1. Chapter 2: Politics of Education
1.1. 1. Identify and describe the four purposes of education.
1.1.1. The intellectual purposes of schooling are to teach cognitive skills such as reading, writing, and mathmatics: to transmit specific knowledge and to help students acquire higher-order thinking skills such as analysis, evaluation, and synthesis.
1.1.2. The political purposes of schooling are to inculcate allegiance to the existing political order ;to prepare citizens who will particiapate in this political order; to help assimilate diverse cultural groups into a common political order; and to teach children the basic laws of the society.
1.1.3. The social purposes of schooling are to help solve social problems; to work as one of many institutions, such as the family and the church to ensure social cohesion; and to socialize children into various roles, behaviors, and values of society. This process, referred to by sociologist as socialization, is a key ingredient to the stability of any society.
1.1.4. The economic purposes of schooling are to prepare students for their later occupational roles and to select, train, and allocate individuals into the division of labor.
1.2. 2. Choose and describe a perspective for the following: 1) the role of the school; 2) explanations of unequal performance; and 3) definition of educational problems.
1.2.1. The conservative perspective sees the role of the school as providing the necessary educational training to ensure the most talented and hard-working individuals receive the tools necessary to maximize economic and social productivity.
1.2.2. Conservatives argue that individuals or groups of students rise and fall on their own intelligence, hard work, and initiative, and that achievement is based on hard work and sacrifice.
1.2.3. The conservative perspective argues the following points:
1.2.3.1. Schools systematically lowered academic standards and reduced educational quality. Conservatives often refer to this problem as the decline of standars.
1.2.3.2. Schools watered down the traditional curriculum and thus weakened the school's ability to pass on the heritage of American and Western civilizations to children. Conservatives often define this problem as the decline of cultural literacy.
1.2.3.3. Schools lost their traditional role of teaching moral standards and values. Conservatives often refer to this problem as the decline of values or of civilization.
1.2.3.4. Schools lost their traditional disciplinary function and often became chaotic. Conservatives often refer to this problem as the decline of authority.
1.2.3.5. Because they are state controlled and are immune form the laws of a competitive free market, schools are stifled by bureaucracy and inefficiency.
2. Chapter 3:History of U.S. Education
2.1. 1. Choose and describe a reform movement that you think has had the most influence on education.
2.1.1. After reading chapter 3, I believe the progressive movement was the reform movement that had the most influence on education. Progressive reformer Horace Mann, in the nineteenth century, looked to schools as a means of addressing social problems, so reformers once again looked to schools as a means of preserving and promoting democracy within the new social order. G. Stanley Hall believed that children, in their development, reflected the stages of development of civilization. This strand of progressive reform became known as a child-centered reform. Progressives believed in experiential education, a curriculum that responded to both the needs of students and the times, child-centered education, freedom and individualism, and the relativism of academic standards in the name of equity.
2.2. 2. Choose and describe one historical interpretation of U.S. Education.
2.2.1. I find the democratic-liberal interpretation of U.S. education to be interesting. Democratic-liberals believe that the history of U.S. education involves the progressive evolution, albeit flawed, of a school system committed to providing equality of opportunity for all. Although democratic-liberals tend to interpret U.S. educational history optimistically, the evolution of the nation's schools has been a flawed, often conflictual march toward increased opportunities. Democratic-liberals believe that the U.S. educational system must continue to move closer to equality and excellence without sacrificing one or the other too dramatically.
3. Chapter 4: The Sociology of Education
3.1. 2. Identify and describe 5 effects of schooling on individuals that you think have the greatest impact on students as explained in the book.
3.1.1. 1)The knowledge students receive in school has a great impact on their schooling. The more knowledge and education students receive, the more likely they are to read newspapers, books and magazines and take part in politics and public affairs. More years of schooling leads to greater knowledge and social participation.2) Employment opportunities are greater for students who graduate from college. 3) Occupational and social mobility are developed in school and these two aspects are a major component of the American ethos. 4) Teacher behavior have a huge effect on individuals while they are in school. Teachers are models for students and , instructional leaders, teachers set standards for students and influence student self esteem and sense of efficacy. 5) Student peer groups and alienation also has an effects of schooling on individuals. It is very important students have a sense of belonging to a group of friends so there isn't as much violence in our schools.
3.2. 1. Define the theoretical perspective concerning the relationship between school and society: functionalism, conflict theory, and internationalism.
3.2.1. The sociology of education is a contentious field and that the sociologist ask about the relation between school and society are fundamental and complex. Theory allows one to see past the visible and obvious, and examine the hidden structure. Theory is one's best conceptual guide to understanding the relation between school and society because it gives on the intellectual scaffolding from which to hang empirical findings. Functionalists view society as a kind of machine, where one part articulates with one another to produce the dynamic energy to make society work. Functionalists believe that education and society are held together by shared values. The conflict theory views education as schools being similar to social battlefields, where students struggle against teachers, teachers against administrators, and so on. Interactional theories about the relation of school and soiciety are primarily critiques and extensions of the functional and conflict perspectives.
