CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

COURSE SYLLABUS

TITLE AND SECTION

ED505.ONL3: Cultural Foundations of Education

Session: Summer 2009
Dates: June 15 – July 31

INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Decoteau J. Irby, Ph.D.

Education Department
[email protected]

REQUIRED TEXTS

Nieto, S. and Bode, P. (2007) Affirming Diversity: The Sociopolitical Context of Multicultural
Education (5th Ed.). Boston: Pearson Education.
Tatum, B.D. (2003). Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? and
Other Conversations about Race. New York: Basic Books.

Other reading materials will be made available online through Blackboard

COURSE OVERVIEW

Students’ educational experiences are directly influenced by the ways in which educators
think about and approach factors such as culture, race, ethnicity, social class, gender, sexual
orientation and disability. In this course, we will examine the ways in which educational
institutions and the teachers within them structure learning experiences for various students
depending in part on their interpretations of these students’ “differences.” Educators must be
aware of issues that may arise due to at least two factors: (1) differences between teachers’ and
students’ backgrounds and how institutions and individual teachers create learning environments
to engage with these differences; and (2) how aspects of identity are framed and understood by
teachers, parents, students and school administrators. In order to deepen our awareness of these
issues, throughout this semester we will explore the formation, meanings and implications of
various ideologies and beliefs specifically as they relate to teaching and learning. We will
challenge common beliefs about our educational system as well as the society in which it has
been shaped.
 Studies increasingly show that students learn more easily in classrooms that are sensitive
to, and appreciative of, who they are and where they come from. Achieving this sort of
classroom entails in part an understanding of, and a desire to be responsive to, students’ cultures.
To be culturally responsive teachers we need to be able to conceptualize and understand what
culture is and how it works. We will explore this together. To have strong voices as teachers,
which is crucial to being able to empower our students, we need to gain knowledge and
understanding about ourselves, society and the realities of schooling and education. We will
create a vision of this together. One guiding assumption of this course is that as important as it is
for teachers to learn practical tools and methods for teaching and connecting with our students
(such as curriculum resources or specific strategies for teaching multiculturally), it is equally as
important for us to gain a better understanding of the theoretical and ideological foundations
upon which we make sense of these new tools. In order to broaden and deepen our perspectives,
we will not only analyze and discuss a variety of theoretical frameworks and empirical research
intended to assist teachers in meeting the needs of each of your students, but we will also
critically explore our own theories and frameworks, our assumptions as individuals and as
educators.
Working from the perspective that teachers teach who we are, which means that who you
are and what views you hold as an individual affect what you choose to teach and how you relate
with students, throughout the semester I will urge you to engage in a process of critically
analyzing yourselves in terms of your views and how these affect your concepts of teaching and
learning. In this course, I ask you to do something crucial to effective teaching in a multicultural
and multiracial world: to critically think about, and struggle to understand, yourselves within the
contexts of culture, race, class and gender, and in relation to your beliefs about teaching and
learning. The subject matter and structure of the course will provide you with a unique
opportunity to reflect on your beliefs about education, teaching and culture and to take a more
active role in your own development as teachers who also view yourselves as learners.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Requirement #1: Contributions to a Safe Space

The content and structure of this course tends to facilitate discussions about our cultural and
racial identities, personal beliefs, political positions and ideologies. These discussions will likely
engender passionate dialogue about issues close to many of our concepts of self and/or styles of
teaching. It is crucial that we all take responsibility for creating a safe environment in which
open and respectful dialogue can occur. That respect includes challenging one another while
remembering that we all have a unique perspective of the world based on our experience. Being
respectful of others is a central requirement of this course.

Requirement #2: Online Participation & Blackboard

The online discussion board is designed to encourage everyone to become active participants in a
collaborative learning process. In this course, we will all be teachers and learners throughout the
semester. Because of the nature of this course, which is designed to create a context in which
trust and honesty are possible, it is vital that each of you are engaged in course content online
each and EVERY week.

Requirement #3: Critical Engagement with the Readings

Students are expected to have completed the readings before each week (Thursday). Students are
also expected to integrate readings into online discussions and written assignments. (e.g. What is
the author saying? Do you agree with the author or not? On what grounds, what are the
implications of this in the classroom? How does this relate to other readings in this and other
courses? How does this material relate to your experience in education?). Your ability to engage
seriously with the assigned materials will be reflected in your final grade. It is important to note
that being critically engaged with the readings does not mean that you should necessarily agree
with them. Disagreement and critique are encouraged, as they can be instructive. I do ask
however, that you be thoughtful about your critiques, and that even when you disagree with main
points of a given reading, you challenge yourself to find what is useful in it.

MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS

Interactive Reading Journal on Blackboard, ongoing (100 points)

We will be using Blackboard as a reading reflection journal. On Blackboard, you will post your
thoughts, ideas and questions about the readings in relation to class discussions and your lived
experiences. There are three ways that I would like you to participate on blackboard. Students
are responsible for posting at least once for all of the course readings. This includes each chapter
we read in the Nieto and Tatum books. You can choose which way you will contribute for each
of the readings. For example, you may choose to post a quote for one, but a question for another
and so forth. Posts for the weeks’ readings are due every Sunday by midnight (unless noted
otherwise).

1) Quotes from the readings and your reflections on those quotes (After typing the quote,
students should include at least 3 sentences about why this quote is important to you.

2) Critical questions about the readings (Questions should be connected to the readings, class
discussions and or films.)

3) Responses to questions posed and to other “quote” posts.

Autoethnography Analysis Project, 12 to 15 pages (200 points)

This semester-long assignment asks you to weave together two things: you are assigned to
develop an autoethnography, and also to use the authors of our course to analyze your
autoethnography. For the autoethnography, you are to describe yourself as a member of cultural
groups, and then to illustrate through short narratives how these memberships have contributed
to the person(s) you are now. The analysis of your autoethnography provides an opportunity to
generate the important depth and seriousness of reflection and self-study that is necessary for
educators who hope to apply the tools of cultural foundations in their work. Start a portfolio of
short narratives and logs on your readings right away; you will look back over what you have
already written numerous times over the course of the semester to again examine your evolving
thoughts, feelings, hopes and fears. This portfolio is for your reflection, so use the format that
best gets your ideas going: write, draw, put together photographs in a collage, download music
off the net, etc. Work in ways that feel comfortable and genuine to you. At the same time, you
need to consistently write ideas that are generated by the readings, and use these logs on the
readings as a chance to analyze what you have been putting into this portfolio throughout the
semester. We will schedule brief class workshops to think about this assignment as the class sees
fit. The final version of this will depend on your own interaction with "culture as representation
of lived experiences, material objects, and practices forged within the unequal and dialectical
relations that different groups establish in a given society at a particular point in historical time."
Some resources available at: HYPERLINK
"http://www.humboldt.edu/~tdd2/AutoethnographyPW.htm"
http://www.humboldt.edu/~tdd2/AutoethnographyPW.htm

Criteria: You have illustrated through short narratives or examples how your membership in
cultural groups has contributed to your current beliefs and practices in education.

You have participated in a self-study by reflecting on your autoethnography in order to

understand how your personal experiences are relevant to the understanding of “identity.”

You have analyzed the choices you made in composing your autoethnography with terms and
concepts that we have discussed in our course; you have referenced our course readings and
discussions in your analysis.

Institutional Observation (4-5 pages) (100 points)

In this assignment, you will take some time to reflect on and then write about the influence and
impact of issues of diversity and inequality in your classroom, curriculum, your own pedagogy,
and school/educational institution. If you are not yet teaching, you will seek out an observation
site; this can be school in your neighborhood or even a community center with programming for
youth. You will observe this setting through the eyes of a sociologist, taking notes about what
you see that speaks to the kinds of issues of diversity and inequality that we discuss in class and
in the readings. You will transform these notes into a narrative that discusses how factors such as
race, class, gender, religion, and/or disability play out in this setting; how the setting is structured
(i.e., To benefit whom and in what ways? To include or exclude whom? Whose ways of learning,
knowing, and/or communicating are valued or devalued and in what ways?). Please include
institutional demographics. You will cite specific examples in the paper. Be sure to use
appropriate citations. Course readings and discussions should be used for analyses (at least 3
sources from course readings/films).

Curriculum Transformation Project (50 points)

Individually or in pairs, students will find either a textbook chapter/unit or a lesson plan to:
Evaluate and critique from a multicultural lens (e.g., What is missing from the material that
would make it more multicultural? What is in the material that is stereotyped, Eurocentric and/or
biased in specific ways?); Create an alternative text that articulates your ideal multicultural
lesson and reflects issues raised in the course (e.g., What could be changed or added to enhance
the material? To make it more inclusive and reflective of multicultural ideals?).

You are encouraged to use this as an opportunity to conceptualize and practice critiquing
educational materials from a multicultural perspective as well as developing creative and critical
material to use in your classroom. You will be evaluated based on the thoroughness of your
critique and your ability to develop practical materials/methods that are inclusive and culturally
responsive. As part of your curriculum project, you will write a letter justifying your curriculum.
You will need to identify a gatekeeper who will need to be convinced that it would be allowable
for you to use this and describe how you will convince them.

Final Reflection Statement: (2-3 pages) (50 points)

The final reflection paper will focus on your personal reflections on, and experiences of, the
course as a whole. The reflection paper is intended to give you an opportunity to engage in
focused thinking about your perspective on concepts presented in the readings and in-class
discussions. Three areas that the paper should cover are: (1) Revisiting your ethno biography (1)
How/did the course change or influence your perspectives on issues of diversity and inequality?;
and (2) How might you make some new and different choices personally and professionally
around these issues? This paper is not a summary or review of the readings though it must of
course be directly connected to the course topics. You will be required to upload your paper on
to our Blackboard site.

