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This research was designed, via auto-photo elicitation, to discover what a democratic school is, specifically Grassroots Free School in Tallahassee, FL. Questions concerning how free school pedagogy is implemented and how students of a non-compulsory school make sense of their experiences at school are addressed in this study. In this case, 14 students and 4 staff members were given disposable cameras to reflect upon their experiences at the Grassroots Free School in Tallahassee, FL. As the reader engages this non-traditional topic, this study exposes and illuminates the philosophy of free school education, as well as informs how this method of education performs in practice. The information presented in this presentation unlocked the consciousness of the reader, opening to them the advantages and disadvantages of the free school philosophy. The data brought to me by the students and staff at Grassroots Free School told their story. Ultimately, this study revealed in the case of Grassroots Free School: What a democratic/free school was and how the educational philosophies were implemented via photography. Participants had to articulate their findings and attempt to translate the subjects found in the photos to me. This process helped the students and the researcher to arrive at conscious conclusions on the subject of what it means to be a student under a free school umbrella.
Art Education, Art for Life, Auto-Photo Elicitation, Democratic School, Free School, Photography
Date of Defense
October 12, 2011.
Submitted Note
A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Art Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
Bibliography Note
Includes bibliographical references.
Advisory Committee
David Gussak, Professor Directing Dissertation; Barry Faulk, University Representative; Tom Anderson, Committee Member; Anniina Suominen Guyas, Committee Member.
Publisher
Florida State University
Identifier
FSU_migr_etd-5201
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