BIRMINGHAM-SOUTHERN COLLEGE
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
COURSE TITLE: ED 201—Introduction to Education
TERM: Fall, 2011
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Kelly A. Russell
OFFICE: Harbert 126A
PHONE: 226-4808
E-MAIL:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course provides an overview of American Education in both public and private settings. Emphasis is placed on why we teach, whom we teach, what we teach, and on developing an informed personal philosophy of education which determines how we teach.
EXPLORATION IN SCHOLARSHIP
Explorations Seminars ask four questions:
· How does one effectively participate in the college community?
· How does one learn to ask the “right” kinds of questions?
· How does one use research to explore a problem?
· How does one work with others to develop better, more useful understandings?
As an Exploration in Scholarship seminar, this course assumes that learning and understanding begin with curiosity. Our understanding grows as we collaborate with others, connect ideas, do research, and give and receive feedback. In this class, we present our ideas in writing, in oral presentations, in class discussions. All of these modes provide us opportunities to practice and hone our learning strategies, strategies that can serve us in this class and in all college coursework and endeavors. In the end, we arrive in a new place, seeing the world in a new way. Identifying new ways of being, doing, and knowing is the essence of learning in college.
GOALS FOR STUDENTS:
As a result of this course, students will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
1. issues facing teachers as professionals.
2. historical and philosophical foundations of learning and how they influence educators.
3. current education issues and trends.
4. schools as organizations and how they operate within the larger community.
5. a range of professional literature, particularly resources that relate to one’s own teaching field(s). [(5)(c)2.(i)]
personal and educational issues related to diversity and multicultural
education.
6. social (quality of life) issues important to teachers, students, and society in general.
7. the importance of parents and/or families as active partners in planning instruction and services. [(2)(c)4.(iv)]
8. roles and responsibilities of para-educators and other paraprofessionals. [(5)(c)1.(iii)]
9. issues related to the future of education.
10. issues related to technology including the safe, responsible, legal and ethical uses of technologies; including fair-use and copyright guidelines and Internet user protection policies.
11. how personal/cultural biases can affect teaching and learning. [(4)(c)5.(i)]
12. how to demonstrate the ability to articulate a personal philosophy, and its
relationship to teaching practices.
TEXTS:
Ayers, W. and Alexander-Tanner, R. (2010). To teach: the journey, in comics.
Kohn, A, (2011) Feel-Bad education: And other contrarian essays on children and schooling.
Brunn, P. (2010). The lesson planning handbook: Essential strategies that inspire student thinking & learning.
Conceptual Framework
Purposeful and intentional teaching focused through a liberal arts lens
The Conceptual Framework articulates a vision of teacher education shared by Birmingham-Southern College and the Department of Education. It is a collection of “this we believe” statements which, together, shape the vision of the liberally educated teachers we seek to produce.
These statements reflect our Department’s philosophical stance, support decisions of continuing acceptance into the Teacher Education Program, shape the nature of classroom teaching within the Department, influence field experiences, internships, and seminars, and help determine text selections. Embedded within the Conceptual Framework are professional and personal dispositions we believe to be crucial attributes of an effective teacher and to be in concert with the liberal arts mission of the College.
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers:
1. Demonstrate Intellectual Curiosity
(BSC 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10)
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers are intellectually curious. We define Intellectual Curiosity as any interest that leads to inquiry. We believe this intellectual curiosity, this wakefulness of mind, is a vital quality of an effective teacher. Intellectually curious individuals exist in a state of constant learning, reading, and researching. Intellectually curious individuals persistently seek solutions to problems and connections between and among divergent topics.
2. Demonstrate Philosophical, Pedagogical, and Academic Grounding
(BSC 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10)
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers know, know why, and know how.
Purposeful and intentional teachers know – they have wrestled with knotty questions and complex academic content from a variety of disciplines.
Purposeful and intentional teachers know why – they have developed a philosophical stance which informs their teaching decisions.
Purposeful and intentional teachers know how – they have acquired a repertoire of teaching moves informed by their pedagogical studies. These teaching moves include the ability to select and use resources and technologies to support teaching and learning.
Purposeful and intentional teachers can clearly articulate their beliefs about teaching and learning, cite supporting research and philosophical underpinnings, and speak to informed applications in a variety of classroom settings.
