1. Schools as Organizations
1.1. My District Represenatives
1.1.1. Federal Representatives
1.1.1.1. Richard Shelby (Republican)
1.1.1.2. Doug Jones (Democrat)
1.1.2. State Senator
1.1.2.1. Steve Livingston (R-8)
1.1.3. State Representative
1.1.3.1. Howard Sanderford
1.1.4. Alabama Superintendent of Education
1.1.4.1. Ed Richardson
1.1.5. Local Superintendent (Huntsville City Schools)
1.1.5.1. Matthew Akin
1.1.6. Local School Board
1.1.6.1. Elisa Ferrell (President)
1.1.6.2. Walker McGinnis (Vice President)
1.1.6.3. Beth Wilder (3rd Presiding officer)
1.1.6.4. Michelle Watkins
1.1.6.5. Pam Hill
2. Curriculum & Pedagogy
2.1. Curriculum Theory
2.1.1. Developmentalist Curriculum
2.1.1.1. Focuses on the needs of the student instead of the needs of the world
2.1.1.2. Inspired by Dewey
2.1.1.3. Student Centered
2.1.1.4. Works with each student’s needs at their different developmental stages
2.1.1.5. More flexible as to what is taught and how
2.2. 2 Dominant Traditions of Teaching
2.2.1. Mimetic Tradition
2.2.1.1. Knowledge is imitated
2.2.1.2. Test, Present, Perform/Evaluate, Reward/Fix or Enter Remedial loop, Advance
2.2.2. Transformative Tradition
2.2.2.1. “A transformation of one kind of another in the person being taught”
2.2.2.2. Personal Modeling, Soft Suasion, Use of narrative
3. Equality of Opportunity
3.1. How does it affect Educational Outcome?
3.1.1. Social Class
3.1.1.1. “Students in Different social classes have different educational experiences”
3.1.1.2. Upper and Middle class have a greater chance of finishing school.
3.1.2. Race
3.1.2.1. Race influences achievements
3.1.2.2. African-American and Hispanics have a higher drop out rate
3.1.2.3. White students achieve higher reading fluency levels which leads to higher testing scores, which leads to better chance of furthering education post high school
3.1.3. Gender
3.1.3.1. Women are less likely to further education as far as men
3.1.3.2. Females have a lower drop out rate and a higher reading proficiency
3.1.3.3. Some teachers assume males will do better in math and treat the kids that way
3.2. John Ogbu(1986)
3.2.1. School Success requires African-American students to drop their own cultural backgrounds and “act white” which discourages them from doing well.
3.3. Coleman Study of 1982
3.3.1. Tested High School Students
3.3.2. Proved a difference in family backgrounds make a difference in academic achievements
3.3.3. Not one subject where public school students scored higher than private.
3.3.4. Some believe it is related to discipline
3.3.5. Some believe it is related to discipline
4. Educational Inequality
4.1. Cultural differences in theory
4.1.1. (John Ogbu 1987)
4.1.1.1. African-American students do worse in school because they assume their oppressed class
4.1.1.2. Children are taught to eat with “Inferior life chances” instead of being pushed to do more or better
4.2. School Centered Explanations for educational inequality
4.2.1. School Financing: Schools who have more funding have more ways to provide outstanding learning experiences to the students, have better and newer supplies, and more access to electronics.
4.2.2. Effective School Research: assessing students and comparing like schools to see how the students are responding to their education; this holds teachers somewhat accountable
4.2.3. Between School Differences(Curriculum and Pedagogic Practices): School climates affect academic performances; inner city/lower socioeconomic areas.
4.2.4. Within School Differences (Curriculum and ability grouping): Different groups of students getting different education within the same school based on their abilities.
5. Educational Reform
5.1. 2 School based reforms
5.1.1. Privatization: Private education companies becoming more involved in public education.
5.1.2. School-Business Partnerships: Some business “adopt” schools to better the students for the workplace.
5.2. 2 Other reforms
5.2.1. Full Service and Community Schools: a plan to educate the whole community meeting the students’ and their families educational, physical, psychological, and social needs.
