BEF
362 – School, Culture, and Society
Spring 2008
Course Time: T & R, 9:30-10:45
Instructor: Dr. John Petrovic
Office: 323
Graves Hall
Office hours: by appointment
Contact: 205
348 0465, mailto:petrovic@bamaed.ua.edu
On the web: http://www.bama.ua.edu/~jpetrovi/
I. Course Catalog Description
An examination of the social,
philosophical, and historical foundations of education in a modern democratic
society. Critical attention is paid to developing in preservice teachers the
understandings and proficiencies needed for working with students from diverse
backgrounds to ensure that all students have the opportunity to learn.
II. Conceptual Framework
The College of Education prepares
practitioners who understand the purposes of education and have the ability to
engage in the ongoing processes of reflection and dialogue that lie at the
heart of socially-responsible, theoretically-informed, and research-based
effective practice.
The complete conceptual framework for the
College of Education can be read at http://education.ua.edu/ncate/cf.html.
III. Course Overview/Rationale for the Course
Teaching in the public schools is not just
about you and a group of children/students engaging in enjoyable activities.
Schools are social institutions that have been created in certain ways, not
always because people actually intended them to be that way but because certain
choices were made about money, organization, and control which then resulted in
the schools we have today. Schools reflect the society in which they exist, and
it is important for you to understand that relationship and how it came about
so that you can begin to think about how you might work for change when you are
one of the actors within a school setting. Thus, in this course we will examine
the role that philosophical, historical, and sociological inquiries play in
educational theory and, subsequently, our beliefs about the purposes of
schooling and our approaches to achieving those ends. We will also begin to
imagine ways in which schools can be transformed to meet the changing social, political,
and cultural context of the 21st century.
Teachers need to be able to evaluate
critically the multitude of suggestions for how schools should be run,
reformed, and restructured. To do this, you need to be clear about your own
philosophies of teaching and learning and your own beliefs about how race,
class, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation, among other characteristics,
impact the ways students experience schooling in today’s society. We will spend
considerable time in this course reading about and discussing such issues.
Finally, you should be aware that this in
not a “methods” course. It is not designed to prepare you to teach in the
direct ways that other courses in your preparation will. While we will often
discuss pedagogy, this course is designed to introduce you to your chosen
profession broadly. As a teacher, you will need to have certain skills,
attitudes, and dispositions to be successful. You will need to have a sense of
the great responsibility a teacher takes on, concern with the quality of your
work and a habit of reflecting on it, a desire to learn and improve yourself,
curiosity about new ideas, an interest in developing collegiality and working
cooperatively with others, punctuality, organization, dependability, and respect
for those involved in the hard work of providing formal education. You need to
be politically informed to be a leader for progressive educational reform in a
diverse society. You need to be philosophically informed to provide children
educational opportunities worth wanting. These are the primary goals of
this course.
IV. Knowledge Base
Central to this course will be an analysis
of schooling through sociological, political, historical, cultural, and
philosophical inquiries. A primary focus of these inquiries will be toward the
development of the proficiencies needed to meet the educational needs of
diverse students. The course also helps student gain the knowledge, skills, and
dispositions needed to “teach from multicultural and global perspectives that
draw on the histories, experiences, and representations of students from
diverse cultural backgrounds” (NCATE, Standard I, p. 31). Through these various
inquiries, we will reflect upon our own distinctive location in history and
interrogate the possibilities education holds for realizing each individual’s
potential and promoting a more democratic, socially just society. Further, this
course is designed to equip students with certain types of knowledge mandated
by NCATE, the College of Education (as reflected in the conceptual framework
referred to above), and the Alabama State Department of Education.
First, with its focus on the social context
of schooling, diversity, and culture, the knowledge base for this course ensures
that teacher candidates will obtain the knowledge that NCATE (Standard I) deems
as imperative for preservice teachers:
Candidates preparing to work in schools as
teachers or other school personnel need a sound professional knowledge base to
understand learning and the context of schools, families, and communities. They
understand and are able to apply knowledge related to the social, historical,
and philosophical foundations of education, professional ethics, law, and
policy…They understand language acquisition; cultural influences on learning;
exceptionalities; diversity of student populations, families, and communities;
and inclusion and equity in classrooms and schools…They understand the
importance of using research in teaching and other professional roles and know
the roles and responsibilities of the education profession” (p. 19).
Second, with its emphasis on developing reflective practitioners who
possess a philosophical basis for ethical decision making, the course aids
students in respecting diversity, honoring difference, and promoting social
justice, key goals of the College of Education as iterated in its Conceptual
Framework.
