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ANTHROPOLOGY OF EDUCATION
ANTHROPOLOGY 4610.019/5620
EDCI 5620
W 6pm-8:50pm, ENV 115
Fall 2006
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Mariela Nuñez-Janes
OFFICE: Chilton Hall 330F
TELEPHONE: 940/369-7663
EMAIL: nunezjan@pacs.unt.edu
OFFICE HOURS: MF 2:00 pm-3: 00pm, or by appointment
Description
This class will introduce students to issues and approaches relevant to the study of
education within the field of anthropology. The course will be divided into three
analytical sections. The first section will provide an introduction to anthropological
concepts and anthropological methods used in the study of education and schooling. This
section will examine the relation between anthropology and education by emphasizing
the significance of cultural transmission. The second section will be devoted to an
examination of cultural transmission and appropriate approaches. In this section,
students will be exposed to works in the field of anthropology of education that examine
cultural difference, minority status, and learning. The third and last section of the course
will emphasize recent approaches to questions of cultural transmission. In particular, this
section will highlight new perspectives and critiques related to current and relevant
educational “problems” found in societies such as the U.S.
Objectives
By the end of this course you will understand the relation between anthropology and
education. You will know the major approaches used by educational anthropologists and
will be encouraged to use such theoretical insights and methodological tools to develop
your own critiques and contributions to questions related to education and schooling.
You will also have experienced ideas and practices that emulate how the anthropology of
education can be used to transgress dominant forms of teaching and learning.
Requirements and Assignments (400 points total)
a) Readings/Class Participation (50 points): You are responsible for completing the
readings for the day they are assigned and come to class prepared to discuss them. Your
class participation grade will be based on the following:
 Class attendance
 A demonstration that you have read the assigned material
 Your delivery of thoughtful comments about the readings and statements made by
your classmates
b) Student Led-Discussion (50 points): You will be assigned team partners in class. With
your partners you will select an educational issue relevant to you and/or your community.
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Write a brief statement that describes the issue you selected and then raise 2-3 questions
for the entire class to discuss. Read your statement and questions in class. The questions
should ask the class to apply some of the ideas from the assigned readings to the
educational issue of your choosing. Use the readings assigned for the day in which you
will lead discussion.
c) Class Project “Experiencing College as a First Generation Student” (300 points total):
We will engage in a class project that will culminate in a deliverable to a local agency.
The class project will allow you to put into practice the knowledge you gain from the
readings and to develop your skills in the ethnography of education. It will be conducted
in teams (same team members as the student-led discussion) and will consist of the
following:
 1) Conducting an interview (50 points total) You will schedule an interview
with a pre-selected informant, conduct the interview, transcribe the interview, and
turn in the interview transcript. I will provide you with a contact sheet for
scheduling the interview, interview protocol, and transcription guidelines.
 2) Analyzing interviews (50 points total) With your team you will analyze the
interview. Details will be provided in class.
 3) Conducting a literature review (50 points total): Each team must review a
total of 4 sources. I will provide you with instructions on how to conduct the
literature review.
 4) In class presentation: (50 points total) Each team will create a power point
presentation of their findings and present them to the rest of the class.
 5) Final Report (100 points): For undergraduates the report should be no longer
than 8 typewritten double-spaced pages. For graduate students the report should
be no longer than 15 typewritten double-spaced pages. Final reports will be
written individually.
o Final Report Guidelines: Your final report will consist of a summary of
the findings and recommendations to the university. It must include the
following sections:
 Description of Project: The section should discuss the
details of the project.
 Context of Work: In this section, the student will situate
the project within the larger context of work in this subject
area. In other words, you will summarize the literature
review you conducted and the class readings and their
relevance to the class project.
 Project Design: A description of the stages or major
activities of the project. These stages will commonly
include data collection and analysis. Each stage of the
project should be described in detail. For instance, a data
collection stage should identify what methods were used
(participant observation, in-depth interviews, etc.), and
what population was examined. The student should be as
specific as possible, for instance specifying how many
interviews were conducted; how many hours were spent
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doing participant observation; and describe the
demographic breakdown of the subjects.
