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“The College of Education is dedicated to the ideals of Collaboration, Academic Excellence, Research, and Ethical Practice (CARE). These are key tenets in the Conceptual Framework of the College of Education. Competence in these ideals will provide candidates in educator preparation programs with skills, knowledge, and dispositions to be successful in the schools of today and tomorrow.”
Course Prefix and Number:EDF 2085Credit Hours: 3
Course Title: Introduction to Diversity for Educators
Course Prerequisites (if any): EDF 2005 Introduction to the Teaching Profession
Regular Instructor(s): Dr. Lauren B. Isaac
Course Description: What does it mean to become an educator within an increasingly diverse and global society? This question will be the main focus of this course. In order for students to make informed decisions about their role in the teaching profession, they first must consider the sociocultural, philosophical, and ideological aspects of education and schooling in the global context of the United States. This course presumes that global macro-level processes (e.g. economy, migration, immigration) have an impact on the micro level process of schooling. Students in this course will engage in self-awareness and reflection on their own positions within macro (global) and micro (local) systems of culture, race, gender, class, sexuality, and ability. Ultimately, the course provides students with critical theoretical schools with which to think about schooling and diversity within a global society.
EDF 2085 is certified as a Global Citizens course and may be used to fulfill partial requirements of the Global Citizen Awards upon successful completion of the course (final grade of B or higher).”
Field-based courses statement: This course is a field based course. If you intend to withdraw from this course after the drop/ad date, you should inform your instructor before doing so as it may impact your ability to gain placement in a future term.
Course Objectives: This course will: 1 – introduce students to the concept of diversity as it is relates to the global context of American society and schools; 2 – guide students to conceptually locate schools within a larger political, cultural, and social framework; 3 – critically reflect on the meanings of becoming an educator within a diverse and global society; 4 – gain self-awareness with regard to values, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors (GCP objective); and 5 – develop knowledge of global and culture systems and issues (GCP objective).
Course Goals (Student Learning Outcomes):
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Explore how one’s worldview is shaped by personal values, identity, cultural rules, and biases in relation to becoming an educator of diverse populations and for a diverse and multicultural society (GCP Student Learning Outcome/Self Awareness).
- Recognize differences in people’s values, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors by considering the role of culture and identity within the process of teaching and learning (GCP Student Learning Outcome/Self Awareness).
- Recognize that global issues and systems are experienced differently at local scales by considering the impact of global migration on local schools and communities, including the concepts of assimilation, acculturation, xenophobia, and language discrimination (GCP Student Learning Outcome).
- Demonstrate a working understanding of, and to actively inquire into the nature of diversity as it is now manifest in the school population.
- Developing a unit plan of study that addresses either a global or local social justice or multicultural theme.
- Synthesize course concepts related to diversity with field observations of school practices in different contexts.
- Reflect through writing on the role of the teacher when teaching diverse populations of students.
Canvas will be the primary website used to facilitate this course. You can access Canvas from your MyUSF account:
Term Schedule
The instructor reserves the right to modify the schedule to enhance your course experience. Changes to the course schedule will be posted on Canvas and announced in class. It is the students’ responsibility to have read, be prepared for class participation, and complete all quizzes and assignments according to this calendar.
Course Outline
WEEK 1: Introduction to Globalization and Global Citizenship in Education
Monday, Jan 11: Introduction to the Course
Wednesday, Jan 13: The Sociopolitical Context of Schools
Readings Due:
Assignments Due: Obtain textbook & register for school observation placement (by Wed January 16th at midnight). The registration link can be found on our Canvas Home Page.
*Special Event: USF’s Week of WelcomeThursday 1/14 @ 3:30 -5:00 PM in the TECO room on the first floor of the Education Building.
WEEK 2: Culture, Society, and Schooling
Monday, Jan 18 NO CLASS MLK HOLIDAY
Holiday Reading: Dr. Martin Luther King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”
Wednesday, Jan 20
Readings Due: NB Ch 1 (scanned copy on Canvas for those who haven’t received text yet)
WEEK 3: Philosophies of Education
Monday, Jan 25
Readings Due: Rethinking Schools Enid Lee Interview
Canvas:
Assignments Due:Bring 3 questions/comments about Ch. 1 and articles (be prepared to submit – 10 points towards classroom engagement grade)
Wednesday, Jan 27
Readings Due: NB Ch 2
Canvas: Comparing Philosophies of Education (Sadker and Sadker)
Assignments Due: 1 page single-spaced description of formative educational (or schooling) experience in which you were introduced to difference (see Canvas for guidelines; print out and bring to class; 10 points towards classroom engagement grade).
