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METROPOLITAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Education Department

EDU 600 Principles of Urban Education

REVISED SYLLABUS—9/23/2013

(4 Semester Credits)

Fall 2013

Course Description / Topics Covered / Text
Learning Outcomes / Class Expectations: / Course Requirements:
Assignments / Educational Philosophy Paper / Grades
Course Schedule / Field Experience / Professional Portfolio
Instructor: / Manuel Barrera, PhD / Location: MPLS M1500
Office Phone: / 651-999-5923 / Day and Time: 6 p.m. – 9:20 p.m.
Office: / M 1700 / Dates: 08/26/13 - 12/09/13
Office Hours: / By Appointment /
Course Website:

Prerequisites: This graduate seminar is designed for licensed educators and individuals with a bachelor’s degree.

Course Description

This course is designed for graduate level study and conducted in seminar format. The purpose is to explore the impact of successful teaching of diverse students in urban classrooms. Students in the seminar will examine issues related to urban education mirrored in research, theory, and practice while looking at instructional approaches as reflected in the Minnesota Board of Teaching Standards of Effective Practice for Beginning Teachers (State Statute 8700.2000) for all teacher licensing programs.. Topics will include but not exclusive to multicultural competencies, curriculum transformation, and teacher dispositions. In addition, students will come to understand the role of the students’ family, culture, social class, and ethnicity. This is a critical reading and writing course.

Urban Schools Field Experiencesome assignments will be required to take place in urban educational settings.These field experiences can serve also as clock hours toward completion of requirements for entry into teacher candidacy for the Metropolitan State Urban Teacher Program. Please review Metropolitan State’s Urban Teacher Program field experience requirements at UTP Field Experience Website (

Topics Covered Back to Top

This course focuses on diverse urban students, their families, communities and the social context needed to promote social equity in academic outcomes for historically and currently under-served urban youth. Information will examine characteristics and needs of urban learners; issues in urban education; Standards of Effective Practice; teacher dispositions; reflective practice; issues of race, culture, and families in the urban setting; gender/diverse orientations; and English language acquisition.

TextBack to Top

Our Schools Suck: Students Talk Back to a Segregated Nation on the Failures of Urban Education (2009). Alonso, G. Anderson, N. S., Su. C. & Theoharis, J. New York, NY: NYU Press.

Learning OutcomesBack to Top

The learning outcomes are divided into three learning areas: Urban teaching; Reflective practice; and multicultural education. At the end of the course students will be able to:

Urban Teaching

  • Discuss research, theories, and strategies that foster resiliency among urban students.
  • Identify key components that foster school system and practitioner efforts to support equitable standards-based educational outcomes for historically under-served students of diverse cultural, linguistic, and social backgrounds
  • Learn effective educational practices, strategies, and dispositions that support the academic needs of urban learners.
  • Discuss and describe key concepts addressed in the Minnesota Board of Teaching Standards of Effective Practice for Beginning Teachers
  • Gain an awareness of family and community dynamics that influence student achievement
  • Describe ways to identify cultural and linguistic strengths of urban learners and families to foster student learning.

Reflective Practice

  • Define and Describe reflective practice
  • Engage in reflective techniques and strategies
  • Assess one’s individual strengths, challenges, and ongoing professional needs for continued development of reflective practice

Multicultural Education

  • Review individual educational philosophy and professional dispositions in context of multicultural educational theory andpractice
  • Review literature and engage in discussions to expand awareness and understanding how privilege, race, racism, and prejudice influence choices of instructional practice
  • Review and discuss cultural, ethnic, and linguistic demographics and their implications for schooling in Minnesota and the nation
  • Discuss and reflect upon individual awareness of personal and social identities based on race, social class, gender, language, sexual orientation, and disability and how these affect educational practice
  • Review and discuss the interrelationships of language, culture, and classroom instruction, especially for the education of English language learners
  • Identify and analyze teaching practices for equity in academic achievement among diverse learners
  • Demonstrate an ability to work with a culturally and linguistically diverse urban students

Competence Statement

Students will know research, theory, and practice to make informed instructional decisions that enhance academic achievement for urban learners.

Statement Regarding Students with Disabilities

It is the policy of Metropolitan State University to provide reasonable accommodations to students with disabilities that may impact their ability to participate to meet course requirements. For information, please call or contact the Office of Disability and Special Services at the following:

Metropolitan State University

Disability Services Office

700 E. Seventh St.

St. Paul MN 55106

Phone: 651-793-1525

651-793-1540

Fax: 651-793-1547

TTY: 651-772-7723

E-mail:

Official Website:

Class Expectations:Back to Top

  1. Students are expected to attend all scheduled classes and are responsible for all material covered in class and in the required text.

a)Absences for scheduled classes:

i)Excused absences include immediate family emergencies, illness, and university or school business activities (see university/school event criteria below).

ii)Any absences, excused or unexcused, must be made up through documented evidence of individual efforts to acquire and review material covered during class.

iii)Individuals needing to attend district or university events that conflict with class time must present documented evidence of the meeting/event demonstrating (a) that the individual is required to attend and (b) the date and specific times required for attendance. Phone messages by the student or administrators are unacceptable as sole evidence for excused absences.

iv)2 excused absences, or 1 unexcused absence will result in a lowering of the student’s potential course grade by one grade point (from A = 4.0 to B=3.0, for example).

v)3 absences, excused or unexcused, will result in a potential grade no better than C for the course.

vi)More than 3 absences, excused or unexcused, will require the student to withdraw (failing or passing depending on circumstances) or result in a failing grade of “F”.