Recommendations: The student’s findings and their
relevance to the university.
Discussion and Personal Reflection: A description of
what the student learned from the experience. This should
include how the student’s training in the anthropology of
education shaped the project design and execution. What
did the anthropology of education add to the outcome? It
should also include a statement related to your own
positionality.
References cited: A list of the references cited in the final
report
All references must be formatted following the AAA
citation style. The AAA style guide can be found at:
http://www.aaanet.org/pubs/style_guide.htm
Grading
I believe that teaching and learning are forms of emancipation and empowerment that
require mutual support and collective participation. The student-led discussion will be
graded by your peers. The final grade for each assignment will be an average of the
grades submitted. I will provide you with a rubric that will include grading guidelines
along with a space for comments.
Grading:
 All grades will be assigned based on the following grading scheme:
100-89% = A
88-79% = B
78-69% = C
68 -59% = D
58%- = F
 You are responsible for tracking your own grade progress. If you have questions
about your grade or if you need documentation of your grade progress talk to me
during office hours or make an appointment.
CLASSROOM POLICIES
1. Since discussion is an essential part of this course please come to class prepared and on
time.
2. Please turn off your cell phones and pagers.
3. Let me know if you have an emergency and will not be able to come to class.
4. The Anthropology Department does not discriminate on the basis of an individual’s
disability as required by the Americans With Disabilities Act. Our program provides
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academic adjustments or help to individuals with disabilities in its program and activities.
Attempts will be made to meet all certified requirements.
5. Plagiarism and Cheating
The department of anthropology does not tolerate plagiarism, cheating, or helping others
to cheat. Students suspected of any of these will be provided the opportunity for a
hearing; a guilty finding will merit an automatic “F” in the course. In addition, I reserve
the right to pursue further disciplinary action within the UNT legal system, which may
result in dismissal from the university. Plagiarism is defined as misrepresenting the work
of others (whether published or not) as your own. It may be inadvertent or intentional.
Any facts, statistics, quotations, or paraphrasing of any information that is not common
knowledge, should be cited.
The department of anthropology considers graduate students to be new members of the
community of professional anthropologists, who are thus held to the high ethical
standards of practicing professionals. They are expected to follow the American
Anthropological Association’s code of ethics: “Anthropological researchers bear
responsibility for the integrity and reputation of their discipline, of scholarship, and of
science. Thus, anthropological researchers are subject to the general moral rules of
scientific and scholarly conduct: they should not deceive or knowingly misrepresent (i.e.,
fabricate evidence, falsify, plagiarize), or attempt to prevent reporting of misconduct, or
obstruct the scientific/scholarly research of others”
(http://www.aaanet.org/committees/ethics/ethcode.htm). Any work not meeting this
standard will be evaluated in a hearing before the student; infractions will merit dismissal
from the master’s program.
For more information on paper writing, including how to avoid plagiarism, and how to
use citations, see http://www.unt.edu/anthropology/writing.htm. For information on the
University’s policies regarding academic integrity and dishonesty, see the UNT Center
for Student Rights and Responsibilities, http://www.unt.edu/csrr/.
REQUIRED READINGS (UNT Bookstore)
Levison, Bradley ed. Et. Al
2000 Schooling the Symbolic Animal: Social and Cultural Dimensions of
Education. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Foley, Douglas
1990 Learning Capitalist Culture Deep in the Heart of Tejas. Philadelphia:
University of Pennsylvania Press.
Spindler, George D. ed.
1997 Education and Cultural Process: Anthropological Approaches, 3rd edition.
Prospect Heights: Waveland Press.
