also required the intervention of legislation and govenments concerns (3rd Stage R.).

The closest proposals on Resilience Theory, as applied to the learning and teaching processes, are the ones presented on the article: Resilience Theory as a Framework for Teaching Human Development within HBSE by Alaine Toomey, Eileen M. Brennan, and Barbara Friesen (2013) in the link: http://www.rtc.pdx.edu/PDF/pbResilienceTheory.pdf, where they present how R is been

applied in helping children and adolescents by different organizations.

Inner Knowledge: from an autobiographical viewpoint (Second Stage): The Inner Knowledge view herein suggested is the product of personal experiences lived by Fernandez-Colon, P., and his teaching experiences as a TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) professor for nearly twenty-five years. Based on both teaching experiences to children, adolescents and adults at college level, but also including prisoners at a Rehabilitation and Correction Institution during the early 1980’s: (Campamento Penal Guavate, Cayey Puerto Rico) an institution that no longer exists in Cayey, while teaching Basic Education to these inmates. See Autobiography of Pablo Fernández-Colón: Coming Back to Life (2005) accessible online at: www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/ .

A second experience lived by this autor (1998-1999) is described in Transformación de Hombre a Angel (2007) [English: Transformation from Man into Angel]. In this autobiographical book “mystic” successes happened during and after a seven-months hospitalization (August 1998 – April 1999) which suggested the concept of inner knowledge lived by this author.

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“It is clearly expressed herein that the Inner Knowledge conception, as described in this work, I.K. has been visualized by this author prior to Thursday, August 29th, 2013, where members of the Exámen de Grado (Doctoral Degree Candidacy Exam members): Dr. Suarez and Martínez, UPR-RP, recommended this author rewieng Minset theory as well as revising Flow Theory literature. Spiritual Intelligence, as well as Service Intelligence and Experiential Intelligence have been also rewied after this first Ensayo de Examen de Grado meeting was held on August 29th, 2013”. – as expressed by the author.

Having established this fact, this author continues working on his Inner Knowledge concept (Second Stage).

Among these “mystic” successes can be mentioned the following: ability to read others’ minds, been sensible to others’ states of emotions and mind, healing powers, predicting future events, and many others related to the processes of been close to death due to Ulcerative Colitis and Severe Endolftalmitis, with the disgrace of loosing the right eye in a probability of one in four million (1 in 4,000,000) as a unique case in Puerto Rico endolphtalmic records; directly related to Ulcerative Colitis. (See Medical Reports at end of Coming Back to Life Autobiography of Pablo Fernádez-Colón, 2005, Medical Apendices: pp. 397-408) available at: www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/.

Fernandez-Colon points out the following: “If the intention of this paper relies on the scope of working out a Model for Resilient Learning; as it has been clearly expressed, this author’s vivencias or living experiences through a lifetime certainly sets such a model. A Qualitative Investigation or Qualitative Research approach, using this author’s living personal experiences seen as a phenomenological – autobiographical based or Biography study, is been used herein. (See autobiographical notes at end of this

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dissertation). Maybe resilient behaviors were present in this authorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; life prior to 1998, and certainly they were so. See: Poemas Nacidos del Alma (2010) at www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/ , (Translation) Poems born within my Soul (2010).

In this book the experiences lived by the author during 1985 to 1994, and in the second part of the book 1994 to 2008 are examples of resilient behaviors. Creativity born while suffering, loosing loved ones, love despairs, and finally, loosing personal health as well, among many other loosings. At the same time, winning internal capabilities to overcome personal situations described in this and the other autobiographical books.

Other publications are reached and can also be â&#x20AC;&#x153;freeâ&#x20AC;? downloaded at www.issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/. A sense of serving others is one of many behavioral descriptors of resilient bi-products. With a lack of many things, material things, but at the same time, a richness in spiritual goods, in the service towards others.

Recapitulating: In this dissertation the concept of a variety of learning, cognitive as well as multiple intelligences concepts have been reviewed as they relate to both the resilient learning and resilient behaviors. A theory of external/internal, environmental/innate, ownself/adaptative learning has been discussed within the experiential learning theory as well as other theories (Flow, Mindset) within a Personalized educational view. The result of the literature review is the conceptualization of the Inner Intelligence and how it impacts all-age learners, in our case, the ESL learners.

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A third Stage analysis to the Inner Intelligence is conducted in the following paragraphs as an investigation-in-action methodology applied to the literature review as proposed by Lucca Irizarry & Berrios Rivera (2009), following (Strauss & Corbin, 1998).

A Final View on Inner Knowledge (Third Stage Analysis): The Inner Knowledge concept has been fully developed herein. Different theories related to the cognitive processes as well as multi-intelligence models have been discussed too. The chapter ends with the proposal of a an internally - based learning theory, with the support of a variety of theorists or proponents since the times of Plato, Aristotle and modern psychologists as well as sociologists, named as Innner Inteligence or, preferably, the Inner Knowledge Theory.

Finally, Resilience Theory has been aborded as a model for developing a personalized strategy in the learning and teaching fields. The last section of this chapter presented the use of a biographical research as a methodology in search of developing resilient behaviors in ESL students, as presented and lived by the author reviewed.

Other considerations on recent studies on Quantum Physics as well as the Relativism Theory have been reconsidered in terms of the Inner Knowledge Theory proposed in this Dissertation in order to establish a relationship between Inner Knowledge and these two theories.

Quantum Physics and Relativism Theory (Third Stage): Probably the unexplainable has been already explained, but we have not had the courage to receive it. The unknown may be known; yet, we are still â&#x20AC;&#x153;lost in the spaceâ&#x20AC;?.

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Matter can be defined in terms of the eternity, as well as knowledge, space, and why not: time.

The Inner Knowledge propones a way for the experiential learning, spiritual learning, resilient learning, service related learning, understanding of their expanding intelligence theories and finally, their teaching processes as well.

Coming to our nearest neighbors religious beliefs in the Caribbean, mainly Trinidarians, a final view on the Inner Knowledge Theory will still be considered next.

Defining Inner Knowledge/Inner Intelligence in Synthesis (Third Stage): In his book The Secret of the Ages, Robert Collier asserts that the mind is master and commander of the body because a subconscious “inner intelligence” directs and controls every function in the body.

“You don’t need to concern yourself consciously for it to work properly because the task is dispatched on deeper levels of your subconscious mind by the inner intelligence. Living beings are equipped with an inner intelligence that supervises, repairs, operates and builds their bodies from the ground up, and it’s at work in every one of the trillions of cells in your body” According to Collier and others: “The subconscious mind directs and controls every function of your biology, millions upon millions of ceaseless inner chores that you’re not even aware of and simply take for granted. What’s more, it always keeps your body moving in the direction of optimal health and healing even when your behaviors or the environment you reside in get in the way…With this awareness of the

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subconscious inner intelligence within you, you can create a new and powerful self-image”. Finally, the article concludes with the ending thought: “You are much more than you think, even more than you can think. Your body is a universe in itself, made of galaxies of atoms, elements and systems – and mind is the radiating center around which it all revolves. This is ancient wisdom that’s been taught in schools of self mastery and higher awareness for centuries and now we have modern science to corroborate it.”

If we combine what has been previously discussed concerning Collier’s definition of Inner Intelligence, with the definition of Carol Dweck on Mindset: The fixed mindset and the growth mindset concepts, we may develop an evolved concept as a result of both theorists.

First, that according to Dweck, the inner states or processes on the Internal Mind is dynamic, not static. - “In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits”. But when she refers to growth mindset, she declares: “In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point.

This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment. Virtually all great people have had these qualities”, see http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/themindsets/index.html.

Considering Gardner’s view on Danah Zohar: in ReWiring the Corporate Brain: Using the New Science to Rethink How We Structure and Lead Organizations (1997): Spiritual Intelligence, he does not include Spiritual Quotient or S.Q. in his Multiple Intelligences because of a main reason: - “…due to the challenge of codifying

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quantifiable scientific criteria” (Gardner, Howard, A Case Against Spiritual Intelligence, The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, Volume 10, Issue 1 January 2000, pp. 27-34). Instead, he suggests an "existential intelligence" as viable, in Gardner, Howard, Intelligence reframed: multiple intelligences for the 21st century (Basic Books, 1999) p.53.

If we review the concept of Spiritual intelligence (Spiritual Quotient or S.Q ), it is a term used by some philosophers, psychologists, and developmental theorists to indicate spiritual parallels with IQ (Intelligence Quotient) and EQ (Emotional Quotient), in Mayer & Salovey, et al; (2001) and Guerri, M., (2013).

As we have already reviewed, another term presented in this paper was The Flow Theory of Csikszent, M., (2002), Flow: The Classic Work on How to Achieve Happiness.

His Key Quote: “IN THE QUEST OF HAPPINESS, PARTIAL SOLUTIONS DON’T WORK”, there can be seen a connection between Carol Dweck’s definition of Mindset: (growth mindset) and Csikszent’s Flow. Both see the inner processes of cognition as challenging, dynamic and evolutive or progressive.

Taking Gallegos’ concept of Spiritual Intelligence,(2006); in Spanish: Inteligencia Espiritual, he signals there are three (3) stages on the consecution of S.Q: 1- Basic or primary (shared with animals) at a “sub-human emotional intelligence”, 2- “ Inteligencia” Media or middle Intelligence, referring it as the intellectual intelligence, Garner’s IntraPersonal Intelligence, reasoning cognition, the human-only capabilities for logic thinking.

And 3- The Spiritual Intelligence or superior level intelligence. It refers to the holistic knowledge, trascendental, capable of understanding complex and significant overall

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contexts; with the inherent capability of transcending the bio-physic, social, emotional experience as described in Gallegos Nava, R. (2006) Inteligencia Espiritual. Más allá de las inteligencias múltiples y emocional.

Moreover, Ramón Gallegos proposes several diagrams or learning models representing the superiority of the Spiritual Intelligence. He compares Gardner’s InterPersonal (first level), Intra-Personal (second level) and third (upper or superior) level for Spiritual Intelligence (See diagram 1 included). In addition, he describes in a chart (Spanish) the correspondence of each level to Gardner’s and others intelligences: social, emotional, (See Illustrations, Figure 4 and Figure 5).

As previously discussed, other text also reviewed in this chapter, is the one proposed by Funso Aiyegina & Rawle Gibbons.Orisa (Orisha) Tradition in Trinidad (2,000). This text suggests the concept of INNER-MIND/HEAD (Ori-inu) as a conception of an African religious tradition practiced by the Orisa-Yoruba followers in Trinidad. The authors explained this phenomenon as: “Aware that the only public method of workship he would have was that of the slavemaster, the African accepted the religion of the slavemaster (e,i, Christians) and consciously erected a parallel interpretation of the Christian structure of saints such that when he publicly prayed to them his inner-mind/ head …(Ori-inu) which is regarded by the (New World, Caribbean) Africans …to be by far more powerful than the actual head (mind), In spiritual matters, was praying to the equivalent Orisa.”

As a cultural manifestation, where the Inner-Mind/Head (Ori-inu) is manifested, the Trinidad carnivals are considered to be a festivity where the masquerade brings the spirit

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of Orisa to celebrate with the living. Crowley, J. D. (1956). “The Traditional Masques of Carnival”.

