Office:221 C South Hall Office Hours: MWF 11:00-12:00

/ EDUC 501: Psychological and Philosophical Theories of Learning
Spring Semester, 2006
Dr. Jane Fowler Morse

Instructor: Jane Fowler Morse Office Phone: 585 243 3046

E-Mail: or by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This course will examine basic philosophical and psychological assumptions that affect the process of education in order to assess their effect on decisions regarding teaching and learning.

I expect you to complete all readings before the class day on which they are listed and to come to class prepared to participate in activities and discussions. I may add short quizzes or assignments to the announced syllabus at my discretion. In order to accommodate the needs of our class, I may deviate from the announced syllabus from time to time.

Your class attendance is doubly important because each daily meeting represents a week’s assignments in a semester-long class. Attendance allows you to absorb and discuss all the materials through participation as well as to know the current topics and assignments.

COURSE PREREQUISITES:

Admission to the graduate School of the Ella Cline School of Education

COURSE RATIONALE:

This course infuses the constructivist approach to teaching and learning in which teacher candidates use their prior knowledge and social contexts to interact and develop relevant knowledge, skills and dispositions to become teachers committed to improve the lives of students through education. This course is consistent with the following Geneseo core values:

Geneseo mission to develop socially responsible citizens with skills and values important to the pursuit of an enriched life and success in the world; and
The School of Education mission to prepare future teachers to be reflective, critical thinkers, adept at problem solving, and committed to the development of communities of inquiry to ensure that all students have the opportunity to learn the skills necessary for a productive life and responsible citizenship.

Consistent with SUNY policies, regulations of the New York State Department of Education, NAEYC standards, and with the School of Education Conceptual Framework, this course will provide candidates the opportunity to acquire the knowledge, skills, and dispositions pertinent to the specific learner outcomes listed below.

Specifically, this course will provide the theoretical background for understanding various philosophical and psychological theories of learning, their implications for education, and the cumulative and eclectic nature of theories of learning, leading to a full understanding of the theory of constructivism and its implications for education.

REQUIRED TEXTS, READINGS, AND MATERIALS:

Required Texts:

Dewey, John. Human Nature and Conduct. Dover, Mineola, NY, 2002 (1922).

Fosnot, Catherine, Constructivism: Theory, Perspectives, and Practice, 2e. Teachers College Press: New York, 1996. (Some used copies may be the first edition, which is fine.) (abbreviated Fosnot)

Jones, M. Gail, Brett D. Jones, and Tracy Y. Hargrove. The Unintended Consequences of High Stakes Testing.Rowman and Littlefield: Oxford 2003. (abbreviated Jones)

Ozman, Howard, and Samuel Craver. The Philosophical Foundations of American Education, Seventh Edition. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 2003.

[Abbreviated PFE]

Plato, Meno, trans by G.M.A. Grube. Hackett: Indianapolis, 1976. [or any edition]

Yu, Tianlong. In the Name of Morality: Character Education and Political Control. Peter Lang Publishing: New York, 2004. (abbreviated Yu)

E-res readings:

In addition, reserve readings will be required. (See list below). These may be obtained through e-res at the library home page (password for EDUC 501)

Jane Fowler Morse, “Fostering Autonomy”

Jane Fowler Morse, “On idealism and realism”

Jane Roland Martin, “What should we do with a hidden curriculum when we find one?”

Henry Giroux, “Rewriting the discourse of racial identity: Towards a pedagogy and politics of whiteness,” Harvard Educational Review, 67:2 (Summer 1997). 285-321. (full text available at Proquest).

The primary source readings (psr) in each chapter of Ozman and Craver are included in the assignment. Some additional readings may be announced.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

Graded components of this course include five applications, class participation, (surveys, joining in the discussion in class, applications completed, etc.), a take-home midterm exam, a term paper, and a final examination, weighted in the percentages shown.

