Fall 2009, Gadsden Center
Course Facilitator: John Petrovic, PhD
Office: 323C
Graves Hall (Tuscaloosa campus)
E-mail: petrovic@bamaed.ua.edu
Phone: 205 348 0465
Homepage: http://www.bamaed.ua.edu/~jpetrovi/
Course
Meetings and Times: Thursdays, 5:00-9:00 (see dates in section V)
I.
Course Overview
In
no small part, this course addresses in a very specific way the following
question: What is the purpose of schooling? Schooling has a variety of purposes
including economic, political, social, and intellectual purposes. Historically,
one of the political purposes of schooling has been to realize the long-since
cliché notion of the “melting pot.” This has consisted of promoting patriotism
by teaching myths, history, and stories (lies?, see Loewen, 1995)[1] about the
country, its leaders, and form of government. One of the goals embedded here
most relevant to this course is assimilation to a specific cultural milieu that
has arisen over the past two and a quarter centuries and the acceptance of class
distinctions in terms of privilege and power. All too often, well-meaning and
limited forms of assimilation have taken on the much more troublesome form of
“Americanization.” “Multicultural education” began to appear on the educational
scene during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. What multicultural
education means and/or should mean has gone through a number of iterations and
has been informed by various theoretical perspectives, including critical
theory, feminist theory, neo-Marxism, and queer theory. From these
perspectives, simple cultural sensitivity, or a “Taco Tuesdays” approach to
multiculturalism, has given way to deeper understandings and a search for
social justice in both education and in the larger society. Here multicultural
education has been enriched by critical pedagogy. Specifically anti-racist
education also adds to the depth of understanding of multiculturalism and to
the purposes of critical pedagogy.
In
this course, we will explore such variations of transformative pedagogy that
are key to providing “multicultural education.” One important question that we
must address in this class is when pedagogy becomes “transformative” and why.
Here we will consider whether “pointing out” differences is equal to
“recognizing” them. In considering these questions, we must first come to some
sort of consensus on the role of education in the acculturation and
assimilation process and on the transmission of culture in a pluralistic
society. We must also consider the ways in which power operates to ensure
privilege (and vice-versa) through the social construction of difference. We
can then embark on fleshing out the specifics of a number of multicultural
education models and transformative pedagogies.
The
course is divided, roughly, into two parts. In the first part of the course, we
will review the theoretical foundations of multicultural education.
Historically, these foundations have been based not in multiculturalism but on
coercion, cultural inferiority and deprivation theories, and a host of –isms,
including sexism, racism, heterosexism, classism, ableism, ethnocentrism,
anglocentrism, etc. (Cf. Spring, 2000).[2]
We will attempt to understand and expose privilege and power and the ways they
affect our understanding of difference. This understanding should also lead us
to interrogate more critically what the purpose of schooling in a “free,”
“democratic” society should be. In the second part of the course, we will
analyze the present-day circumstances of students affected by certain “isms” and
differences in power and privilege. We will consider the ways in which schools
(and practices therein) serve to perpetuate them and how critical multicultural
education can help to transform “ism-ic” schools.
Generally
speaking, the first part of the course is meant to be almost purely
theoretical, and the second part of the course is meant to focus more
specifically on school policies, practices, and pedagogy. However, since it is
impossible and short-sighted to try to disentangle theory from practice, we
will continue reading theoretical work as well throughout the second part of
the course. The goal is to connect theory to practice and back again.
II. Required Texts
Michie, G. (2005). See you when we get there: Teaching for change in urban schools.
New York: Teachers College Press.
Johnson, Allan G. (2005). Privilege, power, and difference [2nd ed.].
III. General
Policies
· Special Needs—If any member of the class feels
s/he has a disability and needs special accommodations as addressed by the
· Attendance—This course will be run in seminar
fashion. In other words, informed discussion, exchange of ideas, and debate is
the heart of the class. That cannot happen if you do not attend class.
Attendance at every class meeting is expected and your grade will reflect your
attendance in combination with your participation (see “grading” below). I
appreciate that you will all have family or professional responsibilities to
deal with, not to mention illnesses. Your first absence will not be counted
against you. All others will—barring any unusual extenuating circumstances.