4. Chapter 5: The Philosophy of Education
4.1. Describe the particular world view of one of student-centered philosophy of education (pragmatism or existenialism). Include the following information: generic notions, key researchers, goal of education, role of teacher, method of instruction, and curriculum.
4.1.1. Pragmatism is a philosophy that encourages people to find processes that work in order to achieve their desired ends. Pragmatist do study the past, but they generally are more interested in contemporary issues and in discovering solutions to problems in present-day terms. They are action oriented and experimentally grounded. The founders of pragmatism are George Sanders Peirce, William James, and John Dewey. The notion was that children were active, organic beings, growing and changing, and thus required a course of study that would reflect thier particular stages of development. The primary role fo education was growth. The teacher was not the authoriatarian figure from which knowledge flows, but rather the teacher assumes the peripheral position of facilitator. She encourages, offers suggestions, questions, and helps plan and implement courses of study. Children should learn both indicidually and in groups. Progressive schools use core curriculum or an integrated curriculum.
5. Chapter 6: Schools as Organizations
5.1. 1. Identify major stakeholders in YOUR district by name (state senators, House of Representatives, state superintendent, representative on state school board, local superintendent, and local school board
5.1.1. State Senators: Richard Shelby (R) and Jefferson Sessions (R) House of Representatives: Mac McCutcheon (R) Micky Hammon (R) Craig Ford (D) State Superintendent: Michael Sentance Local Superintendent: Jennifer Grey Representative: Mo Brooks(R)
5.2. 2. Identify and describe the elements of change within school processes and school culture.
5.2.1. When one speaks of school processes, what we really are identifying are the powerful cultural qualities of schools that make them so potent in terms of emotional recall, if not in terms of cognitive outcomes. 1. They have a definite population 2. They have a clearly defined political structure 3. They represent the nexus of a compact network of social relationships 4. They are pervaded by a "we feeling" 5. they have a culture that is definitely their own
6. Chapter 7: Curriculum, Pedagogy, and the Transmission of Knowledge
6.1. 1. Explain a curriculum theory which you advocate (humanist, social efficiency, develop-mentalist, or social meliorist).
6.1.1. I advocate the curriculum theory social efficiency. I agree with this theory because it is rooted in the belief that different groups of students, with different sets of needs and aspirations, should receive different types of schooling.
6.2. 2. Identify and describe the two dominant traditions of teaching.
6.2.1. 1. The mimetic tradition is based on the viewpoint that the purpose of education is to transmit specific knowledge to students. The vest method of doing this is through what is termed the didactic method. A method that commonly relies on the lecture or presentation as the main form of communication. 2. The transformative tradition rests on a different set of assumptions about the teaching and learning process. This model defines the function of education more broadly. Based on the transformative tradition education is to change the student in some meaningful way.
7. Chapter 8: Equality of Opportunity and Educational Outcomes
7.1. Describe how class, race, and gender each impact educational outcomes.
7.1.1. Class is directly related to achievement and to educational attainment. The wealthier the family is that the student comes from the better education and resources they will have throughout their education. Students who are of a different race besides white do not get the same educational opportunities and often do not get rewarded for their educational attainment are less. Females are less likely to drop out of school than males and more likely to have a higher reading proficiency as males. The same is true for writing. Males do outperform females in math though.
7.2. What were the two responses to the Coleman Study from 1982?
7.2.1. 1.Private schools were more effective learning environments than public schools because they place more emphasis on academic activities and they enforce discipline in a way that is consisted with student achievement. 2. Where an individual goes to school is often related to her race and socioeconomic background.
8. Chapter 9: Explanations of Educational Inequality
8.1. Explain the two types of cultural deprivation theory.
8.1.1. Working class and nonwhite families often lack the cultural resources, such as books and other educational stimuli, and thus arrive at school at a significant disadvantage. This deprivation results in educationally disadvantaged students who achieve poorly because they have not been raised to acquire the skills and dispositions required for satisfactory academic achievement. Critics argue that it removes the responsibility for school success and failure from schools and teachers, and places it on parents.
8.2. Describe at least four school-centered explanations for educational inequality.
8.2.1. School financing, effective school research, curriculum and pedagogic practices, and curriculum and ability grouping are four school centered explanations for educational inequality.
9. Chapter 10: Educational Reform and School Improvement
9.1. Describe two school-based reforms (school-based, school-business partnerships, privatization, school-to-work programs, teacher education or teacher quality)
9.1.1. School-business partnerships: business leaders became increasingly concerned that the nations schools were not producing the kinds of graduates necessary for revitalization of the U.S. economy so several school business partnerships were formed. Privatization: the traditional distinction between public and private education became blurred, with private education companies increasingly becoming involved in public education in a variety of ways.
9.2. Describe at least two societal, economic, community, or political reforms.
9.2.1. SFRA eliminated the Abbott remedies and implemented a formula for allocating funding to all districts based on student needs. Canada's Harlem Children's Zone is specifically designed to target and improve at risk neighborhoods, full service schools aim to prevent problems as well as to support them.