1. Schools as Organizations Madison County Schools 1275 Jordan Road, Huntsville, AL 35811 Telephone: 2568522557 Email Address: [email protected]
1.1. State Senator
1.1.1. Bill Holtsclaw
1.2. House of Represenatives
1.2.1. Mike Ball (Distict 10)
1.2.2. Mac McCutchen
1.3. State Board Members
1.3.1. Robert Bentley, President
1.3.2. Michael Sentance, Secretary
1.3.3. Mary Hunter, President Pro Team
1.3.4. Yvette Richardson, Vice President
1.3.5. Jackie Zeigler, District 01
1.3.6. Betty Peters, District 02
1.3.7. Stephanie Bell, Distict 03
1.3.8. Ella Bell. Dictrict 05
1.3.9. Cynthia Sanders District 06
1.3.10. Jeffery Newman District 07
1.4. Madison County Super Intendent
1.4.1. Matt Massey
1.5. Local School Board
1.5.1. District I Mr. Nathan Curry
1.5.2. District 2 Mrs. Angie Bates
1.5.3. District 3 Mrs. Mary Louise Stowe
1.5.4. District 4 Dave Weis
1.5.5. District 5 Shere Rucker
2. Curriculum and Pedagogy
2.1. Developmentalsit Curriculum
2.1.1. Focus on the needs and interest of the child rather than society.
2.1.2. Curriculum emanated from aspects of Dewey and relationship between the child and curriculum. (Dewey,1902)
2.1.3. Teaching is student centered and was concerned with relating the curriculum needs and interest of each child at developmental stages.
2.2. Dominant Traditions of Teaching
2.2.1. Mimetic
2.2.1.1. Purpose of education is to transmit specific knowledge to students.
2.2.1.2. Didactic method, relies on lecture and presentation as the main form of communication.
2.2.1.3. The relationship between the knower and the learner, process of transferring information from one to another.
2.2.1.4. Measurable goals and objectives
2.2.2. Transformative
2.2.2.1. different sets of assumptions about the teaching and learning process.
2.2.2.2. Teaching involves not just the didactic transfer of information but the conversation between teacher and student where the student becomes integral part of learning process.
2.2.2.3. Freire (1972,1977,1978) believe purpose of education is to change human consciousness and in doing so begin to change society.
3. Philosophy of Education
3.1. Colman Study
3.2. pragmatism
3.2.1. generic notations
3.2.1.1. Dewey, better society through education "embryonic community"
3.2.1.2. Educators start with need and interest of the child, allow child participation in planning.
3.2.1.3. Course of study that would reflect the particular stages of development.
3.2.2. Key reaserchers
3.2.2.1. George Sanders Peirce (1839-1914)
3.2.2.2. Francis Bacon (1561-1626) Sought a way of thinking that people might be persuaded to ababandon the traditions or idols.
3.2.2.3. Wliiam James (1842-1910) "By their fruits ye shall know them." Varieties of Religious Experiences (James, 1978)
3.2.2.4. John Dewey (1859-1952) natural selection emphasized the constant interactions between the organism and its environment.
3.2.3. goal of education
3.2.3.1. Role of the school was to integrate children not just any type of society, but a democratic one.
3.2.3.2. Social order, ideas are seperate from social conditions.
3.2.4. role of teacher
3.2.4.1. The teacher is no longer the authoritarian figure fro which all knowledge flows
3.2.4.2. The teacher assumes the peripheral position of facilitator.
3.2.4.3. Teacher encourages, offers, suggests, questions, and helps plan, and implement course study.
3.2.5. method of instruction
3.2.5.1. Children learn individually and in groups.
3.2.5.2. Problem solving or inquiry method
3.2.5.3. Formal instruction was abandoned
3.2.6. curriculum
3.2.6.1. Core or integrated curriculum.
3.2.6.2. Problems to be solved by using math, science, history,reading,writing, music, art, cooking, and sewing.
3.2.6.3. The curriculum of expanding environments.
4. Educational Inequality
4.1. two types of cultural deprivation theory and school-centered explanations for educational inequality
4.1.1. Cultural
4.1.1.1. Middles class
4.1.1.1.1. Oscar Lewis (1966) asserts middle class values hard work and initiative, the delay of immediate gradification for award, and value the importance of school.
4.1.1.2. Poverty
4.1.1.2.1. Oscar Lewis (1966) deprived culture. lacks value system of middle class. Poverty eschews delayed gratification for immediate reward, rejects hard work and initiative as a means to sucess.
