Catalogue 2019-2020 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Education Department
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Chair: Maria Hantzopoulos;
Professors: Christopher Bjork, Christopher Roellkeab;
Associate Professors: Colette Cannab, Maria Hantzopoulos, Erin McCloskeyab;
Assistant Professor: Jaime Del Razoa, Kimberly Williams Brown;
Lecturer: Julie A. Riess (and Director of Wimpfheimer Nursery School);
Visiting Instructor: Ah-Young Song;
Adjunct Assistant Professor: Leonisa Ardizzone;
Adjunct Instructor: Michael Yarmosky.
a On leave 2019/20, first semester
ab On leave 2019/20
The major in Educational Studies challenges students to think deeply and critically about the ways in which schools socialize as well as educate citizens. It provides ongoing opportunities for conceptual integration across disciplines and domains of theory, policy, and practice. This interdisciplinary approach encourages students to study the impact of political, historical, cultural, economic, and social forces on education. Requirements for the proposed major in Educational Studies press students to develop a solid foundation in learning theory, the social foundations of education, as well as a global perspective on education. All majors take one of the foundational courses offered by the department. Following this, each student works closely with a department faculty member to develop a course plan that meets the requirements for the major and fits the student’s interests. Individuals who complete a major in educational studies are prepared to integrate and apply knowledge to guide personal action and development, regardless of their ultimate career trajectory. The major is an excellent option for students who are interested in issues related to education-but who are not planning to earn a teaching credential at Vassar. Students who earn a teaching credential at Vassar are required to major in another discipline-and will not be eligible for the Educational Studies major.
Education Curriculum and Courses
Major
Correlate Sequence in Educational Studies
The correlate is designed to provide students with an interest in education an opportunity to provide intellectual depth and coherence to their studies in this area. Under the supervision of a member of the Department, students undertaking the correlate will design a sequence of courses that address a central topic or theme related to education. Completing these courses should challenge students to think deeply and critically about the manner in which schools socialize as well as educate citizens, and how the interests of certain stakeholders are privileged or neglected. Students are encouraged to examine educational issues from multiple theoretical and disciplinary perspectives. Expanding upon their own educational histories, they will examine the relationship between theory and practice through study, observation, and reflection. Special Programs
Certification
Fellowship
Approved Courses
Education: I. Introductory
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EDUC 105 - Conceptualizing Latin and Latino/a America Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
(Same as LALS 105 ) Topic for 2019/20b: Popular Education and Social Struggle in Latin America. Popular education builds on the values of solidarity, inclusion, and respect for human rights. Its critical pedagogy and radical education philosophies arm learners with skills and knowledge which many see as vital to the construction of new forms of anti-capitalist politics and social movements. Popular education exists in both formal and informal education environments and characterizes the informal learning that underpins and emerges from protests and social movements. It challenges dominant education approaches and formal educational systems. The latter are legacies of Latin America’s colonial past and driven by present-day state agendas, which critics claim reproduce existing unjust social conditions.
This course examines the development of popular education in Latin America since the 1960s. Students learn about popular education’s philosophical and theoretical assumptions as well as its pedagogical practices. The course first looks historically at the roots of popular education and liberation theology in the history of social protest in Brazil, El Salvador, Mexico, and then at contemporary popular education and social protests in Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Haiti, and Guatemala. Throughout the course, students compare popular education models with formal educational systems. Applying their understandings of the course content, students develop a critical Latin American studies curriculum for middle and high school students that examines the social, economic, gender, environmental, linguistic, and racial-justice issues faced by groups within diverse communities in Latin America. The overall goal of the course is to allow students to become well versed and able to apply a variety of educational theories that are rooted in popular education and fall within the tradition of social justice education. Tracey Holland.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 136 - Early Childhood Education
0.5 unit(s)
This course explores the “why” behind the components of a quality early childhood education learning environment. Drawing on research from early childhood education and developmental psychology, students explore the following topics: school, classroom and playground design; pedagogical methods; core curriculum components; guidance and discipline; the role of parents and families; models of inclusion and diversity; and interfacing with state agencies (e.g., licensing, health department). Observation at Wimpfheimer Nursery School is required. Julie Riess.
First six-week course.
Two 75-minute periods.
Not offered in 2019/20.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 162 - Education and Opportunity in the United States Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
In this course, students identify, explore, and question prevailing assumptions about education in the United States. The objectives of the course are for students to develop both a deeper understanding of the system’s historical, structural, and philosophical features and to look at schools with a critical eye. We examine issues of power and control at various levels of the education system. Participants are encouraged to connect class readings and discussions to personal schooling experiences to gain new insights into their own educational foundations. Among the questions that are highlighted are: How should schools be organized and operated? What information and values should be emphasized? Whose interests do schools serve? The course is open to both students interested in becoming certified to teach and those who are not yet certain about their future plans but are interested in educational issues. Christopher Bjork.
