Paper Title
Enhancing Critical Literacy Through Case-Based Pedagogy

Abstract
This study incorporated a unique case-based pedagogical approach to enhance the critical literacy skills and capacities of third-year undergraduate students enrolled in a concurrent teacher education program in an Ontario Canada university. Critical literacy, in this study, is understood as a means for the undergraduate student participants to examine different considerations of case-based ethical dilemmas for not only their own personal development, but for the development of their identity and pedagogy as prospective teachers. Critical literacy encourages participants to heighten their consciousness of the dominant and hegemonic practices traditionally embedded in public school practices. The 108 research participants from a total N of 114 representing a 94.7% participation rate recorded their reflections to each case at five different times throughout the inquiry, hence, 2,700 reflection logs served as data. Participants reflected critically, both independently and in small groups, upon the case circumstances in strategic intervals. The unique model provided participants with opportunities to solicit the perspectives of other stakeholders related to the case for example, practicing educators, social workers, etc. and then account for the respective viewpoints in their reflections. The logs were coded inductively using Grounded Theory. The theory grounded in the perceptions of the undergraduate student participants was theoretically saturated and collapsed into core categories. This paper, thus, will provide a conceptual framework of critical literacy, the specific context of the case study model, and a discussion of the educational significance of the research as it emerged in the data. Index Terms - Critical Literacy, Prospective Teacher Development.