1. Philosophy of Education
1.1. Generic Notions of Pragmatism
1.1.1. instrumentalism and experimentalism; student-centered learning; group learning
1.2. Key Researchers of Pragmatism
1.2.1. Francis Bacon; George Sanders Peirce; William James; John Dewey; Francis Bacon; John Locke; and Jean-Jacques Rousseau
1.3. Goals of Education of Pragmatism
1.3.1. prepare students for democratic society; to socialize the students; a balance of society, socializing and the individual's needs and wants; personal growth
1.4. Role of Teacher of Pragmatism
1.4.1. democratic; not authoritative; encouraging; watches and guides from the sidelines; provides scaffolding inquiries; listens to student needs
1.5. Methods of Instruction of Pragmatism
1.5.1. problem-solving method and inquiry method; hands-on learning
1.6. Curriculum of Pragmatism
1.6.1. students choose some of what they wish to learn; Dewey believed studies should follow student life stages; integrated curriculum (multiple subjects taught at once); child-centered
2. Schools as Organizations
2.1. Alabama state senators-Kay Ivey; Del Marsh; and D. Patrick Harris
2.2. Alabama House of Representatives-Mike Hubbard; Victor Gaston; and Jeffrey Woodard
2.3. Alabama state superintendent- Thomas R. Bice Ed. D.
2.4. Alabama representative on state school board- Elaine Beech
2.5. Madison City Schools
2.6. Madison City Schools superintendent-Dr. Dee Fowler
2.7. France school systems vs. U.S. school systems-France's central government controls everything involving their educational school systems while the U.S.'s individual school systems are mainly controlled by their local individual school boards and the people affected in those cities and counties; France has two main separate school systems--one for "ordinary" students and the other for the elite students. They also use language aesthetically to create "highly qualified intellectuals" and have a very competitive educational system. France has had minimal reform efforts since 1984. Only approximately 15 percent of the third of their 17-18 yr. olds graduate from their universities!
3. Curriculum and Pedagogy
3.1. Historical curriculum theory: developmentalist curriculum
3.1.1. What it was- philosophically pragmatic teaching approach that was student-centered; concerned with keeping the curriculum parallel to individual student needs and wants in accordance to their developmental stages
3.1.2. Why I would be an advocate- I know that every child learns at their own unique pace and deserves patience and encouragement from their teachers. I believe the curriculum should never exceed the students' grade level in cognitive processing. The curriculum should also be comprehendible with as little stress as possible and able to keep their age group's attention for their average amount of focus time.
3.2. Sociological curriculum theory: functionalist theory
3.2.1. What it is- states that the school curriculum represents the "codification" of the information students need in order to later be fully functioning societal members. The curriculum should confer students the knowledge, language, and values to ensure a place in society and without a common cultural ground, social order is unachievable.
3.2.2. Why I would be an advocate- While it is always important to stay true to yourself first, in order to survive within society, one must be able to adapt to situations outside their control. This ensures job opportunities, living, safety and health.
4. Equality of Opportunity
4.1. Women
4.1.1. Are now less likely to drop out of school than males are!
4.1.2. Today, more are attending post-secondary schools than men even though they are "less prestigious" institutions than men's schools of choice..
4.1.3. Classrooms are becoming more "feminized" possibly to make women feel more at ease and more likely to attend? While this is considered bad for men, it obviously benefits women greatly.
4.1.4. The female gender is outperforming men in reading since 1973. Way to go, ladies! ;)
4.1.5. Our gender is also outperforming men in writing as well. Whoop whoop! ;P
4.2. One Opinion of the Coleman Study Round Three-States that attending a very poor or segregated school has a huge effect on student achievement beyond the effects of individual poverty or minority ranking. The compostion in these two areas of the schools more deeply affects individualal educational growth than the two of each individual's being.
5. Educational Reform
5.1. First Wave Educational Reform: accountability and achievement; toughened curriculum, graduation requirements, and standardized test.
5.1.1. The need to recruit, train, and retain more academically able teachers, to improve the quality of taching, and to upgrade the professional working life of teachers.
5.1.2. 1980s-mid 1990's
5.2. School-to-Work Reform- School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994
5.2.1. every state and locally created school-to-work system had to contain three core elements: school-based learning, work-based learning, and connecting activities
5.2.2. intent was to extend what had been a vocational emphasis to non-college-bound students regarding skills necessary for successful employment and to stress the importance of work-based learning
6. Politics of Education
6.1. Progressive
6.1.1. -schools are where resolving and learning about social issues and situations primarily occur; a way to get to higher levels within the real world; are imperative for individual growth and increasing personal potential; & are a major interwoven piece in a democratic society and should be a part of the gradual progress to make things better for people
6.1.2. -encompass left liberal to radical spectrums
6.2. Traditional
6.2.1. -schools are needed to pass on traditional American societal values such as hard work, importance of family, individual motivation and initiative, etc.