WEEK 4: Multicultural Education and Critical Pedagogy
Monday, Feb 1
Readings Due: Canvas:
Multicultural Education: Development, Dimensions, and Challenges (Banks)
Wednesday, Feb 3
Readings Due: Canvas: Are Disney Movies Good For Kids?
WEEK 5: Stereotypes, Discrimination, and Expectations of Achievement
Monday, Feb 8: Viewing – Race: The Power of an Illusion
Readings Due: NB Ch 3
Wednesday, Feb 10:
Readings Due: Canvas – McIntosh “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Napsack of White Privilege
Assignments Due: School Profiles
WEEK 6: Structural and Organizational Issues in Schools
Monday, Feb 15:
Readings Due: NB Ch 4
TUESDAY, Feb 16: Extra Credit Opportunity:
Wednesday, Feb 17:
Readings Due:
Assignments Due: QUIZ #1 DUE (Covers Chapter 1, 2, 3 and articles/chapters – Available from 2/17 10am – 2/18 10pm)
WEEK 7: Culture, Identity, and Learning
Monday, Feb 22
Readings Due: NB Ch 5, pps 156-176
Haberman:
Wednesday, Feb 24
Readings Due: NB Ch 5, pps 177-209
WEEK 8: Linguistic Diversity in US Schools
Monday, Feb 29
Readings Due:NB Ch 6
Wednesday, Mar 2 FIELD OBSERVATION DAY – NO CLASS MEETING
Assignments Due: Field Observation Paper #1 Due through TurnitIn
WEEK 9: Linguistic Diversity in US Schools (continued)
Monday, Mar 7
Readings Due: Canvas – Lisa Delpit chapters
Wednesday, Mar 9
Assignment Due: Prepare 5-minute presentation based off your Field Observation Paper #1 (Small group presentation; 10 points towards classroom engagement grade).
Assignments Due: QUIZ 2 (Covers Chapter 4, 5, 6, and articles/chapters)
SPRING BREAK NO CLASS (Note: Hillsborough County Spring Break)
WEEK 10: Theories of School Achievement and Student Success
Monday, Mar 21
Readings Due: NB Ch 7, pages 254- 278
Assignments Due: Complete Theory Chart (posted on Canvas)
Wednesday, Mar 23
Readings Due: NB Ch 7, pages 278- 295
WEEK 11: Gender, Sexuality, and Schooling
Monday, Mar 28
Readings Due: NB Ch 8
Wednesday, Mar 30
BRING LAPTOPS TO CLASS – SOCIAL JUSTICE UNIT GROUP PLANNING
WEEK 12: Ethics, Diversity, and Schooling
Monday, Apr 4 FIELD OBSERVATION DAY – NO CLASS MEETING
Wednesday, Apr 6
Readings Due: NB Ch 9, pages 342- 368
Canvas - Noddings The Caring Relation in Teaching
WEEK 13: Multicultural Methods and Curriculum
Monday, Apr 11
Readings Due: NB Ch 9, pages 368- 377
Social Justice Unit Planning Session
Assignments Due: Field Observation Paper #2 Due
Wednesday, Apr 13
Readings Due: NB Ch 10, pages 378-401
WEEK 14: Course Wrap-Up: What does it mean to become an educator within an increasingly diverse and global society?
Monday, Apr 18
Social Justice Unit Planning Session (worth 10 points in classroom engagement)
Assignments Due: Quiz #3
IMPORTANT: Deadline to submit observation card for 10 professional disposition points
Wednesday, Apr 20
Course Wrap Up and Group Reflection
WEEK 15:
Monday, Apr 25
Social Justice Unit Plan Presentations
Field Observation Reflection Due (see guidelines, different from paper #1 and #2)
Wednesday, Apr 27
Social Justice Unit Plan Presentations
Assignments Due: SOCIAL JUSTICE UNIT PLAN – GROUP LEADER SUBMITS ON CANVAS
**LAST DAY TO SUBMIT OBSERVATION CARDS**
WEEK 16: FINALS WEEK May 2nd – May 6th
Assignments Due: May 2nd SOCIAL JUSTICE CURRICULUM REFLECTION PAPER through TurnitIn
Evaluation of Student Outcomes and Connection to Course Goals:
Observations, Field notes, and Observation papers (30% of final grade)
This is a State of Florida required, pass/fail assignment. Students will be assigned to two schools and must complete 15 observations hours between the assigned schools, with a minimum of three hours at each school. The yellow observation cards must be completed with blue or black pen, with no errors or corrections made. Students will be completing field notes during their observation for use while writing two observation reports and one observation reflection paper. Observation cards submitted late will result in a zero for the students’ professional disposition grade (10 points).