Surveys 05%

Participation (discussion, applications, being there, participating)10%

Article Review15%

Midterm Exam20%

Term Paper25%

Final Examination25%

COURSE GRADING PROCEDURES:

I calculate my grades on a spreadsheet, rounding each graded component down from .4 and up from .5 as I enter them. Final grades, which are calculated from rounded individual graded components, are rounded in the same way. If you wish to discuss a grade, you must do so within two days of receiving the graded item back from me. I will not consider changing any grades later. I keep all final examinations, but invite you to come by my office to see yours anytime during the semester following this.

I encourage you to consult me concerning a final position paper topic and resources early in the session. You will submit a tentative outline and bibliography on Nov. 11, but you should be thinking about your paper long before that. I will be happy to consult with you about your term paper, given enough time. The library also offers an individualized term paper consultation service. You may request this by clicking on Request Forms in Libraries on the Geneseo home page at ( Late papers will not be accepted without a prior agreement with me.

Writers of plagiarized papers will fail the course. Be sure to document all sources carefully. (The definition of plagiarism and a description of the procedure to be followed in cases of plagiarism are to be found in the Guide to Graduate Studies and or in the Undergraduate Bulletin.)

Scale of final letter grades:

A100-94%

A-93-90%

B+89-87%

B86-84%

B-83-80%

C+79-77%

C76-74%

C-73-71%

D69-66%;

E65% or below

[Note: 80% (or B-) is the minimum passing grade in graduate courses]

Table of Readings, Assignments, and Examinations:

Date: / Topic: / Reading:
Week 1
1/19 / Introduction to Philosophy of Education / Buy books
Week 2
1/26 / Plato, Idealism / Plato, The Meno, and PFE Chapter 1, including “The Myth of the Cave”
Week 3
2/2 /

Realism

/ PFE Chapter 2; Morse, “Idealism and realism as philosophies of education” (e-res)
Week 4
2/9 / Pragmatism / PFE Chapter 4
Week 5
2/16 / Dewey, Human Nature and Conduct / Parts One and Two (Common chapters, the first two in every section; Individual chapters, remaining chapters assigned in groups {see table below})
Week 6
2/23 / Dewey, Human Nature and Conduct / Parts Three and Four (same)
Week 7
3/2 / Reconstructionism; Moral Education, In the Name of Morality / PFE, Chapter 5 (first section); Yu, Intro, Chps. 1, 2, 6 in common; Remaining Chapters assigned in groups
Week 8
3/9 / Moral education (Yu and Morse) / Group Chapters in Yu; Morse, “Fostering Autonomy” (e-res)

Spring Break March 13-17 No Classes

Week 9
3/23 / High Stakes Testing / Jones, Jones, and Hargrove, Chapters 1, 2, 9, 10, 11, in common; Chapters 3-8 assigned in groups
Week 10
3/30 / Behaviorism / PFE, Chapter 6
Week 11
4/6 / Existentialism / PFE, Chapter 7
Week 12
4/13 / Constructivism / Fosnot, Introduction and Chapters 1-2 in common
An outline or brief description and tentative bibliography of your proposed term paper topic is due on 4/6 by e-mail (or mailed hard copy).
Week 13
4/20 / Constructivism (wrap up) / Fosnot, individual chapters in groups

Term papers due Thursday, April 20 in class

Week 14
4/27 / Postmodernism / Martin article (e-res) article and Giroux article (on line)

Study Days, May 2-3

Week 15: Final Examination: Thursday, May 4, 6:45-9:45 PM (I will try to reschedule for 5 PM, but may not be able to do so.)

Table of Dewey Readings:

Group: / Part 1 / Part II / Part III / Part IV
1 / Sections III, IV, and V
2 / Section VI / Sections III and IV
3 / Sections V, VI, and VII
4 / Sections III, IV, and V
5 / Sections VI, VII, and VIII
6 / Section IX / Sections III and IV

Table of Individual Chapters for other readings:

Group: /

Fosnot Chapters

Yu Chapters

/ Jones, et al. Chapters
1 / Assigned by topic and inte-rest / 3 / 3
2 / 3 / 4
3 / 4 / 5
4 / 4 / 6
5 / 5 / 7
6 / 5 / 8

Assignments and due dates:

Applications (five) due on the day we will discuss them.