3. Practice Reflective and Intentional Teaching
(BSC 1, 5, 6, 8, 10)
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers hold a set of principles which guide the decision-making process and which inform practice. We believe that effective teachers do what they do on purpose – each teaching move is intentional and reasoned. We believe that “intentional teachers are thoughtful, reflective people who are conscious of the decisions they make and the actions they take; they live and teach by the principles and practices they value and believe in” (Miller 2008).
4. Practice Advocacy for the Community, the Profession, and for All Children
(BSC 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers know, respect, participate in, and advocate for the communities in which they teach.
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers serve as advocates for the teaching profession. They participate in professional organizations and contribute to the “professional conversations” of their peers. Their actions and attributes are models of advocacy.
We believe that purposeful and intentional teachers know, respect, and advocate for ALL children. They advocate for whatever is necessary to meet the needs of individual members of their learning community.
Birmingham Southern College: Education and the Liberal Arts
Birmingham-Southern College has been a leader of excellence and innovation in liberal arts education in the State of Alabama and in the South for almost a century and a half. The Education Department operates within this liberal arts context to produce graduates who embody William Cronon’s 10 distinguishing attributes of a liberally educated person (BSC 1 – 10):
1. The ability to listen and hear;
2. The ability to read and understand;
3. The ability to talk with anyone;
4. The ability to write clearly and persuasively and movingly;
5. The ability to solve a wide variety of puzzles and problems;
6. The ability to respect rigor not so much for its own sake but as a way of seeking truth;
7. The ability to practice humility, tolerance, and self-criticism;
8. The ability to understand how to get things done in the world;
9. The ability to nurture and empower the people around them; and
10. The ability to follow E. M. Forster’s injunction: “Only connect . . .”
Each course in the Department of Education at Birmingham-Southern College is integrally tied to national and state professional standards, including those set forth by the Interstate Teacher New Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC, 2002), Council on Accreditation in Teacher Education (NCATE, 2002), the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS, 2001), and the Alabama Administrative Code (2004). In addition, the objectives for this course reflect the Standards for Reading Professionals of the International Reading Association (IRA). The close attention paid to integrating these standards into this course ensures that candidates who graduate from this program will be prepared with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to be purposeful and intentional practitioners. Professional standards tied to this course are designed to engage candidates in Purposeful and intentional teaching focused through a liberal arts lens.
ASSESSMENT OF PROFESSIONAL DISPOSITIONS
Faculty in the BSC Department of Education developed a formal process for assessing each candidate’s professional dispositions embedded within the Conceptual Framework and Education and the Liberal Arts. In this course teacher candidates’ professional dispositions will be evaluated.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
· Reflections on Readings from Textbooks and Selected Journals/Websites/Handouts and Class Participation (products) Each class reading assignment should be completed and reflected upon using the graphic organizer provided. These readings and reflections will provide the basis for class discussions and activities. Reflections/Class Participation Products will be turned in ten times during the term. (10 x 10 points each = 100 possible)
· Mid-term and Final Exam: The mid-term and final exam will consist of short answer and essay-type questions. Each will be “open-book” type exams requiring analysis, comprehension, and synthesis of course content. (50 points each = 100 possible)
· Teacher Movie Paper: Instructions and assignment available on Moodle. (50 points possible)
· Photo Story: Instructions and assignment available on Moodle. (50 points possible)
GRADES: % of Total Points A =93-100, A- = 90-92, B+ = 87-89, B = 83-86, B- =80-82, C+ = 77-79, C = 73-76, C- = 70-72, D+ = 67-69, D = 60-66, F =60 and below
HONOR CODE
Please be reminded that the BSC Honor Code applies to this class as well as to all your classes. You should review the Honor Code since it applies to your time in class, your behavior outside of the class, and to your work submitted to meet class requirements. You should pay particular attention to the section in the Student Handbook defining plagiarism (page 2) since you will be completing written and oral assignments for this course. If you are found to be “in violation” of the Honor Code, you will not pass this course.
Release/Liability Letter: Before you can go into a school or do any other off-campus visits associated with this class, it is imperative that you have a signed liability letter on file in the Department of Education office. Students under age 19 must have a parent/guardian sign the letter. A separate form is needed for each course during each term.