UGA Bulletin

Course Description

Given the rapidly changing demographics in our state and country, this course is designed to equip future teachers with the fundamental knowledge of understanding culture and teaching children from different backgrounds. Specifically, this course is designed to examine 1) the nature and function of culture; 2) the development of individual and group cultural identity; 3) definitions and implications of differences among learners, and 4) the influences of culture on learning, development, and pedagogy.

Athena Title

Socio-Cultur Perspect in Ed

Equivalent Courses

Not open to students with credit in EDUC 2120E

Semester Course Offered

Offered fall and spring

Grading System

A - F (Traditional)

Student learning Outcomes

Students will observe and analyze educational settings, practices, and interactions using appropriate ethical and professional frameworks.
Students will identify and examine critical and contemporary trends and issues that shape the social, political, and educational contexts of schools in Georgia and the United States.
Students will analyze educational issues and practices from multiple perspectives, including those of students, educators, families, communities, policymakers, and other stakeholders.
Students will explain how individual P-12 student characteristics, experiences, prior knowledge, and abilities shape engagement, learning, and participation in school.
Students will examine how historical, social, cultural, political, and institutional factors influence educational opportunities, practices, and outcomes.
Students will examine the teaching profession, including its historical and contemporary roles, responsibilities, and relationships with schools and communities.
Students will reflect on and articulate the moral and ethical responsibilities of educators and the role of education and schooling in a democratic society.
Students will use evidence, critical thinking, observation, and reflective writing to interpret educational experiences and develop informed perspectives on the meaning and purposes of education.

Topical Outline

I. Education and Schooling in Society • Purposes and meanings of education and schooling • The role of schools in society and democracy • Education and schooling as social, cultural, and political institutions • Contemporary trends, issues, and debates in education in Georgia and the United States
II. Understanding Students, Schools, and Communities • Families, communities, and schools as educational partners • Social, cultural, historical, and institutional influences on learning • The influence of culture, language, identity, and experience on teaching and learning Relationships among teaching, learning, assessment, and student outcomes • Classroom interactions, expectations, and instructional practices • Intersection of individual differences and educational experiences • Asset-based perspectives on students, families, teachers, schools, and communities
III. Opportunity and Educational Policy • Concepts of access, inclusion, and opportunity (such as testing/assessment, tracking/academic placement, discipline, special education identification) • Policies and practices affecting P-12 learners • The role of power in educational systems, curriculum, pedagogy, and school culture • Historical development of public education in the United States and connections to contemporary educational policy and practice
IV. Teaching and the Education Profession • Historical and contemporary roles of teachers • Teacher responsibilities and relationships with students, families, schools, and communities • Teaching from multiple vantage points within and beyond the school • Professional expectations, dispositions, and decision-making
V . Observing and Interpreting Educational Settings • 20-hour required field experience • Principles and ethics of participant observation • Observation of students, teachers, classrooms, and school environments • Distinguishing observation, interpretation, evidence, and opinion • Examining educational practices from multiple perspectives • Using observation and evidence to investigate educational questions

Syllabus

Public CV

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Exploring Socio-Cultural Perspectives in Educational Contexts