KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY
KUTZTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA
COE COURSE SYLLABUS
DEPARTMENT OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION: PreK-4 Program
EEU 202
I.
Course Description: EEU 202 Dispositions Toward Advocacy, Collaboration, and Cooperation
A.
This course is designed to provide pre-service teachers with a variety of experiences that will
develop dispositions expected of professional educators as delineated in professional, state, and
institutional standards. Pre-service teachers will gain knowledge and understanding and foster values
about cultural and community diversity to use the information as a basis for connecting instruction to
students’ experiences. Students who can demonstrate prescribed dispositions will be encouraged to
continue through the program. (3 c.h., 3 s.h.)
II.
Course Rationale: The purpose of this course is to provide pre-service teachers with experiences
that foster “values, commitments, and professional ethics that influence behaviors toward students,
families, colleagues, and communities and affect student learning, motivation, and development as
well as the educator’s own professional growth” (NCATE, 2002). It is designed to encourage preservice teacher to act a catalyst for social justice, advocates for children and for the teaching
profession. The education of children depends directly upon the quality and dispositions of teachers
in our schools. Therefore, it is crucial that pre-service teachers possess dispositions that foster growth
and learning for all students.
III.
Course Objectives/ Student Learning Outcomes
Candidates must understand the value of and strategies for creating a community of learners.
They will be able to:
1. Define dispositions as they are related to personal values.
2. Recognize and make reflective judgments about personal values and interests related to their
own dispositions.
3. Recognize and make reflective judgments about personal values and interests related to
teaching.
4. Critique and reflect on their own knowledge within the context of student learning.
5. Demonstrate knowledge of cultural and community diversity.
-respond to children’s cultural context for understanding their actions and intentions
-set developmentally, culturally, linguistically, and individually appropriate
expectations for children
6. Demonstrate knowledge of cultural influences on learning.
-give attention to equitable learning opportunities for students
-engage and re-engage children who are struggling
7. Examine the role of the teacher in a community context.
-develop and foster understanding of values that underpin procedures, rules, and
expectations
-help children develop self and emotional regulation
8. Examine the role of the teacher in a professional context.
-communicate high learning expectations to all students
-establish and maintain fair and consistent standards for classroom behavior
9. Demonstrate dispositions of effective teachers.
-respond to children’s emotional communications
-establish and maintain a positive social context for learning
A.
Relationship to Standards
Objectives PDE
(HE)
1-9
I. G
1-6
II.D
3, 8
III. C
5,7
III. D
IV.
SPA
(ACEI)
2.4
3.2, 3.5
5.1, 5.2
5.3, 5.4
INTASC
NAEYC
2-6
2-7
9
10
1
3-4
5
2
Assessment
A.
Core Assignment
Will be provided by faculty member when teaching the course
B.
Other Assessments/Assignments:
May include but not limited to: reflective writing, group projects, class discussion, simple research,
class participation, and disposition toward learning.
V.
Course Outline
A.
I. Dispositions and teaching
A. Defining dispositions
B. Dispositions and effective teaching
II. Culture and Schooling
A. Nature of Culture
1. Defining culture
2. Mainstream culture
a. African-American
b. Native-American
c. Asian-American
d. Hispanic
e. Middle Eastern
3. Teacher dispositions for culturally diverse classrooms
a. Perceptions and behavior
b. Use of student life experiences in teaching
c. “Reading” culturally different behavior
d. Language and literacy
e. Communication with parents and community
f. Location of diverse community resources
4. Need for multicultural curriculum
a. Defining multicultural education
b. Perceptions and behavior
(1)
Culture and race as central issues in U.S. history and education
(2)
Education and creation of Anglo-American culture
(3)
Educational and cultural differences
c. Developing an awareness of literature and portrayal of multiculturalism
B. Poverty and schools
1. Crisis of poverty
2. Dispositions of behaviors
a. Poor children in poor schools
b. Class and poverty
c. Deficit explanation of school failure
d. School responses to poverty
3. Uniqueness of urban settings
a. Myths/Misconceptions
b. Discrimination
c. Stereotypes
C. Lifestyles
1. Sexual Orientation
2. Dispositions and behaviors
3. School responses to lifestyles
D. Gender
1. How society and schools shortchange girls and boys
2. Dispositions and behaviors
3. Research on European American girls
4. Current research
5. Developing an awareness of teachers’ actions and language
6. Developing an awareness of literature and portrayal of girls and boys
7. Equity in extra curricular activities
E. Special needs students
1. Defining special needs
2. Dispositions and behaviors
3. Federal and state laws
4. Individualized educational program
5. Current Research
6. Equity in extra curricular activities
III. Community
A. Defining community
B. Community services
1. Public and private agencies
2. Health care
C. Faith based organizations
D. Parks and recreation programs
E. Linking schools, communities, and businesses
IV. Families and education
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Defining social justice
Dispositions and behaviors
Responsibility for America’s children
Adequate health services and nutrition
Advocacy
P
C.
VI.
Other Policies
Instructional Resources
Required Texts
Contributing Texts
Byrnes, D. A. & Kiger, G. (2005). Common bonds: Anti-bias teaching in a diverse society. Olney, MD:
ACEI.
Cowdery, J. R., Ingling, L., Morrow, L. E., & Wilson, V. A. (2007). Building on student diversity: Profiles
and Activities. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Delpit, L. (1995). Other people’s children. New York: The New Press.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum International Publishing Group.
Gruwell, E. (2007). Teach with your heart. New York: Broadway Books.
Heath, S. B. (1983). Ways with words. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Karabenick, S. A., Clemens Noda, P. A. (2004). Professional development implications of teachers’ beliefs
and attitudes toward English language learners. Bilingual Research Journal, 28, 55-75.
Kozol, J. (1991). Savage inequalities. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc.
Payne, R. (1996). A framework for understanding poverty. Highlands, TX: Aha! Process, Inc.
Ramsey, P. G. (2004). Teaching and learning in a diverse world. New York: Teacher’s College Press.
Schiendewind, N. & Davidson, E. (2006). Open minds to equality. Milwaukee, WI: Rethinking
Schools.
Spradlin, L. K. & Parsons, R. D. (2008). Diversity matters: Understanding diversity in schools. Belmont,
CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Tatum, B. D. (1999) “Why are all the black kids sitting together in the cafeteria?”. New York: Basic Books.
Van Ausdale, D., & Feagin, J. R. (2002). The first r: How children learn race and racism. Lanham, MD:
Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Other Media:
DVDs
Blue Eyed
Primetime Live: Freedom Writers
Dateline Special: The Education of Ms. Groves
Remember the Titans
Jane Elliot
ABC News
MSNBC News
Walt Disney Videos
Songs/Lyrics
Southern Accents
These Are the Days
I Got Plenty ‘O Nuttin’
Johnny Cash
JoDee Messina
from Porgy and Bess
And Still, I Rise
These Are My People
Maya Angelou
Rodney Atkins
Simulations
Rafa, Rafa: A Cross Cultural Simulation
Simulation Training Systems