“During the annual feast, all the Orisa are invoked and the major ones are expected to manifest on their special days within the period of the feast”.

The Yoruba like other African people, always had a concept of Olodumare as the Supreme God. The Orisa or Orisha then were their saints as the Christian saints. In: Orisa (Orisha) Tradition in Trinidad (2,000), by Funso Aiyegina & Rawle Gibbons.

The importance or relevance of this reading to the concept of INNER KNOWLEDGE, or Inner Intelligence we are proposing and redefining here, is in terms of African religious ceremonies, through which certain individuals are capable of transcending and obtaining “information” or knowledge that go far beyond human rationality.

Spiritual Intelligence have been closely related to religious practices (God, communication with the spirits, eternal source of knowledge, and cosmic universe-bound origins, Zohar, (1997), Gallegos (2006), others.

In the following text: Las Tres Mentes, la Gran Rebelión (The Three Minds, the Great Rebellion) Chapter 12, written by Samael Aun Weor also cited in http://www.samaelgnosis.net/preguntas/mente_interior.html, the concept of Inner Intelligence or the Inner mind is also discussed; as previously expressed, in relation to religious considerations.

In Samael Aun Weor’s Mente Interior it is expressed in the following terms: “…it is fundamental for a direct experience with thruth. Undoubtly, the interior mind elavorates its content concepts with the input data suministered by the

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superlative conciousness of the (supreme) Being. Unquestionably, concience can live and experiment the real. There is no doubt, concience knows the truth.

Nonetheless, in order to be manifested, concience needs a mediator: an action instrument, wich is in itself, the interior mind”.

According to the teachings of the Movimiento Gnóstico Internacional, (International Gnostic Movement), at www.iglisaw.com, Iglesia Cristiana-Gnóstica Litelantes y Samael Aun Weor, there are three levels of Inner Mind or Inner Knowledge/Inner Intelligence, seen as Spiritual Intelligence: Imagination, Inspiration and Intuition.

1- Imagination, which exists beyond Intelect. Departing from I of fantasy (which can be harmful), up to Intentional I or Concious I. If it gets well developed, I helps to psicologically learn and think.

2- Inspiration or clarividence (which can be developed through a series of exercices, such as by the use of a glass of water, a crystal, with a mirror in its bottom, until an “aura” or gamma spectrum of colors is seen. Where each color oro r color tones (matices) represents different characteristics of the state of being.

And through exercices of Meditation. Deep M. of both life and death procecess of all things). The human beein exercices his/her M. in order to reach or imagine, by personal experience, the Return or Return Law of all things. Prior existence reality is verified. Inspiration – conciousness stage of the beeing, which let the beeing “captures the meaning” of such existence; its motive, cause, and reason.

3- Intuition – permits the access to the superior regions of universe and of the cosmos. Permits the knowledge of the real; it is a transcendental cognitive capability.

These three levels of spiritual or Inner Intelligence (Interior Mind) are: Imagination, Inspiration and Intuition. Each level is seen as a progression of the previous.

While describing the Three Minds as: 1- The first or external mind (sustained by what it is called here as “The sensual Mind”), the input is the physical world. Through the senses the knowledge is acquired by humans.

La mente sensual, externa, nutrida exclusivamente por el razonamiento basado en los cinco sentidos: (oido, vista, tacto, olor, sabor). Conceptos de contenido y Percepciones sensoriales externas.

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2- The intermediate mind or mid mind, which develops knowledge through rational input learned by religious beliefs. And 3- The Interior Mind, which is the ultimate experience of human learning and knowledge.

In his own words, in Spanish: “La mente interior, la que percibe la verdad porque tiene la capacidad de conocer lo oculto, lo misterioso, lo directamente revelado, lo imaginado, y se nutre del conocimiento cósmico. La Mente Interior opera con los datos aportados por la Conciencia Interior del Ser. Conciencia Superlativa del Ser. Ante todo, no está de más saber que existen tres mentes en nosotros: A la primera podríamos denominarla Mente Sensual. A la Segunda la consideraremos como la Mente intermedia y la tercera es la Mente Interior”

As it is described in The Three Minds, the Great Rebellion, Chapter 12, written by Samael Aun Weor; also cited in: www.iglisaw.com, Iglesia Cristiana-Gnóstica Litelantes y Samael Aun Weor, and in http://www.samaelgnosis.net/preguntas/mente_interior.html.

In 1978, Paul D. MacLean “A Mind of Three Minds: Educating the Triune Brain”, the concept of Three Minds which was discussed and brought to debate as far as 35 years ago or so. What it refers to is the fact that studies conducted on Brain Specialization in the 1970’s and 1980’s are as valid as new studies and theories developed further more in time. A flow view of knowledge has also been discussed for years as it has been reviewed in this chapter.

Maybe the only “new thing under the sun” as Salomon expressed nearly three to four thousand years ago, (Book of Eclessiastes, Book of Wisdom in the Bible) probably has been also there in the past. Maybe nothing new has been discovered since then. Only recalled, renamed, rethought and brought back as a new product “under the sun”.

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Finally, as previously reviewed, Combariza (2012) showed in her “Inteligencia de Servicio” or Service Intelligence presentation, she sees Spiritual Intelligence as a vital component in the service-related intelligences. Helena combines a series of Garner’s Multiple Intelligence (Spatial, interpersonal, intrapersonal), as well as emotional intelligence; Mayer, Salovey,Caruso & Sitarenios (2001), Rational Intelligence, Practical, Presential and Virtual intelligences, in three levels of achievement or development.

Summary of Chapter 2 (Third Stage): Summarizing the ideas: even though a relatively clear though has been developed herein, combining different theorists and their diverse intelligence theories (Flow, Spiritual, Experiential, Existential, The Three Minds theory, Emotional, Intrapersonal/ Interpersonal Intelligence, Practical, Social, and including Inner-Mind/Head African religious conception of Spiritual Intelligence, this author considered it as necessary the re-definition of the concept of INNER KNOWLEDGE/INNER INTELLIGENCE, seeing it as a process of interaction of multi-factors, both inside as well as outside; as an existential or experiential phenomena. Not seeing Inner Knowledge Theory as of a religion-only property, but as a gift to all humans. Both innate (Fixed Mindset) as well as evolved (Growth Mindset).

In Chapter 3: Methodology, the concept of Inner Intelligence, as it has been deeply reviewed in this second chapter, Literature Review, will be applied to reading of biographies, as a qualitative approach in ESL learners within the view of a personalized model in education, with the goal of developing resilient behaviors in ESL students.

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY: BIOGRAPHIES: A READING APPROACH IN ESL TOWARDS THE RESILIENT LEARNING

Introduction: Inner Intelligence or Inner Knowledge, as it relates to resilient behaviors has been reviewed in Chapter 2: Review of Literature. In adition, both ancient or old theories concerning human cognition as well as learning processes have been co-related to this concept. A series of recent studies and theories which are in nowadays scholastic debates such as multiple Intelligences, social, spiritual, experiencial intelligences and energybased theories concerning human learning, cognition and productive behaviors have also been reviewed.

As cited before in Chapter 2, early studies on brain specialization, as the ones conducted by Witkin et al., (1962), Ausubel (1968), Ramirez & Casta帽eda, (1974), Trotter (1976) , Brown (1980), Nine-Curt, C. J. (1980), and Fernandez-Col贸n P., (1985 p.16), there are nowadays a huge gamma of learning or cognitive theories and in correlation to them, proposals for different or multiple intelligences as Gardner (1994), Combariza (2012) and others. Within these are also the works of Leslie Hart, (1983): Human Brain and Human Learning.

Hart (1983) expanded the concept of the development of a learning theory compatible with the brain, which resulted in the use of Mental Maps, as proposed by

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Buzan, T., (1996, 2007), as well as the use of Conceptual Maps, proposed by Novak, J. D. (1998).

In recent years the use of Mental Maps, (Novak, J. D. (1998): Learning, Creating, and Using Knowledge: Concept Maps as Facilitative Tools in Schools and Corporations. as well as the studies conducted by Buzan, T., (1996): The Mind Map Book, are being used withing the methodology which points toward the enhancement of learning skills in students (through Differentiated methodology) as established in the Puerto Rico Core Standards for the English Program, 2014.

Based on these findings, a Demonstrative Class as well as the Teacher Lesson Plan on how to use these methodologies with 7th to 11th ESL students are included in here as Appendixes E and F. The use of Memoirs, Biographies as well as life stories as reading materials can be developed using these methodologies; this, as result of an Investigation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Action research methodology, as expressed earlier in Chapter 2.

In this third chapter, the use of Biographies as a methodology for developing resilient behaviors will be used in ESL scenarios with the goal of helping ESL teachers and students to develop such behaviors; it is, reading and applying biographies As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes.

Teaching Objectives: While reading biographies (and autobiographies) of resilient people, the expected results in our ESL students are to: 1- Help ESL students to develop life-long related skills using biographies as educational instruments to develop resilient behaviors.

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2- Enhance the learning experiences beyond the K-12 formal education on ESL environments in order to transform the reading process into one of life-long, personal, experiencial and human-growth development.

3- Prepare all-ages students to be serviced-oriented citizens in and out of school scenarios.

Why the use of biographies as As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes?

According to Lucca-Irizary, N. & Berrios Rivera, R., (2009), biographies can be used as a Qualitative Method in education as well as social-related environments (p.189190). These authors cite prior studies conducted by Dominice & Nox (2000), entitled Learning from our lives: Using Educational Biographies with adults, as effective reading experiences.

The Biographical method has been used since 1930â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s within the anthropological experience through lives histories; citing (Redfield, 1930; Smith, 1994; and Lewis, 1951) studies.

Thomas (1995): Teacher stories, has been one of the first publications in which biographies are used as a qualitative method within the educational field (p.190).

Moreover, both Smith (1994) as well as Denzin (1989b) the biographical design has gained valuable importance within the feminist movements as a tool for developing empowerment and equity among generes within the social structures. Finally, these authors cite the work of Finkelstein, (1998) to sustain the relevance of the biographical

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design to evaluate political strengths, economy and social processes as well as generational transformations within societies (Lucca Irizarry & Berrios Rivera, 2009: 190-191). Through biographies, the voices and subjective experiences are heard directly from the characters as transformational elements and are seen as crucial common factors that have contributed to carry enourmous changes in favor of society (p.191-192).

Research Design Biographies as Research Design in Education: While citing Roberts (2002), Lucca Irrizarry and Berrios Rivera (2009), describe the use of biographies, as a qualitative research method, which provides inputs in the understanding of the changing experiences in individuals as well as collective expectations of humans; seeing them in their habitual or everyday lives scenarios. More important yet, in the understanding of their views of what is important and of relevant perspectives as well as their interpretations of their past, present and future (p.1). While citing (Kridel, 1998), the authors define as“good biographies” those which relate the personal ways individuals face their lives, know their problems, how they work with their crisis, how they love, compete and do their daily things (p.192-193).

