Date of Award

Summer 7-22-2025

Access Restriction

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctorate in Education

Department

Education

School or College

School of Education

First Advisor

Mary McCullough

Second Advisor

Melacyn Turner

Third Advisor

Sheri Castro-Atwater

Abstract

Research has shown a characteristic of effective teachers in international schools (ISTs) is cultural awareness and responsiveness (Grant et al., 2024), but there is a lack of research on ISTs and social justice development and ISTs in Qatar. This qualitative study (Smith et al., 2022) analyzed the perceptions of ISTs in Qatar about social justice professional development they participated in between 2019 and 2024 and how they implemented professional development in their practice. Using frameworks on justice as praxis and teacher education for social justice (Bondy et. al, 2017; Cochran-Smith, 2010), this study used an interpretive phenomenological analysis to conduct interviews of 11 participants at an international school in Qatar during the 2024–2025 school year. This analysis demonstrated how Bondy et al.’s (2017) justice as praxis framework can be expanded to include ISTs and connects to Cochran-Smith’s (2010) theory of teacher education for social justice. Additionally, the results highlighted the impact of books and extended conversations needed to implement transformative professional development for international teachers.

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