Sneak Preview of “Learning Designers in Context”

Over the last few weeks, I have re-read the proofs of my forthcoming book “Learning Designers in Contexts” so many times that I honestly I feel I could recite some of the chapters. Due to some communication issues, the release date has been pushed back a bit. It is all part of the process or at least that is what I tell myself.

I am very happy that last Friday I saw a final version of the proofs. But that excitement was quickly met with a very familiar feeling of seen a grammatical mistake in the final proofs. It always happens! After seen this, I laughed a bit, closed my computer, and when to my son’s soccer game.

Last week, I also contacted the publisher and asked for permission to share a bit of the book in my blog. My editor, Hannah, asked me what chapter I wanted to share and I decided to go with Chapter 15. This sneak preview PDF also includes the table of content. I will do a bit more writing about the other chapters in the upcoming month or so. But, for now you are welcome to read Chapter 15.

Abstract:

This chapter is based on a keynote address I delivered at the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) International Convention on October 22, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri. The speech has been adapted for this book, maintaining its original themes and ideas while refining the content for a reading audience. Through the lens of deep canvassing and the acknowledgment of practitioners’ stories, the chapter highlights how context-specific experiences shape competencies and practices. It advocates for moving beyond Anglocentric and Eurocentric paradigms to embrace inclusive approaches. By reflecting on personal journeys and collective actions, the chapter underscores storytelling as a transformative tool for fostering understanding and innovation in education technology and learning design.

Citation:

Romero-Hall, E. (2026). Learning Designers in Context. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003270591

Chapter 15_Learning Designers in Context_SAMPLE Download

Drag Queen Story Hour

In the Fall 2019, The English Department at The University of Tampa hosted Drag Queen Story Hour. To be honest, I do not remember if the event was hosted every year or if that was the first time. I just know that a flyer about the event reached my inbox and it caught my attention. At that time my child was 3 years old and I thought for sure he would enjoy story time. Also, he love going to campus on the weekends to see where his mom worked. For us as parents it was a great to teach him about inclusivity at a young age and to encourage a love for learning and reading.

That Saturday, we made our way to campus and we mentioned to our son that we were going to “drag queen story hour.” We got there, found some good seat, and proceeded to hear the stories that the drag queens were reading for us. It was a really good crowd. There were lots of children and parents, also faculty and staff from the university. After the readings, we wanted to say thanks to our readers. My family and I made out way to the front of the room and talked to the wonderful queens. One of them asked me what my role was at the university and I mentioned that I was a professor in the department of education. They were a bit shocked because according to them ” I looked very young” (I laughed). So they proceeded to tell me that they were interested in getting masters in education, so I gave them my business and told them to reach out to me if they had any questions. My family and I then took a picture with the drag queens! It was a wonderful event.

As we were walking back to our car I ran into the Provost, who stopped by the say hi to me and my family. In the exchange we mentioned that were coming to from the Drag Queen Story Hour event and he was happy to hear we enjoyed it and that there was a great turn out. He mentioned that there had been some threats made about potential protest but that he was happy everything had gone smoothly.

Once were in our car out little one said to me: “mommy were were the dragons? I did not see any dragons”

I was confused. So I said: “dragons? Why did you think were going to see dragons?”

He responded: You said we were going to “dragon queen story hour!”

My partner and I just burst out laughing! We explained the title of event to him (and what exactly were meant by drag queens) and he said: “Oh, okay!” and moved on with his day!

“We should all be feminists” Yup. I totally agree.

I put together a list of feminism related books that I want to read and I am very slowly starting to read them. One of the books that arrived this week and was in my list is “We Should all be feminists.” It is a book but honestly you can read it in 40 minutes. I feel like I am going to put it right next to my bed and just re-read it whenever I feel I need some words of wisdom. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the authors of We Should all be Feminists, said it all so well! It felt as if she could read my thoughts.

I laughed out loud when she discussed the views that others have of feminist women: angry, hate men, who refuse to shave their legs, don’t like to wear make up, and refuse to wear high heels. I wonder if people still have these views of feminist? I bet it is very different in different regions of the world, countries, and even within countries.

Anyways, there are three specific quotes from the book that made me nod my head and say “Yes!“:

“What struck me, with her and with many other females American friends I have, is how invested they are in being ‘liked.’ How they have been raised to believe that their being liked is very important and that this “likeable” trait is a specific thing. And this specific thing does not include showing anger or being aggressive or disagreeing too loudly.”

I have countless example of this in academia. God forbid your disagree too loudly! lol I will just leave it at that.

“We teach boys to be afraid of fears, or weakness, or vulnerability. We teach them to mask their true selves, because they have to be, in Nigerian-speak, a hard man.”

As a mother, this is an important message. How are we raising our sons? Feminism is not about a bunch of women trying to change the world, it is really about women and men working together. The way we raise our sons today, will have an impact on the type of men they are tomorrow.

“I have chosen to no longer be apologetic for my femininity. And I want to be respected in all my femaleness. Because I deserve to be. I like politics and history and am happiest when having a good argument about ideas. I am girly. I am a happy girly. I like high heels and trying on lipsticks.”

It is truly disappointing when people think that you cannot be girly and be an academic. Wearing make up, red lipstick, and wearing a dress? It probably means you are not smart enough. I have actually heard women in academia say that the more they behave like a man, the more accepted they are in academic settings. Sad! I love embracing my femininity and I plan to continue doing just that.

There is a lot more that I can quote, but I just want to leave it there for now. I am moving on to read Audre Lorde “Sister Outsider” and I really need to finish “I am judging you” by Luvvie Ajayi (this is not a book about feminism, but about keeping it real).