Socio-Multicultural foundations of Education
EDEL 103
San Jose State University
Fall 2003
Professor: Nicholas Meier
Website: http://www.nicholasmeier.com
In the College, we believe that a democracy requires that all students have access to a high quality education based on fairness and respect for all. In addition, we believe that educators at every level must:
Finally, a democracy requires that all stakeholders be fully involved in the collegial community. We envision ourselves as a learning community of practitioner/scholars in continuous dialogue and inquiry that enable us to revisit, review, and revise our practice in an ongoing response to twenty-first century issues and circumstances.
Foundational preparation focused on implications of social, cultural, linguistic and economic diversity on teaching and learning. Emphasis on understanding the implications of history and social context on the educational endeavor in a pluralistic and democratic society.
"To the extent that multicultural education remains education to help students get along or to help them feel better about themselves or to “sensitize” them to one another, without tackling the central but far more difficult issue of stratification, empowerment and inequity, multicultural education becomes another approach that simply scratches the surface of educational failure."
Sonia Nieto, Affirming Diversity
Becoming aware of the stories we are living is one approach to re-examining our lives; such re-examination is a prerequisite for teaching, for it helps us clarify our conscious and unconscious assumptions and intentions. One of the goals of this class, therefore, will be to re-view aspects of our life stories, focusing particularly on how our social experiences have shaped the lenses through which we see and think about "race," ethnicity, social class, language, gender and culture. My expectation is that this exploration will enable us to be more open to learning, and to learning how to learn, from children of diverse backgrounds whom we will meet in our classrooms and their parents.
Course Objectives: By the end of the course I hope you will be better able to:
Gollnick, Donna M, and Philip C Chinn. Multicultural Education in a Pluralistic Society. 6th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall, 2002.
Meier, Deborah W. In Schools We Trust: Creating Communities of Learning in an Era of Testing and Standardization. Boston: Beacon Press, 2002.
Kohl, Herbert. I Won’t Learn from You. The New Press, 1994
Rethinking Our Classrooms. Rethinking Schools, 1994
Berlak, Ann, and Sekani Moyenda. Taking It Personally: Racism in the Classroom from Kindergarten to College. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2001.
Darling-Hammond, Linda, ed. Learning to Teach for Social Justice. Teachers College Press, 2002.
Freire, Paulo. Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Trans. Myra Bergman Ramos. New York: Herder and Herder, 1970.
Igoa, Christina. The Inner World of the Immigrant Child. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1995.
Ladson-Billings, Gloria. The Dreamkeepers: Successful Teachers of African American Children. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994.
Nieto, Sonia. Affirming Diversity: The Sociopolitical Context of Multicultural Education. 2nd ed. White Plains, NJ: Longman, 1996.
Paley, Vivian G. White Teacher. Harvard University Press, 1979.
Rose, Mike. Lives on the Boundary. New York: Penguin, 1989.
Tatum, Beverly Daniel. Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race. HarperCollins, 1997.
Walker-Moffat, Wendy. The Other Side of the Asian American Success Story. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1995.
Requirements and Evaluation:
1. Class attendance, preparation and participation: (10 points)
There will be reading and writing due for each class session
2. A guided WEEKLY journal. (20 points)
3. A short paper on a dialogue/interview you have conducted with a teacher regarding race/ class/ culture/ language. (15 points)
4. Literature Circles: participation in literature group; A review of the book read for the literature group; presentation of book review to classmates (20 points).
5. Final Project: A report on dialogue/interviews you have engaged in with two members of a “racial”/ethnic group that is different from your own, and the significance of your discoveries for elementary school teachers. (25 points) (Directions are at the end of the syllabus.) For most students this is a life-changing experience.
6. A final in-class presentation reporting on some of the discoveries you made through your final project. (10 points) This will be drawn from the Final Project, listed as #5 above.
Each entry should indicate the assignment number as indicated on the syllabus and should include:
You will email in these reflections and responses the Sunday before class and I will return them to you with my comments either in class that Monday or the following Monday. The entire journal will be handed in on the date indicated on the syllabus with a summary of how you see your ideas having changed over the semester. THIS SUMMARY IS KEY. You will be evaluated on the depth to which you grapple with the issues posed, not on the way you resolve them or the extent to which your views are consonant with mine.
