Professor Emerita (Retired 2021), Cultural Studies
Biography
Barbara J. Thayer-Bacon teaches graduate courses on philosophy and history of education, and cultural diversity at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Her primary research areas are: philosophy of education, pragmatism, feminist theory and pedagogy, and cultural studies in education. She is coordinator for the Cultural Studies in Education masters and doctoral concentrations, and certificate. She is editor-in-chief of the journal Studies in Philosophy and Education. She is an active member in numerous professional organizations, such as American Educational Research Association, American Educational Studies Association, Philosophy of Education Society, and International Network of Philosophy of Education, and presents papers regularly at their conferences, as well as serves in leadership roles. She is the author of over twenty-five chapters in essay collections and over seventy journal articles, published in professional journals such as The Journal of Thought, Educational Theory, Studies in Philosophy and Education, Inquiry, Educational Foundations, and Educational Studies. She has presented over a hundred conference papers and delivered multiple keynote addresses. She has written six books and co-edited one, Education Feminism, with Lynda Stone and Katharine Sprecher. Her most recent books are: Democracies Always in the Making: Historical and Current Philosophical Issues for Education (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2013) and Relational Ontologies (New York: Peter Lang, 2017).
Research
Research Interests
- Philosophy of Education
- Pragmatism
- Feminist Theory and Pedagogy
- Cultural Studies in Education
Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Education / Philosophy of Education), Indiana University
Master of Arts (Education / Curriculum and Instruction), San Diego State University
Bachelor of Arts (Liberal Arts / Philosophy), Rutgers University and Pennsylvania State University
Professional Service
Recent Administrative Experiences
Program Area Coordinator, Cultural Studies in Education (masters), 2002-2006, 2008-present
Certificate Coordinator, Cultural Studies in Education, 2014-present
Program Area Coordinator, Learning Environments and Educational Studies (doctoral level), 2013-2017
Team Leader, Cultural Studies in Education (doctoral, specialization), 2017-present
Recent Service to Department and College
TPTE departmental Institutional Review Board (IRB) officer (qualitative research), 2018-present
Tenure & Promotion committee member, 2018-present
Professional Memberships
- John Dewey Society
- Philosophy of Education Society
- American Educational Studies Association
- Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy
- International Network of Philosophers of Education
- International Association of Women Philosophers
- American Philosophy Association
- American Education Research Association, and special interest groups in Philosophical Studies in Education and Research on Women and Education
Editorial Responsibilities
Editor, International Education, 2008 – 2015
Editor-in-Chief, Studies in Philosophy and Education, 2015 - present
Journal Editorial Board Member
- Education and Culture, 2004-present
- Teaching and Learning in a Pluralistic Society, Dilemmas, Perplexities and Tensions, 2005-present
Awards and Recognitions
University of Tennessee Teaching & Learning Innovation Center, Inclusive
Pedagogy Award, 2019
External Examiner, Monash University, Australia, Jan, 2018
University of Tennessee Chancellor’s Excellence in Advising Award, 2017
External Examiner, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia, Jan, 2016
Keynote Speaker, Pedagogy of Hope Conference, Liverpool Hope University,
UK, June, 2015
Democracies Always in the Making, American Educational
Studies Association Critics’ Choice Book Award, 2015.
Education Feminism: Classic and Contemporary Readings,
American Educational Studies Association Critics’ Choice Book Award, 2015.
Willystine Goodsell Award, Research on Women and Education, 2014-15