Open only to first-year students; satisfies the college requirement for a First-Year Writing Seminar.
Would you like to see a more just and humane world? The SJQ courses engage you from the very start of your Vassar studies in thinking about the relationship between power and social change. A set of public lectures that address the nature of social justice accompany SJQ courses.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 163 - Centering Justice: A Speaker Series
0.5 unit(s)
Vassar College’s national reputation draws renowned scholars to its campus annually. Recent speakers like Jerusha Lamptee, Carlos Decena, Wilma King, Aisha Simmons, Claire Jean Kim and Jared Sexton provide a pedagogical and curricular opportunity available for students to reflect critically across speakers about how identity intersects with policy, coalition building, resistance movements and liberation. These speakers together present students with a unique curriculum; I propose to provide a framework, pedagogy, space and time for students to draw connections across speakers, across readings and across each their peers’ own experiences as they relate to the speakers.
Second six-week course.
One 2-hour period plus one 50-minute period.
Not offered in 2019/20.
Course Format: CLS
Education: II. Intermediate
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EDUC 210 - The Caribbean: History, Culture, Migration and Development Semester Offered: Fall
0.5 unit(s)
A class that explores the Afro/Indo Anglo Caribbean.
Fall Semester
- Meets every other week in the Fall for 2 hours; Read broadly about the Caribbean, its history, culture, economics/development, migration and Future. Guest lectures, artists etc. invited to be in conversation.
Spring Semester
- An intergroup dialogue class (with select readings and film about the dialogic method and readings/film etc. about the Caribbean) that puts Vassar students in conversation with Poughkeepsie Caribbean students about race, culture and schooling.
Kimberly Williams Brown.
Yearlong course 210-EDUC 211.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 211 - The Caribbean: History, Culture, Migration and Development Semester Offered: Spring
0.5 unit(s)
A class that explores the Afro/Indo Anglo Caribbean.
Fall Semester
- Meets every other week in the Fall for 2 hours; Read broadly about the Caribbean, its history, culture, economics/development, migration and Future. Guest lectures, artists etc. invited to be in conversation.
Spring Semester
- An intergroup dialogue class (with select readings and film about the dialogic method and readings/film etc. about the Caribbean) that puts Vassar students in conversation with Poughkeepsie Caribbean students about race, culture and schooling.
Kimberly Williams Brown
Prerequisite(s): Educ 210
Educ 210-211
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 235 - Issues in Contemporary Education Semester Offered: Fall and Spring
1 unit(s)
This course introduces students to debates about the nature and purposes of U.S. education. Examination of these debates encourages students to develop a deeper and more critical understanding of U.S. schools and the individuals who teach and learn within them. Focusing on current issues in education, we consider the multiple and competing purposes of schooling and the complex ways in which formal and informal education play a part in shaping students as academic and social beings. We also examine issues of power and control at various levels of the U.S. education system. Among the questions we contemplate are: Whose interests should schools serve? What material and values should be taught? How should schools be organized and operated? Christopher Bjork.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 237 - Early Childhood Education: Theory and Practice
1 unit(s)
(Same as PSYC 237 What is the connection between a textbook description of preschool development and what teachers do every day in the preschool classroom? This course examines curriculum development based on contemporary theory and research in early childhood. The emphasis is on implementing developmental and educational research to create optimal learning environments for young children. Major theories of cognitive development are considered and specific attention is given to the literatures on memory development; concepts and categories; cognitive strategies; peer teaching; early reading, math, and scientific literacy; and technology in early childhood classrooms. Julie Riess.
Prerequisite(s): PSYC 231 and permission of the instructor.
One 2-hour period; 4 hours of laboratory participation.
Not offered in 2019/20.
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EDUC 248 - The Human Rights of Children - Select Issues Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
(Same as INTL 248 and LALS 246 ) This course focuses on both theories surrounding, and practices of, the human rights of children. It starts from the foundational question of whether children really should be treated as rights-holders and whether this approach is more effective than alternatives for promoting well-being for children that do not treat children as rights holders.. Consideration is given to the major conceptual and developmental issues embedded within the framework of human rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). The course covers issues in both the domestic and international arenas, including but not limited to: children’s rights in the criminal justice context including life without parole and the death penalty; child labor and efforts to ban it worldwide; initiatives intended to abolish the involvement of children in armed conflict; violence against street children; and the rights of migrant, refugee, homeless, and minority children. The course provides students with an in depth study of the Right to Education, including special issues related to the privatization of education and girls’ education. The course also explores issues related to the US ratification of the CRC, and offers critical perspectives on the advocacy and education-based work of international human rights organizations. Tracey Holland.
