1. CHAPTER 6 - Schools as Organizations
1.1. Major Stakeholders in My District (Dekalb County)
1.1.1. State Senators - Steve Livingston, Clay Scofield, Phillip Williams
1.1.2. House of Representatives - Tommy Hanes, Nathaniel Ledbetter, Kerry Rich, Becky Nordgren, Will Ainsworth
1.1.3. Representative on State School Board - Jeffrey Newman
1.1.4. Local Superintendent - Jason Barnett
1.1.5. Local School Board - Jeff Williams, Randy Peppers,Matt Sharp, Mark Richards, Robert Elliott
1.2. Elements of Change within School processes and School cultures
1.2.1. They have definite population
1.2.2. A clearly defined political structure is in place which arises from the mode of social interaction characteristics of the school and is influenced by numerous minor processes of interaction
1.2.3. Represents the nexus of a compact network of social relationships.
1.2.4. They feel pervaded by a "we feeling".
1.2.5. They have a culture that is their own.
2. CHAPTER 7 - Curriculum, Pedagogy, and the Transmission of Knowledge
2.1. Curriculum Theory
2.1.1. The Developmentalist Curriculum
2.1.1.1. Related to the needs of students rather than the needs of society
2.1.1.2. Arose from the aspect's of Dewey's writings related to the relationship between the child and the curriculum
2.1.1.3. Student centered
2.1.1.4. Concerned with relating the curriculum to the needs and interests of each child at particular developmental stages
2.2. Two Dominant Traditions of Teaching
2.2.1. The Mimetic Tradition
2.2.1.1. Teaching that can be mimicked or passed on to students
2.2.1.2. Knowledge presented to a learner rather than discovered by him or her
2.2.1.3. Step 1: Testing, either formal or informal. This step is omitted if the student's lack of knowledge or skill can be safely assumed.
2.2.1.4. Step 2: Present information to the students. Teachers present information either with or without visual aids or by modeling or demonstrating a skillful performance or some aspect thereof.
2.2.1.5. Step 3: Perform/Evaluate: After the student is presented the information, the teacher monitors the student's performance making judgements and sometimes generating a numerical tally of accuracy or correctness.
2.2.1.6. Step 4: Correct Performance (Reward/Fix): Evaluate student's performance and help the student by rewarding them for doing good on the problems or help them fix the problem if they are unable to solve.
2.2.1.7. Step 5: Advance: The teacher and student talk about the next level of instruction.
2.2.2. The Transformative Tradition
2.2.2.1. Student-centered.
2.2.2.2. 1. Personal Modeling: Teachers must be good role models to their students to shape the best students. It is essential to success within tradition that teachers who are trying to bring about transformative changes personify their qualities they seek to engender in their students.
2.2.2.3. 2. Soft suasion: Teaching style is more forensic and rhetorical than it is one of proof and demonstration.
2.2.2.4. 3. Use of narrative: Within the transformative tradition stories of one kind or another, which would include parables, myths, and other forms of narrative, play a large role.
3. CHAPTER 8 - Equality of Opportunity and Educational Outcomes
3.1. Describe how class, race, and gender impact educational outcomes
3.1.1. CLASS
3.1.1.1. Depending on their social class, students will have different educational experiences
3.1.1.2. Families from upper and middle class expect their children to finish school as compared to working class & underclass families have lower levels of expectations for their children.
3.1.2. RACE
3.1.2.1. An individual's race has a direct impact on how much education he or she is likely to achieve
3.1.2.2. In a group of students, age 16-24, 5.2% of white students drop out of school, whereas 9.3% of African-American students and 17.6% of Hispanic-American students are likely to drop out of school.
3.1.2.3. A higher percentage of students who are white are more likely to read at the intermediate level than a student of another race.
3.1.2.4. Minorities do not receive the same educational opportunities as whites and their rewards for educational attainment are significantly less.
3.1.3. GENDER
3.1.3.1. Historically, an individual's gender was directly related to his or her educational attainment.
3.1.3.2. Women are often rated as being better students than men, however, in the past, they were less likely to attain the same level of education.
3.1.3.3. Females are less likely to drop out of school than males.
3.1.3.4. Females are more likely to have a higher level of reading proficiency than males.
3.1.3.5. One area that males do better in than females is mathematics.
3.1.3.6. Males are more likely to score better on SATs than females.
3.2. Coleman Study (1982) Responses
3.2.1. Response # 1
3.2.1.1. Studies have compared public and private schools and have found that private schools seem to "do it better" especially for low-income students.
3.2.1.2. The differences that exist between public and Catholic schools are statistically significant, but in terms of significant learning the results are negligible.