(For example, a death in the family would count as one such circumstance, a
long-held reservation for a few days away at a swank resort would not.) Regardless
of the cause, a 2-3 page reading reflection will be required to make up for
any absences beyond the first. Each absence beyond the 2rd
will cause your grade to be lowered by a full letter, and the make-up paper
will still be required.
IV. Assignments and Grading
· Participation and Attendance, 20
points.
Informed discussion is the heart of this course. Therefore, all students will
be expected to contribute to discussions, applying the readings. Students are
encouraged to bring their own experiences, personal reflections, and ideas to
discussions with the idea that they will shed light on concepts and ideals
being discussed in class. But we must also recognize that our own ideas cannot
be stagnant; I, the readings, and your classmates will serve as sounding
boards. You might not always like or understand what comes back, but you must
always struggle with it. PLEASE DO NOT
COME TO CLASS IF YOU HAVE NOT COMPLETED THE ASSIGNED READING.
Rules of engagement:
1. Never take what you or
someone says as your/their final word on the subject. After all, change and
progress is what education is about.
2. Attack ideas, not people.
3. Don't get defensive when
#2 happens to you.
4. Don't feel obligated to
say things like, "Maybe I'm wrong but..." or "Playing devil's
advocate..." Usually people hide behind such phrases so that others won't
think that they are thinking what they are thinking. You're saying it, so you
must be thinking it. If you are thinking it, it is likely you believe there is
some truth to it. This makes it worthy sharing, without qualification, for
discussion. Remember, we are still playing by rule number 1.
· Presentation (20 points). Each of you will be required to present a chapter of the Michie text.
Your presentation should include an analysis of the ways in which the teacher
engaged (or not) in critical multiculturalism. This analysis should integrate
in a substantial way the readings from the first two days of class as well as
the readings assigned for the day you are presenting.
· Paper
(60 points). You will complete one class paper that will be divided into three main
sections as described below. Your paper should be 15-20 pages in length, have
1.5 spacing, and be in 12 point font. You have two paper options to choose
from:
OPTION 1
Introduction
(approx. 150 words)
Section 1, Theory. In this section of your paper, you should consider the theoretical
underpinnings of multicultural education. What are they? What do they mean to
definition and purposes of critical multiculturalism as opposed to vulgar
multiculturalism? Given these theoretical underpinnings, discuss the
connections among multicultural education, anti-racist education, and critical
pedagogy. What are these things? Why/how are they required to be symbiotic? In
other words, can you have one without the other? How does answering this
question involve consideration of privilege and power? What would multicultural
education mean/look like without its critical and anti-racist partners?
Section 2, Content or Issue. In this
section of your paper you may choose either to examine your ability to make
your own practices within your given area of expertise multicultural
(“multicultural” as defined in paper #1) or to examine the ways you handle or
not and [should] have handled a specific
“ism” in your classroom. You should spend the first pages of this paper
describing your pedagogical style and strategies in the content area you have
chosen or strategies and “hang ups” around the ism you have chosen. What
aspects of your own socio-cultural and political autobiography
have contributed to your pedagogical style and beliefs around multiculturalism
and/or the particular ism you have chosen? Are your pedagogical styles and
strategies “multicultural?” (refer to your first paper) To what extent? How
might you change your practices (and why should you) or what ideas could you
effectively add to your teaching arsenal based on the reading. You need to
choose at least one additional reading (suggestions will be offered) to
complete this assignment.
Section 3, Reflection. In his
introduction, Michie writes that the teachers in his book “don’t always see
what they are doing as ‘radical,’ and they wouldn’t necessarily cite ‘critical
pedagogy’ as the bedrock of their work in schools.” What are some of the “small
victories” these teachers achieve and given your reflections in section 1 and
your further reading around the concept of critical pedagogy and reflections on
your own practices, in what ways are these teachers engaging in critical
multicultural education? In what ways are they not? How would more
thorough-going critical pedagogues critique their work and “improve” it?
Reflecting on your own practices as a teacher or your own educational
experiences as a student, what have you learned from these teachers?