Two 75-minute periods.
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EDUC 250 - Introduction to Special Education Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
This course explores the structure of special education from multiple viewpoints, including legislative, instructional, and from the vantage of those who have experience in it as students, teachers, therapists, parents, and other service providers. We tackle conceptual understandings of labeling, difference, and how individuals in schools negotiate the contexts in which “disability” comes in and out of focus. We raise for debate current issues in special education and disability studies such as inclusion, the overrepresentation of certain groups in special education and different instructional approaches.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 162 or EDUC 235 .
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 255 - Race, Representation, and Resistance in U.S. Schools Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
(Same as AFRS 255 and URBS 255 ) This course interrogates the intersections of race, racism and schooling in the US context. In this course, we examine this intersection at the site of educational policy, media and public attitudes towards schools and schooling- critically examining how representations in each shape the experiences of youth in school. Expectations, beliefs, attitudes and opportunities reflect societal investments in these representations, thus becoming both reflections and driving forces of these identities. Central to these representations is how theorists, educators and youth take them on, own them and resist them in ways that constrain possibility or create spaces for hope. Kimberly Williams Brown.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 256 - Bilingualism and/in K-12 Public Education Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
(Same as LALS 256 and URBS 256 . Learning in schools where the language of instruction is new presents a challenge familiar to young immigrants and refugees across the globe. This affects their educational achievement, as well as their sense of inclusion and belonging in their new communities. This course examines the issue of education for English Language Learners through a field based experience in Poughkeepsie Schools. The hands-on component of the course is paired with readings that draw from bilingual education, critical theories of pedagogy, education policy, migration,, and education for social change. A group research and writing project is intended to highlight the academic needs of local ELLs, to examine the current instructional models for bilingual students, especially for newcomers, and to assess the possibilities for the adoption of ELL newcomer programming in the city of Poughkeepsie. The course is open to all Vassar students interested in (a) community-based learning as a tool for social change; (b) learning about the experiences of bilingual students in Poughkeepsie schools; and (c) gaining practical experience researching bilingual education policy. Tracey Holland.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 263 - The Adolescent in American Society Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
This course examines the lives of American adolescents and the different ways our society has sought to understand, respond to, and shape them. Particular attention is paid to the relationship between educational policies/practices and adolescent growth and development. Empirical studies are combined with practical case scenarios as a basis for understanding alternative pathways for meeting the needs of middle school and high school learners. This course is required for secondary school teacher certification.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 .
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 269 - Constructing School Kids and Street Kids
1 unit(s)
(Same as LALS 269 and SOCI 269 ) Students from low-income families and racial/ethnic minority backgrounds do poorly in school by comparison with their white and well-to-do peers. These students drop out of high school at higher rates, score lower on standardized tests, have lower GPAs, and are less likely to attend and complete college. In this course we examine theories and research that seek to explain patterns of differential educational achievement in U.S. schools. We study theories that focus on the characteristics of settings in which teaching and learning take place (e.g., schools, classrooms, and home), theories that focus on the characteristics of groups (e.g. racial/ethnic groups and peer groups), and theories that examine how cultural processes mediate political-economic constraints and human action. Eréndira Rueda.
Not offered in 2019/20.
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EDUC 271 - Hello, Dear Enemy: Mounting an Exhibition of Picture Books on Experiences of War and Displacement Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
(Same as INTL 271 , LALS 271 MEDS 271 and WMST 271 ) At a time when the world is witnessing the largest displacement of people since WWII, due in significant measure to armed conflict, this course examines select case studies (both past and present) of armed conflict and their consequences for children. Journalists, photographers and writers of young adult literature have done much to raise awareness about children and armed conflict, and to treat them in such a way that audiences develop understanding, empathy, and solidarity with children affected by armed conflict. A principal aim of the course is to study the topics of war and displacement, journalism and photography, and young adult literature, and then to mount an exhibition in the Collaboratory of photographs and books that will travel to area schools and libraries, where Vassar students serve as docents. Our work is enriched by study of human rights statutes and policy pertaining to children affected by armed conflict, as well as by interaction with visiting artists and educators. Tracey Holland.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 275 - International and Comparative Education
1 unit(s)
(Same as ASIA 275 and INTL 275 ) This course provides an overview of comparative education theory, practice, and research methodology. We examine educational issues and systems in a variety of cultural contexts. Particular attention is paid to educational practices in Asia and Europe, as compared to the United States. The course focuses on educational concerns that transcend national boundaries. Among the topics explored are international development, democratization, social stratification, the cultural transmission of knowledge, and the place of education in the global economy. These issues are examined from multiple disciplinary vantage points. Christopher Bjork.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 or permission of the instructor.