Article Review and presentation due on the day you sign up for doing it.

Surveys of the Chapters in Ozman and Craver will be posted by Friday of the preceding week. You are required to do at least five of the surveys. Surveys must be completed by noon on the Thursday of that topic.

An outline or brief description of your proposed term paper topic is due on April 6 (or earlier if you wish), plus a tentative bibliography of at least five sources as described on the assignment sheet.

Term Papers are due Thursday, April 20. Because of the time I will need to grade term papers, I cannot accept late papers without a prior agreement with me.

OUTBOX:

I will use the outbox to distribute copies of PowerPoints, overheads, and handouts of various kinds. Whenever I place something new in the outbox, I will notify the class by e-mail. The outbox will be organized by weeks, corresponding to the syllabus. All assignments and other documents will be in the outbox. Outboxes may be accessed at then select Education, then select jfmorse, then select EDUC 501. E-res (electronic reserve) can be accessed through the Geneseo home page, then select College Libraries, then select E-res on the top left bar.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK for Graduate Education at the State University of New York—Geneseo, Ella Cline Shear School of Education:

All graduate programs in education at Geneseo will prepare candidates to become accomplished educators who can:

1. Link content, curriculum development, assessment, and pedagogy with the latest developments in the field; enhance the profession of education.

2. Link theory to practice.

3. Connect home, school, and community in the practice of education; to develop, define, and strengthen the profession of education.

4. Pursue advocacy and issues in education.

5. Understand the theory and implement the practice of multicultural education.

6. Interpret and implement the results of research in education in various fields, design and carry out action research in the classroom or other lab or clinical settings, and/or design and carry out ethnographic research in local schools.

7. Engage in and reflect on clinical practice.

[The entire Graduate Conceptual Framework is in my outbox for EDUC 501,

as well as in the School of Education outbox.]

Intended learning Outcomes for EDUC 501:

Students in EDUC 501 will

gain a philosophical perspective on education and develop an analytic framework from which to examine education critically [GCF 2]*
understand the impact of theories of psychology on education [GCF 1]
understand the historical development of theories of philosophy and psychology, the historical interconnection between them, and their impact on education in different periods [GCF 2]
understand the relation of theory to practice in education (praxis)[GCF 2, 5]
apply both philosophical and psychological theories of teaching and learning to the practice of education [GDF 4]

become reflective practitioners of education [GCF 1]

Graduate Conceptual Framework / Learning Outcomes for EDUC 488 / Assessments:*
(1) (b) Enhance the profession of education / (1) gain a philosophical perspective on education and develop an analytic framework from which to examine education critically / Paper, discussions, article review, examinations, and applications
(2) link theory to practice / (2) understand the impact of theories of psychology on education [GCF 1]; (2) understand the impact of theories of psychology on education [GCF 1]; (5) apply both philosophical and psychological theories of teaching and learning to the practice of education [GDF 4] / Paper, discussions, article review, examinations; and applications
(3) (b) develop, define, and strengthen the profession of education. / (3) understand the historical development of theories of philosophy and psychology, the historical interconnection between them, and their impact on education in different periods [GCF 2] / Paper, discussions, examinations
(4) Understand the theory and implement the practice of multicultural education / (5) apply both philosophical and psychological theories of teaching and learning to the practice of education [GDF 4] / Applications, discussions, article review, examinations
(6) Interpret and implement the results of research [into the philosophical and psychological theories] in education / (1) Enhance the profession of education by understanding the impact of multicultural background and experiences on children. (GCF 6) / Paper, discussions, article review; examinations

Description of assessments:*

One term paper: a 10-15 page paper on some chosen aspect of philosophical and/or psychological aspects of education
Five applications: a 1-2 page informal paper applying a philosophical and/or psychological theory of education to educational practice
weekly class discussions
One article review: a 3-4 paper reviewing an article related to the theories studied and relating them to educational practice
A midterm examination
A final examination

(*For a full description of assignments, see assignment sheet for each type of assignment.)