3.2.2. Response # 2
3.2.2.1. Where an individual goes to school is often related to race and socioeconomic background.
3.2.2.2. Racial and socioeconomic composition of school has a greater effect on student achievement than an individual's race and class.
3.2.2.3. Education reform must focus on eliminating the high level of segregation that remains in the United States education system and that schools must bring an end to tracking systems and biases that favor white and middle-class students.
4. CHAPTER 9 - Explanations of Educational Inequality
4.1. Cultural Deprivation Theory
4.1.1. Poor
4.1.1.1. *Have a deprived culture
4.1.1.2. *Eschews delayed gratification for immediate reward
4.1.1.3. *Rejects hard work and initiative as a means to success
4.1.1.4. *Does not view schooling as the means to social mobility
4.1.2. Middle-class
4.1.2.1. *Values hard work and intiative
4.1.2.2. *The delay of immediate gratification for future reward
4.1.2.3. *The importance of schooling as the means to social mobility
4.2. School-centered explanations for educational inequality
4.2.1. School Financing
4.2.1.1. Public schools are funded through a combination of revenues from local, state and federal sources. However, the majority of funds come from state and local taxes.
4.2.2. Effective School Research
4.2.2.1. Coleman and Jencks found that differences in school resources and quality do not adequately explain between school differences in academic achievement was viewed by teachers as a mixed blessing.
4.2.2.2. If student differences are more important than school differences then teachers cannot be blamed for the lower academic performance of nonwhite and working-class students.
4.2.2.3. Effective school literature suggests that there are characteristics of unusually effective schools that help to explain why their students achieve academically.
4.2.3. Within School Differences: Curriculum and Ability Grouping
4.2.3.1. Different groups of students in the same schools perform very differently suggesting that there may be school characteristics affecting these outcomes.
4.2.3.2. For the most part, elementary students receive a similar curriculum in different groups, but may be taught at a different pace.
4.2.4. Gender and Schooling
4.2.4.1. Feminists believe that schooling often limits the educational opportunities and life chances of women in a number of ways.
4.2.4.2. Schooling often limits the educational opportunities and life chances of women by reinforcing gender roles and gender inequality.
4.2.4.3. Feminists argue that school organization, curriculum, and pedagogic practices need to be changed to address the needs of females.
5. CHAPTER 10 - Educational Reform and School Improvement
5.1. School-Based Reforms
5.1.1. School-Business Partnership
5.1.1.1. Several school-business partnerships have been formed since the 1980s, the most notable being the Boston Compact which began in 1982.
5.1.1.2. In 1991, the Committee to Support Philadelphia Public Schools pledged management assistance and training to the Philadelphia School District to restructure and implement a site based management plan.
5.1.1.3. School business partnerships have attracted considerable media attention, but there is little convincing evidence that they have significantly improved schools or a means of reform.
5.1.2. School-to-work programs
5.1.2.1. Students were provided relevant education which allowed them to explore different careers and see what skills are needed for their working environment.
5.1.2.2. Students were provided skills which they obtained from structured training and work based learning experiences including the necessary skills of a particular career as demonstrated in a working environment.
5.1.2.3. Students had valued credentials which established industry standard benchmarks and developed education and training standards that ensure that proper education is received for each career.
5.2. Describe two reforms
5.2.1. Full Service and Community Schools
5.2.1.1. Three models of community based reforms: Dryfoo's model of full service schools, Canada's Harlem Children's Zone, and Newark's Broader Bolder Approach.
5.2.1.2. Full service schools focus on meeting students' and their families educational, physical, psychological and social needs in a coordinated and collaborative fashion between school and community services.
5.2.1.3. In this model, schools service as community centers within neighborhoods that are open extended hours to provide a multitude of services such as adult education, health clinics, recreational facilities, after school programs and job placement.
5.2.2. Connecting School, Community, and Societal Reforms
5.2.2.1. Leadership as the driver for change.
5.2.2.2. Parent-community ties
5.2.2.3. Professional Capacity
5.2.2.4. Student-centered learning climate
5.2.2.5. Instructional guidance
5.2.2.6. Meaningful learning goals
5.2.2.7. Intelligent, reciprocal accountability systems
6. CHAPTER 2 -The Politics of Education
6.1. The Four Purposes of Education
6.1.1. Intellectual
6.1.1.1. 1. Teach basic cognitive skills: Reading, writing, math.
6.1.1.2. 2. Transmit specific knowledge; literature, history, science.
6.1.1.3. 3. Help students acquire higher-order thinking skills; analysis, evaluation, and synthesis.
6.1.2. Political
6.1.2.1. 1. Inculcate allegiance to the existing political order.
6.1.2.2. 2. Prepare citizens to who will participate in this political order.
6.1.2.3. 3. Help assimilate diverse cultural groups into a common political order.
6.1.2.4. 4. Teach children the basic laws of society.