Two 75-minute periods.
Not offered in 2019/20.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 278 - Education for Peace, Justice and Human Rights Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
(Same as INTL 278 ) The aim of this course is to introduce students to the field of peace education and provide an overview of the history, central concepts, scholarship, and practices within the field. The overarching questions explored are: What does it mean to educate for peace, justice and human rights? What and where are the possibilities and the barriers? How do identity, representation and context influence the ways in which these constructs are conceptualized and defined and what are the implications of these definitions? How can we move towards an authentic culture of peace, justice, and human rights in a pluralistic world? In order to address these questions, we survey the human and social dimensions of peace education, including its philosophical foundations, the role of gender, race, religion and ethnicity in peace and human rights education, and the function and influence of both formal and non-formal schooling on a culture of peace and justice. Significant time is spent on profiling key thinkers, theories, and movements in the field, with a particular focus on case-studies of peace education in practice nationally and worldwide. We examine these case studies with a critical eye, exploring how power operates and circulates in these contexts and consider ways in which to address larger structural inequities and micro-asymmetries. Since peace education is not only about the content of education, but also the process, the course endeavors to model peace pedagogy by promoting inquiry, collaboration and dialogue and give students the opportunity to practice these skills through presentations on the course readings and topics.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 162 or EDUC 235 .
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 281 - Finding Place - Refugee Youth Schooling Experiences in Athens, Greece Semester Offered: Spring
1.0 unit(s)
Vassar students travel with me to Athens to help me collect data for my current research project that explores the following two questions:
- How do refugee students in Greece make meaning of their schooling experiences, both within public government schools and schools in refugee camps?
- How do these programs foster and/or hinder a sense well-being and belonging for refugee youth that are experiencing trauma from war, displacement and dispossession?
Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 282 - Community Schools Research & Practice Semester Offered: Spring
1.0 unit(s)
Using schools as hubs, community schools bring educators, families, and community partners together to offer a range of opportunities, supports, and services to children, youth as well as their families and communities. This intensive focuses on learning about and conducting a PAR (participatory action research) project with a community school. Jaime Del Razo.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 283 - Our Lives and the World: Teaching and learning about human rights alongside local youth
0.5 unit(s)
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Vassar students create a human rights club curriculum for high-school youth that teaches about and for human rights in their localized and global contexts. We consider how curriculum must be both a mirror of students’ own experiences and a window into the experiences of others, and use this a catalyst for social change and action. Vassar students and I then implement the curriculum with HS youth.
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Fall of 2019: Students meet with me once a month for 2 hours. They read broadly about social justice, culturally sustaining pedagogies, popular education, and human rights education and consider ways to design multi-model curricula.
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Spring 2020. We implement the curriculum with HS youth with during school (depending on teacher partner) or after school.
Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Yearlong course 283-EDUC 284 .
Not offered in 2019/20.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 284 - Our Lives and the World: Teaching and learning about human rights alongside local yout
0.5 unit(s)
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Vassar students create a human rights club curriculum for high-school youth that teaches about and for human rights in their localized and global contexts. We consider how curriculum must be both a mirror of students’ own experiences and a window into the experiences of others, and use this a catalyst for social change and action. Vassar students and I then implement the curriculum with HS youth.
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Fall of 2019: Students meet with me once a month for 2 hours. They read broadly about social justice, culturally sustaining pedagogies, popular education, and human rights education and consider ways to design multi-model curricula.
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Spring 2020. We implement the curriculum with HS youth with during school (depending on teacher partner) or after school.
Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Yearlong course EDUC 283 -284.
Not offered in 2019/20.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 285 - Finding Place - Refugee Youth Schooling Experiences in Athens, Greece Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
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Fall of 2019: Students meet with me a couple of times. They read broadly about migrations and schooling, contemporary Greek politics/economy, EU refugee policies, etc. as well as help discuss preparations for trip.
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Winter 2020 or Spring Break 2020. 10-14 Full Days (depending on when we can connect with organizations): Students are expected to help conduct interviews and surveys during the trip, as well as volunteer at the sites (the El Jafra Refugee Center and/or the Mosaico House in Athens).
