Fusion: A Necessity for Understanding Real-World Phenomena?

Paul, P. V. (2015). Fusion: A necessity for understanding real-world phenomena? American Annals of the Deaf, 160(3), 251–254.

My graduate students and I attended a few monthly teachers’ meetings this past academic year in a local school district. The main focus of these meetings was—to put it mildly and sweetly—the development of English reading skills in children who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (d/Dhh). For several of my students, this was their introduction to the complex world of teachers of d/Dhh children. It was also their first in-depth encounter with some of the academic language of educators in American schools, particularly the use of slippery, convoluted constructs such as English reading assessments, assessment-instruction links, mandated tests, Visual Phonics, phonograms, and several others—a few of which digressed from the main topic and would earn a PG or R rating—that is, not exactly intended for an immature young audience.

The juxtaposition of required district- and statewide tests in teachers’ minds and the holding of an hour-long meeting at the end of a busy school day can be a lethal combination. At times, the atmosphere became tense, and an occasional rebarbative description (e.g., “hegemony,” “asininity”) escaped from a pair of lips or two. Typically, after 60 minutes of these intense dialogues, I become exasperated; however, I could see that some of my students had that bewildered, wide-eyed gaze—similar to the kind deer give me when my headlights strike their faces while I’m driving along a road with no streetlights.

From my perspective, the value of these teacher meetings reached the apex when the topic was centered on the teaching of English reading and writing—that is, the most effective and efficient methods, strategies, and so on. I tend to salivate during these discussions. If my students were listening carefully, they might have learned a little something about teachers’ beliefs, perspectives, or understandings (e.g., see discussions in Lipson & Wixson, 2013; Piasta, Connor, Fishman, & Morrison, 2009). Upon reflection on the avalanche of remarks, one could not help but attempt to place them in a categorical framework (theory, model, paradigm, etc.) or, perhaps, a combination of categorical frameworks that might ultimately morph into a multilayered eclectic approach. Or, this commentary on instructional practices might be situated in what one of my former university advisers often called a “God-Knows-What Paradigm.”

As I gazed into the eyes of my students, I could see the wheels spinning, and perhaps the pages turning in introductory texts they have been required to read (e.g., Fenstermacher & Soltis, 2009; D. C. Phillips & Soltis, 2009). However, many of our educational models on reading and writing are incomplete and only scratch the surface of the complex world of the classroom. I might change my mind about this situation if and when I complete my digestion of the sixth edition of Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading (Alvermann, Unrau, & Ruddell, 2013). However, I doubt it, especially because several chapters in that book are recycled from earlier editions and publications—which I have already chewed thoroughly.

In subsequent meetings at my university office, my heart often started its daily round of excitatory moments when one of my students inquired whether anyone (obviously, he meant professors, researchers, etc.) ever sticks with a particular reading/writing theory (read: theoretical silo) for any length of time. Then, he wondered if and how a theory develops and evolves, and, more importantly, how someone (here he mostly meant himself and teachers) selects a theory or framework to guide his or her practice. You could say I had him in the palm of my hand and wanted simply to give him the latest copy of my coauthored book, but it did not work out that way. For one thing, I am certain that I started to resemble a deer confronted by the headlights of an oncoming vehicle.

The Fusion Phenomenon

Then the construct of fusion emerged from the depths of my mind. I suspect that you are familiar with this construct, which is present just about everywhere...