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REQUIRED RESERVE READINGS (E-reserves Willis Library) password:
education6
“Narrating Cultural Citizenship: Oral Histories of First-Generation College Students of
Mexican Origin” (Rina Benmayor)
“Qualitative Research Approaches for Everyday Realities” (Anderson, Herr, Nihlen)
“Action Research” (Smith)
“Why Segregation Matters: Poverty and Educational Inequality” (Gary Orfield and
Chungmei Lee)
“The Gendered and Racialized Pathways of Latina and Latino Youth: Different
Struggles, Different Resistances in the Urban Context” (Julio Cammarota)
“The Power of Black and Latina/o Counterstories: Urban Families and College-Going
Processes” (Michelle Knight, Nadjwa Norton, Courtney Bentley, Iris Dixon)
“African American Anthropology and the Pedagogy of Activist Community Research”
(Cheryl Rodriguez)
COURSE OUTLINE
I Anthropology and Education: Concepts and Methods
Week 1 Introduction and course description
Aug 30
Team assigment for class project and student led-discussion
NIH certificates
Week 2 Anthropology and Culture
September 6
Assignment:
Ch 2, 24 Levinson
Ch 1 Spindler
Library orientation with Monika Antonelli
Turn in NIH certificates
Week 3 Culture and Education
September 13
Assignment:
Ch 2, 3 Spindler
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Week 4 Studying Educational Settings
September 20
Assignment:
Ch 4 Spindler
Ch 23 Levinson
“Narrating Cultural Citizenship: Oral Histories of First-Generation College Students of
Mexican Origin” (Rina Benmayor)
Team 1 Student Led Discussion
Turn in date when you will conduct the interview with your informant
Week 5 Studying Educational Settings (continued)
September 27
Assignment:
“Qualitative Research Approaches for Everyday Realities” (Anderson, Herr, Nihlen)
“Action Research” (Smith)
Team 2 Student Led-Discussion
Literature review due
II Perspectives on Culture and Cultural Transmission
Week 6 Cultural Differences and Explanations of School Failure
October 4
Assignment:
Ch 14, 15 Levinson
Ch 7 Spindler
Team 3 Student Led Discussion
Team 1 turn in transcript and interview analysis
Week 7 Social Reproduction and Inequality
October 11
Assignment:
“Why Segregation Matters: Poverty and Educational Inequality” (Gary Orfield and
Chungmei Lee)
Ch 20 Levinson
Team 4 Student Led Discussion
Team 2 turn in transcript and interview analysis
Week 8 Resistance
October 18
Assignment:
Appendix A Foley
“The Gendered and Racialized Pathways of Latina and Latino Youth: Different
Struggles, Different Resistances in the Urban Context” (Julio Cammarota)
Team 5 Student Led Discussion
Team 3 turn in transcript and interview analysis
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Week 9 Critical Pedagogy
October 25
Assignment:
“The Power of Black and Latina/o Counterstories: Urban Families and College-Going
Processes” (Michelle Knight, Nadjwa Norton, Courtney Bentley, Iris Dixon)
“African American Anthropology and the Pedagogy of Activist Community Research”
(Cheryl Rodriguez)
Team 6 Student Led Discussion
Team 4 turn in transcript and interview analysis
III Educational Issues
Week 10 Schooling
November 1
Assignment
Foreword, Ch 1, 2 Foley
Team 7 Student Led Discussion
Teams 5 and 6 turn in transcript and interview analysis
Week 11 Schooling (continued)
November 8
Assignment
Ch 3, 4, 5 Foley
Team 8 Student Led Discussion
Teams 7 and 8 turn in transcript and interview analysis
Week 12 NO CLASS AAA MEETING
November 15
Week 13 NO CLASS THANKSGIVING BREAK
November 22
Week 14 Final Reports and Presentations
November 29
Assignment
All teams turn in their final report and conduct the final report presentation in
class
Week 15 Final Thoughts
December 8
Note: This syllabus may be subject to changes and/or revisions
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Grading Rubric for Student Led Discussion
Name of grader:
Name of student you are grading and team number:
Date:
1. Rate the student's level of preparedness
1
2
3
not prepared
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
very prepared
2. Did the student raise questions that resulted in thoughtful discussion?
1
2
never
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
always
3. How would you rate the student's familiarity with the reading?
1
poor
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
excellent
7
8
9
10
very prepared
4. Rate the student’s level of preparation
1
2
3
not prepared
4
5
6
5. What is your overall rating of the discussion/summary/power point presentation?
1
poor
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
excellent
Total Points:
Comments (Please make sure that your comments address what the student did well and
what needs improvement. Be constructive!).