Lucca Irrizarry and Berrios Rivera (2009), explain that some authors, while defining what biography is, “biography” can be understood in a broader sence as to include concepts such as: individual biographies, autobiographies, autoetnographies, life histories and oral histories as biographies; nonetheless, the authors present a table in which they provide the terminologies been used in the studies of lives as methodologies (p.193).

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For the purposes of this dissertation, biographies will be considered as a useful tool in the reading experience of ESL students, within a broad scoupe or view.

Finally, Lucca Irrizarry and Berrios Rivera (2009), point out that the importance and relevance of using biographies consist in their power to “touch both the heart as well as the mind” in human beings (p.195; citing Oates, 1986). Lucca Irrizarry and Berrios Rivera (2009), conclude their definition of biographies expressing their view that humans do not live along; We as readers of biographies, “walk side by side with those who have preceded us through their writings; being each biography unique in its spirit, meaning and rhythm as they point out their honesty and humbleness which is shared with the readers.” Translation by author, (p.195).

The authors recommend in their book the biographies of Maestro Rafael Cordero written by Puente Acosta (1868) and a bilingual (Spanish-English) transcription of the life of Professor Juana Mendez by Hilda Elena Araujo (Spanish) from the English original source of C.Glesne (1997): That rare feeling: Re-presening research through poetic transcription (pp.196-197).

In this dissertation, two biographies are included: Appendix B: Frida Kalho – Biography and Appendix C: Nick Vujicic –Biography as examples of resilient persons.

In addition, biographical notes of Pablo Fernandez-Colon are included at the end of the Dissertation as well as the weblinks of his electronic publications cited in this work.

Population: In order to select an investigation-in-action research design with the purpose of identifying students’ interests as well as academic preferences, guided to develop a

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personalized model of education, which is herein proposed as an essencial component of the resilient educational theory reviewed in chapter 2, two main educational models are been considered to help in the methodology: Ramirez & Castañeda, (1982), Cultural Democracy in Education in search of a democratic, bilingual – bicognitive development in ESL students; and more recent research works of Victor García Hoz (1992, 1993, 2000, 2002, 2004) in terms of Personalized Education.

Prior to this dissertation, a questionnaire (See Appendix A) on students’ academic interests and preferences for a personalized view in their education has been prepared following an investigation-in-action research model by the author (Fernandez-Colon, P., 2006).

Because this dissertation contemplates the use of Biographies as an educational tool for developing resilient behaviors in all-age, all-levels ESL students, including adults as well, of course K-12 contituents; the Questionaire on Appendix A with High School ESL students, can be used among a diverse ESL population; always having in mind the purpose of the investigation in terms of seeing not only ESL educational environments to be impacted, but with a global educational scope: education for all life or life-long, human development skills centers.

As defined by Garcia Hoz: “Personalized Education as an educational Model is founded on the premises that human beings as persons are capable of exploring, changing and transforming the world. The essencial characteristics that support the P.E.M., seeing humans as persons, are: singularity – originality – creativity, autonomy – liberty – responsability, openess – comunication and trascendency. ”. Moreover, Garcia Hoz expressed his view of a Personalized Educational Model, in the following terms:

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“Personalized Education (P.E.), is the intentional perfection of the human person by: its own concious and free activity; the friendly commonwealth and a well realized activity” García Hoz (1993, pp. 35 y 43).

In Gardner’s words: (2011), “El sistema educativo ha cambiado más en las pasadas décadas que en los siglos anteriores” This is: The educational system has changed much more in the past decades than centuries before” (Translation by author).

Moreover, whe he was asked about the future of education, he says: “After the development of multiple intelligences, the need for implementing a personalized educational model is a must” (Translation by author). Because, according to Gardner, in reference to adults, he expressed: “Tu y yo ya no somos niños; seremos disfuncionales si dejamos de aprender”. – You and I are no longer children; we would become disfunctional if we stop learning, (Translation by author) as being interviewed by Edward Punset while receiving the Principe of Asturias Award in 2011(Fundación Príncipe de Asturias, Aviles, Oct 18th, 2011. in www.edwardpunset.es).

Further more, Gardner proposses changing the name of School of Education to School of Life-long Learning, visualizing formal education far beyond academic or subjects – based intellectually-oriented education into a broader or life-long learning centers as it was also previously shared by Carl Rogers (1994) and Paulo Freire (1997) among other educational leaders in history; seeing education as a never ending process.

Much more than individualized, a personalized one (García Hoz, 1993, pp. 35and 43).

See also Varela Perez, Miguel A., UIPR, in http://www.slideshare.net/jrgutierrez316/filosofias-educativas-9561177.

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Personalized Education (P.E.), is the intentional perfection of the human person by: its own concious and free activity; the friendly commonwealth and a well realized activity” - García Hoz (1993, pp. 35 and 43).

García Hoz sees P.E. as an integrative human behavioral process (to be human or being human) looking towards achieving it (perfection) not only as an individual but as a common or well being goal (ibid).

Data Collection: As presented in Appendix A: Una propuesta para un Modelo de Educación Personalizada, (Fernandez-Colon, P., 2006) there were several stages in the proposal which included a first version of a questionaire with a simple population or focal group constituted by three (3) High School students who worked the initial questionaire, after having filled a consent approval sheet, also signed by their parents. After having received their responses, a second and final questionaire was obtained, contained in a multiplechoice format as well as several cognitive questions at the end. (See Appendix A (2).

FINAL QUESTIONAIRE (translated by autor), Please, select the responses or responses which best describe your selection.

A preferences order is established, which consists of the following criteria: 4= Very satisfactory 3=Satisfactory 2=Parcially Satisfactory 1= No satisfactory.

On those questions which there are alternatives for answering them, check first if there is only one or multiple choices of selection for the corresponding question or questions.

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1- ¿What do you like to do out of school? (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Practice sports ___ (b) Participate in artístic activities [like drawing, painting, music, acting or performance, others.] ___ (c) Part time or full time jobs [Part-time job, full-time job] ___ (d) Watch television ___ (e) Get together with friends other (especify) ___________________________________________________ 2- ¿ How I like school should be? (Only one) ___ (a) Dinamic ___ (b) Enjoyable ___ (c) Creative ___ (d) As it is today 3- ¿How I think I could learn more? (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Small group works (Team work) ___ (b) Independent work ___ (c) working with class peers (Peers work) ___ (d) Being assisted by teacher ___ (e) Being assisted by class peers (Peers Assisted) ___ (f) Competing with others (competition) ___ (g) Working alone in regular-size groups (15 o more students) ___ (h) Other form: (especify) ______________________________________ 4- I am interested in learning for… (only one) ___ (a) going to college or university ___ (b) getting a job ___ (c) graduating from high school only ___ (d) for stuying a technical or short time career (1 or 2 years careers) ___ (e) Other: explain: ____________________________________________ 5- School should teach… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) basic subjects only (Esp/Ing,Math.Science.History) ___ (b) specialized classes in ________________________________________ ___ (c) creative clases such as (explain) ________________________________ ___ (d) computers ___ (e) classes by internet (On-line courses) 6- Some students quit school due to… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Lack of interest

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___ (b) ___ (c) ___ (d) ___ (e)

No desires for superation Home problems Drugs use Other: ____________________________________________________

7- If I were ___________ teacher, I would teach as … (Only one) ___ (a) Dynamic classes ___ (b) Motivated ___ (c) Diferent (Diferring education) ___ (d) _____________________ 8- The subject class I like best is (Only one) ___ (a) English ___ (b) Responsible parenthood ___ (c) Physical Education ___ (d) History ___ (e) _______________

9- The subject class I like the least is (Only one) ___ (a) History (USA) ___ (b) Marketing ___ (c) Spanish ___ (d) Geometry ___ (e) _____________ 10- I think I would learn much more in the class I like best if… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) there were movies on Fridays ___ (b) I like the teaching as it is now ___ (c) there were less absentees ___ (d) cretive clases once a week on _________ (specify the weekday) ___ (e) _________________________ 11- I think I would learn much more in the class I like the least if … (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) it were more easy ___ (b) the teacher were much more organized ___ (c) the teacher were more creative ___ (d) class were more applied in _________________ ___ (e) class were more challenging to myself

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For questions 12 on, please use the following scale of satisfaction: 4= Very Satisfactory 3=Satisfactory 2=Parcially Satisfactory 1= No satisfactory.

12- School hours should be.. ___ (a) 7:30 am – 12:30 pm ___ (b) 8-11:30 am and 12:30-3:00 pm ( same as usual) ___ (c) 11:30 am – 4:30 pm ___ (c) 12:30 pm-5:30 pm ___ (d) 7:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon ___ (e) 9:00am – 12:00 and 1:00 – 4:00 pm 13- Students should quit school less if ... (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) there were more activities (curricular or extracurricular) ___ (b) school offers more creative courses according to their interests ___ (c) there were no class cuts ___ (d) they see school with relevancy to their needs ___ (e) ___________________________________________________ 14- If I were ________ teacher, I would teach class as follows… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Giving daily class work points ___ (b) Treating students well (affectively) ___ (c) Teaching Visual Arts Visuales: use of manipulatives ___ (d) Encouraging and councelling students ___ (e) Using inverse psicology so students will work better ___ (f) Teaching Science outdoors (in contact with nature) ___ (g) Teaching English: through respect to and among students (no bulliyng)

In addition, the following Cognitive Questions were asked to the group of students to whom the Final Questionaire was suministered (Focuss group) but in a cuantitative design at this time. These were the cognitive questions:

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COGNITIVE QUESTIONS:

1- ¿Did you find any difficult question(s)?

Yes ___

No ___

¿Which one(s)? _____

2- ¿Did you find any difficult to understand Word(s)?

Yes ___ No ___

¿Which Word(s) ________________________________________________

3- ¿Did you consider the answering time adequate?

Yes ___ No ___

4- ¿Did you consider the questions with relevance?

Yes ___ No ___

5- ¿Did you consider the Questionaire valuable?

Yes ___ No ___

Findings: Because this questionaire of academic interests and preferences was based on individuality, the intention of such document was precisely focused on thier personal responses in terms of qualitative (semi-closed) responses. But the final work became a more formalized and closed questions one; as expressed before, a multiple answers selection type (See Appendix A (2).

Further Applications: A similar questionaire technique can also be used in terms of assessing students’s interests for the kind of biographies they would prefer for their readings. Based on both

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Caroll Dweck’s Mindsets (Dweck, C., 2006, 2012) and Milhany’s Flow Theory (Csikszent, M., 2002, 2009), the personal student’s input, or own-interests preferences for selecting what they enjoy as Reading as well as learning materials, will facilitate the Reading goal; in our case, the development of resilient behaviors in our ESL students.

Summary of Chapter 3: In this Chapter 3: A PROPOSAL FOR A MODEL OF RESILIENCE has been considered. Major definitions as well as a variety of models or theories on learning and cognitive development in humans; such as Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, Combariza’s Service Intelligences as well as Experiencial Learning Theory postulated by Ausubel, Husserl, Begoña and others have been considered and reviewed.

A Questionaire on students’ interests and preferences was formulated with the intention of developing resilient behaviors in High School students, using an investigation-in-action design in order to present a model for Personalized Education in ESL and applicable to other subjects as well. (See Appendix A (2).