Summary and
Conclusions (approx. 200 words).
OPTION 2
Introduction
(approx. 150 words)
Section 1, Theory. Follow the description of section one above.
Section 2,
School Climate and Curriculum Analysis. Using the conceptual framework you
developed in section 1 of your paper and the charts developed by Nieto and/or
Banks to help you, analyze and identify the level of multiculturalism present
in your school and curriculum. How multicultural is your school? To what extent
and in what ways is multiculturalism reflected in your curriculum guide, across
the curriculum? What evidence do you have (or lack) to place your
school/program/teaching where you do on the various continua represented in the
rubric? Examine the textbooks your school uses and your library holdings.
Survey colleagues as to their (self-reported) “multicultural” practices. Given
the class readings, what recommendations might you make to make your school and
teaching (even) more multicultural?
What
issue(s) in particular is your school not dealing with effectively? Why? This could
be a structural problem. For example, rowed classrooms cater to one learning
style or you might simply lack materials or you may have various forms of
tracking. It could be a policy problem to the extent that certain groups of
students are more impacted by school policies (zero-tolerance policies or
colorblind punishment policies, e.g.). It could be a conceptual challenge. For
example, you don’t see how multiculturalism generally or a particular issue of
multiculturalism is relevant to your school. It could be a personal
philosophical inconsistency with some of the ideals of multiculturalism. This
might be, as you might discover in doing a cultural
autobiography, due to a clash of one your identities with that of
another person. In this case, what are your responsibilities as a
“multicultural” instructional leader and can you make them consistent with your
own identity(ies)?
Section 3,
Reflection. Drawing on the lessons you learned from the teachers in
Michie’s book, describe how they engaged in critical multiculturalism (or not)
and how the structure/philosophy/policies at the school level (as you describe
and analyze them in section 2) can positively and negatively impact the
practices of teachers in the classroom.
Summary and Conclusions (approx. 200 words).
Notes on grading of papers:
While
it is not required, I would encourage you to be working on the various sections
of your paper throughout the course. I also encourage you to submit drafts of
any section of your paper as you develop them. Until you hand in the final
version of your paper, you should always consider it a draft to be revisited,
edited, addended, etc., as you engage in more reading. Grading option: You may
hand in each section of the paper separately and have each section graded
separately as we progress through the units or you may hand in the full paper
once at the end. Your complete paper
is due on December 10 by 5:00 pm.
The following criteria will be taken
into account in the grading of your paper(s):
1.
Does the paper adequately, coherently, and accurately address the theoretical
underpinnings discussed in the course?
2.
Does the paper integrate the readings in academically reasonable ways that
serve to build an argument and/or effectively elucidate major concepts?
3.
Is the information in the first section of the paper brought to bear in the
other sections of the paper in a way that evidences a theoretically grounded
analysis?
4.
Does the paper evidence thorough reading on the part of the writer?
5.
Does the paper provide evidence of the ability of the author to engage in
praxis?
· Final grading: 100-90 A, 90-80 B, 80-70 C,
70-60 D, 60-0 F
V.
Schedule of
*all underscored readings are available on line.
|
Privilege, Power, and Ideology: The
Theoretical Underpinnings of Critical Multiculturalism |
|
|
Aug 20 Concepts to guide our thinking about multiculturalism:
Privilege |
Reading: Johnson,
pp. vii-40; Ignatiev; Garvey; McClaren & Munoz; Freire* |
|
Sep 03 Conceptualizations, ideals, and purposes of multicultural
education |
Reading: Banks; Kailin; Blum; Nieto; McLaren (pp.
