Transformative learning approaches for public relations pedagogy

• Published in: Higher education research and development Vol. 33; no. 3; pp. 523 - 533
• Main Authors: Motion, Judy, Burgess, Lois
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 04-05-2014
• Subjects: Australia; Case Studies; Citizenship Responsibility; College Students; Concept Formation; Deep learning; Discourse Analysis; Ethics; First year students; Focus Groups; Foreign Countries; Ideology; Interviews; Introductory courses; normative/critical/ethical orientation; paradigm; Postsecondary education; Power Structure; Public Relations; Social Theories; Student Attitudes; Teaching Methods; Teaching process; Transformative Learning; transformative pedagogy; Undergraduate study; University students; University teaching; Australia
• ISSN: 0729-4360; 1469-8366
• DOI: 10.1080/07294360.2013.832163

Public relations educators are frequently challenged by students' flawed perceptions of public relations. Two contrasting case studies are presented in this paper to illustrate how socially-oriented paradigms may be applied to a real-client project to deliver a transformative learning experience. A discourse-analytic approach is applied within the case studies as a technique for identifying changes in students' understandings of the ideological structures, power relations and knowledge systems that underpin public relations and for determining whether transformative learning has taken place. The discourse engagement and normative/critical/ethical paradigmatic orientations examined in this paper provide conceptual foundations for developing civic responsibility that needs to be underpinned by salient social theory.