Background checks and fingerprintingare notrequired if you register to do your field observations in Hillsborough County Schools. For any other county and/or some private school assignments it is the student’s responsibility to meet the required documentation of
30 percent of the final grade is based on the completion of two sets of field notes based on your observations and three corresponding papers. Observation tools will be provided to help guide your observations. The papers must have three academic sources, and one source will be the textbook; academic sources must be cited using APA or MLA format (
Specific guidelines for the assignment are posted in Canvas and will be briefed in class. Papers must be submitted via Turnitin on Canvas by midnight on the day they are due. Only papers submitted to Turnitin will be graded. Field notes can be scanned and then submitted with your paper or turned inthe classafter the assignment is due.
“This project has been approved through the Hillsborough County Public Schools Research Review process. Note that individual student information is protected under the Family Educational Right and Privacy Act (FERPA). The University of South Florida and the Hillsborough County Public Schools both want to ensure that students’ records are protected and that teachers and potential teachers have the most appropriate training opportunities.Student Information (K-12) collected for this task will NOT includeinformation that identifies the individual student and any student identifiable information/data collected will NOT be retained (e.g., videos with students in them, copies of student work, audio recordings of student interviews, etc.)past the completion of the course and the assignment of a grade by the instructor/professors”.
For observation papers #1 and 2, students will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:
- Development of themes from observation (chosen from “menu of themes”)
- Inclusion of observational details to support themes
- Synthesis of course concepts and academic sources (e.g. assimilation, institutionalized sexism, student-centered pedagogy)
- Citation and Grammar
- Submission of observation tool (relate to diversity themes) and notes
(GCP Student Learning Outcome #3 Knowledge; Student Learning Outcome #4, #6)
For the field observation reflection paper (paper #3), student will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria (this is a revision of the project to better align with GCP Student Learning Outcomes:
- Statement of one’s own “positionality” (gender, race/ethnicity, language, ability) within the context of a diverse U.S. student population.
- Statement of how one’s cultural and linguistic biases could influence identity as a teacher.
- Statement of how they envision their role as a teacher within a diverse student population.
- Summarizing statement that relates field observations and course concepts to decision to become a teacher.
(GCP Student Learning Outcome #1 Self-Awareness; Student Learning Outcome #7)
Social Justice/MulticulturalUnit Plan (25% of Final Grade)
Groups of students will create an interdisciplinary social unit plan for the grade level and content of their choice. The lesson will include an introduction to the social justice issue (e.g. child poverty, policing of urban communities), an interdisciplinary unit plan (e.g. including children’s literature, math, language arts, science, social studies, arts and/or music), and a reflection on the project. The unit plan will be shared with classmates during the final week of class.
Students will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:
- Explanation of Social Justice/Multicultural Issue in Curricular Context ____ 35 pts
Questions to answer: i) What is the social issue or multicultural issue being addressed (provide detailed background information?); ii) why is it an important issue for students to explore?; iii) how does the unit fill a needed gap within a “mainstreamed” curriculum?; iv) how are non-dominant values, beliefs, attitude, or behaviors represented in the unit plan? (2-3 pages double-spaced; use 2-3 sources)
- Unit Plan ___ 25 pts
- Professional Disposition – present, attentive, respectful (self-assessment) ___ 15pts
- Individual Reflection of Collaboration and Curriculum Planning _____ 25pts
Questions to answer(revised for GCP):i) How did this unit expose you to a different perspective or attitude on your topic ii) Describe how the development of this unit plan shifted your own sense of identity or worldview with respect to the topic? iii) How did your group collaboration expose you to different values, attitudes, or behaviors? What was the group’s strengths and weaknesses?; iii) How could this unit be more inclusive or representative of diversity? (3-4 pages double-spaced)
(GCP Student Learning Outcome #1 and #2 Self-Awareness; GCP Student Learning Outcome #3 Knowledge)
Classroom Engagement (25% of final grade)
The success of this course depends on students’ meaningful participation and preparation. Your engagement in the course will be evaluated on the basis of: 1 –evidence of your engagement with the course readings through short activities, in-class, at-home assignments (usually 10 points each)2 – your attendance. 3— in-class presentations and group work 4—your civic and respectful engagement with your classmates (disposition), and 4 With that said, an overall learning goal of this course is to get students actively and creatively involved in their own learning, and this requires preparation time as well as courage to speak up about a wide array of questions and issues in class conversations.