In Chapter 4 some practical considerations will be presented focusing on the use of Biographies with the goal of developing resilient behaviors in ESL students within a personalized education view.

Some already proven teaching techniques using Biografhies as a methodology are: (Thomas, D. J. (1995): Teacher stories, Dominice & Nox, A. (2000). Learning from our lives: Using educational biographies with adults, Finkelstein, B. (1998), Revealing human agency: The uses of biography in the study of educational history. Kridel, C. (Ed.). (1998), Writing educational biography: Explorations in qualitative research.

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Oates, S. B. (Ed.). (1986). Biography as high adventure, as lived by the characters and described by the writers, and experienced in others, the readers, will be recommended in order to fulfill these educational expectations.

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

CHAPTER 4: BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Introduction: In this Chapter 4, some practical considerations will be presented focusing on the use of Biographies with the goal of developing resilient behaviors in ESL students within a personalized education view.

Some already proven teaching techniques will be recommended in order to fulfill these educational expectations, as reviewed in Thomas, D. J. (1995): Teacher stories, Dominice & Nox, A. (2000). Learning from our lives: Using educational biographies with adults., Finkelstein, B. (1998). Revealing human agency: The uses of biography in the study of educational history. Kridel, C. (Ed.). (1998). Writing educational biography: Explorations in qualitative research. Oates, S. B. (Ed.). (1986). Biography as high adventure and others as examples.

With the use of Biography, as a qualitative research method, resilient behaviors on ESL students are expected to be developed and enhanced through the readings of biographies of people who have shown resilient behaviors or conduct in their lives as their stories have been written to â&#x20AC;&#x153;walk side by side with those who have preceded us through their writingsâ&#x20AC;?, with the readers, as expressed by Lucca Irizarry & Berrios Rivera (2009).

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The Questionaire on proposing a personalized educational model (Appendix A (2), presented in Chapter 3 can be adapted as an Investigation-in-Action qualitative research methodology, to identify ESL students with the goal of identifying students interests and preferences for a specific Biography and/or type of literature, as well as the presentation of them (through Multimedia, Biographical movies or videos, drama, Role-playing, musicals or any other creative teaching technique), which can be used in the learning-teaching process.

A Personal inventory technique on ESL students can be also developed, by the students themselves using the following questions or other similar ones to achieve this goal.

Teaching Biographies as part of the ESL Curricula: The use of Memoirs and a Personal Profile; (As it is expressed in Puerto Rico 2014-2015 English as a Second Language Framework; 11: Units 1 and 2 objectives), can set the teaching moment to develop the use of biography as an educational tool in ESL students. Based on this, the following assessment activity can be useful.

Instructions for students to develop a Personal Profile: The Personal Profile; (As it is expressed in Puerto Rico English as a Second Language framework; 11: Unit 2 objectives), make sure you develop a three to five-paragraph essay covering all the corresponding profile guidelines: I am....

Your academic experiences

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Areas you need to improve Your inventory (or areas you have developed in your favor) Expectations in life (short, medium, long term) and Professional expectations for the future (what you want to be as a professional, university student, etc.)

You may work a brain storming (with the use of Clusters) activity, a Graphic Organizer (more precise) or Outline as pre-writing assessment for writing your 3 to 5 paragraphs essay.

Students may also select a movie or musical video as their biographical material, as for example: The Sound of Music: You are sixteen going on seventeen (for High School students), available at The Sound of Music â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Sixteen Going on Seventeen (rolf And Liesl) Lyrics | MetroLyrics, and in the video clip link pasted below:

Sixteen_Going_On_Seventeen.mp4

A Demonstrative Class and Teachersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lesson Plan: In Appendixes E and F there are included a Demonstrative Lesson as well as Teacher Lesson Plan for 7th to 11th ESL graders on how to develop a class using these materials, in accordance to Puerto Rico Core Standards for English, 2014.

The use of this kind of educational materials can also be implemented in ESL 10th 12th graders as part of the curriculum guidelines for the 2014-2015 English Program

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curricula: The Personal Profile; as it is expressed in Puerto Rico English as a Second Language framework; Unit 2 objectives, which fits perfectly for this purpose.

A Memoir Demonstrative Class: A Memoir (As it is expressed in Puerto Rico 2014-2015 English as a Second Language framework; 11: 1 objective), or Personal remembrance of a true â&#x20AC;&#x201C; nature recall o experience of a selected character or even of students themselves can be a creative and personalized teaching tool in ESL (See Appendix F).

But a further view is recommended herein: A Personalized Educational Model in TESL.

Why a Personalized Educational Model in TESL is needed?

Eventhough Diferentiated educational techniques are highly recommended for ESL teachers of the Department of Education (D.E.) of Puerto Rico at the present historical moment, 2014-2015, a Personalized Model of Education is still absent in our public school system, while it has already been implemented in private educational scenarios, specially religious academic institutions as it is defined and proposed by Garcia Hoz, V. (1993), Ferrini R. (2000) and others; but not in our public schools. Moreover, using a Personalized Model in Education as part of TESL with the goal of attaining resilient behaviors in ESL students, is still a futuristic goal.

The need for implementing a Personalized Educational Model in TESL is a long way to walk still nowadays, at the opening of the 21th Century. This is why Gardner (2011) recommends its implementation, seen education, in our case, TESL as

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a life-long educational journey, and when considering resiliency As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes, much more yet.

Summary of Chapter 4: By the use of Biography as a reading approach in TESL, an enourmous step can be walked as part of the educational transformation needed in TESL and beyond.

If resilient behaviors can be obtained, developed and enhanced in ESL students, this dissertation has presented a practical way to achieve this goal: through the use of Biography as a reading approach. There is certainly not a magic trick or a unique learning and teaching, a lone intelligence but a combination of many intelligences present in the resilient as it has already reviewed in Chapter 2 and integrated in this chapter as a integrative and practical tool in the TESL scenario.

In this Chapter 4, a Questionaire for identifying studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; personal interests and preferences has been suggested as an Investigation-in-Action qualitative research design to help both students as well as teachers to develop a Personalized Model in Education. Recommendations on how to use Memoirs, Personal Inventory and Biographies as assessment activities have been considered in this chapter, within the reading experience as a tool in TESL. Finally, both a Demonstrative Class as well as a Demonstrative Lesson Plan for 7th to 9th ESL Teachers have been included in Appendixes E and F, providing teachers valid tools for using biographies, memoirs and multimedia resources for helping them (The teachers of English as a Second Language) to enhance their teaching experiences while using Biography as an educational instrument.

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In Chapter 5: Designing a Life-long learning Personalized Education Model through Biographies, as a reading approach in ESL, with the goal of seeing it As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes, within the resilient theory framework is seen and should be seen as an attainable goal that still needs to be considered in TESL and beyond.

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

CHAPTER 5: Designing a Life-long learning Personalized Education Model through Biographies as a reading approach in ESL

Introduction: In this Chapter 5: Designing a Life-long learning Personalized Education Model through Biographies, as a reading approach in ESL, with the goal of seeing it As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes, within the resilient theory framework is seen and should be seen as an attainable goal that still needs to be considered in TESL and beyond.

In this Dissertation, a broad review on different learning styles, cognitive styles, including a diverse content on full person, whole person, whole brain development, bi-cognitive development and human development have been discussed, with the intention of developing a personalized education model adapted to the resilient learner.

Educational practices theorized, propossed and carried on by Garcia Hoz (1993) and others, have impacted how education is seen: “Personalized Education (P.E.), is the intentional perfection of the human person by: its own concious and free activity; the friendly commonwealth and a well realized activity” - García Hoz (1993, pp. 35 and 43).

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García Hoz sees P.E. as an integrative human behavioral process (to be human or being human) looking towards achieving it (perfection) not only as an individual but as a common or well being goal”.

In the ESL scenario, we as teachers can adapt P.E. postulates in order to enhance the TESL experience, taking it a step ahead in the 21st Century reality. In this chapter this integrative notion will be discussed and proposed as an utilitarian or practical tool in TESL. Through the integration of the basic postulates in P.E., which are: Singularity – originality – creativity, Autonomy – liberty – responsability, Openess – comunication and trascendency, the use of Biographies as a qualitative method in the TESL experience will be sugested herein.

Defining Personalized Education Postulates: Garcia Hoz (1993) defined what he considered as the pillars in Personalized Education as follows: Originality, Autonomy and Openess. Víctor García Hoz (19111998), characterized in the person the notes of singularity, which consists of the person’s creativity – originality, autonomy –liberty, and openness - communication. He searched for transforming the learning task into an element of personal formation; through the student’s own task selection and his/her acceptation of responsibilities (Ferrini R., 2000).

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In his book: Introducción general a una pedagogía de la persona, Chapter 1, Víctor García Hoz (1993), defined what he considered as “The Preparation for life and the Construction of Personality”, establishing a direct relationship between education and life: “learning for living”. In this way there are established the concepts of life-long learning and education, as Gardner (2011) also suggested as a goal of personalized education.

Ferrini R. (2000), in her book: Hacia una Educación Personalizada, interprets Garcia Hoz’ Pillars of P. E. In terms of Singularity– creativity – originality; Rita Ferrini sees these characteristics in the person as inherent values to the common wealth of the collective or society; same as Helena Combariza’s Service Intelligences view (Combariza, H., 2011).

Ferrini expresses the concept of Singularity, not in terms of individuality as it is seen in an individualized approach, but as the combination of both the individual and the collective as esencial elements in P. E., as part of the individualization and socialization processes in the person.

While interpreting Autonomy– liberty, she sees it within a rehumanized conception in the educational process of the student both with the vision of helping others, not in terms of a competition-oriented education, which has been based on the individualization concept of the student’s learning processes (Individualized-competitive learning approaches).

And finally, Ferrini interprets the third pillar of P. E., Openess – comunication, as a social – integrative experience in the student; considering the ultímate goal of education as a three-bounded one: social, individual and trascendental. This third element of the

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socialization of the individual as something that goes far beyond his personal or individual social or human development, but as a virtue that serves others instead of ownselves. A closer look at this third element of P. E., the concept of “Service” as a finality in the human being matches the final product in the resilient learning process, social, individual and trascendental. This third element of the socialization of the individual as something that goes far beyond his personal or individual social or human development, but as a virtue that serves others instead of ownselves. A closer look at this third element of P. E., the concept of “Service” as a finality in the human being matches the final product in the resilient learning process, the notion of “YOU” as it was presented already in the Model of Resilient Learning proposed by Fernandez-Colon, P., (2006). (See Figure 3: A Model of Resilient Learning).

Educational Implications of Personalized Education: When Garcia Hoz expressed himself in terms of the Educational Implications of the P. E. M., he concluded: “evaluating students in the same level is an injustice. The school failure is born from converting exams as social sanctions not as pedagogical actions” (Garcia Hoz, V., 1990).

Personalized Education serves multiple purposes in the student as it has been explained previously.

When it is seen in terms of Resilient learning, there is no doubt that the concepts or pillars that ground P. E., when analized as fundamental elements in the search for a life-long learning experience, undoubtly related to the resilient development of his/her

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survival, transformational or transcendental behaviors, with the resulting product, which is YOU: (Results: Empathy, Positive upcoming, Total Integration, Positive Evolution Development and Service toward others) the outcomes are positive ones, as presented by Fernandez-Colon, P., (2006). (See Figure 3: A Model of Resilient Learning).