  1. Students should be prepared for each class

a)Read all assigned material before each scheduled class.

b)Classes will be based on concepts presented in the text and other assigned reading materials. Students must, therefore, be familiar with the reading in order to maximize acquisition of new skills.

c)Knowledge of terminology and basic concepts from assigned readings will be evaluated as evidence of appropriate participation during classroom instruction.

  1. Assignments are due at assigned dates and times

a)Due dates are on the syllabus. Assignments are due at the beginning of class unless otherwise specified.

b)Late assignments will be dropped one letter grade per day.

c)Assignments later than 3 days will not be accepted and result in a failing grade for the assignment.

  1. Unless otherwise specified, all assignments must be submitted electronically (attached document to en e-mail message or on accessible storage media).

a)Assignments will be graded for appropriate writing and formatting conventions as specified.

b)Please consult the accompanying “Written Assignments Criteria” guidelines for further details.

Professional Conduct and Academic Dishonesty

Your conduct in this class will be observed and evaluated (please see grading criteria)

Professional Conduct:

Professional conduct is here defined as skills required for successful future teaching and appropriate interpersonal interactions in urban educational settings. In addition to fulfilling class assignments, the student is expected to participate fully in class activities and to demonstrate positive, cooperative behaviors toward all course participants and course activities. Up to one full letter grade can be added or deducted to your final score at the instructor’s discretion based on documented evidence. Extreme acts demonstrating lack of appropriate professional conduct, such as (but not limited to) sustained class disruption or academic dishonesty will warrant a grade of “F” for the course.

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:

Students are expected to abide by the rules of conduct as specified in the MetropolitanStateUniversity’s Student Handbook and Code of Student Conduct (Policy #1020). This handbook refers both to general student conduct and plagiarism in student work and is available online at

Dishonesty in any forms such as (but not limited to) plagiarism or cheating on tests and assignments will not be tolerated. Students who misrepresent their work or commit another act of dishonesty will receive a failing grade for the course and will be recommended for removal from or non-admittance to teacher education. Such acts of dishonesty will also be brought to the attention of University academic standards governing bodies with a recommendation for expulsion.

GradesBack to Top

Semester grades will be based on overall performance including course assignments, class participation, attendance, and professional conduct. Grades are based on the following levels of competence:

A to A- = work considered “distinguished”, that is, work exemplifying honors level effort in writing, presentation, and overall class expectations. In addition to full credit on assignments, the student must attend regularly and make exemplary contributions to the class in a manner typical of professional education practice.

B to B- = superior work in meeting criteria of assignments and class expectations. Demonstration of high quality writing and presentation will be among the criteria;acceptable for meeting teacher candidacy standards.

C = work considered acceptable in meeting specified criteria;satisfactory for college credit but not acceptable for meeting teacher candidacy standards.

D = work that is minimally acceptable for college credit.

F = unsatisfactory work considered unacceptable.

Course Requirements:Back to Top

Attendance

Because of the interactive nature of this course, regular attendance is important—a prerequisite for good teaching is showing up each day prepared. Measurement of attendance will be based on documentation embedded in the weekly curriculum-based measurements conducted every session at the beginning of class. It is imperative that you be on time so that you can complete the pre-assessment sessions and have your attendance documented. If you are late for class, you will receive a measure of “0” for that session. However, I will count you present if you are late only if you complete the “late procedures for pre-assessments” documentation (below) and send me the documentation via email before the next class session.

Pre-assessment Measures of Course Sessions

To facilitate your comprehension of basic knowledge contained within the course, we will document your level of preparation for participating in course sessions; each session will begin with a 15-minutepre-assessment measure on content relevant to the class session. These will consist of free-writes or quick probes based on the topic or question posed at the beginning of class. Students will write or complete probes for approximately 5 to 8 minutes and then discuss, first in pairs, then the instructor will call randomly on 3 or 4 pairs to share with the entire class (5 minutes). The final five minutes will consist of either synthesis by the instructor or further questions. All individual writings or probes will be submitted at the end of the pre-assessment session for recording. Semester grading of these pre-assessments will be 100% for taking and submitting probes or writing and then 0 to 100% based on the teacher’s evaluation of the content. Absence or tardiness resulting in missing the pre-assessment will be counted as “0” and included in the grading, but partial credit can be made up by following the procedures below.

