EDUCATION 14: INTRODUCTION TO EDUCATION
Fall 2001 Ann Renninger (krennin1)
Class: Monday 1:15-4:00 PM Office: Pearson 201 x8347
Trotter 203 Office hours: Tuesdays 9:30-11AM
and by appointment
This course uses an interdisciplinary approach to examine key issues in American education. In particular, it draws on materials from the disciplines of psychology, sociology, philosophy, history, and political science to address questions about American education. The topics listed on the syllabus will be examined through historical and contemporary readings, software, students' writing, and both small and large group discussion and activities. Students are expected to develop an awareness of contemporary curriculum theory and practice through work with instructional materials and first hand experience in schools. The course also provides students with an opportunity to explore their interest in teaching.
Notes on Readings: Most of the assigned books are available in the Bookstore, in paperback. Readings can also be found in the Educational Materials Center (Pearson 220) and on General Reserve, McCabe Library. Readings in the Materials Center are located on one shelf marked Introduction to Education and are not to be removed from the Education Office Area. The Materials Center is open from 8:00 AM-5 PM and 7:30 PM-9:30 PM weekdays. It is also open from 1-5 PM and 7:30-9:30 PM on Sundays. All software is housed in the Materials Center. Materials in McCabe are located on reserve. Readings not in books are available on electronic reserve at <http://trires.brynmawr.edu/coursepage.asp?cid=456> ; password: education.
*Books or journal issues, shelved by author or journal title.
**Articles or reprints on ereserve.
***Readings available both in books or journals and on ereserve.
Week 1 (September 3): Introduction and Orientation to Course
Week 2 (September 10): What Happens in School: The Hidden Curriculum
Readings:
***Jackson, P. W. (1968). Life in classrooms. New York: Holt, Rhinehart and Winston, Inc. Chapter 1, pp. 1-37.
**Anyon, J. (1980). Social class and the hidden curriculum of work. Journal of Education, 162, pp. 67-92.
***Dreeben, R. (1967). The Contribution of schooling to the learning of norms. Harvard Educational Review, 37 (2), pp. 23-49.
**Sadker, M. and Sadker, D. (1994) Failing at fairness. NY: Charles ScribnerÕs Sons.
Chapter 1, pp. 1-14.
Computer Software:
Oregon Trail II
Week 3 (September 17): What Happens in School: Reaching the Individual Student
Readings:
*Holt, J. (1964). How Children Fail. New York: Delta/Seymour Lawrence. Chapters 1 (Strategy), 2 (Fear and Failure to "April 12, 1959.").
*Kohl, H. (1967). 36 children. New York: Signet, pp. 13-62, (skim 101-175), and pp. 177-180.
**Nieto, S. (1966). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education. NY: Longman Publishing Co., pp. 136-152.
***Duckworth, E. (1987) "The having of wonderful ideas" and other essays on teaching and learning. New York: Teachers College Press, pp. 1-14.
Recommended Reading:
**Sigel, I. E. & Cocking, R. R. (1977). Cognitive development from childhood to adolescence: A constructivist perspective. NY: Holt, Rinhart and Winston. Chapter 2, pp. 13-36.
Computer Software:
A.D.A.M.
Week 4 (September 24): Curriculum Theory and Practice (1): Progressive Education
Readings:
*Dewey, J. (1963). Experience and education. New York: Collier Books.
**Zilversmit, A. (1993). Changing schools: Progressive education theory and practice, 1930-1960. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Chapter 1, pp. 1-18.
***Delpit, L. (1986). Skills and other dilemmas of a progressive black educator. Harvard Educational Review, 56 (4), 379-385.
**Hirsch, E. D. (1987). Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Chapter 1, pp. 1-32 and Chapter 5, pp. 110-133.
Computer Software:
Browse the Math Forum (http://mathforum.com). Check out Math Forum projects: GeoPOW and Ask Dr. Math, in particular.
Week 5 (October 1): Curriculum Theory and Practice (2): Behaviorism
Readings:
*Skinner, B. F. (1968). The technology of teaching. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Chapters 4, 2, 7, 8 and pp. 227-237 in 11 (note order),
**Bigge, M. L. (1982). How does Skinner's operant conditioning work? In Learning theories for teachers. Chapter. 5, pp. 109-136.
*Schwartz, B. & Lacey, H. (1982). Behaviorism, science, and human nature. New York: Norton. Chapter 1, pp. 1-1 and Chapter 9, pp. 230-259.