Assessing a Personalized Education Model for Resilient learning through Biographies: The use of Biography, which has been already defined as a qualitative research method, as an educational approach, can be used in order to find resilient behaviors in the characters described in biographies. The Personalized views in students have also been discussed in terms of its relationship both as life-long learning and as a key element in the fostering of resilient behaviors as well.

The integration of multiple intelligencies among other recently developed intelligences such as Emotional, Spiritual, Experiencial, Service, Inner, with the integration of other cognitive and learning theories as the concepts of Flow and Mindsets among others, serve as necessary tools needed by resilient to identify, develop, enhance and transform their learning experiences in transcendental behaviors in favor of others as well as their own wealthbeing.

Included as Appendixes, several biographies are recomended as sample readings.

(See Appendix B: Biography of Frida Galho, Appendix C: Biography of Nick Vujicic).

Other biographies can be selected both by ESL teachers as well as students. An integrative assessment activities may also include biographical videos or movies, songs

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which relate resilient experiences and a lot of creative activities open to the imagination, such as dramatization, role-playing, interviewing people who show resilient behaviors and as writing responses to biography readings, students may create their own biographies according to their own experiences in Memoirs or using Personal Profiles as examples among other possible learning/teaching experiences, as long as these activities help students to identify, develop, enhance and foster resilent behaviors in their lives (See Appendixes E and F).

Adaptative reading materials are encouraged according to students’ interests, preferences and ages, following the principles of Personalized Education discussed previously. (See Figure 2: The conception of Personalized Education (P. E.) in Garcia Hoz).

Summary of Chapter 5 and Transition to Chapter 6: As discussed in this chapter, Personalized Education principles: singularity, which consists of the person’s creativity – originality , autonomy –liberty, and openness –communication –to enhance social conducts and human relationships, as long as they serve to identify, develop, enhance and foster resilient behaviors in ESL students, through the enjoyable experience of the reading of biographies of resilient people, as a tool for helping them “learning to live” (Garcia Hoz, 1993), as an educational instrument applied for “transforming the learning task into an element of personal formation; through the student’s own task selection and his/her acceptation of responsibilities”, as expressed earlier, should be seen as an attainable goal.

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Personalized Education, P. E., “starts from the identification of the values implied in the human activity to be incorporated in the educational task; indicating, by this way, which attitudes and habits students will acquire” (Isaac, 1980, p.68) as values or virtues in their personal development as part of a collective experience ”, Ferrini R. (2000). The ultimate goal: Human development, in Kolberg, D., (2000), with the following outcomes or Results: Empathy, Positive upcoming, Total Integration, Positive Evolution Development (Fernandez-Colon, P., 2006) and Service toward others (Combariza, H., 2012). (See Figure 1).

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

CHAPTER 6: FINAL CHAPTER: CONCLUSSIONS, STRENGHS, LIMMITATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

A Final View on Biographies: a Reading approach in ESL Because this Dissertation is focussed on developing resilient behaviors through biography, a reading approach in TESL is viewed as a tool for attaining this goal.

Many other educational approaches can also be used in the consecussion of this same goal, so open doors are left in the search of resiliency in ESL students as well as other scenarios.

The techniques, assessment activities and other academic tools are also open for additional research and implementation in TESL. Using an Investigation-in-Action design as a qualitative research instrument can be developed by teachers in order to identify studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; personal interests as well as preferences for a particular biographical material or inspirational instrument to enhance their human development.

Recommendations for further research: Due to the qualitative research methodology used in this Dissertation: an Investigation-in-Action both in the review of qualitative research methodology in the proposal for a model of personalized education in ESL as in the recommendation for

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identifying ESL students’ interests and preferences for a personalized education in ESL, in ESL this same Methodology has been recommended to attain students’ interests and preferences for biographical reading selection as input or assessment instruments in the reading precess in TESL through Biography.

In addition, the use of Biography as a qualitative method applied to the reading approach in TESL has also been suggested in the search for a personalized education model in the ESL reading experience, seeing it as a valid tool for identifying, attaining, developing, and enhancing resilient behaviors in ESL students.

Limitations and Strengths of the Study: In the consideration of Limitations of the study, More than a methodology, the qualitative designs used in this Dissertation have been applied with a practical or pragmatical viewpoint; taking, in our case, the ESL scenario as a piece of the educational experience, both withing as out of school arenas; with the ultimate goal of achieving lifelong learnings in the TESL as well as any other teaching/learning environment.

In terms of seeing Biography as a qualitative approach in ESL, the same can be said: reading of biographies as an instrument for identifying, attaining, developing, and enhancing resilient behaviors in ESL students, as already expressed; not as a therethical goal, but as a practical or pragmatical one.

Strengths of the study: On the positive way, while considering the Strengths of the study, as a qualitative methodology, Biography can be relevant to foster life-long learning, enhance students’

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capabilities on learning for living as an ultimate goal, not just in school, but through their whole lives, in ESL, and far beyond.

A Final Word:

As Howard Gardner sees educational scenario as a life-long learning center (Gardner, 2011), and as well as Helena Combariza sees the educational experience as one guided to service (Combariza, 2012), in this Dissertation, learning is seen as a continuum; where learners never stop learning. Life is a learning scenario itself and students, of all ages should have have the needed tools to get this goal: learning for living. Life ends not when we die; but existence ends while still living, we stop existing. Even after death, biographies will help others to live; thanks to the lives of resilient characters, read as biographies.

Finally, inputs in terms of Personalized Education as presented by Garcia Hoz (1993), and his followers such as Isaac, (1980), Ferrini R. (2000) and Kolberg, D. (2000), have been used as fundamentals to both theoretical bases and models of Personalized Education, as well as Human Development, which can be implemented in ESL scenarios as well as other subjets’ with the goal of achieving resilient behaviors in teachers as well as in students; seen ESL not only as an academic, grade related matter, but as a life-long learning experience. In Gardner’s words: “Learning is a life-long experience, where life itself is learning” (Gardner, 2003, 2011).

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

APPENDIX A

UNIVERSIDAD DE PUERTO RICO ESTUDIOS GRADUADOS FACULTAD DE EDUCACION PROGRAMA DOCTORAL Una propuesta para un Modelo de Educación Personalizada EDUC 6509: Métodos Investigación en Educación Dra. Claudia Alvarez Por: Pablo Fernández 842-74-3010

I:

INTRODUCCION Planteamiento del Problema: En este trabajo me propongo presentar una propuesta para un Modelo de Educación Personalizada. Esta inquietud surge entre otras razones por las siguientes: Si la escuela es lo suficientemente atractiva a nuestros estudiantes del nivel superior y si los procesos de enseñanza responden a sus intereses y/o preferencias.

Propósitos del estudio Entre los propósitos del estudio están los siguientes: 1- conocer posibles causas de insatisfacción de los estudiantes en el nivel superior.

2- sometimiento de un cuestionario de preferencias a estudiantes de ambas modalidades (Curso General y Curso Vocacional) de la corriente regular en el nivel superior.

3- proponer un modelo de educación personalizada en el nivel superior

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Justificación del estudio Continuamente escuchamos a nuestros estudiantes expresarse con inconformidad con el currículo escolar y con las experiencias educativas que viven a diario en el proceso de enseñanza – aprendizaje.

Preguntas de investigación 1- Si la escuela es lo suficientemente atractiva a nuestros estudiantes del nivel superior 2- Si los procesos de enseñanza responden a sus intereses y/o preferencias.

Definiciones Varias definiciones de educación personalizada han sido consultadas, entre ellas las siguientes: Javier A. Huamán A. (2005) - en el portal cybernético : http://portal.educar.org/educacionpersonalizada, (Posteada en 10 Enero 2005). Y cito: La educación personalizada es una actividad educativa centrada en la persona. Siendo el objetivo fundamental perfeccionar las facultades del niño o del joven, tanto intelectuales como morales, a través de actividades diversas que se realizan intencionalmente para lograr este fin, de tal forma que se potencian al máximo las aptitudes, se adquieran unos conocimientos amplios y sólidos y se desarrollen los valores a través de la práctica de hábitos en los períodos sensitivos adecuados.

Huamán (2005) señala que el fundamento de la educación personalizada se basa en “considerar a la persona como principio de toda actividad educativa” y señala entre sus fundamentos antropológicos los siguientes: Singularidad, Autonomía y Apertura.

Finalmente señala que la “educación personalizada atiende a las dimensiones que conforman la persona humana”: Entre las cuales establece las siguientes: Somática, Afectiva, Intelectiva, Volitiva y Trascendente.

Defino como aprendizaje personalizado, una combinación de estilos de aprendizaje, estrategias de enseñanza, modelos curriculares e instruccionales, estrategias de avalúo o “assessment”, y lo que lo describe: una evaluación personalizada de intereses académicos, vocacionales, artísticos, sociales, entre otros indicadores. Otros términos encontrados en la literatura son: Educación individualizada, educación integrada para la vida, educación de vida, y uno un tanto más alejado de

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nuestro enfoque, pero también encontrado es el utilizado por movimientos educativos de base religiosa, “Home schooling” Para fines de este estudio entendemos por educación personalizada una combinación de estrategias y técnicas pedagógicas pero con la participación directa del estudiante, donde él/ella se expresen en términos de sus preferencias individuales y personales para crear ese modelo educativo, obviamente más que individualizado, personalizado (customized).

II:

REVISION BIBLIOGRAFICA Dentro de los trabajos revisados para este trabajo está los siguientes entre otros que también puedan ser considerados posteriormente: 1- Freire, Paulo (1986), Pedagogía del Oprimido, donde se plantea el concepto de la libertad en la educación y en rol importante, la participación del estudiante como colaborador y arquitecto de la forma en que aprende. Su pedagogía es un método cuya finalidad inmediata es la alfabetización y, en su dimensión más amplia, postula la educación como práctica de la libertad.

2- Como aprendí inglés: 55 latinos realizados relatan sus lecciones de idioma y vida, de los autores McCourt, Frank, Millar, Tom, y Suárez, Ray, tomado de National Geographic (September 18, 2007). En su postulado está: “Their successes are inspiring. Their pieces, engaging and entertaining all, express the whole range of emotions that learning any new language entails.” Y cita diversos latinos y como éstos han aprendido ingles, como lo es el caso del congresista de origen puertorriqueño José Serrano y como el escuchar discos del cantante americano Frank Sinatra lo ayudo a aprender inglés.

3- Rogers, C., The Handbook of Person-Centered Psychotherapy and Counselling, (1980), ha sido otra de las Fuentes literarias consultadas para este trabajo, en especial su aportación en el desarrollo curricular basado en estudios con sus pacientes psiquiátricos al igual que en su trabajo previo: On Personal Power: Inner Strength and Its Revolutionary Impact (1977).

4- Una cuarta referencia consultada lo ha sido en el área de la práctica innovadora de “Home schooling”, Switched-On Schoolhouse, Alpha Omega Publications, (1977). Y finalmente, pero no menos importante: 5- Educación Personalizada por Javier A. y Huamán A (2005).