5.2.2. Harlem Children’s Zone: leaving the children where they are while changing their environment instead of removing them from their neighborhoods.
6. Politics of Education
6.1. The 4 Purposes of Education
6.1.1. Intellecual
6.1.1.1. “To transmit knowledge”
6.1.2. Political
6.1.2.1. Preparing students because they will one day lead our country’s government and political system
6.1.3. Social
6.1.3.1. So that we can function together as a society; social skills are a necessity
6.1.4. Economic
6.1.4.1. To prepare students with work and money(trade) skills
6.2. Describe:
6.2.1. The role of the school
6.2.1.1. To manage education in a way that it improves our society
6.2.2. Explanations of unequal performance
6.2.2.1. Different groups of students produce different results.
6.2.3. Definition of educational problems
6.2.3.1. Lowered standards which led to “watered-down education”.
7. The Sociology of Education
7.1. theoretical perspectives concerning school and technology
7.1.1. Functionalism
7.1.1.1. The way that education and society work together to make civilization work hand in hand in order to function properly as a whole
7.1.2. Conflict theory
7.1.2.1. This view states that there are problems between school and society
7.1.3. Interactionalism
7.1.3.1. Some relationships between Education an society form because of necessary interactions.
7.2. 5 effects of schooling on Individuals
7.2.1. Teacher Behavior
7.2.1.1. The way the teacher acts, prepares or doesn’t prepare had a huge impact on education
7.2.2. Inadequate schools
7.2.2.1. Inadequate schools make a huge contribution to the inequalities in this system
7.2.3. Gender
7.2.3.1. Gender expectations and discrimination against gender
7.2.4. Student peer groups and alienation
7.2.4.1. Labeled groups of students such as “nerds”, “cool kids”, “bad kids”.
7.2.4.2. These labels can have major affects on junior high and high school kids that will follow them throughout their life
7.2.5. De Facto Segregation
7.2.5.1. The unspoken fact that education is still separated even if not by law.
7.2.5.2. The way that some segregation happens on its own such as neighborhoods and schools being predominantly black, on their own.
7.2.6. New Topic
8. The History of Education
8.1. Free Public Education
8.1.1. Horace Mann’s push for free public education was the most influential because it helped make education available to everyone.
8.1.2. This movement sparked educational change for all people.
8.2. One historical interpretation of U.S. Education:
8.2.1. The Democratic-Liberal School
8.2.1.1. Reformers such as: Horace Mann, Henry Bernard, and Lawrence Cremin.
8.2.1.2. More kids from from different backgrounds went to school for longer periods of time.
8.2.1.3. “The kind of organization is part of the genius of American education—it provides a place for Everest one who wishes one, and in the end yields one of the most educated populations in the world” (Cremin)
9. The Philosophy of Education
9.1. Idealism
9.1.1. All knowledge is a mental understanding of Ideas and concepts
9.1.2. Generic Notions-Plato believed education eloped move individuals toward achieving the “good”. The philosopher-king would lead the State to the ultimate good (textbook p.181)
9.1.3. Key Researchers: Plato
9.1.4. Goal of Education: “Educators who subscribe to idealism are interested in the search for truth through ideas” “with truth comes responsibility(to enlighten others)” “education is transformation-Ideas can change lives” (textbook p. 182).
9.1.5. Role of the Teacher: to analyze and discuss ideas with students so that students can move to new levels of awareness so that they can ultimately be transformed; to bring out what is already in the student’s mind “reminiscence” (pg. 182)
9.1.6. Method of Instruction: lecture from time to time, but primary method of teaching is the dialectic( described by Plato) Discuss, analyze, synthesize, and apply what they have read to contemporary society.
9.1.7. Curriculum:Importance of the study of the classics, back to the basics approach to education.