6.1.3. Social
6.1.3.1. 1. Help solve social problems.
6.1.3.2. 2. Work as one of many institutions (family or church) to ensure social cohesion.
6.1.3.3. 3. Socialize children into various roles, behaviors and values of society.
6.1.4. Economic
6.1.4.1. 1. Prepare students for their occupations later in life.
6.1.4.2. 2. Select, train and allocate individuals into the division of labor.
6.1.4.3. 3. The degree to which schools directly prepare students for work varies from society to society, however most schools have at least an indirect role in this process.
6.2. Perspectives
6.2.1. The Role of School
6.2.1.1. Conservative Perspective
6.2.1.1.1. 1. Provides necessary educational training
6.2.1.1.2. 2. Believes that schools socialize children into adult roles
6.2.1.1.3. 3. See school's function as one of transmitting the cultural traditions through what is taught
6.2.1.1.4. 4. Views the role of the school as essential to both economic productivity and social stability
6.2.1.2. Liberal Perspective
6.2.1.2.1. 1. Stresses the school's role in providing necessary education to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to succeed in society
6.2.1.2.2. 2. Stresses the pluralistic nature of U.S. society and school's role in cultural diversity
6.2.1.2.3. 3. Stresses the importance of citizenship
6.2.1.2.4. 4. Balancing needs of society and the individual in a manner consistent with democratic and meritocratic society
6.2.1.3. Radical Perspective
6.2.1.3.1. 1. Views equality of opportunity as an illusion
6.2.1.3.2. 2. Convince individuals that they have no been given a fair chance
6.2.1.3.3. 3. Argues that schools reproduce economic, social, and political inequality within U.S. society.
6.2.2. Explanations of Unequal Performance
6.2.2.1. Conservatives argue: Individuals or groups of students rise and fall on their own intelligence, hard work and initiative & that achievement is based on hard work and sacrifice
6.2.2.2. Liberals argue: Individuals or groups of students begin school with different life choices. Therefore some groups have more advantages than others.
6.2.2.3. Radicals argue: Students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds begin school with unequal opportunities.
6.2.3. Definition of Educational Problems
6.2.3.1. Conservative Perspective
6.2.3.1.1. 1. Decline of Standards
6.2.3.1.2. 2. Decline of Cultural Literacy
6.2.3.1.3. 3. Decline of values/civilization
6.2.3.1.4. 4. Decline of Authority
6.2.3.2. Liberal Perspective
6.2.3.2.1. 1. Underachievement
6.2.3.2.2. 2. Schools limit their role in helping students develop as individuals
6.2.3.2.3. 3. Central Problem related to inequalities between low and high socioeconomic backgrounds
6.2.3.2.4. 4. Diverse culture groups are left out of traditional curriculum
6.2.3.3. Radical Perspective
6.2.3.3.1. 1. System has failed poor, minorities, and women through racist, classist, sexist, and homophobic policies
6.2.3.3.2. 2. Teaching practices that promote conformity have stifled critical understanding of problems of American society
6.2.3.3.3. 3. Curriculum leaves out cultures, histories, and voices of the oppressed
6.2.3.3.4. 4. Educational system promotes inequality of opportunity and results
7. CHAPTER 3 - The History of U.S. Education
7.1. Reform Movement
7.1.1. Education for Women & African Americans
7.1.1.1. In the 19th century, educational opportunities for women seemed to be stressful or too harmful
7.1.1.2. Educational opportunities were very limited
7.1.1.3. In 1820, the movement for women's education was in the works.
7.1.1.4. 1821 - Emma Hart Willard opened the Troy Female Seminary in Troy, New York. Curriculum included Math, Science, History and Geography.
7.2. Historical Interpretation
7.2.1. The Democratic-Liberal School
7.2.1.1. Democratic liberals believe that the history of the U.S. education involves the progressive evolution, albeit flawed, of a school system committed to providing equality of opportunity for all.
7.2.1.2. Horace Mann and Henry Barnard were two reformers that were dedicated to egalitarian principles
7.2.1.3. According to Lawrence Cremin, educational history in the United States involved both the expansion of opportunity and purpose.
7.2.1.4. Democratic-liberals believe that he U.S. educational system must continue to move closer to each, without sacrificing one or the other too dramatically.
8. CHAPTER 4 - The Sociology of Education
8.1. Theoretical Perspectives
8.1.1. Functionalism
8.1.1.1. Earliest sociologist to embrace a functional point of view about the relation of school & society was Emile Durkheim, who invented the sociology of education in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
8.1.1.2. Durkheim recognized that education has taken different forms, he believed that education was a critical importance of creating moral unity.
8.1.1.3. Durkheim placed emphasis on values and cohesion set the tone for how present-day functionalists approach the study of education.