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Spring 2020 (post trip): Upon return, students are expected to analyze data and meet with me every few weeks.
Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 287 - Science, Spirituality, and Peace Education:Addressing Climate Change Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
Climate Change is arguably the most pressing issue of our day. Utilizing the three core values of peace education as our starting point (Planetary Stewardship, Humane Relationship, Global Citizenship) this course examines global responses to climate change through the lens of peace education and global religions and spirituality. We explore the science of climate change and how polarizing the topic can be thanks in no small part due to variations in educational practices (among other influences). We also explore how various religious traditions conceive of nature, stewardship and climate change and their “call” to address it. Finally, we engage with case studies of real environmental efforts from around the world in both formal and informal educational settings. Leonisa Ardizzone.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 288 - Rethinking Gender in an Educational Context Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
(Same as WMST 288 ) This course uses a feminist lens to examine the social and cultural context of education, the structure of schools and classrooms, and the process of teaching and learning. Issues of gender are inherently tied a variety of identities and subjectivities in ways that intersect and interlock. These intersecting and interlocking identities include, but are not limited to: race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, (dis)ability, socioeconomic class, and citizenship status. How does a feminist pedagogical strategy begin to address contemporary issues in education such as laws about bathrooms, and laws that impact immigrant and undocumented youth? Using a variety of methods including reflective self- inquiry the course will answer the following questions:
1. How do dichotomous understandings of gender shape students’ experiences in schools?
2. How is gender experienced differently depending on other intersecting identities? Are all “women” the same and do they experience gender oppression in the same ways?
3. How do schools and curriculum address issues of gender?
4. What is the relationship between gender, democracy and education?
5. What role do teachers play in identity development in schools?
6. How do schools begin to address violence against particular students (LGBTQ, Black students, Latino students and other students from underrepresented groups)? Kimberly Williams Brown.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 290 - Community-Engaged Learning Semester Offered: Fall or Spring
0.5 to 2 unit(s)
All candidates for certification must demonstrate competency in an intensive community-engaged learning experience at the elementary, middle school, or senior high school level prior to student teaching. The Department.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 297 - Independent Reading Semester Offered: Fall or Spring
0.5 unit(s)
Student initiated independent reading projects with Education faculty. A variety of topics are possible, including educational policy, children’s literature, early childhood education, the adolescent, history of American education, multicultural education, and comparative education. Subject to prior approval of the department. The department.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 298 - Independent Study Semester Offered: Fall or Spring
0.5 to 1 unit(s)
Individual or group projects concerned with some aspect of education, subject to prior approval of the department. May be elected during the regular academic year or during the summer.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 299 - Vassar Science Education Internship Program Semester Offered: Fall and Spring
1 unit(s)
The Vassar Science Education Internship Program provides opportunities for science students from Vassar College to intern with science teachers in area schools for course credit. Students have an opportunity to gain teaching experience, to explore careers in education, and to help strengthen science education in the Poughkeepsie area schools. Each intern works with a science teacher to design a project and to obtain laboratory and/or computer based educational exercise for their class, and to acquire laboratory and/or computing resources for sustaining a strong science curriculum. Interns participate in a weekly seminar on science education at Vassar College.
Enrollment is limited and by permission. Students wishing to pursue internships should meet the following criteria: four completed units of course work in the natural sciences or mathematics, with at least two units at the 200-level, a minimum GPA of 3.4 in science and math coursework, and 3.0 overall.
Course Format: OTH
Education: III. Advanced
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EDUC 300 - Senior Portfolio: Childhood Education Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
This senior seminar focuses on analysis of the student teaching experience. Through the development of their teaching portfolio, senior students examine the linkages between theory, current research, and classroom practice. This course should be taken concurrently with the student teaching practicum. Maria Hantzopoulos.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 301 - Senior Portfolio: Adolescent Education Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
Same as EDUC 300 , but for students earning certification in Adolescent Education. Maria Hantzopoulos.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 302 - Senior Thesis/Project Semester Offered: Fall
0.5 to 1 unit(s)
Individual reading, research, or community service project.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 384 .
Yearlong course 302-EDUC 303 .
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 303 - Senior Thesis/Project Semester Offered: Spring
0.5 unit(s)
Individual reading, research, or community service project.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 302 .
Yearlong course EDUC 302 -303.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 304 - Senior Thesis/Project Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
Individual reading, research, or community service project.
One 1-hour period.
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 305 - Senior Thesis/Project Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
By special permission only. Individual reading, research, or community service project. Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 384 .