Computer Software:
Eagle Eye Mysteries
Logs:
Journal should be submitted today or after your third observation.
Paper:
First draft, paper 1, is due Friday, October 5 at noon, or be prepared to work in the Materials Center to complete it.
Readings:
*Bruner, J. S. (1966). Toward a theory of instruction. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Chapters 3 and 4, pp. 39-101.
*Bruner, J. S. (1960). The process of education. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Chapters 1-4, pp. 1-68.
*Springer, M. (1994). Watershed: A successful voyage into integrated learning. Columbus, OH: NMSA.
Week 7 (October 22): Curriculum Theory and Practice (4): Affective and Moral Education
Readings:
***Noddings, N. (1988, February). An ethic of caring and its implications for instructional arrangements. American Journal of Education, 96(2), pp. 215-229.
*Damon, W. (1988). Teaching values in schools. In W. Damon, The moral child. NY: Macmillan. Chapter 8, pp. 131-152.
**Kahne, J. and Westheimer, E. J. (1996). In the service of what? The politics of service learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 77 (9), 593-599.
**Gardner, H. (1991). The unschooled mind. NY: Basic Books. Chapter 1, pp. 1-20.
Computer Software:
The Political Process Exercise: Academic; A Treaty Negotiation Simulation
Papers:
Final draft, paper 1, is due at class time, October 22. If you have not completed the final draft by this time, be prepared to work after class in the Materials Center to complete it. Do not miss class to work on your paper. Attach your first draft of this paper to the final copy.
First draft, paper 2, is due Friday, October 26 at noon, or be prepared to work in the Materials Center to complete it.
Week 8 (October 29): Policy Questions (1): Computers in Education
Readings:
**Cuban. L (1997). "High-tech schools and low-tech teaching." Education Week. May 21, 1997, pp. 38-41.
*Schofield, J. W. (1995). Computers and classroom culture. Cambridge University Press. I I Introduction (pp. 1-16), and Chapters 2, 3 and 7, pp. 21-93 and 190-228.
***Kafai, Y.B. (1995). Minds in play: Computer game design as a context for children's learning. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Chapter 6.
**Renninger, K.A. and Shumar, W. (in press). Community building with and for teachers at The Math Forum. In K.A. Renninger and W. Shumar (Eds.), Building virtual communities: Learning and change in cyberspace.
**Bigelow (1996). On the road: A critique of "The Oregon Trail" CD-ROM. Rethinking Schools, 14-18.
Week 9 (November 5): Historical Perspectives in American Schooling
Readings:
***Lazerson, M. (Ed.) (1987). American education in the 20th century. NY: Teachers College Press. Introduction, pp. 1-55.
**Tyack, D. & Hansot, E. (1981). Conflict and consensus in American public education. Daedalus, 110 (3), pp. 1-25.
**Katz, M. (1987). Reconstructing American education. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Chapter 1.
***Greene, M. (1978). ÒThe impacts of irrelevance: Women in the history of American education,Ó In Landscapes of Learning, NY: Teachers College Press. Chapter 16, pp. 225-243.
Paper:
Final draft, paper 2, is due Friday, November 9 at noon, or be prepared to work in the Materials Center to complete it. Attach your first draft of this paper to the final copy.
Week 10 (November 12): Equality of Opportunity and American Schooling
Readings:
***Kozol, J. (1991). Children of the city of the invincible. In Savage inequalities. NY: Crown Publishers. Chapter 4, pp. 133-174.
**Coleman, J. (1968, Winter). The concept of equal educational opportunity, Harvard Educational Review, 7-22.
***Nieto, S. (1998). Fact and fiction: Stories of Puerto Ricans in the U.S. schools. Harvard Educational Review. 68 (2), 133-163.
*Berliner, D. & Biddle, B. (1995). The Manufactured Crisis, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley. Chapter 6, pp. 215-231 only.
Recommended readings:
***Spring, J. (1985). American education: An introduction to social and political aspects. (3rd ed.). New York: Longman. Chapters 3 and 4, pp. 64-108.
Logs:
Your journal log is due after your last observation.
Week 11 (November 19): Policy Questions (2): Adolescents and Schools
Readings:
*Ames, N. and Miller, E. (1994). Changing Middle Schools. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. Chapters 1 and 4.
**Fine, M. (1986, Spring). Why urban adolescents drop into and out of public high school. Teachers College Record. 87(3), pp. 393-409.
*Eckert, P. (1989). Jocks and burnouts. Teachers College Press. Chapters 1, 3, 4, 6 or 7, 8.