III:

METODOLOGIA La población seleccionada para esta propuesta son estudiantes de corriente regular (Main streamming) de nivel superior, tanto de cursos

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vocacionales como del curso general en un distrito escolar de Puerto Rico, área sur de la isla.

Modelo investigativo: El Modelo de Investigación que espero utilizar es uno de investigación – acción. Es decir, basado en observaciones periódicas, entrevistas, diálogos informales con el (los) alumno(s), para descubrir características únicas que propulsen un estilo de enseñanza (“customized”) que respondan a los hallazgos obtenidos de las observaciones. Es un modelo de acción también debido a que el proceso de enseñanza se irá moldando a la luz de los hallazgos de carácter personal; a diferencia de un modelo individualizado.

Métodos de investigación: Utilización de cuestionarios y entrevistas informales. (Vea Documento de Autorización de los padres y Modelo de Cuestionario Provisto).

Una vez realizada las entrevistas y sometimiento de consentimiento a los padres para llenar el cuestionario provisto, se espera que las respuestas sean agrupadas por categorías y poder tener un cuadro cualitativo de las preferencias de los estudiantes así como sus recomendaciones al contestar el cuestionario. Se tomarán tres (3) estudiantes como muestra del estudio.

APENDICES

HOJA DE CONSENTIMIENTO

AUTORIZACION PARA DIVULGAR INFORMACION EN CUESTIONARIO

AUTORIZACION DE LOS PADRES A TRAVES DE ESTE DOCUMENTO AUTORIZO ( )

NO AUTORIZO ( )

A MI HIJO (A) _________________________________________________________

A PARTICIPAR EN EL CUESTIONARIO INVESTIGATIVO SOBRE ENSEÑANZA PERSONALIZADA DE LOS CURSOS: EDUC 6509, EDUC 8009 y EDUC 8076, DISEÑADO POR EL PROF. PABLO FERNANDEZ COLON, COMO PARTE DE LOS REQUISITOS DE INVESTIGACION DEL MISMO.

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ENTIENDO QUE LA PRIVACIDAD DE MI HIJO (A) SERA PROTEGIDA Y QUE NO SE DIVULGARAN DATOS PERSONALES QUE DE ALGUNA FORMA PUEDA IDENTIFICAR AL PARTICIPANTE EN DICHO CUESTIONARIO.

ATENTAMENTE,

____________________________

_______________________

PADRE, MADRE, O TUTOR

ESTUDIANTE

Fecha: _____________________________

DATOS DEMOGRAFICOS DE LA POBLACION

1- SEXO: M ___

F ___

2. EDAD: _____ 3. GRADO ________ 4. ESTUDIANTE CURSO VOCACIONAL ___

GENERAL ____

5. PROMEDIO GENERAL: 3.50 O MAS ____

3.49 A 3.00 _____ 2.49 O MENOS _____

6. RESIDO EN: ZONA URBANA ____

ZONA RURAL: ____ URB. PRIVADA ___

RES. PUBLICO ____ OTRO: _________________

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CUESTIONARIO

CUESTIONARIO PRELIMINAR (1)

Que me gusta hacer fuera de la escuela

Como me gusta que fuera la escuela

Como creo Intereso que aprender aprendería para… más

La clase que más me gusta es

La clase que menos me gusta es

Creo que aprendería más en la clase que mas me gusta si…

Creo que aprendería más en la clase que menos me gusta si…

La escuela Muchos debería estudiantes enseñar… dejan la escuela debido a…

El horario escolar debería ser..

Los alumnos dejarían menos la escuela si..

Si fuera maestro enseñaría así…

Si fuera maestro de_________ enseñaría la clase así…

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CUESTIONARIO PRELIMINAR (2) 1- Que me gusta hacer fuera de la escuela

Como me gusta que fuera la escuela

Como Intereso creo que aprender aprendería para… más

La escuela debería enseñar…

a) jugar

a)más divertida

b)con música

a) ser una persona de bien en el futuro a) tener algo que ofrecerle a mis futuros hijos

a) más deportes

b) comer

a) que fueran un bacilon los maestros b) no tengo ni idea

c) ver tv

c)bonita

c)con música

b) tener un b) primeros mejor auxilios futuro

d) tareas en casa

d)excelente c) c) ser un c) muchas enseñaran gran cosas mas para profesional lograr mis metas e) mejor servicio en el comedor f) más tarde

e) leer

f) escuchar música g) usar la computadora h) practicar deportes i) Otros _______

Muchos estudiantes dejan la escuela debido a… a) falta de interés

a) cosas a)no más desean interesantes superarse y divertidas

b) problemas en su hogar c) drogas

Si fuera maestro enseñaría así… a) clases dinámicas

a) sería una amiga en quienes ellos se sientan con interés en superarse b) animado

c)diferente

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La clase que más me gusta es

La clase que menos me gusta es

a) inglés

a) H. EU

b) Maternidad y Pat. Responsable

c)Educ física

d) historia

Creo que aprendería más en la clase que mas me gusta si… a) los viernes dieran películas

Creo que aprendería más en la clase que menos me gusta si… a) fuera más facil

El horario escolar deberِa ser.. a) 5-10 pm

Los alumnos dejarían menos la escuela si..

Si fuera maestro de_________ enseñaría la clase así…

a) hicieran a) dando más puntos por actividades trabajo diario y bregando bien con los estudiantes a) a)me a)si la a) a)si le a)artes mercadeo gusta maestra 10amofrecieran visuales:uso de mucho el fuera más 5pm cursos manualidades proceso organizada creativos que ellos de de su quieran enseñanza interés aprender más b) Hist b) no b) creativa b) está b) no b) estimularía y EU faltaran bien cortaran aconsejaría clases c) c) viernes c) aplicada c) 8-2:10 c) verla c) utilizaría español clases como algo sicología creativas que les inversa para importe que trabajen adecuadamente d) d) d) Ciencia: en geometría haciendome el patio un reto e) ingles: a no burlarse de los estudiantes

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CUESTIONARIO FINAL

Favor de escoger la o las respuestas que consideras describen tu mejor selección.

Se establece un orden de preferencias consistente en: 4= Muy Satisfactorio 3=Satisfactorio 2=Parcialmente Satisfactorio 1= No satisfactorio.

En aquellas preguntas que se provean alternativas, deberás cotejar cuando se permiten más de una selección y cuando se limita a una sola alternativa de selección.

1- ¿Qué me gusta hacer fuera de la escuela? (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) Practicar deportes ___ (b) Participar en actividades artísticas [como dibujo, pintura, música, teatro, otras.] ___ (c) Trabajo a tiempo parcial [Part-time job] ___ (d) ver televisión ___ (e) compartir con amistades otra (especifique) ___________________________________________________ 2- ¿ Cómo me gusta que fuera la escuela? (una sola) ___ (a) Dinámica ___ (b) Divertida ___ (c) Creativa ___ (d) como es ahora 3- ¿Cómo creo que aprendería más? (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) trabajando en grupos pequeños (Team work) ___ (b) trabajando independientemente ___ (c) trabajando en parejas (Peers work) ___ (d) recibiendo asistencia del maestro ___ (e) recibiendo asistencia de otros compañeros (Peers Assisted) ___ (f) trabajando solo (compitiendo) ___ (g) trabajando solo en grupos regulares (15 o más estudiantes) ___ (h) Otras formas: (especifique) ______________________________________ 4- Intereso aprender para… (una sola) ___ (a) ir a la universidad

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___ (b) conseguirme un trabajo ___ (c) graduarme de escuela superior solamente ___ (d) estudiar una carrera corta de 1 a 2 años ___ (e) Otra: explique: _______________________________________________ 5- La escuela debería enseñar… (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) solo clases básicas (Esp/Ing,Mat.Ciencia.Historia) ___ (b) clases especializadas en_____________________________________ ___ (c) clases creativas como _______________________________________ ___ (d) computadoras ___ (e) cursos a través de internet (On-line) 6- Muchos estudiantes dejan la escuela debido a… (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) Falta de interés ___ (b) No desean superarse ___ (c) Problemas en el hogar ___ (d) Uso de drogas ___ (e) Otro: ______________ 7- Si fuera maestro de ____________, enseñaría así… (Una sola) ___ (a) Clases dinámicas ___ (b) Animado ___ (c) Diferente ___ (d) _____________________ 8- La clase que más me gusta es (una sola) ___ (a) Inglés ___ (b) Paternidad y maternidad responsable ___ (c) Educación Física ___ (d) Historia ___ (e) _______________

9- La clase que menos me gusta es (una sola) ___ (a) Historia (EU) ___ (b) Mercadeo ___ (c) Español ___ (d) Geometría ___ (e) _____________

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10- Creo que aprendería más en la clase que más me gusta si… (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) los viernes dieran películas ___ (b) me gusta mucho el proceso de enseñanza (actual) ___ (c) no faltaran ___ (d) viernes clases creativas ___ (e) _________________________ 11- Creo que aprendería más en la clase que menos me gusta si… (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) fuera más fácil ___ (b) la maestra fuera más organizada ___ (c) fuera más creativa ___ (d) más aplicada ___ (e) haciéndome un reto

Para las preguntas 12 usarás la siguiente escala de satisfacción: 4= Muy Satisfactorio 3=Satisfactorio 2=Parcialmente Satisfactorio 1= No satisfactorio.

12- El horario escolar deberِa ser.. ___ (a) 7:30 am – 12:30 pm ___ (b) 8-11:30 am y 12:30-3:00 pm ( el mismo de ahora) ___ (c) 11:30 am – 4:30 pm ___ (c) 12:30 pm-5:30 pm ___ (d) 7:00 a.m. – 12:00 md ___ (e) 9:00am – 12:00 y 1:00 – 4:00 pm 13- Los alumnos dejarían menos la escuela si.. (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) hicieran más actividades ___ (b) si ofrecieran cursos creativos de su interés ___ (c) no cortaran clases ___ (d) verla como algo que les importe ___ (e) ___________________________________________________

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14- Si fuera maestro de_________ enseñaría la clase así… (más de una en orden de preferencia o una sola) ___ (a) Dando puntos por trabajos diarios ___ (b) Bregando bien con los estudiantes ___ (c) Artes Visuales: uso de manualidades ___ (d) Estimularía y aconsejarai ___ (e) Utilizaría psicología inversa para que trabajen adecuadamente ___ (f) Ciencia: en el patio ___ (g) Inglés: a no burlarse de los estudiantes

A su vez, se les hizo las siguientes Preguntas Cognitivas al grupo de estudiantes a quienes se les suministró el Cuestionario Final, ya en forma cuantitativa. Estas fueron las siguientes.

PREGUNTAS COGNITIVAS:

1- ¿Encontraste alguna pregunta difícil?

Si ___ No ___ ¿Cuál? _____

2- ¿Hallaste alguna palabra o frase difícil de entender?

Si ___ No ___

¿Cuál / Cuales? _______________________________________________

3- ¿Consideras el tiempo para contestarlas adecuado?

Si ___ No ___

4- ¿Consideras que las preguntas son de tu interés?

Si ___ No ___

5- ¿Consideras de valor para ti este cuestionario?