Classroom Engagement Assignments:
1)Critical Reflective Questions/Comments:
Read the following TWO articles:
Taking Multicultural, Anti-Racist Education Seriously: An Interview with Educator Enid Lee.
Dear White Teacher.... By Chrysanthius Lathan
After reading chapter 1 and the above articles, write three critical thinking questions or comments
about how your own worldview or cultural bias could influence you as a teacher.
What makes a critical question or comment? Critical questions or comments typically:
•...goesbeyond what is in the text. (e.g
•...apply the reading to an outside situation, phenomenon, or personal experience.
•...address or ask the question: Why does this matter? Who benefits from this knowledge?
...considers how classroom practice or policy is affected ifwe take seriously what an author has said.(Course Goal #1 and #2 GCP Student Learning Outcome/Self Awareness)
2) Education and Difference Narrative (10 points)
Write a 1-page single spaced narrative that describes a formative educational(formal or informal)experience in which you were introduced to difference (broadly defined, anything that is different from you or the norm in society). For example, when I was eight years old, my mother took me on weekend trip to Washington DC. During this trip, I saw (I suppose, for the first time) the reality of homelessness. Seeing people sleeping on the street was shocking and transformative. This, for me, was a formative experience because I no longer assumed that everybody lives under a roof. In other words, it made me question a very common sense assumption of the human world. Think of something that occurred in your own educational and schooling experience, describe the experience, and explain what assumptions about the world shifted because of this experience.
Students will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria (Course Goal #1 GCP Student Learning Outcome/Self Awareness)
- Meet the length requirement (1 page single-spaced).
- Describe in detail the formative educational experience.
- Explain what assumptions changed due to the experience.
Quizzes (20% of final grade)
20 percent of the final grade is based on quizzes. Quizzes will be available on Canvas for 24 hours. There will be 3 quizzes total. Quizzes will include multiple choice and true/false questions.Quizzes cover material from the textbook, supplementary articles, and lecture PowerPoints. The quizzes must be taken in the window of time provided. If you do not trust your home Internet connection or personal computer, use the computer labs on campus. (Course Goal #3 GCP Student Learning Outcome Knowledge; Course Goal #4)
Grading Criteria:
Field Observation (papers, professional disposition) / 30%
Social Justice/Multicultural Unit Plan + Reflection Paper / 25%
Classroom Engagement (homework, in-class activities, presentations, attendance) / 25%
Quiz #1-3 / 20%
Final grading scale: 100-97%=A+; 96-93=A; 92-90=A-; 89-87%=B+; 86-83=B; 82-80; 79-77%=C+; 76-73=C; 72-70=C-; 69-67%=D+; 66-63=D; 62-60=D-; <60% = F
Textbook(s) and Readings:
Required Text, available at USF bookstore
Nieto, Sonia and Bode, Patty. (2012). Affirming Diversity: The Sociopolitical Context of Multicultural Education, 6th Ed. Boston, MA: Pearson.
Additional required assigned readings will be available on Canvas and can be accessed through the Syllabus Tab.
Students in this class are held to the same expectations of professional behavior as in the USF College of Education. The COEDU Professional Disposition and Ethical Practices Standards
Policy and Procedurescan be found at:
USF COEDU Professional Disposition Statement
Students enrolled in teacher preparation degree programs in the College of Education or enrolled in such courses offered in the College are expected to demonstrate the professional dispositions outlined in the College’s conceptual framework, and the professional behaviors defined by their academic department. It is the responsibility of students to exhibit ethical behavior and the highest standards of professional conduct. Depending on the nature and severity of the violation, the student may be placed on a course correction action or professional growth plan, placed on probation, or dismissed from the college. Students who wish to grieve probation or dismissal decision that is based on violation of this policy may do so using the Student Academic Grievance Procedures (