Third, the knowledge base of this course
will ensure that preservice teachers have had opportunities to accomplish the
following goals related to diversity and professionalism as explicated in the
Alabama State Department of Education:
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Alabama Standard/Rule 290-3-3-.04 |
ALABAMA QUALITY TEACHING STANDARDS |
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(1)(c)1.(i) |
Knowledge of the structure of the academic disciplines related to the
subject-matter content areas of instruction and of the important facts and
central concepts, principles, theories, and tools of inquiry associated with
these disciplines. |
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(2)(c)4.(iv) |
Knowledge of the importance of parents and/or families as active
partners in planning and supporting student learning. |
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(3)(c)1.(i) |
Knowledge of standard oral and written communications. |
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(3)(c)1.(ii) |
Knowledge of the impact of native language and linguistic background on
language acquisition. |
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(4)(c)1.(i) |
Knowledge of the ways in which student learning is influenced by
individual experiences and out-of- school learning, including language and
family/community values and conditions. |
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(4)(c)1.(ii) |
Knowledge of cultural, ethnic, gender, linguistic, and socio-economic
differences and how these may affect individual learner needs, preferences,
and styles. |
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(4)(c)1.(iii) |
Knowledge of the characteristics of one's own culture and use of
language and of how they differ from |
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(4)(c)5.(i) |
Knowledge of how personal/cultural biases can affect teaching and
learning. |
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(5)(c)4.(i) |
Knowledge of research relating collective responsibility for student
learning to increased achievement for all students. |
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(5)(c)4.(ii) |
Knowledge of the principles of individual and organizational change and
a commitment to assume personal responsibility for leading and supporting
others in results-oriented changes. |
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(5)(c)5.(i) |
Knowledge of appropriate professional behavior and dispositions
expected of professionals as outlined in the Alabama Educator Code of Ethics. |
V. Course Text and Readings
There is no required text book for this
course.
Readings are readily available in two ways:
(1) a complete reading packet is available at the McClure Education Library for
you to check out and copy; (2) individual readings are linked on the electronic
syllabus. Go to the electronic syllabus and scroll down to this point. Click on
the following to access
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If you choose option #2, please note that I
do not always have control over broken links or the availability of the server.
Therefore, you should attempt to access articles for a given class period at
least a week in advance so that problems can be resolved in a timely
manner. Also remember that you have a daily limit on the number of pages
you can print out on university printers.
VI. Assignments, Course Requirements,
Grading, and Policies
· Exam 1 30
points
· Exam 2 30
points
· Exam 3 30
points
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Participation 10 points
Attendance. Class attendance is mandatory. Each absence
beyond the third will result in 2 points being deducted from your grade.
Doctor's excuses or family emergencies will be taken into consideration.
Reading
Responses. For each set of
readings, there is a set of reading questions. You will provide responses to
these questions on one side of an index card. These need not be formally
written, but can be in “note” form. On the other side of the card, you will
write one question you have about the reading and one reaction to the reading.
A total of fifteen cards is required with a minimum of three cards being
submitted in January, February, March, and April.
Exams. Exams
will consist of a variety of question types including multiple choice, fill in
the blank, and essay (among other possibilities). Students will help to write
the exam (excluding essays) and, depending on the number of acceptable items
you submit to me, anywhere from 0-50% of the exam items (excluding essay
questions) will be known to you prior to sitting the exam. Each exam will
consist of 20-40 items AND 3 or 4 essay questions of which you will choose 2 or
3 to answer.
Note that there are four exams listed on
the course schedule below. You are required to sit and pass all four exams. However,
only your three highest exam scores will count toward your final grade. Should
you get a “D” or lower on any one of the exams, you lose the privilege of
having only the top three scores count and all four exam scores will count
toward your final grade.
Statement of Equal Treatment and
Disabilities. The instructor
and students in this course will act with integrity and strive to engage in
equitable verbal and non-verbal behavior with respect to differences arising
from age, gender, race, physical ability, religious preferences, sexual
orientation, and national origin. If you are registered with the Office of
Disability Services, please make an appointment with the instructor as soon as
possible to discuss any course accommodations that may be necessary. If you
have a disability but have not contacted the Office of Disability Services,
please call 354-5175 or visit Osband Hall to register for services.
Extra Credit. You may do one assignment for extra
credit. The assignment is to choose one of the policy issues raised in the
readings for April 24. Research this topic further by reading at least 3
outside readings that address the topic. Two of the three readings should be
empirical as opposed to position papers. Summarize the results of your research
and prepare a presentation to be made to the class on April 24. Your
presentation will be graded on a 0-5 point scale, to be added to your final
point total in the class.