Si ___ No ___

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REFERENCIAS Alpha Omega Publications, (1977). “Home schooling”, Switched-On Schoolhouse, Freire, Paulo (1986), Pedagogía del Oprimido, España, ISBN: 9682302366

Javier A. y Huamán A., (2005). Educación Personalizada, Posteada en 10 enero 2005, http://portal.educar.org/educacionpersonalizada McCourt, F., Millar, T, y Suárez, R, Como aprendí inglés, publicado en National Geographic (September 18, 2007).

Rogers, C., The Handbook of Person-Centered Psychotherapy and Counselling, (1980), Edited by: Mick Cooper, Maureen O'Hara, Peter F. Schmid and Gill Wyatt, Palgrave MacMillan U.S. and in the U.K.

Rogers, C. (1977). On Personal Power: Inner Strength and Its Revolutionary Impact. Palgrave MacMillan U.S. and U.K.

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Appendix A (2): FINAL QUESTIONAIRE (translated by autor), Please, select the responses or responses which best describe your selection.

A preferences order is established, which consists of the following criteria: 4= Very satisfactory 3=Satisfactory 2=Parcially Satisfactory 1= No satisfactory.

On those questions which there are alternatives for answering them, check first if there is onlu one or multiple choices of selection for the corresponding question or questions.

1- 多What do you like to do out of school? (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Practice sports ___ (b) Participate in art鱈stic activities [like drawing, painting, music, acting or performance, others.] ___ (c) Part time or full time jobs [Part-time job, full-time job] ___ (d) Watch television ___ (e) Get together with friends other (especify) ___________________________________________________ 2- 多 How I like school should be? (Only one) ___ (a) Dinamic ___ (b) Enjoyable ___ (c) Creative ___ (d) As it is today 3- 多How I think I could learn more? (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Small group works (Team work) ___ (b) Independent work ___ (c) working with class peers (Peers work) ___ (d) Being assisted by teacher ___ (e) Being assisted by class peers (Peers Assisted) ___ (f) Competing with others (competition) ___ (g) Working alone in regular-size groups (15 o more students) ___ (h) Other form: (especify) ______________________________________

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4- I am interested in learning for… (only one) ___ (a) going to college or university ___ (b) getting a job ___ (c) graduating from high school only ___ (d) for stuying a technical or short time career (1 or 2 years careers) ___ (e) Other: explain: ____________________________________________ 5- School should teach… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) basic subjects only (Esp/Ing,Math.Science.History) ___ (b) specialized classes in ________________________________________ ___ (c) creative clases such as (explain) ________________________________ ___ (d) computers ___ (e) classes by internet (On-line courses) 6- Some students quit school due to… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Lack of interest ___ (b) No desires for superation ___ (c) Home problems ___ (d) Drugs use ___ (e) Other: ____________________________________________________ 7- If I were ___________ teacher, I would teach as … (Only one) ___ (a) Dynamic classes ___ (b) Motivated ___ (c) Diferent (Diferring education) ___ (d) _____________________ 8- The subject class I like best is (Only one) ___ (a) English ___ (b) Responsible parenthood ___ (c) Physical Education ___ (d) History ___ (e) _______________

9- The subject class I like the least is (Only one) ___ (a) History (USA) ___ (b) Marketing ___ (c) Spanish ___ (d) Geometry ___ (e) _____________

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10- I think I would learn much more in the class I like best if… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) there were movies on Fridays ___ (b) I like the teaching as it is now ___ (c) there were less absentees ___ (d) cretive clases once a week on _________ (specify the weekday) ___ (e) _________________________ 11- I think I would learn much more in the class I like the least if … (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) it were more easy ___ (b) the teacher were much more organized ___ (c) the teacher were more creative ___ (d) class were more applied in _________________ ___ (e) class were more challenging to myself

For questions 12 on, please use the following scale of satisfaction: 4= Very Satisfactory 3=Satisfactory 2=Parcially Satisfactory 1= No satisfactory.

12- School hours should be.. ___ (a) 7:30 am – 12:30 pm ___ (b) 8-11:30 am and 12:30-3:00 pm ( same as usual) ___ (c) 11:30 am – 4:30 pm ___ (c) 12:30 pm-5:30 pm ___ (d) 7:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon ___ (e) 9:00am – 12:00 and 1:00 – 4:00 pm

13- Students should quit school less if ... (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) there were more activities (curricular or extracurricular) ___ (b) school offers more creative courses according to their interests ___ (c) there were no class cuts ___ (d) they see school with relevancy to their needs ___ (e) ___________________________________________________

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14- If I were ________ teacher, I would teach class as follows… (You may select one or more choices in order of preferences) ___ (a) Giving daily class work points ___ (b) Treating students well (affectively) ___ (c) Teaching Visual Arts Visuales: use of manipulatives ___ (d) Encouraging and councelling students ___ (e) Using inverse psicology so students will work better ___ (f) Teaching Science outdoors (in contact with nature) ___ (g) Teaching English: through respect to and among students (no bulliyng)

In addition, the following Cognitive Questions were asked to the group of students to whom the Final Questionaire was suministered (Focuss group) but in a cuantitative design at this time. These were the cognitive questions:

COGNITIVE QUESTIONS:

1- ¿Did you find any difficult question(s)?

Yes ___

No ___

¿Which one(s)? _____

2- ¿Did you find any difficult to understand Word(s)?

Yes ___ No ___

¿Which Word(s) ________________________________________________

3- ¿Did you consider the answering time adequate?

Yes ___ No ___

4- ¿Did you consider the questions with relevance?

Yes ___ No ___

5- ¿Did you consider the Questionaire valuable?

Yes ___ No ___

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Findings: Because this questionaire of academic interests and preferences was based on individuality, the intention of such document was precisely focused on thier personal responses in terms of qualitative (semi-closed) responses. But the final work became a more formalized and closed questions one; as expressed before, a multiple answers selection type (See Appendix A (2).

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

Apendix B Frida Kahlo Biography

Childhood and family

Self Portrait With Necklace Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderon, as her name appears on her birth certificate was born on July 6, 1907 in the house of her parents, known as La Casa Azul (The Blue House), in Coyoacan. At the time, this was a small town on the outskirts of Mexico City.

Her father, Guillermo Kahlo (1872-1941), was born Carl Wilhelm Kahlo in Pforzheim, Germany. He was the son of the painter and goldsmith Jakob Heinrich Kahlo and Henriett E. Kaufmann.

Kahlo claimed her father was of Jewish and Hungarian ancestry, but a 2005 book on Guillermo Kahlo, Fridas Vater (Schirmer/Mosel, 2005), states that he was descended from a long line of German Lutherans.

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Wilhelm Kahlo sailed to Mexico in 1891 at the age of nineteen and, upon his arrival, changed his German forename, Wilhelm, to its Spanish equivalent, 'Guillermo'. During the late 1930s, in the face of rising Nazism in Germany, Frida acknowledged and asserted her German heritage by spelling her name, Frieda (an allusion to "Frieden", which means "peace" in German).

Frida's mother, Matilde Calderon y Gonzalez, was a devout Catholic of primarily indigenous, as well as Spanish descent. Frida's parents were married shortly after the death of Guillermo's first wife during the birth of her second child. Although their marriage was quite unhappy, Guillermo and Matilde had four daughters, with Frida being the third. She had two older half sisters. Frida once remarked that she grew up in a world surrounded by females. Throughout most of her life, however, Frida remained close to her father.

The Mexican Revolution began in 1910 when Kahlo was three years old. Later, however, Kahlo claimed that she was born in 1910 so people would directly associate her with the revolution. In her writings, she recalled that her mother would usher her and her sisters inside the house as gunfire echoed in the streets of her hometown, which was extremely poor at the time. Occasionally, men would leap over the walls into their backyard and sometimes her mother would prepare a meal for the hungry revolutionaries.

Kahlo contracted polio at age six, which left her right leg thinner than the left, which Kahlo disguised by wearing long skirts. It has been conjectured that she also suffered from spina bifida, a congenital disease that could have affected both spinal and leg development. As a girl, she participated in boxing and other sports. In 1922, Kahlo was

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enrolled in the Preparatoria, one of Mexico's premier schools, where she was one of only thirty-five girls. Kahlo joined a gang at the school and fell in love with the leader, Alejandro Gomez Arias. During this period, Kahlo also witnessed violent armed struggles in the streets of Mexico City as the Mexican Revolution continued.

Career as painter

Self Portrait 1932 After the accident, Frida Kahlo turned her attention away from the study of medicine to begin a full-time painting career. The accident left her in a great deal of pain while she recovered in a full body cast; she painted to occupy her time during her temporary state of immobilization. Her self-portraits became a dominant part of her life when she was immobile for three months after her accident. Frida Kahlo once said, "I paint myself because I am often alone and I am the subject I know best". Her mother had a special easel made for her so she could paint in bed, and her father lent her his box of oil paints and some brushes.

Drawing on personal experiences, including her marriage, her miscarriages, and her numerous operations, Kahlo's works often are characterized by their stark portrayals of pain. Of her 143 paintings, 55 are self-portraits which often incorporate symbolic

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portrayals of physical and psychological wounds. She insisted, "I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality".

Kahlo was deeply influenced by indigenous Mexican culture, which is apparent in her use of bright colors and dramatic symbolism. She frequently included the symbolic monkey.

In Mexican mythology, monkeys are symbols of lust, yet Kahlo portrayed them as tender and protective symbols. Christian and Jewish themes are often depicted in her work. She combined elements of the classic religious Mexican tradition with surrealist renderings.

At the invitation of Andre Breton, she went to France in 1939 and was featured at an exhibition of her paintings in Paris. The Louvre bought one of her paintings, The Frame, which was displayed at the exhibit. This was the first work by a 20th century Mexican artist ever purchased by the internationally renowned museum.

Stormy marriage

Portrait of Diego Rivera

As a young artist, Kahlo approached the famous Mexican painter, Diego Rivera, whose work she admired, asking him for advice about pursuing art as a career. He immediately

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recognized her talent and her unique expression as truly special and uniquely Mexican.

He encouraged her development as an artist and soon began an intimate relationship with Frida. They were married in 1929, despite the disapproval of Frida's mother. They often were referred to as The Elephant and the Dove, a nickname that originated when Kahlo's father used it to express their extreme difference in size.[citation needed]

Their marriage often was tumultuous. Notoriously, both Kahlo and Rivera had fiery temperaments and both had numerous extramarital affairs. The openly bisexual Kahlo had affairs with both men (including Leon Trotsky) and women; Rivera knew of and tolerated her relationships with women, but her relationships with men made him jealous.

For her part, Kahlo became outraged when she learned that Rivera had an affair with her younger sister, Cristina. The couple eventually divorced, but remarried in 1940. Their second marriage was as turbulent as the first. Their living quarters often were separate, although sometimes adjacent.

Later years

Active communist sympathizers, Kahlo and Rivera befriended Leon Trotsky as he sought political sanctuary from Joseph Stalin's regime in the Soviet Union. Initially, Trotsky lived with Rivera and then at Kahlo's home, where they reportedly had an affair. Trotsky and his wife then moved to another house in Coyoacan where, later, he was assassinated.

