EDU 589 - Social Foundations (3 cr.)

This course explores the major ways in which the American public school system has both reflected and opposed the greater culture in which it is embedded, with special emphasis on the present and possible future trends affecting the structure and behavior of public schools. The roles of schools in society will be critically examined toward the objective of developing students’ critical professional perspectives. Topics include but are not limited to the school’s traditional role of social reproducer, the technological change to an “information culture,” the effects of high stakes testing, the multiple inside and outside pressures toward reform, the global economy, and environmental and broad cultural changes (e.g. Third Wave immigration, migration patterns, and multicultural and diversity issues).
Prerequisite(s): EDU 280 and student’s major subject-specific methods course(s).
Semester(s) Offered: Fall, Spring