4.1.2. Familial
4.1.3. Educational Inequality
4.1.3.1. 1. School Financing majority of funds come from state and local taxes, with local property taxes a significant source. Thus, more affluent communities are able to provide more per-pupil spending than poorer districts.
4.1.4. Effective School Research
4.1.4.1. The effective school literature characteristics are; A climate of high expecttions for students by teachers and administrators. Strong and effective leadership by a prinipal or school head. Accountabbility processes for student learning, A high degree of instructional time on task, and flexibility for teachers and administrators to experiment and adapt to new situations and problems.
4.1.5. Pedagogic Practices
4.1.5.1. Bernstein (1990) suggested that schools i working class neighborhoods are more likely to have authoritarian and teacher directed pedagogoric practes and vocational or social efficiency curriculum at the secondary level. Middle class community have less authoritarian and more student csnter pedagogic practices. Upper class students are more likely to attend elite private schools with authoritarian pedagogic practices .
4.1.6. Curriculum ad Ability Grouping
4.1.6.1. Elementary school level, students are divided into reading groups and seperate classes based on recommendations, test scores and sometimes race, class, or gender. Secondary level studentents are divided by ability and curriculum, with different groups receiving different tyoes of education in the same school
5. Politics of Education
5.1. Four Purposes
5.1.1. Intellectual
5.1.1.1. teach basic cognitive skills
5.1.1.2. transmit specific knowledge
5.1.1.3. to help students acquire higher order of thinking skills
5.1.2. Political
5.1.2.1. inculcate allegiance to the existing political order
5.1.2.2. prepare citizens who will participate in this political order
5.1.2.3. to help assimilate diverse cultural grouups into a common political order
5.1.2.4. teach children the basic laws of society
5.1.3. Social
5.1.3.1. help solve social problems
5.1.3.2. to work as one of many institutions
5.1.3.3. to ensure social cohesion
5.1.3.4. to socialize children into various roles, behaviors, and values of the society
5.1.4. Economic
5.1.4.1. prepare students for later occupational roles
5.1.4.2. to select, train, and allocate individuals into the division of labor
5.2. Liberal Perspective
5.2.1. Role of the school
5.2.1.1. To provide the necessary education to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to succeed in society.
5.2.1.2. importance of citizenship and participation in a democratic society and need for educated citizenry in society
5.2.1.3. individual as well as societal need and sees school role as enabling the individual to develop his/her talents, creativity, and sence of self
5.2.2. Unequal performance
5.2.2.1. individual students begin school with different life chances, so some have advantages over others.
5.2.3. Educational Problems
5.2.3.1. Schools have limited the life chances of poor and minority children
5.2.3.2. Schools place to much emphasis on discipline and authority
5.2.3.3. Traditional curriculum leaves out the diverse cultures of the groups that comprise the pluralistic society.
5.2.4. John Dewey
5.2.4.1. American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer
5.2.4.1.1. -
5.2.4.2. Dewey considered two fundimental elements- schools and civil society- to be major topics needing reconstruction.
5.2.4.3. Dewey asserted democracy was to be obtained no just bu voting but ensuring fully formed public opinion exists.
6. Sociological Perpective
6.1. Theoretical Persective School and Society
6.1.1. Functionsalism
6.1.1.1. Cohesion in social order
6.1.2. Conflict theory
6.1.2.1. Emphasis on struggle. Schools similar to battlefield. Struggle teachers and administrators.
6.1.3. Interactionalism
6.1.3.1. Critiques and extensions of the functional and conflict perspectives.
6.2. 5 Effects of schooling
6.2.1. Learn
6.2.1.1. academic programs and policy make a difference produce higher rates of learning. Ron Edmonds(1979a,1979b).
6.2.2. Employment
6.2.2.1. college graduates make more money. In 2011, high school graduates earned $32,552. College graduates earned 53,976. (US Bureau of the Census, 2003a)
6.2.3. Income
6.2.3.1. In 2011, high school graduates earned, on average $32,552; college graduates earned $53,976 (US Beareau of the Census, 2003a). Educational women earned less than men.
6.2.4. Mobility
6.2.4.1. Most Americans believe that more education leads to economic and social mobility; individuals rise and fall based on their merit Turner(1960)
6.2.5. Job performance
6.2.5.1. The amount of education is only weakly related to job performance. (Berg 1970) Factory workers, maintence workers, clerks, engineers scientists federal cilvil service the level of education was unrelated to job performance.
7. History of U.S. Education
7.1. Reform Movement Education for Woman and African Americans
7.1.1. Women
7.1.1.1. Education for women was viewed as biologically harmful or stressful.
7.1.1.2. First half of the nineteenth century, education for women was limited. Few women achieved an education other than reading and writing.
