Between Knowing and Becoming: A Constructivist Framework to Bridge Theory and Practice in Leadership Education

This conceptual paper introduces FRAME (Facilitating Reflective Awareness through Mental-Model Engagement), a constructivist framework for surfacing students’ subconscious decision-making processes to support transformational learning and scholar-practitioner identity formation. Drawing on theories of mental models, constructivist pedagogy, and conscientization, FRAME articulates how Ed.D. faculty can foster reflective inquiry and theory-to-practice integration using dialogic instructional scaffolds. Situated within online and hybrid Ed.D. programs, this framework offers prescriptive guidance for cultivating cognitive disequilibrium that empowers students to apply theoretical lenses to complex leadership problems in their professional contexts, revise intuitive reasoning, and overcome barriers faced by diverse student populations.