6.2.2. -encompass right liberal to conservative spectrums
6.3. Conservative
6.4. Liberal
6.5. Radical
6.6. Neo-Liberal
7. History of U.S. Education
7.1. The Progressive and Traditional Reforms
7.1.1. The Progressive Movement was "A broader program of social and political reform". The reform began at the beginning of the 21st century. Focused on process and goals of education. "Equity vs. Excellence". Progressives (like me) believed in social-based curriculum, experiential education that was centered around student needs and current times, individualism, and how academic standards relate to equity in the school systems. "The Great Debate" between traditional and progressive continued on into the 50's but ended when Sputnik was launched. Heavy focus on math and science was impressed upon students so that we could beat Russia.
7.2. John Dewey (1859-1952)
7.2.1. Wonderful U.S. philosopher who was greatly associated with the progressive education movement. Advocate for making a curriculum that allowed the student interests and individual learning levels to have a major place in their education. Believed that education resulted in growth for democratic society in particular. Thought that social skills were power. Created Laboratory School at the University of Chicago.
7.3. The Puritan interpretation of U.S. education
7.3.1. There were many different educational views during colonial times, but two stood out. The first was upper-class planter aristocracy and rich merchants viewed education as a way to keep them on top by excluding the poor who could not afford or access it. The second was the Puritans' laws for it. They passed the Old Deluder Laws which punished parents in the form of fines for not ensuring that their children could read and understand the capital laws and religious ideals of America. They also stated that every town containing 50 households had to choose someone to teach all the children reading and writing and that the towns were to pay for the teachers' salaries. 100 family households were made to set up a grammar school (secondary school) in preparation for the students' university studies. Literacy as a way of teaching Christian livelihood was what they followed.
7.4. Benjamin Franklin
7.4.1. Believed youth education should be based upon secular and utilitarian ideals. Process rather than rote. Creative expression. People can better themselves and education helps them do so.
7.5. Thomas Jefferson
7.5.1. Believed education should be based upon civic ideals and that the best way to protect democracy was to have a literate population. Proposed the "Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge" that would confer 3 full elementary years of free education to every child. Figured if citizens contained enough knowledge to read newspapers that they would make informed and wise voters.
7.6. Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education
7.6.1. Civil rights advocates won May 17, 1954 when the Supreme Court finally ruled state-imposed racial segregation unconstitutional and unequal.
8. Sociological Perspectives
8.1. Functionalist theory-Functionalists see society as a type of machine where one turning wheel causes another piece to move and so forth. Just like every piece in a machine affects another part to move and that one causes another to move, society works in a similar way. The government limits average citizens but they vote who enters into the governmental roles and this all affects another part of the state or country. Schools work like this in that they have school boards to monitor the principals and principals to monitor the teachers, teachers to control the students, and parents who watch how the teachers educate their children. Each person playing in this can easily affect the other. It is its own food chain and functionalists see this; "interdependence of the social system"
8.2. Emile Durkheim-possibly the earliest sociologist to "embrace" this theory; practically invented sociology of education; Moral Education, The Evolution of Educational Thought, and Education and Sociology
8.3. A Nation at Risk
8.4. Schooling's effect on teachers-standardized testing is a major issue right now and the reason is because teacher's are pressed for time to teach things that aren't as important as the main studies and curriculum themselves. When students don't do well on the tests, the blame is placed on the teachers because it is how they're teaching is assessed.
8.5. Schooling's effect on students-not all students have equal learning due to poverty and race; stress is caused by standardized tests same as their teachers
8.6. Schooling's effect on parents-Parents of the students have to try to provide the supplies they need for school but this can be made difficult due to the economy and lack of jobs available for them and their economic situation and where they stand in society
9. Educational Inequality
9.1. Sociological explanation of unequal achievement-Functionalists
9.1.1. It is important to understand the sources of educational inequality so as to ensure the elimination of structural barriers to educational success and to offer all groups an equal chance to compete in the educational marketplace
9.1.2. Uneducational outcomes are the partial result of unequal opportunity.
9.2. School-centered explanation
9.2.1. states that school processes are central to understanding unequal performance within schools
9.2.2. Public schools are funded by taxes of people of various status levels. Thus if a school is in a poor district, the school will suffer due to lack of excellent funding. Students won't learn as well as others in different higher-class school districts.