Death

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Viva la Vida, 1954

A few days before Frida Kahlo died on July 13, 1954, she wrote in her diary: "I hope the exit is joyful - and I hope never to return - Frida". The official cause of death was given as pulmonary embolism, although some suspected that she died from overdose that may or may not have been accidental. An autopsy was never performed. She had been very ill throughout the previous year and her right leg had been amputated at the knee, owing to gangrene. She also had a bout of bronchopneumonia near that time, which had left her quite frail.

Later, in his autobiography, Diego Rivera wrote that the day Kahlo died was the most tragic day of his life, adding that, too late, he had realized that the most wonderful part of his life had been his love for her.

A pre-Columbian urn holding her ashes is on display in her former home, La Casa Azul (The Blue House), in Coyoacan. Today it is a museum housing a number of her works of art and numerous relics from her personal life. (From Wikipedia)

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FRIDA KALHO: …“NO NECESITO PIERNAS… TENGO ALAS PARA VOLAR”! (I NEED NO LEGS; I HAVE WINGS TO FLY).

(1907 -1954)

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

APPENDIX C Nick Vujicic

http://www.attitudeisaltitude.com/about-nick-his-story Hi Friend, My name is Nick Vujicic and I am thankful to have been born 30 years ago with no arms and no legs. I wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pretend my life is easy, but through the love of my parents, loved ones, and faith in God, I have overcome my adversity and my life is now filled with joy and purpose. I reside now in California with my wife, Kanae, and we both love seeing peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lives changed for the better or touched in some way. It is my hope that your life is positively impacted by my story.

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I was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, and it was a shock to my parents that I arrived without limbs. There is no medical reason for it. My parents did their very best to keep me in the mainstream school system and give me every opportunity to live to the fullest. I was blessed to have a brother and a sister as my best friends too.

We later moved to Brisbane, Australia, where I lived for 14 years before I made the move to California. At age eight, I could not see a bright future ahead and I became depressed.

When I was ten years old, I decided to end my life by drowning myself in a bathtub.

After a couple attempts, I realized that I did not want to leave my loved ones with the burden and guilt that would result from my suicide. I could not do that to them.

I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t depressed my entire childhood, but I did have ups and downs. At age thirteen I hurt my foot, which I use for many things like typing, writing and swimming. That injury made me realize that I need to be more thankful for my abilities and less focused on my disabilities.

When I was fifteen years old, I sealed my faith in God and from there it has been an amazing journey.

A janitor at my high school inspired me to start speaking about my faith and overcoming adversity when I was seventeen. I spoke only a dozen times to very small groups over the next two years. Then I found myself in front of three hundred sophomore (grade 10) students and I was very nervous. My knees were shaking. Within the first three minutes of my talk, half the girls were crying, and most of the boys were struggling to hold their emotions together. One girl in particular was sobbing very hard. We all looked at her and she put her hand up. She said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am so sorry to interrupt, but can I come up and hug you?â&#x20AC;?

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She came hugged me in front of everyone, and whispered in my ear, “Thank you, thank you, thank you. No one has ever told me that they loved me and that I am beautiful the way I am.”

Her gratitude inspired me to go across 44 countries and speak 2,000 times. I realized that we all need love and hope and that I was in a unique position to share that with people around the world.

While majoring in both accounting and financial planning at a university, I also worked on developing my abilities as a speaker. I worked with a speaking coach who helped to cultivate me as a presenter. He especially worked on my body language as my hands flew everywhere at first!

I spoke on motivational topics after creating the company, attitude is altitude. I also launched a non-profit ministry, life without limbs, to spread my messages of faith and hope around the world.

Whoever you are, wherever you’re from and whatever you are dealing with, I hope that you will be inspired by my story and my message. Please enjoy browsing around this website where I share with you my thoughts on faith, hope and love to encourage you and to help you overcome your own challenges.

Dream big my friend and never give up. We all make mistakes, but none of us are mistakes. Take one day at a time. Embrace the positive attitudes, perspectives, principles and truths I share, and you too will overcome.

Sincerely, Nick

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes Appendix D Certificate of Completion CIPSHI

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

APPENDIX E Demonstrative English 7th-9th Class Presented with the contribution of

Universidad del Este Programa Educaci贸n Cont铆nua Demonstrative English 7th-9th Class Resource: Prof. Pablo Fern谩ndez Col贸n E Mail: profpfernandez@gmail.com Cel: 939-268-4718 Date: January 23, 2015.

I- General Instructions: After having presented a Demo Class, the 7th-9th grade teachers will adapt the materials, strategies and recommendations given by the resource teacher to their specific grade level expectancies and/or content.

Intermediate level teachers should bring working materials such: as a model of lesson /Unit plan, their curriculum guides of their teaching grade(s), a memory USB portable data device.

As the Demo class takes place, the participants will be required to participate as students in order to have a deeper appreciation of the demo class, seeing it through their 7-9 graders. Special Education 11th grade ESL students will also be benefited.

II- Materials: Some of the teaching materials to be used in the Demo Class can be: Colored markers, cardboards, copies of handouts for pre-writing, writing, and post-writing stages (Brainstorming, graphic organizers, outlining and 3 to 5 paragraphs handouts). Screen projector (In-Focus), laptop computer, speakers.

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III- Demo Class Description: (See folder 16 going on 17).

The Demo Class will consists of presenting teaching materials in a variety of media resources (MP3, MP4, lyrics, PPT and Word document resouces) in order to present the content to be used, based on a real 50-60 minutes class period. The methodology to be used is based on the use of “ Mapas mentales y conceptuales como estrategia para mejorar las destrezas de aprendizaje” (See PDF documents); this is: Mental and Conceptual Maps.

A variety of class activities will be conducted through the class period covering the five basic linguistic areas: Listening, speaking, Reading, Writing and Language.

Adaptative strategies will be conducted in order to attain personal differences (through Differentiated methodology), learning styles and students’ academic and intelectual maturity, in a progression of dificulty (from simple to complex learning structures). Possible handicap or learning limmitation situations will be used in order to fullfill reasonable accommodations in Special Education participants (as suggested by their corresponding PEI’s recommendations) and other non-evaluated students who evidence certain learning limmitations (Visual, Reading, Writing or so).

After having finalized the 50-60 minutes learning/teaching experiences, Intermediate level teachers (Participants) will select specific teaching strategies to attain their specific grade-level expectancies. The teachers will proceed to synthetisize the learning experiences into a lesson plan, of course, attaining their grade level expectations, applying the use of mental and conceptual maps.

Finally, the demo class and profesional related activities will be evaluated.

Recommendations may be given to be carried in future demonstrative clases.

IV- Expectations/Objectives Throught the multimedia presentation of class materials and contents Intermediate level teachers (participants) will be guided by the resource teacher to develop creative and varied learning styles scenarios to attain 7-9 grade students’ expectations/objectives (See grade level docummentation as Lesson/Unit Plan and Curricular guidances; eig: conceptual and curricular maps).

V- Activities for Assessment: A variety of activities for assessment will take place during the Demo class: (Listenning to a song, watching its video clip, Reading and singing its written lyric).

Second stage assessment learning activities will be based on preparing brainstorming clusters (Mental Maps), Graphic Organizers, and/or Outlining as Pre-writing activities.

Analizing/Expanding vocabulary skills will also be suggested to adapt or modify both the

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video clip presentation scenario or historical /cultural setting as well as the song lyric to attaing students’ inmediate historical/cultural realities.

VI- Handicap Acommodations: The sitting arragements, peer to peer student attention, students as facilitators or tutors, use of digitalized assisted resources can also be suggested to attain this goal.

VII- Homework (suggested for 7th - 9th grade students): Out of class, or home assigments can take place in order to help students achieve higher levels of understanding and mastering of skills presented and discussed in class.

VIII- Creativity and advanced learning activities: Creativity projects (3 to 5 paragraphs writing), revising and post writing skills.

Preparation of porfolios (hard copy or digitalized) for advanced (bilingual) students may also be suggested (See examples provided). A personal version of the class video clip presented in class can be created by one or more students (Cooperative creation) adapted for Dramatization.

IX- Curricular Integration: Other subject class contents may be integrated to this class activity such as Music, Drama, Social Studies, World history as well as social values. Personal development skills such interviewing, writing biographies of role models in and out school, will also be used to enhance students’ values and socialization processes, with the goal of seeing the learning experience as a life-long one.

X- Future career/university expectations: A Personal Profile inventory technique can finally be suggested for students’ personal growth with the goal of prepairing them for their professional future.

(See example materials: It’s Me, My Digital Porfolio).

Note: See Demonstrative Class Teacher’s Plan.

Units: 7.3: Poetry: My Identity, 8.1 Analyzing Characters' Decision, 8.2 Memoirs and Transformative Decisions, 8.5 Poetry, 9.1 Genres Overview, Element of Fiction, 9.2 Communicating My Ideas, 9.6 Figuratively Speaking.

See English | 7-9 Strategies for Differentiation: Students with Disabilities

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

APPENDIX F Demonstration Class Teacherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Plan

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching 177 Processes

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching 178 Processes

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching 180 Processes

BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching 181 Processes

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

FIGURES

Figure 1: Service Intelligence

Inteligencia del Servicio, (Combariza, H., 2012).

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Figure 2 The conception of Personalized Education (P. E.) in Garcia Hoz

Hacia Una Educacion Personalizada, Ferrini R. (2000).

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Figure 3: A Model of Resilient Learning

(Ilustration 2: Pablo Fern谩ndez Col贸n, UPR, Dept.of Graduate Studies, Pedagogy, 2006.

Translation)

Figure 4: Models of Traditional and Energy Based Learning Diagrams Fernandez-Colon, P., (2006, 2013)

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Figure 5: A Model of Energy Based adapted to Resilient Learning Fernandez Colon, P., 2006

Illustration 1: A model of energy adapted to resilience learning (Fernandez-Col贸n, P., 2006).

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Figure 6: Three Levels of Intelligence, Gallegos Nava, R., 2006

Figure 7: Gallegos Nava comparison of Intelligences

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BIOGRAPHIES: A Reading Approach in ESL As Paradigm in the Resilience Learning and Teaching Processes

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

Pablo Fernรกndez Colรณn

Guayama, Puerto Rico Pablo Fernรกndez Colรณn - Professor of English as a Second Language (ESL) for 24 years.

Graduated from the University of Puerto Rico. Holds a Bachelor of Arts as well as a Masters in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL). Conducts doctoral studies at UPR-RP in Curriculum and Teaching of English as a Second Language (Ed. D. TESL).

Auto-entrepreneur, communicator, union leader and businessman. Founder President of Remembering Puerto Rico Inc. (1998), Guayama Digital Communications Network Inc. (1999) and Global Evangelism and Social Work, Inc. (2013). Besides minister of the gospel since 1984, holds a Bachelor Degree of Biblical Theology (Iglesia Pentecostal de Jesucristo, Misiรณn Internacional: IPJMI, 1984). Candidate for Mayor of Guayama 2012

by Working People's Party, (PPT). His electronic publications (e-books) are available with no charges at: http://issuu.com/pablofernandez024/docs/