Final Grading. The final grading will be as follows:
100+=A+, 93-100=A, 90-92=A-, 87-89=B+, 83-86=B, 80-82=B-, 75-79=C+, 70-74=C,
65-69=C-, 60-64=D+, 55-59=D, 50-54=D-.
VII. Schedule of Course Topics and Readings
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Date |
Reading Questions |
Reading |
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Jan. 10 |
Introduction to course and opening lecture |
none |
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Unit 1: The Purposes of Education in a Democratic
Society: Philosophical and Historical Foundations |
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Jan. 15 |
What is democracy? What have been the purposes of schooling
historically? What are they contemporarily? What should they be? |
Spring, ch. 1 |
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Jan. 17 |
How does the early history of education illustrate the debate between
Mann and Brownson, the models of schooling discussed by Spring, and the
design of schools to reflect the social contract? |
None, Video, School,
Part 1 |
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Jan. 22 |
What was Plato’s epistemology? What are the implications for
educational policy/practice? |
Plato, ch. 9 Plato, ch. 4 |
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Jan. 24 |
How does Martin’s epistemology differ from Plato’s? What are the
implications for educational policy/practice? |
Martin |
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Jan. 29 |
What is Dewey’s epistemology? Is it more similar to Plato’s or
Martin’s? In what ways? What are the implications for educational
policy/practice? |
None, Video, John Dewey |
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Jan. 31 |
Review |
none |
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Feb. 5 |
Exam #1 |
none |
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Unit 2: The economic purposes of
schooling in a “democratic” society: Education toward work, caste, and
consumption |
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Feb. 7 |
What were Plato’s views on democracy? What were the purposes of
education for Plato? To what extent do these same goals and views drive
education today? |
Plato , chs. 2, 3, and 6 |
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Feb. 12 |
What are the purposes of schooling in a capitalist society? |
Bowles and Gintis Hewitt |
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Feb. 14 |
In what ways have capitalism and marketing infiltrated schools? To
what extent do you see this as being problematic? Why? |
None, Video, Captive Audience |
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Feb. 19 |
What are some primary models of schooling? What was the express purpose
of each? What was the hidden effect? What is equal educational opportunity?
To what extent does equal educational opportunity exist? Are our schools
democratic? |
Spring, ch. 2 |
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Feb. 21 |
What are the political conditions/ideals that promote and/or allow
for “capitalist schooling”? |
Apple, ch. 2 |
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Feb. 26 |
What is classism? What are the effects of class on equal educational
opportunity? |
Mantsios Persell |
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Feb. 28 |
What is “common sense?” Does capitalist schooling contribute to or
detract from democracy? |
Apple, ch. 3 |
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March 4 |
Review |
none |
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March 6 |
Exam #2 |
none |
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Unit 3: The Lack of Equal Educational Opportunity: Race and
Gender |
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March 11 |
What is racism? What is the relationship between class and race? |
Spring, pp. 88-99 McIntosh Yamato |
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March 13 |
What does it mean to be “color blind?” Is color blindness a
“privilege?” What are the effects of racism on equal educational opportunity? |
Orfield Schofield |
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March 17-21 |
Spring Break |
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March 25 |
What is sexism? How does it affect opportunities for women/girls? How
does it affect the educational experience of men/boys? |
Spring, pp. 99-107 Martino |
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March 27 |
What does it mean to be masculine? How are improper masculinities
constructed? |
None, Video, Tough Guise |
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April 1 |
What is heterosexism? How is it related to sexism? How does it affect
everyone’s educational experience? |
Friend Elze O’Conor |
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April 3 |
How should we teach about sexual orientation? To whom? |
None, Video, It’s Elementary |
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April 8 |
Review |
none |
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April 10 |
Exam #3 |
none |
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Unit 4: Seeking Equal Educational
Opportunity: Pedagogy and Policy |
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April 15 |
What is multicultural education? |
Spring, ch. 5 (153-179) |
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April 17 |
What does
Breault mean by the expression "pedagogy for the oppressor?" What
is culturally relevant teaching and how do we do it? |
DuBois |
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April 22 |
How do Giroux and Chomsky add to our understanding of a “pedagogy for
the oppressor?” |
Giroux Chomsky |
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April 24 |
What is “school choice?” How might Apple or
Bowles & Gintis critique it? What is NCLB and how does it affect equal
educational opportunity? How might Chomsky or Apple critique NCLB or the
other policies reviewed by Spring? |
Spring, ch. 6 (183-217) and 218-236 |
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April 29 |
Review |
none |
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May 1 |
Exam #4 |
none |
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The official
finals day for this class is Wednesday, May 7, 8:00 AM. |
Note: The class
will sit Exam #4 on May 1 ONLY IF ALL students agree that that is in their
best interest. Otherwise, exam #4 will be taken on May 7. |
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