Teacher Interview Paper. (≈750-1200 words)
Dialogue with a teacher on some aspect of his or her conceptions of race/class/gender, language or culture. You may want to tape record the interview (with their permission of course). Include in the paper:
The conclusions you reach will of course be quite tentative. The purpose of the assignment is to give you an opportunity to talk about these issues with a practicing teacher and to see how at least one teacher responds.
Possible Questions to ask in the teacher interview:
Book groups: The purpose of the literature study is to engage small groups of students in learning about the schooling lives and learning of children though reading and analyzing a common text. Each individual in each group will practice effective teaching skills through their participation in their literature study group. You should come to each meeting prepared with particular quotes that stood out for you, a list of the important themes you drew from that week’s readings, and a couple of questions for group discussion regarding the text.
Book Review: (600–900 words) Each individual will write a paper synthesizing key themes, concepts and issues from the literature study selection and their relationship to other course readings, discussions, personal experiences and effective teaching. In particular, the paper should be reflective and highlight what you have learned through your reading that addresses the key themes of the course. Questions you might consider including: was it well written?; does the author substantiate his/her points?; how does what you read relate to your personal experiences or knowledge on the subject? is the book useful?; did you agree with it?; would you recommend it?; to whom? This is a book review, not a book report.
Presentation: We will use a "jigsaw" procedure in which each member will present their book summary and analysis to other members of the class. For the last session of the literature study, new groups will be formed consisting of one member from each different book group. Each member will then have approximately 10 minutes to share their findings with the other members of this group.
Final project
Possible questions to ask interviewees for the final project
Don’t ask all of these questions. Instead, try to go into depth on a few of them. Try to get below the initial surface responses. (It’s always good to say, “Can you say more about that?”) MANY PEOPLE HAVE NEVER ARTICULATED THEIR THOUGHTS ON THESE ISSUES. How can you encourage them to talk about them honestly?
Topics to be included in your written analysis
Since your paper is limited to six double spaced pages (12 point Times Roman font), you must think carefully about what to include. Include only material that answers the following questions:
1. What QUESTIONS about the group you studied did you have before you began this project?
2. What PRECONCEPTIONS about the group did you have before you began this project?
3. Which of your preconceptions were confirmed, and which were challenged?
4. What aspects of your interviewees’ culture that seem due to their race, class and ethnicity are different from yours?
5. What new understandings did you gain about how teachers unknowingly perpetuate racism and cultural imperialism?
6. What new understandings did you gain about becoming a culturally, racially and class- sensitive teacher as a result of the interviews?
7. What did you read or view and what site(s) did you visit and how did these activities influence your analysis?
8. Discuss the information you gathered in terms of at least one of the themes of the course. You are expected to comment on what your interviewees said in terms that are related to the themes of the course. (What is your view on what you were told/ How do you make sense of it?)
Read at least once source and visit one site (virtual or actual) where members of the group you have chosen congregate. I strongly suggest you immerse yourself in the experience of the group in any way you can. Some students have gone to weddings. There are many films on video that will be helpful. Check out the internet, but look critically at all information you gather.
Gollnick & Chinn Chapter 1
Saville-Troie, A Guide to Culture in the Classroom
Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Ch 2
Session 3: 9/15: What is Mulitculturalism
Meier, Chapter 1
Banks: Multicultural education
Banks: Transforming the mainstream curriculum
Rethinking Schools: A fight for justice
Janzen: Melting pot or mosaic?
Mukhopadhyay & Henze: Using anthropology to make sense of human diversity
Ravitch: A culture in common
Sleeter & McLaren: Origins of multiculturalism
Session 4: 9/22: Socio-Economic Status
Gollnick & Chinn Chapter 2
Bigelow: Dumb kids, smart kids, and social class
Brantlinger: Social class in school: Students’ perspectives
Muñoz, Clavijo, & Koven: Educational equity in a reform environment
Scherer: On savage inequalities: A conversation with Jonathan Kozol
Ward: Why is school finance equity such an elusive goal?