8.1.2. Conflict Theory
8.1.2.1. Conflict sociologists do not see the relation between school and society as unproblematic or straightforward.
8.1.2.2. Max Weber believed that class differences alone could not capture the complex ways human beings form hierarchies and belief systems that make these hierarchies seem just and inevitable.
8.1.2.3. Randall Collins has maintained that educational expansion is best explained by status group struggle
8.1.2.4. Randall Collins argued that educational credits, such as diplomas are primarily status symbols rather than indicators of actual achievement.
8.1.2.5. The rise of credentialism does not indicate that a society is becoming more expert, but that education is increasingly used by dominant groups to secure more advantageous places for themselves and their children within the occupation and social structure
8.1.3. Interactionalism
8.1.3.1. Interactional theories about the relation of school & society are primarily critiques and extensions of the functional and conflict perspectives.
8.1.3.2. These theories attempt to make the commonplace strange by turning on their heads for everyday behaviors that are taken for granted.
8.1.3.3. If examining the microsociological or the interactional aspects of school life, people are less likely to create theories that are logical and eloquent but without meaningful content.
8.2. Effects of Schooling on Individuals that have had the greatest impact
8.2.1. Ron Edmonds
8.2.1.1. One of the first researchers to show that differences in schools are directly related to differences in student outcomes
8.2.1.2. Known as the pioneer of effective schools movement
8.2.1.3. Research comparing public and private schools indicates that in schools where students are compelled to take academic subjects and where there is consistent discipline, achievement levels go up.
8.2.2. MacLeod
8.2.2.1. Found that working-class boys often reject the prevailing attainment through education
8.2.2.2. Most Americans believe that education leads to economic and social mobility
8.2.3. Jackson
8.2.3.1. Found that teachers have as many as 1,000 interpersonal contacts each day with the children in their classroom
8.2.3.2. Teachers are extremely busy people and must wear many hats; instructor, disciplinarian, bureaucrat, employer, friend, confidant, and educator.
8.2.3.3. Teachers experience role strain where such conflicting demands are placed that they cannot feel totally comfortable in any role
8.2.4. Stinchcombe
8.2.4.1. Found that students in vocational programs & headed toward low-status jobs were the students most likely to join a rebellious subculture
8.2.4.2. Student violence continues to be a problem
8.2.4.3. Students are not only attacking other classmates, but teachers as well.
8.2.5. Harold Hodgkinson
8.2.5.1. Demographer that described the condition on U.S. children in stark and poignant terms.
8.2.5.2. One-fourth of all preschool children live in poverty.
9. CHAPTER 5 - The Philosophy of Education
9.1. Existentialism
9.1.1. Generic Notions
9.1.1.1. Individualistic philosophy
9.1.1.2. Many adherents argue that it is not a particular school of philosophy
9.1.1.3. Existentialists pose questions as to how their concerns impact the lives of individuals
9.1.1.4. Believe that individuals are placed here on earth alone and must make some sense out of the chaos they encounter
9.1.2. Key Researchers
9.1.2.1. Soren Kierkegaard - 19th century European philosopher ( 1813 - 1855 )
9.1.2.2. Martin Buber ( 1878 - 1965 )
9.1.2.3. Karl Jaspers ( 1883 - 1969 )
9.1.2.4. Jean Paul Sartre ( 1905 - 1986 )
9.1.2.5. Maxine Greene - Contemporary philosopher
9.1.3. Goal of Education
9.1.3.1. Belief that education should focus on needs of individuals; cognitively and affectively
9.1.3.2. Belief that education should stress individuality.
9.1.3.3. Emphasize notion of possibility since the individual changes in a constant state of becoming
9.1.3.4. View education as an activity liberating the individual from a chaotic and absurd world
9.1.4. Role of Teacher
9.1.4.1. Teachers should understand their own "lived worlds" as well as that of their students
9.1.4.2. Must take risks; expose themselves to resistant students
9.1.4.3. Work constantly to enable their students to become "wide awake"
9.1.5. Method of Instruction
9.1.5.1. View learning as intensely personal
9.1.5.2. Belief that each child has a different learning style and it is up to the teacher to discover what works for each child
9.1.5.3. Teacher constantly rediscovers knowledge, as well as the student and together they come to an understanding of past, present and future
9.1.5.4. Role of the teacher is to help students understand the world through posing questions, generating activities and working together
9.1.6. Curriculum
9.1.6.1. Existentialists and phenomenologists would choose curriculum heavily biased toward the humanities.
9.1.6.2. Literature is meaningful since it is able to evoke responses in readers that might move them to new levels of awareness
9.1.6.3. Belief of exposing students at early ages, to problems as well as possibilities, a well as accomplishments humankind is capable of producing.