183-192) Video: Ethnic
Notions |
|
Critical Pedagogy and the Issues: Social
Stratification and Racism |
|
|
Sep 17 Race, class, and schooling: Can you say “social stratification”? |
Reading: Johnson,
pp. 41-89 & 108-124; Chomsky; Mantsios; Bigelow; Kozol (To be assigned), Condron Video: A Question of Fairness |
|
Oct 01 Race, ethnicity, and privilege: What does it mean to be purple
in school? |
Reading:
Michie, xi-xiv, 1-14 and 15-49 (group 1); McIntosh; Tenorio; Peterson; Miller; McLaren, 193-218 Video: The Color
of Fear |
|
From Theory to Practice: Critical Pedagogy and the Issues: Sexism, Heterosexism, and linguicism |
|
|
Oct 15 Gender: Improper masculinities |
Reading: Johnson,
pp. 90-107; Michie, 51-83 (group 2); Frye; Martino; Mills; Taylor Video: Tough
Guise |
|
Oct 29 Sexual orientation: The walls are str8; you be too. |
Reading: Pharr; O’Conor; Petrovic; Gordon; Ellis; Temple Video: It’s
Elementary |
|
Nov 12 Language diversity: Please, speak English (and if you’re from here, speak standard English) |
|
|
From Theory to Practice: Critical Pedagogy
and the Issues: Cultural Capital and the Necessity of Double Consciousness |
|
|
Dec 03 Changing what counts as cultural capital |
Reading: Johnson,
pp. 125-153; Michie, 119-151 (group 4); Michie, 153-182 (group 5); Michie,
183-195; Delpit;
McLaren, 218-219 Video:
Untracking Schools |
Complete Citations for
Banks, J. A. (2002). Chapter 1, Goals and Misconceptions. An Introduction to Multicultural
Education.
Bigelow, B. (1994). Getting Off the Track: Stories from an
Untracked Classroom. In Rethinking Our
Classrooms: Teaching for Equity and Social Justice. Milwaukee: Rethinking
Schools.
Blum, L. (2004). Antiracism, Multiculturalism, and
Interracial Community: Three
Educational Values for a Multicultural Society. In Heldke,
L. and O’Connor, P. (Eds.),
Oppression,
Privilege, & Resistance: Theoretical Perspectives on Racism, Sexism, and
Heterosexism. Boston: McGraw Hill.
Chomsky, N. (2000). Chomsky on MisEducation. Lanham, MD:
Rowman & Littlefield, Publishers.
Condron, D. and Roscigno, V. (2003). Disparities within:
Unequal spending and achievement in an urban school district. Sociology of Education, 76(1), 18-36.
Delpit, L. (1988). The silenced dialogue: Power and pedagogy
in teaching other people's children. Harvard Educational Review, 58,
280-287.
Delpit, L. (1997). Ebonics and Culturally Responsive
Instruction: What Should Teachers
Do? Rethinking Schools,
12(1).
Ellis, V. and High, S. (2004). Something more to tell you:
Gay, lesbian or bisexual young people’s experiences of secondary schooling. British Educational Research Journal, 30(2), 213-225.
Freire, P. (1973). Education for Critical Consciousness.
Frye, M. (2004). Oppression. In Heldke, L. and O’Connor, P.
(Eds.). Oppression, Privilege, &
Resistance: Theoretical Perspectives on Racism, Sexism, and Heterosexism.
Boston: McGraw Hill.
Garvey, J. (1996). My Problem with Multicultural Education.
In N. Ignatiev & J. Garvey (Eds.), Race
Traitors. New York: Routledge.
Gordon,
L. (1994). What do we say when we hear “faggot?” In B. Bigelow,
L. Christensen, S. Karp, B. Miner, and B. Peterson (Eds.), Rethinking Our Classrooms: Teaching for
Equity and Social Justice.
Ignatiev, N. (1996). Immigrants and Whites. In Ignatiev, N.
& Garvey, J. (Eds.), Race Traitors.
Kailin, J. (2002). Antiracist
education: From theory to practice. New York: Rowman & Littlefield
Publishers.
Kozol, J. (1991). Savage Inequalities: Children in
Krashen, S. (1997). Why bilingual education? ERIC Digest. Available at
http://www.ericdigests.org/1997-3/bilingual.html
Mantsios, G. "Class in
Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing, 2nd
ed. G. Colombo, R. Cullen, and B. Lisle
(Eds.).
Martino, W. Gendered Learning Practices: Exploring the Cost
of Hegemonic Masculinity for Girls and Boys in Schools. Retrieved from www.doe.tased.edu.au/equitystandards/gender/framewrk/learning.htm on
9/7/2005.
