As the description above says, EDUC 1010 is intended to provide an introduction to the public school system, above and beyond what one might typically learn about public schooling from experiences in the system. We seek to understand how “human experience is shaped by social, cultural, linguistic, and/or historical circumstances (Humanities learning outcomes no. 2). The course is designed around six overarching issues or characteristics of the public school system in the United States:
1. Multiple, disparate entities “influence” schools, how they are organized, and what they do.
2. Perhaps consequently, schooling has multiple, complex, and at times conflicting purposes.
3. There are different theories, perspectives, or views found in/around the public school system about how people learn and/or what teaching should look like.
4. Schools are always embedded in particular contexts, each with their own social, cultural, racial, and economic milieu.
5. Debates about the characteristics and conduct of public schooling often take the form of intense “flashpoint” issues in/across communities.
6. In developing their curriculum and instruction, teachers must integrate a range of requirements, directives, and personal priorities to teach their students.
Readings and assignments will, for the most part parallel the six issues/characteristics above. Throughout the semester, we will spend approximately two weeks focused on each broad issue/characteristic. However, as you will quickly see, these issues are not mutually exclusive, and often tie together or help shape (or constrain) one another.