PSU Graduate School of Education
ÒMeeting our communitiesÕ lifelong educational
needsÓ
ED 420/520: Introduction to
Education and Society
Fall 2008
Department: Educational Leadership and Policy
Instructor: Ramin Farahmandpur, Ph. D.
Time: Thursdays 4:00-6:30
pm
Room: CH 224
Office: ED 506X
Phone: 503-725-8271
Email: rfp@pdx.edu or farahmandpur@comcast.net
Office Hrs: by appointment
á
Students needing an
accommodation should immediately inform the course instructor. Students are
referred to Disability Services 503-725-4005 to document their disability and
to receive support services where appropriate.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The course
explores the nature of public education in the social context of the United
States. The purpose of the course is to develop critical ways of thinking about
schools as social institutions and as a means of cultural transmission and
transformation. Includes one credit (30 hour) assigned practicum in public
school setting.
THE CONTEXT OF THE
COURSE
This course introduces the
foundations of sociology of education to prospective teachers, who intend to
enroll in the Graduate Teacher Education Program at Portland State University,
and also to students from other disciplines required to take this class.
The course draws from
historical, political, sociological, and cultural literature to provide
students with critical and reflective frameworks for thinking about schooling
in linguistically and ethnically/racially diverse social settings. Constructs such as language, race,
culture, social class, gender, and
learning and physical differences will be explored and examined within
the dynamic and oftentimes complex relationships between schools and society. Through a combination of short lectures,
readings, discussions, and activities, students will employ critical
interpretive frameworks for understanding the historical, socio-cultural,
political, and economic contexts of education and schooling.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
General
Objectives:
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Examine how schooling
and education contribute to social mobility and stratification.
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Identify major ideas,
concepts, and theories that have been influential in understanding the purpose
and the role of schools as social and cultural institutions in the United States.
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Explore how schools
play a key role in the socialization of children.
Specific
Objectives:
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recognize how your educational experiences have
shaped and influenced your identity.
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Develop a Ôcritical
eyeÕ for how social, political, cultural, and economic forces have shaped
current debates over education and schooling.
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Link and apply
theories, ideas and concepts introduced in the course to their practicum
experience at the school sites.
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Complete a twenty-hour
course practicum by volunteering at a local K12 school
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Actively participate in
classroom discussions and activities.
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Complete a field-based
experience paper, synthesizing the classroom readings, discussions, and
activities with their practicum experience.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
1.
Oakes, J. and Lipton,
M. (2006). Teaching to Change the World (3rd Edition). Boston: McGraw-Hill.
2.
Bigelow, B.,
Christensen, L., Karp, S., Minor, B., Peterson, B. (Eds.) (2007). Rethinking
Our Classrooms: Teaching for equity and Justice
(Volume One). ( 2nd edition)
30
Hours of Field-based Practicum Experience. Practicum evaluation forms (pink paper) must be completed and signed.
Students must complete this requirement to pass the course. The 30 hours of
practicum is community-based service learning that will be completed in the
Portland Public Schools-Migrant Education Program. This work will challenge and
excite you as well as allow you to
explore a career in education.
COURSE METHODS
Classroom
dialogue, group discussion and short lectures will be the primary method of instruction.
In addition, films and/or videos will be presented that are directly linked to
the social, cultural, political, and economic foundations of education.
COURSE EXPECTATIONS
While
there is no direct relationship between class attendance and grades, it is
unlikely you can successfully engage in the learning process unless you
actively participate in the classroom and group discussions and debates. As such, your participation grade will
largely depend on your contribution to the classroom and group discussions. If
you cannot attend a class meeting please notify the instructor in advance, or
at the earliest time possible. You are expected to complete all required
readings before each class meeting, contribute to classroom discussions, be
attentive, tolerant and respectful of the opinions expressed by your
classmates, even though they may not reflect your own views, beliefs and
values. Lastly, please avoid dominating classroom discussions.
HONOR CODE
You
are encouraged to discuss and share the course with other classmates and to
work with one another in preparation for class meetings. Yet it is important to
emphasize that all your written work MUST be yours and no one elseÕs.
Please note that plagiarism is a violation of the honor code. If you decide to
use or borrow ideas or concepts please make sure you credit the author (or
authors) by using the correct form of citation.
ASSIGNMENTS
1.
Eight Weekly Papers 40%
(1 page, single-spaced)
2.
Field-based Experience Essay 30% (3-4 pages, single-spaced)
3. Educational Biography 20%
(3-4 pages, double-spaced)
4. Two Blackboard
Postings 10%
1.
Weekly Papers (1 page, single-spaced)
The
purpose of the short response paper is to help you express and organize your
thoughts, views and reactions to the readings. You are not expected to
summarize the reading, but rather to critique, analyze, and comment on the
ideas, concepts and viewpoints discussed in the readings. The short response
papers will help you prepare for group and classroom discussion.
2. Guidelines for
Writing the Field-based Experience Essay
Your field experience essay
(your final paper) should be two to three pages, single-spaced. Please make
sure that the names of teachers, students, parents and school staff remain
anonymous and observe all confidentiality policies at your school site.
Part 1
a. The school in the
community
Describe
the environment that surrounds the school: Geographical location and the
demographic data of the community in which the school is located.
b. The school as a
community
Describe
the school culture. What is the mission statement or the philosophy of the school? Provide data on the number of teachers, students and staff
at the school. Provide statistical data on race,
class, gender, English proficiency and the
cultural background of students attending the school site or educational setting.
c. The classroom
Describe
the classroom setting: grade level, students, teacher(s), race, class, gender, English
proficiency of students and culture.
Part 2
Choose and focus on one
particular practicum experience at the school site. This could be working with
one student or a group of students.
In addition, you may focus on the school culture, parental involvement,
or school policies and practices. Your task is to connect the theories,
concepts and ideas from the classroom readings to your practicum observations and experiences.
Part 3
How have the classroom
discussions and activities in the class helped you to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between
schools and society?
3.
Educational Biography (3-4 pages, double-spaced pages):
You
will be sharing this paper during the second class meeting with a small group
of your classmates.
Please
write an educational history of yourself.
Beginning with your earliest memories of ÒeducationÓ as you understand
that term (formal and informal), discuss the circumstances, the social
environment and the people who were involved and influential in your education.
Taking into consideration the characteristics of your family and yourself, discuss how those elements
influenced your education (e.g.,
did it make a difference to be a male or female; middle class, working class or
poor; rural, urban or suburban; able-bodied or having learning differences;
ÒstraightÓ or Ògay;Ó Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, Muslim, etc.;
European-American, Latino, African-American, Native American, Middle Eastern,
Asian-American, etc.). Discuss the
value your family placed on education, and the ÒtraditionalÓ stance other
family members took.
Locate
memories of your (and your familyÕs) educational experience in an historical
context. Look particularly at the influence of vocational or academic tracks in
your education or the education of family members. What programs and courses
were made available to you in your (or family membersÕ) schooling? What type of
guidance and support did school counselors and teachers provide you? Was your
educational history atypical or typical?
Looking back, do you have a better understand of how your identity was
being shaped (or not) by education than you did at the time? How much
difference did the particular education you received make in your lifeÕs
history?
Finally
discuss where you are now in your educational history. What is your
relationship to education? What have been the outcomes of your education? What
will complete your Òeducational historyÓ?