Course Format: INT -
EDUC 336 - Childhood Development: Observation and Research Application Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
(Same as PSYC 336 ) What differentiates the behavior of one young child from that of another? What characteristics do young children have in common? This course provides students with direct experience in applying contemporary theory and research to the understanding of an individual child. Topics include attachment, temperament, parent, sibling and peer relationships, language and humor development, perspective taking, and the social-emotional connection to learning. Each student selects an individual child in a classroom setting and collects data about the child from multiple sources (direct observation, teacher interviews, parent-teacher conferences, archival records). During class periods, students discuss the primary topic literature, incorporating and comparing observations across children to understand broader developmental trends and individual differences. Synthesis of this information with critical analysis of primary sources in the early childhood and developmental literature culminates in comprehensive written and oral presentations. Julie Riess.
Prerequisite(s): PSYC 231 and permission of the instructor.
For Psychology Majors: completion of a research methods course.
One 3-hour period. and 4 hours of laboratory observation work.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 350 - The Teaching of Reading: Curriculum Development in Childhood Education Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
The purpose of this course is to examine the nature and process of reading within a theoretical framework and then to examine and implement a variety of approaches and strategies used to promote literacy in language arts and social studies. Special emphasis is placed on material selection, instruction, and assessment to promote conceptual understandings for all students. Observation and participation in local schools is required.
Prerequisite(s): PSYC 105 , PSYC 231 .
Year long course 350/EDUC 351 .
One 2-hour period; one hour of laboratory.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 351 - The Teaching of Reading: Curriculum Development in Childhood Education Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
The purpose of this course is to examine the nature and process of reading within a theoretical framework and then to examine and implement a variety of approaches and strategies used to promote literacy in language arts and social studies. Special emphasis is placed on material selection, instruction, and assessment to promote conceptual understandings for all students. Observation and participation in local schools is required.
Prerequisite(s): PSYC 105 , PSYC 231 , EDUC 350 .
Year long course EDUC 350 /351.
One 2-hour period; one hour of laboratory.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 353 - Pedagogies of Difference: Critical Approaches to Education Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
This course continues the on-going work of raising awareness around difference, equity and social justice - particularly as they relate to race. In Pedagogies of Difference, we go beyond reflection of oppressive societal structures to build skills and engage pedagogy to interrupt oppression in its many forms, with an emphasis on aggressions within our own community. The primary goal of this course is to prepare students at Vassar to productively, honestly and ethnically engage their peers in dialogue about and across racial difference. Students experience and participate in a number of activities used to raise awareness around social identity, consider how they might facilitate such activities, work on facilitating around triggers (their own and those of others) and learn how to put together a workshop to facilitate.
There are two prerequisites for Pedagogies of Difference: EDUC 235 - Issues in Contemporary Education and EDUC 255 - Race, Representation, and Resistance in U.S. Schools (or a similar course). In Education 235, you began the study of both the content and process necessary for facilitating dialogues across difference. In Education 235, students explored how and why students experience schools in vastly different ways and how these differing experiences result from inequitable treatment (and lead to inequitable outcomes). Thus, you began preliminary study of the content of focus in Pedagogies of Difference. In this course, students also begin the study of pedagogy, teaching for perhaps the first time.
The second prerequisite for Pedagogies of Difference is Education 255 or another semester-long course that focuses on race and racism. In Education 255, you continued the study of both the content and process necessary for facilitating dialogue across difference (with a focus on racial difference, in particular). In Education 255, we attempted to set a foundation in race theory, studying different racial theoretical frameworks (with a focus on critical race theory). Students also engaged in courageous conversations about race and racism, pushing themselves to stay on their learning edge (in their risk zone).
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 and EDUC 255 or permission of the instructor.
One 3-hour period.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 355 - The School-to-Military Pipeline Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
As an education department, we encourage our “students to think deeply and critically about the ways in which schools socialize as well as educate citizens” (“About Education Department”, https://education.vassar.edu/about/). This course relates to this previous statement by centering the role that schools play in assisting the military recruitment of its students into the U.S. Armed Forces, which is informed by the ways that “schools socialize as well as educate citizens.” As the largest and highest funded U.S. institution, the U.S. Armed Forces plays a direct and indirect role in the lives of all members of the campus community in the treasure of our country that includes not just money but lives lost and affected. Some of which included our student body, faculty, and staff. Thus, all students benefit from taking this course by examining how these two large U.S. institutions, schools and the military, work together to maintain “The School-to-Military Pipeline.” Jaime Del Razo.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Two 75-minute periods.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 360 - Workshop in Curriculum Development Semester Offered: Fall
0.5 unit(s)
This course focuses on the current trends, research and theory in the area of curriculum development and their implications for practice in schools. Procedures and criteria for developing and evaluating curricular content, resources and teaching strategies are examined and units of study developed. Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): Open to seniors only or permission of the instructor.