**Sadker, M. & Sadker, D. (1994). Failing at fairness. NY: Charles Scribner's Sons. Chapters 4 and 5, pp. 77-135.
Curriculum Projects:
Curriculum Projects are due, Friday, November 30, at noon, or be prepared to work in the Materials Center to complete it.
Week 12 (November 26): Curriculum Project--work!
Week 13 (December 3): Policy Questions (3): Strategies for Reform
Readings:
*Meier, D. (1995). The power of their ideas, Beacon Press, Chapters 2 and 3, pp. 15-63.
***Ravitch, D. (1995). National standards in American education. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institute. Introduction & Chapter 1, pp. 1-32.
**Darling-Hammond, L. (1997). Reframing the school reform agenda: Developing capacity for school transformation. In E. Clinchy (Ed.) Transforming public education. Teachers College Press, pp. 38-55.
**McNeil, L. (2000). "Creating new inequalities: Contradictions of reform." Phil Delta Kappan 81(10). pp. 728-734.
Recommended readings:
**Kane, J. (1995). Educational reform and the dangers of triumphant rhetoric. In R. Miller, Educational freedom for a democratic society. Vt: Resource Center for Designing Education, pp. 56-76.
Week 14 (December 10): Policy Questions (4): The Debate over School Choice
Readings:
**Rosenberg, B. (1989). "Public school choice: Can we find the right balance," The American Educator
**Moore, D. and Davenport, S. (1990). "School choice: The new improved sorting machine," in Choice in Education, pp. 187-222.
**Bastian, A. (1996). "Charter schools: Potentials and pitfalls." Selling Out Our Schools. Rethinking Schools.
**Prevost, T. and Jimenez-Silva, M. (1996). ÒJingletown: One charter school's story,Ó in Selling Out Our Schools. Rethinking Schools, pp. 52-53.
**Good, T. and Braden, J. (2000). "Charter schools: Another reform failure or a worthwhile investment." Phi Delta Kappan. 81(10) pp. 745-750.
**Gresham, A., Hess, F., Maranto, R. and Milliman, S. (2000). "Desert bloom: Arizona's free market in education." Phi Delta Kappan 81(10) pp. 751-757.
Details
1. You are expected to do all of the reading for this course.
2. It is expected that you will attend all classes, that you will participate in a study group, and that you will go to your placement each week. Failure to meet these expectations, in all but exceptional circumstances, will result in a person's final grade for the course being lowered one letter grade.
3. All papers (journals, projects, etc.) are due on the dates listed in the syllabus.
Assuming that the above expectations are met, each assignment will be weighted as follows:
1. Field placement (15% of the final grade).
Students are expected to spend two to three hours a week, for eight weeks, observing in school classrooms. (Details will be presented in class.)
Journals should be maintained for all observations. Journals will be used as the basis of some study group and class discussions and will be submitted twice during the semester: following your third observation and after you have finished going to your placement.
2. Short papers (40% of the final grade).
Two short papers will be assigned in lieu of a midterm exam. Assignments for these will be given in class. Consultation and meeting with your WA is required for both assignments.
All papers are expected to be completed on the day that they are due. Students are welcome to bring their books, outlines, disks, etc. with them at that time and to work on their paper until it is completed in The Materials Center (Pearson 204).
Papers will not be considered late if they are completed in the Materials Center on the date due. Papers turned in after this date will be considered late and the grade on these will be lowered.
3. Curriculum Project (15% of the final grade).
The Curriculum Project will consist of a seven-lesson unit or mini-course based on subject matter and grade level of the student's choice. Details will be presented in class and a handout will be provided.
Consultation with your Writing Associate is encouraged but not required for this project. You will work out the details of the timing of such consultation individually.
No extensions will be available for the curriculum project.
4. Final Examination (30% of the final grade).
The final for this course is a written examination which requires you to synthesize materials covered throughout the term, although the questions address issues raised in the readings and class discussions of Weeks VII-XIII in particular.
Journal Assignment
Each time you visit your field placement, you will write up your observations and your analysis of those observations. You should write separate observation and analysis sections; you can alternate between them (e.g. describe a particular event or period of time and then write your analysis of it) or write all of your observations for that visit and then all of your analysis.
Your analysis should take up an issue raised in either the readings for the week or class discussion and its connections to your placement. There should be clear links drawn between theory (reading and class discussion) and practice in the analysis.
All journal entries must be typed. Please date each entry. Some students have found it useful to use different fonts to differentiate between observation and analysis.