Late Procedures for pre-assessments

Because these pre-assessments are intended to gauge student preparation and attendance, it is not possible to “make up” this portion of course requirements if a student is tardy and misses the pre-assessment session. These pre-assessments are reviewed in class immediately as an “anticipatory set” for the rest of the session. Hence, individuals who are tardy and miss pre-assessments will receive a grade of “0” and will be counted as absent for that class unless the following are completed:

  1. Completea summary of the discussion (not the entire session as that is part of your R&A journal). You can accomplish this by asking me for a copy of the pre-assessment and summarizing the discussion through collaboration with a partner in the class who can help you.
  2. Submit your summary to me via an email message (as an attachment not in the body of the message) before the next class session or as arranged with me.

By doing so, I will not count your tardiness as an absence and will take your effort into consideration at the end of grading.

Class Discussions and Activities

Students will participate in small and large group discussions, activities and projects designed for learning and application of knowledge. Pre-assessment measures of previous and new content will be employed to monitor course attendance and provide student a focus on learning objectives of each class.

Class Format

The course will be taught in an interactive format, relying on all students to be well prepared and provide thoughtful commentary that add value to the discussion. Each class will consist of lecture/discussion presentations and collaborative activity. Prepare for class by reading the assigned material and consider bringing in articles from reputable sources on topics that expand our knowledge base.

Learning Activities

Practices and strategies will include but are not limited to: discussion, cooperative problem-solving, conceptual mapping, inquiry, lecture, and peer review.

Assignments Back to Top

There are no extra credit opportunities for this course. If you miss two or more assignments you must schedule to meet with the instructor to evaluate whether to continue with the course. You will prepare and present materials. In order for an assignment to receive full credit it must be turned in on the due date. In case of oral assignments, the presentation must be given at the assigned time.

Reflection/Analysis Journal (100 pts)—Reviewed 3 times during the semester (see Class Schedule)

Journals in this course have two purposes:

(1)for students to describe course content and

(2)For students to discuss potential uses of the content in teaching and/or in one’s education.

A "double entry" reflection and analysis approach is to be used in the following manner:

First, construct the 2 column, multiple-row table as below:

Reflection / Analysis
Place date of class at the top of each cell here.
  • Discuss what took place during class.
  • What specific information was presented?
  • How was it presented?
  • Only descriptive information or lecture notes should be written in this column.
  • Writing conventions (e.g., APA) are not necessary in journals.
  • Note information in a way that will best allow you to write your analysis (in the adjacent cells)
  • Be thorough, but concise.
(Table formats automatically expand by default. Consult me if you have problems with this format.) /
  • Discuss potential uses for teaching and/or one’s education here.
  • Refer specifically to the content presented.
  • Note that such specificity is impossible without good notes.

Use a different row for each class period. Borders and lines between cells are optional.

Reciprocal Teaching Experience (100 pts)

Students will make a presentation to the class on selected chapters from the text. Prepare a forty-minute interactive presentation. In addition to the course text, locate an additional source that supports or expands the knowledge presented. Locate an article from a professional journal on the topic that you present.

Consider the questions, How does the information contribute to our study of multicultural education? How does the knowledge inform us of how to teach urban learners?

Reciprocal Teaching Presentation Format
  • Engage the class in an activity to learn the information that you teach (e.g., pair & share, collaborative group work, fast write)
  • Present an outline of the chapter
  • Present an outline of what you will cover in the presentation
  • Select and discuss specific facts from the chapter
  • State why this information is pertinent to our development as urban teachers
  • Provide a handout for the audience
Field Experience Assignment (100 pts)Back to Top

The practicum is required of all students enrolled in the course. It is designed for licensed or non-licensed teacher candidates to review and reflect upon the experiences of urban students in diverse educational settings. Students without previous educational background or practical teaching experience in urban settings can use this assignment to document the field experience requirements for admission to teacher candidacy in the Metropolitan State Urban Teacher Program.

Field Experience Expectations

The field experience is to be conducted in an urban setting as specified by the UTP “Documentation of Urban Field Experiences” document (available online at my website). Victor Cole, the UTP Field Experience Coordinator, is available to help students with ideas and locations for conducting field experience appropriate to meet UTP guidelines. Please contact Victor at 612-659-7182 or stop by his office at H1411.

Documentation evaluation is based upon the instructor’s review and compliance with the Board of Teaching criteria.

Required: Documentation of at least 40 hours of work with historically underserved urban learners.

Guidelines for Field Experience Assignment—100 pts.

Visiting and observing in urban K-12 settings is central to your understanding of the content of this course. It will also help you be reflective about your future practice. You will be expected to conduct the following activities:

1.)Conduct interviews of urban students from diverse backgrounds that are different than your own background; each member of the team will conduct an individual interview. These interviews will be guided by your own questions that reflect how students perceive their education in the schools they attend.

2.)Conduct interviews of urban community members from similarly diverse backgrounds described in #1 above. Team members can conduct interviews as a focus group of no less than 3 individuals. The content of these interviews will be along the same lines as the student interviews, but reframed for parents or adult community members.