7.1.1.3. Mid nineteenth century many girls attended schools and were admitted to private schools, which functioned as secondary schools.
7.1.1.4. 1821 Emma Hart Willard opened Troy Female ISeminary in Troy, New York. Subjects of study were math,science,history, and geography. The curriculum was modeled from that of the male academics.
7.1.2. African Americans
7.1.2.1. 1846 Benjamin Roberts filed a legal suit in Boston over the requirement that his daughter attend a segregated school.
7.1.2.2. Roberts vs City of Boston , local school comittee had the right to establish seperate educational facilities for whites and blacks.
7.1.2.3. 1868 Freedmans Bureau helped establish Howard University in Washington DC and Hampton Institute in Virginia.
7.1.2.4. 1954 Brown v. Booard of Education ended segregation. Desegregation efforts reached their peak in the1960's.
7.2. Historical interpetation on U.S. Education
7.2.1. The different interpretations of U.S. educational history revolve around the tensions between equity and excellence, between social and intellectual functions of schooling, and over differing responses to questions.
7.2.2. The Democratic Liberal's believe that the history of U.S. education involves the progressive evolution, albeit flawed, of a school system commited to providing equality of opportunity for all.
7.2.3. Lawrence A. Cremin portrays the evolution of education as popularization and multitudinousness. (Cremin, 1988) The goals of education become more diverse as more cultures enter schools. Social goals become just as important as intellectual ones.
7.2.4. The idea of equality and excellence are just ideas. Democratic-liberals believe that the educational system must continue to move closer to each.
8. Equa;ity of Opportunity
8.1. Class
8.1.1. economic and political resources directly influencethe selectivity of schools and the authority structures within schools.In turn influence the climate of expectations and patterns of interactions within schools.
8.1.2. The number of years of education an individual possesses is directly linked to occupation and income.
8.2. Race
8.2.1. An individuals race is diectly impacted on the amount of education he or she is likely to achive.
8.2.2. 16-24 year olds, for instance 5.2 perecent white students drop out of school, whereas 9.3 percent of African Americans students and 17.6 percent of Hispanic Americans are likely to drop out of school.
8.3. Gender
8.3.1. In the last 20 years, gender differences between men and women , in terms of educational attainment , have been reduced.
8.3.2. Recent study from US, United Kingdom,Canada, and Australia indicate that not only have girls caught up to boys in almost all measures of academic achievement. (Arnot, David, &Weiner,1999;Datnow & Hubbard, 2002; Riordan, 1999)
8.4. Coleman Study 1982
8.4.1. the relative efficacy of public and private schools (High School Achievement, 1982; Public and Private High Schools, 1987).
8.4.2. Coleman argued that one should not blame only the school system for the poor academic performance of minorities. It is parents and the breakdown of the family structure that carries the heaviest weight of such failure. He also criticized the practice of “course proliferation,” based on which students were allowed to select elective classes relevant to their study. He argued that this practice may work for excellent students, but not for marginal learners.
9. Educational Reform
9.1. School Buisness Partnership
9.1.1. Entrepeneurs contribute significantly to education reform efforts, most often for the neo-liberal variety. The Walton Foundation has funded charer schools and voucher initiatives. School-business partnerships have little evidence that they have significantly improved schools.
9.2. Privatization
9.2.1. Private education companies are becoming more involved. For profit companies such as the Edison Company took over the management of failing schools and districts. The Philadelphia Public Schools, taken over by the state of Pennsylvania in 2003. Other companies such as Kaplain and Sylvan Learning Center have contracts to supliment tutoring
9.3. Political reform
9.3.1. Accountability involving state regulations has included certification of school personel, state wide testing, assessments, state monitoring, report cards. This reform works on awards and sanctions.
9.4. Connecting School, Community, and Social Reforms
9.4.1. Research by Consortium for Chicago School Research at the University of Chicago states that a combination of school, community and societal level reforms are necessary to reduce the academic gap (Bryk et al.,2010)
9.4.2. The research states that successful school reform must be based on a number of essential supports including: 1. Leadership as the driver for change. 2. parent-community ties; 3. professional capacity. 4. student-centered learning climate. 5. instructional guidance. These are needed most in poverty schools.
9.4.3. (Darling-Hammond,2010 lists five key elements needed to reformeducation. 1. meaningful learning goals. 2. intelligent, reciprocal accountablity system. 3. equitable and adequate resources; 4. strong professional standard and supports; and 5. schools organized for student and teacher learning.
9.4.4. In addition to these five elements the society must provide basic needs for all students. This will allow students to focus on educational learning oppose to survival.