First six-week course.
One 3-hour period.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 361 - Seminar: Mathematics and Science in the Elementary Curriculum Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
The purpose of this course is to develop the student’s competency to teach mathematics and science to elementary school children. Lectures and hands-on activity sessions are used to explore mathematics and science content, methodology, and resource materials, with an emphasis on conceptual understanding as it relates to the curricular concepts explored. Special emphasis is placed on diagnostic and remedial skills drawn from a broad theoretical base. Students plan, implement, and evaluate original learning activities through field assignments in the local schools. In conjunction with their instruction of instructional methods in science, students also teach lessons for the Exploring Science at Vassar Farm program. Jaime Del Razo.
Prerequisite(s): Permission of the instructor.
Two 75-minute periods; weekly laboratory work at the Vassar Farm.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 362 - Student Teaching Practicum: Childhood Education Semester Offered: Fall
2 unit(s)
Supervised internship in an elementary classroom, grades 1-6. Examination and analysis of the interrelationships of teachers, children, and curriculum as reflected in the classroom-learning environment.
Prerequisite(s): PSYC 105 , PSYC 231 ; EDUC 235 , EDUC 250 , EDUC 290 , EDUC 350 /EDUC 351 ; EDUC 360 , EDUC 361 may be concurrent.
Permission of the instructor.
Open to seniors only.
Ungraded only.
One or more conference hours per week.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 367 - Urban Education Reform Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
(Same as URBS 367 ) This seminar examines American urban education reform from historical and contemporary perspectives. Particular attention is given to the political and economic aspects of educational change. Specific issues addressed in the course include school governance, standards and accountability, incentive-based reform strategies, and investments in teacher quality. Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 or permission of the instructor.
One 2-hour period.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 369 - Social Citizenship in an Urban Age Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
(Same as HIST 369 and URBS 369 ) During a 1936 campaign speech President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared that in “1776 we sought freedom from the tyranny of a political autocracy.” Since then “the age of machinery, of railroads; of steam and electricity; the telegraph and the radio; mass production and mass distribution—all of these combined to bring forward a new civilization and with it a new problem … . For too many of us the political equality we once had won was meaningless in the face of economic inequality.” Therefore, the President concluded, government must do something to “protect the citizen’s right to work and right to live.” This course looks at how Americans during the twentieth century fought to expand the meaning of citizenship to include social rights. We study efforts on behalf of labor laws, unemployment and old age insurance, and aid to poor mothers and their children. How did these programs affect Americans of different social, racial, and ethnic backgrounds? How did gender shape the ways that people experienced these programs? Because many Americans believed that widening educational opportunities was essential for addressing the problems associated with the “new civilization” that Roosevelt described, we ask to what extent Americans came to believe that access to a good education is a right of citizenship. These issues and the struggles surrounding them are not only, as they say, “history.” To help us understand our times, we look at the backlash, in the closing decades of the twentieth century, against campaigns to enlarge the definition of citizenship. Miriam Cohen.
One 2-hour period.
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EDUC 372 - Student Teaching Semester Offered: Fall
2 unit(s)
Adolescent Education Supervised internship in teaching in a middle, junior, or senior high school, grades 7-12. Examination of the interrelationships of teachers, children, and curriculum as reflected in the classroom-learning environment.
Prerequisite(s): PSYC 105 ; EDUC 235 , EDUC 263 , EDUC 290 , EDUC 373 ; EDUC 392 . (Ungraded only.)
Permission of the instructor.
Open to seniors only.
Course Format: OTH -
EDUC 373 - Adolescent Literacy Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
This course combines literacy research, theory, and practice in the context of adolescent learning. We engage in case study research about the cultural, semiotic, and identity literacies our students produce in contrast to the literacies that are sanctioned and mandated in formal schooling. We define literacy broadly, and consider reading, writing, visual literacy and multimodal literacy– including new technologies. We look at how (im)migration status, race, ethnic heritage, and linguistic identity intersect with youth literacy production. Finally, we explore how literacy training is constructed through methods and curriculum with a special emphasis on diversity.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 or permission of the instructor.
