Journal of Transformative Learning

Spiritual Leadership Meets Transformative Learning

Patricia Bombard — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The purpose of this essay is to help illustrate the integration of spiritual leadership and transformative learning theories. The intent is to suggest how this integration promotes the process of human inner development leading toward actions that contribute to a better world. After offering key points from the two theories, the essay presents the author’s narrative on learning to employ the theories for educating and training non-profit leaders, including assisting with the creation of a modular training program for Catholic sisters based in Kenya. Finally, brief narratives illustrate how that program’s input, practices, and processes positively and sustainably impacted several sisters’ leadership and, through them, their organizations.

Transformative Learning in a Community-Based Veterinary Clinic

Nadine Dolby — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Student learning occurs in multiple contexts and sites, and real-world experiences provide meaningful and transformative learning. In this reflective essay, I discuss my personal experience and observations of student volunteers in a community-based veterinary clinic, sponsored by a community organization I founded in 2019. Through their participation in “People and Paws: Happy and Healthy Together” student volunteers have the opportunity to immerse themselves in a community-based veterinary clinic for low-income, multispecies families. Students are able to question their preconceived stereotypes of low-income families, develop their skills of self-reflection and to begin to see themselves as contributors to the larger community, beyond the university. I suggest that participation in a community-focused event, where students learn about themselves while helping others is a memorable and transformative learning experience, one which has the potential for significant impact on self and future community engagement.

Navigating Recovery: Insights from Distance Learning Human Services Students' Abstinence Experience

Dr. Chaniece Winfield, Jill Kivikoski, Catalina Kraft — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

With the rise in overdose and problematic drug use in the United States, it is crucial to develop competent human service practitioners in addiction treatment and recovery settings. This qualitative study explores the virtual abstinence experience of distance learning human services students, using Mezirow’s transformative learning theory to examine how a 21-day experiential abstinence prompts critical reflection and perspective transformation. The study investigates the socio-emotional and physiological factors influencing participants' progress toward sobriety, including cravings, withdrawal, isolation, and relapse triggers. Findings highlight how participants' critical reflection leads to a deeper understanding of addiction and recovery, as well as an enhanced ability to conceptualize client needs and design person-centered recovery plans. This research underscores the role of transformative learning in developing more effective and empathetic addiction treatment practitioners.

Disorienting dilemmas and mathematical reasoning: Exploring transformative learning in preservice teacher education

Constanta Olteanu — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Preservice elementary teachers often face challenges in solving arithmetic word problems, revealing gaps in conceptual understanding and reliance on procedural methods. This study examines how preservice teachers’ reasoning relates to the emergence of disorienting dilemmas in written solutions to arithmetic word problems. By applying an analytical model that integrates reasoning attributes with the concepts of dilemmas and disorienting dilemmas, the study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how cognitive and reflective processes are manifested in written mathematical work. Results from this study makes four key contributions: theoretically, by integrating disorienting dilemmas with a mathematics reasoning framework; empirically, by showing how specific reasoning attributes signal disorienting dilemmas; methodologically, by presenting a replicable four-step analysis model; and practically, by offering guidance for designing problems that support reflection and transformative learning in teacher education.

Meta-Transformative Learning Theory

Eric Kyle, Mark Walvoord — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Researchers continue to revise Transformative Learning (TL) theory based on new ideas and trends in education to strengthen its practice (Taylor & Cranton, 2013). Some proposed explanations of TL capture the more integrative and holistic aspects of the theory, even calling it a metatheory (Hoggan, 2016). On the other hand, non-TL integrative learning theories have been developed that lack an explicit connection to TL (e.g., Tokuhama-Espinosa & Borja, 2023). This paper integrates both TL and non-TL learning theories to form an overall model of learning. Through a cursory examination of themes across common learning theories, we propose a Meta-Transformative Learning Theory (MTLT) that places TL as a macro-level objective following micro-level objectives present in previous non-TL learning theories. Our MTLT model can be used to support research and practice in any educational setting. A case example from sustainability education is provided to demonstrate the model’s practical applications.

Facilitating Understanding of Ethics Through Concept Mapping in Workplace Communication

Andrew Parzyck — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The teaching activity described in this report was proven to enhance students understanding in application of ethical communication principles through the application of a concept mapping tool combined with a discussion group activity. The techniques involves defining ethics, examining the relevance of ethics in academic and professional settings, and assessing ethical challenges through case studies by applying them in the workplace. This approach integrates concept maps as visual tools to facilitate comprehension and critical analysis. Through activities like reading articles, discussing key elements, and analyzing case studies, students engage in the act of learning and collaborative discussions. The effectiveness of the approach is evaluated by the class through debriefing sessions and student reflections, highlighting positive outcomes such as improved comprehension and awareness of ethical principles. Overall, the practice aims to foster student’s personal and professional development as well as their ability to communicate ethical reasoning.