McIntosh, P. (2004). White Privilege and Male Privilege: A
Personal Account of Coming to See Correspondences Through Work in Women’s
Studies. In Heldke, L. and O’Connor, P. (Eds.), Oppression, Privilege, & Resistance: Theoretical Perspectives on
Racism, Sexism, and Heterosexism.
McLaren, P. (2003). Life in Schools. An Introduction to
Critical Pedagogy in the Foundations of Education. (4th Ed.).
McLaren, P. & Munoz, J. (2000). Contesting Whiteness:
Critical Perspective on the Struggle for Social Justice. In Ovando, C. and
McLaren, P. (Eds.) The Politics of
Multiculturalism and Bilingual Education: Students and Teachers Caught in the
Cross-Fire, pp. 22-49.
Miller,
K. (1994). Tapping into Feelings of Fairness. In B. Bigelow, L. Christensen, S. Karp, B.
Miner, and B. Peterson (Eds.), Rethinking
Classrooms: Teaching for Equity and
Social Justice.
Mills,
M., Martino, W., and Lingard, B. (2004). Recruiting and retaining male
teachers: Policy issues in the male teacher debate. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 25(3), 355-369.
Nieto, S. (2004). Chapter 9, Multicultural Education and
School Reform. Affirming Diversity [4th
Ed.].
O’Connor, A. (1994). Who Gets Called Queer in School? Lesbian,
Gay and Bisexual Teenagers, Homophobia and High School. The High School Journal,
77(1&2), 7-12.
Perry, Theresa (1997). I’on Know Why They Be Trippin’. Rethinking Schools, 12(1).
Peterson,
Bob. (1994). Teaching for Social Justice: One Teacher’s Journey. In B. Bigelow,
L. Christensen,
Teaching for Equity and Social
Justice.
Journal of
Moral Education. 28(2), 201-209.
Pharr, Suzanne. (2004).
Homophobia: A Weapon of Sexism. In Heldke, L. and O’Connor, P.
(Eds.). Oppression,
Privilege, & Resistance: Theoretical Perspectives on Racism, Sexism,
and Heterosexism.
Taylor, Frank. (2003). Content analysis and gender
stereotypes in children’s books. Teaching
Sociology, 31(3), 300-311.
Temple, Julia R. (2005). People who are different from you:
Heterosexism in Quebec High School textbooks. Canadian Journal of Education, 28(3),
271-294.
Tenorio,
Rita. (1994). Race and Respect Among Young Children. In B. Bigelow, L. Christensen, S. Karp, B.
Miner, and B. Peterson (Eds.), Rethinking
Our Classrooms: Teaching for Equity and Social Justice. Milwaukee:
Rethinking Schools.
|
Doing a cultural autobiography Respond to the following prompts. Then use the information to
write a one-page reflective narrative about what you learned, specifically
sharing what discoveries about your family, ethnicity, culture stand out most
and why. 1. Name the country/ies other than the U.S. that you identify
as a place of origin for yourself and your family. 2. Identify your ethnic/cultural group membership and write
out at least three examples of advice that has been handed down through your
family by your ancestors, such as a family motto. 3. List at least five values that are most important to your
cultural/racial identity and then rank order them from most important to
least important. (Identify the source of these values and try to categorize
them, e.g., religious belief, political ideal, family tradition…) 4. Write down what
particular family members’ attitudes are towards people who are culturally
and ethnically different (White Americans, African Americans, Native
Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, Gays/Lesbians,
Physically Challenged People, Religious People, Rich/Poor People, etc.) 5. Write down at least two things that you were encouraged
(explicitly or implicitly) to believe about people of other groups. 6. Compose a list of
what was discussed and what was not discussed and why you think that was so. 7. Complete the
following sentence starters:
8. Write out a timeline
in 5 year blocks. For each block, recall and write down specific incidents in
your live that affected your thinking and/or feelings about people who are
culturally or ethnically different from yourself. 9. Use what you have
thought about and learned from doing #1-8 to write to write a one-page
reflective narrative about what you learned, specifically sharing what
discoveries about your family, ethnicity, culture |