Session 5: 9/29: African-Americans
Gollnick & Chinn, Chapter 3
Meier Chapter, 2
Rethinking our Classrooms, pp. 4-22
Delpit: Silenced dialogue
Delpit: Skills and Other Dilemmas (optional, but highly recommended)
Session 6: 10/6/03: Latinos
Meier, Chapter 3
Kohl, “I Won’t Learn From You” (pp.1-33)
Rethinking Our Classrooms, pp.34-49
Book Review: Subtractive Schooling
Suarez-Orozco: Hispanic Cultural Psychology (optional)
Session 7: 10/13/03: Asians & Pacific Islanders
Meier Chapter 4
Rethinking Our Classrooms: pp. 66-85
Marshall: Asian Pacific Americans
Zirkel: Is There A Place for Me? (Executive Summary)
Zirkel: Is There A Place for Me? (full text -- optional)
Session 8: 10/20/03: Gender and Sexual Orientation
Gollnick & Chinn, Chapter 4
Rethinking Our Classrooms, pp 86-102
Lyman: Girls, Worms, & Body Image (or) Espinosa: Seventh Grade and Sexism
Anderson: School climate for gay and lesbians
Johnston: Out frontCheckley: Reducing gender bias in school
Sandler: Too Strong for a Woman (optional)
Session 9: 10/27/03: Religion
Gollnick & Chinn, Chapter 6
Meier, Chapter 5
Karp: Arranged Marriages, rearranged Ideas
Sewall: Religion comes to School
Wright: Religion in American Education
Session 10: 11/3/03: Language
Gollnick & Chinn, Chapter 7
Lessow-Hurley, Chapters 1 & 10
Ovando: Bilingual Education in the U.S.
Gandara: English Learners in California Schools (optional)
Session 11 11/10/03: Multicultural Teaching
Gollnick & Chinn: Chapter 9
Nieto: Affirmation, Solidarity And Critique:
Putney: What can English-dominant teachers do in a multilingual context?
Session 12 11/17/03: Multicultural Teaching
Meier: Chapter 8
Menkart: Multicultural Education
Rethinking Our Classrooms: pp126-145
Session 13 11/24/03: Multicultural Teaching
Meier, Chapter 10
Cummins, chapter 7
Session 14 12/1/03: Project Presentations
Rethinking Our Classrooms: pp146-161
Session 15: 12/8/03: Project Presentations
Rethinking Our Classrooms: pp162-182
Course Readings Bibliography
Anderson, J. D. (1994). School Climate For Gay and Lesbian Students And Staff Members. Phi Delta Kappan, 76(2), 151-154.
Banks, J. A. (1992). Multicultural Education: For Freedom's sake. Educational Leadership, 49(4), 32-35.
Banks, J. A. (1994). Transforming the mainstream curriculum. Educational Leadership, 51(8), 4-8.
Bigelow, B. (1996). Dumb kids, smart kids, and social class. Rethinking Schools, 10(2), 12-13.
Bigelow, B., Christensen, L., Karp, S., Miner, B., & Peterson, B. (Eds.). (1994). Rethinking Our Classrooms: Teaching for Equity and Justice (Vol. 1). Milwaukee, WI: Rethinking Schools.
Brantlinger, E. (1995). Social class in school: students' perspectives (Research Bulletin No. 14): Phi Delta Kappa Center for Evaluation, Development, and Research.
Checkley, K. (1996). Reducing Gender bias in School [Electronic version]. Education Update, 38(1).
Cummins, J. (2001). Negotiating Identities: Education for Empowerment in a Diverse Society (2nd ed.). Ontario, CA: California Association for Bilingual Education.
Delpit, L. (1995). Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom. New York: New Press.
Espinoza, L. (2003). Seventh Graders and Sexism [Electronic version]. Rethinking Schools, 17(3).
A fight for justice. (2000). Rethinking Schools, 15(1), 3.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed (M. B. Ramos, Trans.). New York: Herder and Herder.
Gandara, P., Rumberger, R., Maxwell-Jolly, J., & Callahan, R. (2003). English Learners in California Schools: Unequal resources, unequal outcomes. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 11(36).