One 3-hour period.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 382 - Reframing Literacy for the 21st Century Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
This course attends to the ways in which a traditional conception of literacy as based solely on reading and writing can be broadened to address the strengths and needs of diverse students and their multiple literacy practices in the twenty-first century. Particular attention will be given to critical literacy and multiliteracies, with consideration for the ways in which different literacies (e.g. media literacies, digital literacies, multimodalities) can conflict or intersect with school-sanctioned literacy practices. Students will understand literacy concepts in context through regular collaborations with high school students. In addition to assigned course readings, students will participate in a book club and compare different literacy theories of their choice from various scholarly traditions. Ah-Young Song
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 or permission of the instructor.
1 2-hour period
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 384 - Advanced Seminar Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
This course explores various approaches to research methods in the field of education, with emphasis on qualitative approaches. The course provides an overview of the different types of educational research, the varied philosophical groundings that drive particular methodological approaches, and discussion on data collection and analysis. Kimberly Williams Brown.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 162 or EDUC 235 .
One 3-hour period.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 385 - American Higher Education: Policy and Practice
.5 unit(s)
This seminar examines American higher education from historical and contemporary perspectives, paying particular attention to how students themselves experience college preparation, admission and campus life. Particular attention is given to the social, political, economic, and cultural challenges associated with policy and practice in private higher education. The types of questions the course addresses include: What changes in policy, administration, and/or instruction are likely to improve student outcomes in higher education in America? What research tools are available to decision-makers in higher education to help inform policy and practice? Who and what are the drivers of reform in higher education and what are their theories of action for improving the college experience? How should consumers of educational research approach the task of interpreting contradictory evidence and information about American higher education? What is an appropriate definition of equality of educational opportunity and how should we apply this definition to American private higher education? What roles do race and socioeconomic status play in American higher education? This semester, our texts and supplementary readings focus on issues pertinent to American higher education in general and highly selective private liberal arts college more specifically. Topics in the course include, but are not limited to: college admissions; student affairs policy and practice; micropolitics within colleges and universities; standards and accountability mechanisms, and efforts to promote diversity and inclusion. Small group case study projects give students the opportunity to develop potential solutions to contemporary problems in American higher education.
Prerequisite(s): One course in Education, American Studies, or Political Science.
Open to juniors and seniors only.
Second six-week course.
Not offered in 2019/20.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 386 - Ghetto Schooling Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)
(Same as LALS 386 and SOCI 386 ) In twenty-first century America, the majority of students attend segregated schools. Most white students attend schools where 75% of their peers are white, while 80% of Latino students and 74% of black students attend majority non-white schools. In this course we will examine the events that led to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka and the 60-year struggle to make good on the promises of that ruling. The course will be divided into three parts. In part one, we will study the Brown decision as an integral element in the fight against Jim Crow laws and trace the legal history of desegregation efforts. In part two, we will focus on desegregation policies and programs that enabled the slow move toward desegregation between 1954 and the 1980s. At this point in time, integration efforts reached their peak and 44% of black students in the south attended majority-white schools. Part three of the course will focus on the dismantling of desegregation efforts that were facilitated by U.S. Supreme Court decisions beginning in the 1990s. Throughout the course we will consider the consequences of the racial isolation and concentrated poverty that characterizes segregated schooling and consider the implications of this for today’s K-12 student population, which is demographically very different than it was in the 1960s, in part due to new migration streams from Latin America, Asia, and the Caribbean. Over the last 40 years, public schools have experienced a 28% decline in white enrollments, with increases in the number of black and Asian students, and a noteworthy 495% increase in Latino enrollments. Eréndira Rueda.
One 2-hour period.
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EDUC 392 - Multidisciplinary Methods in Adolescent Education Semester Offered: Spring
1 unit(s)
This course is designed to engage prospective middle and high school educators in developing innovative, culturally relevant, and socially responsive curricula in a specific discipline, as well as in exploring ways to branch inter-disciplinarily. In particular, students strive to develop a practice that seeks to interrupt inequities in schooling and engender a transformative experience for all students. The first part of the course explores what it means to employ social justice, multicultural, and critical pedagogies in education through self-reflections, peer exchange, and class texts. The remainder of the course specifically looks at strategies to enact such types of education, focusing on methods, curriculum design, and assessment. Students explore a variety of teaching approaches and develop ways to adapt them to particular subject areas and to the intellectual, social, and emotional needs of adolescent learners. There is a particular emphasis on literacy development and meeting the needs of English Language Learners. Maria Hantzopoulos.
Prerequisite(s): EDUC 235 .
One 2-hour period.
Course Format: CLS -
EDUC 399 - Senior Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring
0.5 to 1 unit(s)
Special permission.
Course Format: OTH
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