Date of Award

Spring 5-16-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Educational Studies

First Advisor

Grace Enriquez

Second Advisor

Victoria Gill

Third Advisor

Lisa Donovan

Abstract

Writing can be a source of affirmation, empowerment, liberation, healing, and joy, but it can also be a source of dread, oppression, and identity-based harm, particularly for people who have been marginalized or minoritized. Write the Way is a theoretical model for writing and pedagogy, intended to help writers and teachers of writing clear out and tread safely along various pathways toward healing ourselves and our relationships—with writing, with others, and with ourselves—as we move together in the direction of a healing world. The purpose of this study was to identify the ways in which the Write the Way model can nurture healthy relationships with writing, and support teacher embodiment of a healing-centered and humanizing approach to writing. This study draws on multiple theories, including humanizing and healing-centered pedagogy, embodied literacy, as well as clinical and social theories of trauma. Through a case study design, this study utilized survey and interview methodology and involved 11 adult participants, all of whom were teachers either in traditional settings (K-12 or higher education), community settings (workshop and non-profit), or both, and each resided in the Northeastern United States. Pragmatically, this study fulfilled two key objectives: 1) to flesh out Write the Way as a theoretical model for embodying a healing-centered approach to writing, and 2) to define what a healing-centered approach to writing is, and how and why it can be embodied. Write the Way has implications for writers, teachers, teachers of writing, teachers of teachers, and students of all ages, but it also has implications for any of us seeking to move in the direction of wholeness, toward liberatory and transformative experience.

Download

Share

COinS