Gollnick, D. M., & Chinn, P. C. (2002). Multicultural Education in a pluralistic society (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.
Janzen, R. (1994). Melting pot or mosaic? Educational Leadership, 51(8), 9-11.
Johnston, A. (1998). Out Front [Electronic version]. Rethinking Schools, 13(2).
Karp, S. (1996/97, Winter). Arranged Marraiges, rearranged ideas. Rethinking Schools, 11.
Kohl, H. (1994). I won't learn from you: The New Press.
Lessow-Hurley, J. (2000). The Foundations of Dual Language Instruction (3rd ed.). New York: Longman.
Lyman, K. (2000). Girls, Worms, and body Image [electronic version]. Rethinking Schools, 14(3).
Marshall, P. L. (2002). Cultural diversity in our schools. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Meier, D. W. (2002). In schools we trust: Creating communities of learning in an era of testing and standardization. Boston: Beacon Press.
Menkart, D. (1993). Multicultural education: Strategies for Linguistically diverse schools and classrooms, from WWW at: http://www.ncbe.gwu.edu/ncbepubs/pigs/pig16.htm
Mukhopadhyay, C., & Henze, R. C. (2003). Using anthropology to make sense of human diversity. Phi Delta Kappan, 84(9), 669-678.
Muñoz, M. A., Clavijo, K. G., & Koven, S. G. (1999, October 29-31). Educational equity in a reform environment: The effect of socio-economic status on student achievement. Paper presented at the University Council for Education, Minneapolis.
Nieto, S. (1984). Affirmation, solidarity and critique: Moving beyond tolerance in education. Multicultural Education Magazine.
Ovando, C. (Ed.). (1985). Bilingual and ESL Classrooms: Teaching in Multicultural Contexts: McGraw-Hill.
Putney, L., Wu, Y., & Wink, J. (1999). What can English-dominant teachers do in a multicultural context? Stop, think, and proceed with care. The California Reader, 32(2), 10-15.
Ravitch, D. (1992). A culture in common. Educational Leadeership, 49(4), 8-11.
Sandler, B. R. (2000). “Too strong for a woman” The Five Words That Created Title IX. Equity & Excellence in Education: The University of Massachusetts School of Education Journal, 22(1).
Saville-Troike, M. (1978). A guide to culture in the classroom, On WWW at: http:www.ncbe.gwu.edu/miscpubs/classics/culture/nature.htm
Scherer, M. (1993). On Savage Inequalities: A conversation with Jonathan Kozol. Educational Leadership, 50(4), 4-9.
Sewall, G. T. (1999). Religion Comes To School. Phi Delta Kappan.
Sleeter, C., & McLaren, P. (2000). Origins of multiculturalism. Rethinking Schools, 15(1), 2.
Suarez-Orozco, M. M., & Suarez-Orozco, C. E. (1993). Hispanic cultural psychology: Implications for education theory and research. In A. L. Davidson & P. J. Phelan (Eds.), Renegotiating Cultural Diversity in American Schools (pp. 108-138). New York: Teachers College Press.
Ward, J. G. (1996). Why is school finance equity such an elusive goal? Rethinking Schools, 10(3), 6-7; 25-26.
Wright, E. A. (1999). American Education: A Historical View. Phi Delta Kappan, 17-19.
Zirkel, S. (2002). Is There A Place for Me? Role Models and Academic Identity Among White Students and Students of Color [Electronic version]. Teachers College Record, 104(2), 357-376.
Assignment Due dates:
Participation (10 pts) Ongoing
Teacher Interview (15 pts) 10/13/03
Book Analysis (20 pts) 11/10/03
Book Presentations 11/17/03
Project presentation (10pts) 12/1 or 12/8/03
Project paper (25 pts) 12/8/03
(Late papers: up to 3 points may be deducted from grade for each class session a paper is late)
Calculation of Grades
A+ 100 C+ 77–79
A 95–99 C 73–76
A– 91–94 C– 70–72
B+ 88–90 D+ 67–69
B 83–87 D 63–66
B– 80–82 D– 60–62