DISCLAIMER STATEMENT FOR NATIONAL ACCREDITATION:

The Ella Cline Shear School of Education is seeking national accreditation for its programs through the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education [NCATE]. Part of the accreditation process includes review of samples of teacher candidates' course work by professional societies and the NCATE Board of Examiners. Therefore, some parts of your course work may be selected and used as an example to demonstrate that the learning outcomes are being addressed and achieved in this course.

Please be advised that to ensure your privacy, names will be removed from the selected work. If you do not wish to participate in this process, please state your intent in writing by Friday of the first week of the semester

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES STATEMENT:

Students who have documented special needs or disabilities that may affect their ability to access information and or material presented in this course are encouraged to contact Tabitha Buggie-Hunt, Office of Disability Services at 245-5112.

BIBLIOGRAPHY of suggested additional readings:

[see also Ozman and Craver at the end of each chapter]

Idealism

Teloh, Henry, Socratic Education

Plato, Apology,Republic, Theatetus, Protagoras

Descartes, Rene, Discourse on Method, Meditations on First Philosophy

Kant, On Education, Prolegomena to the Study of any Future Metaphysics, The Metaphysics of Morals

Realism

Aristotle, The Nichomachean Ethics, The Politics

Locke, John, Some Thoughts Concerning Education

Pragmatism

William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience, Pragmatism

John Dewey, Democracy and Education, The Moral Principles Underlying Education, School and Society, The Child and the Curriculum, Experience and Education (All of Dewey’s writings are available on line through Columbia University)

Reconstructionism

Reitman, Sanford, The Educational Messiah Complex

Illich, Ivan, Deschooling Society

Counts, George, “Address to the Teachers of this Nation” (available on e-res for my INTD 203)

Behaviorism

Skinner, B. F., About Behaviorism, Walden Two, The Technology of Teaching

Kohn, Alfie, Punished by Rewards, The Schools Our Children Deserve

Feminism:

Martin, Jane Roland, The Schoolhome, The Ideal of the Educated Woman,

AAUP, How Our Schools Shortchange Girls, Gender Gaps

Helen Bradford Thompson, The Mental Traits of Sex (conclusion available on e-res for my INTD 203)

Sadker, David and Myra, Failing at Fairness

Existentialism

Freire, Paulo, Pedagogy of the Oppressed

Maxine Greene, Landscapes of Learning

Constructivism

Luis Moll, Vygotsky and Education: Instructional Implications and Applications of Sociohistorical Psychology

Lev Vygotsky, Thought and Language

Piaget, The Child’s Conception of the World, The Psychology of the Child

Marxism:

Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto, Theses on Feuerbach, The Gotha Program

Henry A Giroux, Peter L McLaren, eds., Critical Pedagogy, the State, and Cultural Struggle (1989)

Raymond Allen Morrow, Social Theory and Education: A Critique of Theories of Social and Cultural Reproduction (1995)

H. Svi Shapiro, David E. Purpel, eds., Critical Social Issues in American Education: Transformation in a Postmodern World (1998)

Postmodernism

Stanley Aronowitz and Henry A. Giroux, Postmodern Education

Henry A. Giroux, Border Crossings, The Abandoned Generation: Democracy beyond the Culture of Fear

Rorty, Richard, The Mirror of Nature

Joan Wink, Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the Real World, 2e

Valerie Babb, Whiteness visible: The Meaning of Whiteness in American Literature and Culture

bell hooks, Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom

Miscellaneous articles

Rorty, Amelia, Philosophers on Philosophy of Education (a compendium of articles by contemporary philosophers on classical philosophers of education; a good source for article reviews.)\

Journals in Philosophy of Education

Educational Theory

Journal of Educational Thought

Inquiry

National Women’s Studies Association Journal

Educational Studies

Educational Foundations

Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies (online at:

Education and Social Justice, a student journal available online at Geneseo (online at:

Rethinking Schools (online at: