Dr. Holly Tsun Haggarty Receives Canadian Philosophy of Education Society Dissertation Award

Dr. Holly Tsun Haggarty, graduate of the Joint PhD in Educational Studies program (Thunder Bay campus, 2021) has been awarded the 2022 Canadian Philosophy of Education Society (CPES) Dissertation Award. This award recognizes an outstanding dissertation that addresses significant issues in the philosophy of education field.

Holly’s dissertation, titled Sky, Ground and In-Between: Metaphysical Belief Systems That Underpin Epistemologies of Arts-Integrating Research, was described by her external reviewer as a “bold and creative dissertation, a work [that] uses a cogent research design that weaves multiple layers of meaning making into the inquiry and rendering,” an inquiry that is “unique, looking at epistemological underpinnings of two arts-integrating methodologies,” and one that “clearly demonstrates expertise, extensive study and attention to convening research to the audience.”

Both the form and content of Holly’s work comprise major strengths of her work. The arts-integrating form includes a vividly presented script (for a play), comic illustrations, and poetry. The depth of study and compelling arguments for why metaphysical orientations matter underpin the work’s extensive literary and philosophical overviews, focusing ultimately on Elliot Eisner’s arts based research and Rita Irwin et al.’s a/r/tography, and the enactment of philosophy in education settings.

The CPES reviewers of Holly’s dissertation offered very positive comments. One noted: “This challenging work confronts our assumptions about how to do philosophy of education and how our ideas can intersect with different genres, including poetry and works of fiction.” And a second reviewer noted: “We rarely think about how to integrate arts-integrated research into the field of philosophy of education. This dissertation provides us with some methodological insights and asks us to think about our own discipline through arts-related methods.”

The dissertation was nominated for the award by committee members Dr. Pauline Sameshima, Dr. Douglas Karrow, and Dr. Donald Kerr.

Holly previously won the CSEA/SCES (Canadian Society for Education through Art) Dissertation Award for her work. A copy of the work is available online.

On behalf of the Faculty of Education, congratulations Holly!