COURSE CONSIDERATIONS

Assignments
Unless noted otherwise, all assignments are due Tuesday evenings before 9:00 p.m. Submit all
assignments using the assignments feature. Whenever there is an assignment, an assignments
folder should be available on blackboard. If, for some reason, no assignment feature is present,
please use the digital dropbox to submit your assignment. DO NOT email assignments to my
email account. Be sure to convert all files to formats compatible with Microsoft Office. Papers
must be typed in 12 font, times new roman or equivalent. Headings are not allowed to be more
than four lines: Name, class, data, title of assignments. No spaces are needed between
paragraphs. 5 points will automatically be deducted for unnecessary spacing. As with all
graduate-level work, you are expected to carefully proofread and edit your writing. Excellent
grammar and syntax as well as appropriate citations are expected.
I encourage you, if necessary, to use the writing services available at Arcadia University. The
Writing Center offers peer editors to review your work. The Educational Enhancement Center
also provides peer assistance.

Communication
Please allow 24 to 48 hours for replies to all email or blackboard correspondence.
Correspondence sent over the weekend will be answer by midnight on Monday. If you have any
general questions (that may be of interest to classmates) about assignments, I strongly encourage
you to use the general questions and concerns section of blackboard to post your question. Doing
this allows everyone to see my response and I will often times answer the question in the form of
an announcement. If you have an extensive question about an assignment before it is due, you
must contact me at least 72 hours in advance so that we will have ample time to correspond
before you begin incorporating my comments into your work. If you ever have any specific
questions, you can always request a time to speak over the phone. In almost all cases, I will
accommodate your request in 24 to 48 hours.
Blackboard
Unless noted otherwise, all blackboard posting are due Sundays before 9:00 p.m. You are
required to complete a total of 5 blackboard postings – one per week – for a total of 100 possible
points; your introduction posting will not be graded.
Late work policy
Since this course runs for only seven weeks, if you happen to fall behind, you will probably not
pass the course. Consequently, no late work will be accepted. Stay focused on completing your
assignments on time – expect an assignment to be due every Tuesday. In event that extenuating
circumstances arise please contact me well in advance to arrange for an alternate due date.

GRADING

Check the gradebook section of blackboard to monitor your progress in the course. Grades will
be updated at least every two weeks. Where appropriate, I will provide additional guidelines,
examples, etc, to assist you in preparing high-quality assignments. Additionally, if you receive a
grade below an A (below at 15 on blackboard discussions), I will provide you with detailed
feedback to assist you as you prepare future assignments.

Assignments Total possible points

Blackboard Discussion 100

Cultural Autoethnography 200
Institutional Observation 100
Curriculum Project and Gatekeeper Letter 50
Final Reflection Statement: 50
Total Possible Points 500

Remember: In accordance with Arcadia University’s graduate policy, you MUST receive a
grade of B- or above in order to pass this course.

STANDARDS MET BY THIS COURSE

Standards met by the Cultural Foundations of Education for students pursuing a Special
Education Degree, Cultural Foundations meets the following standards/ requirements:

I. Knowing the Content I.B. Models and theories of typical/atypical growth and behavior I.G
Selection, administration, evaluation and interpretation of formal and informal assessment tools
and methods

For students pursuing an Early Childhood Education Graduate Program, Cultural Foundations
meets the following standards/ requirements:

I.A. Foundations of Early Childhood Education including: Historical Philosophical Social and
cultural I.C. Factors that influence individual development and learning of children from birth
through 3rd grade including: Pre- and postnatal biological and environmental Social and cultural
Health, nutrition and safety III.A. Professional organizations, professional literature, technical
resources, and student organizations

For students pursuing an Elementary Education Degree, Cultural Foundations meets the
following standards/ requirements:

I.A. Growth, development, and learning: Cognitive development and theories of learning Oral
and written language development Typical and atypical physical growth and motor development
Social and personal development (Standards continued) I.B. Methods and issues of assessment
and evaluation including: Diagnostic, formative and summative instruments Formal, informal
and authentic assessment procedures Biases, tracking, labeling and lowered expectations
Aligning assessment to teaching and learning of special needs students I.G. Social Sciences
including: Human behavior, culture and society Family structures Prejudice, tolerance and other
coping behaviors Artworks and other cultural artifacts II.A. Managing the instructional
environment Creating a positive, inclusive learning environment Establishing and maintaining
rapport with all students Communicating high learning expectations to all students Establishing
and maintaining fair and consistent standards of classroom behavior Creating a safe physical
environment that is conducive to learning III.B. Integrity and ethical behavior, professional
conduct as stated in Pennsylvania’s Code of Professional Practice and Conduct for Educators;
and local, state, and federal laws and regulations III.D. Communicating effectively with
parents/guardians, other agencies and the community at large to support leaning and elementary
education