(EDF 633) Race, Class and Language
Syllabus of Record
Course Description: Interdisciplinary course incorporating the views of linguists,
psychologists, sociologists, educators, and speech researchers. Exploration of the
background literature and practical implications of the problems raised by social class and
ethnic differences in language. Three credits.
Unit Mission, Philosophy, Values:
Our Mission:
“Teaching, Leading and Learning in a Democratic Society”
The College of Education prepares candidates who enhance the individual growth of their
students while working to establish policies and practices that promote the principles of
democratic education. The College articulates this mission as Teaching, Leading, and
Learning in a Democratic Society.
Philosophy:
Student Potential, Ethical Implications
Believing that schools function as social and political entities as well as for the growth of
individuals, the College of Education prepares teachers and leaders
a) to enhance the academic and personal potential of their students
b) to evaluate the social and ethical implications of educational policies and practices.
Values:
“Expertise, Equity, Liberal Education, Social Responsibility”
The College of Education values expertise to guide our practice, equity to guide our
interactions, liberal education to guide our perspectives, and social responsibility to guide
our commitment to democratic education. We value these ideals in our preparation of
candidates, our development of faculty, and our relationships with the larger community we
serve.
Unit and Program Standards:
Unit Standards: Michigan Department of Education (MDE), National Council for the
Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE)
Standards for Advanced Program Preparing Teachers: National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards (NBPTS 1-5), Council for Learned Societies in Education Foundations
Standards, College of Education Research Standards
Specialty Program Standards: Standards for Preparation of Teachers: English as a Second
Language (ESL = NS)
Course Standards and Assessments:
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards:
#1 Teachers are Committed to Students and Their Learning
 Recognize student differences and adjusts practice.
 Understand how students develop and learn.
 Treat students equitably.
 Mission extends beyond developing cognitive capacity of students.
#4 Teachers Think Systematically About Their Practice and Learn from Experience
 Continually make difficult choices that test their judgment.
 Seek advice of others; draw on research and scholarship to improve their practice.
#5 Teachers are Members of Learning Communities
 Contribute to school effectiveness by collaborating with other professionals.
 Work collaboratively with parents.
 Take advantage of community resources.
Standards for Preparation of Teachers: English as a Second Language (ESL = NS)
Knowledge, understanding, and use of the major concepts, principles, theories, and
research related to the nature and role of culture in language development and academic
achievement that support the individual students’ learning. (NS Standard 2.1)
Application of knowledge and understanding of how cultural groups and students’ cultural
identities affect language learning and school achievement. (NS Standard 2.2)
An understanding of similarities and differences between English-speaking and heritage
cultures, and know how to make thoughtful comparisons between them. (NS Standard 2.4)
Linguistic and cultural competence through reflective practices. (NS Standard 6.1)
Knowledge of the value that multilingualism brings to the overall success of all students and
understands the teacher’s role as an advocate with students, colleagues, and members of
the community in promoting multilingualism (NS Standard 6.2)
Common Assessment: Ethnic Group Research (Group Presentation and Extensive
Individual Interviews with three people from various non-indigenous cultures).
Major Topics:
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Microcultures: (Self Cultural Analysis)
Cultural Analyses (High vs. Low Context Cultures; Individual vs. Collectivist; Deep
vs. Surface Cultures)
Ethnicity and language; language and identity
Immigration, Immigration policy, Language policy
Religious groups
Hispanics/Latinos; Native Americans; African Americans; Asian Americans and Arab
Americans
White Americans; White Europeans and Jewish Americans
Class
Course Knowledge Base:
Adorno, T. W., Frenkel-Brunswik, E., Levinson, D. J., & Sanford, R. N. (1950). The
authoritarian personality. New York: Harper & Brothers.
August, D. & Hakuta, K. (1999). Educating language minority children. Washington D.C.:
National Academy Press.
Banks, J. (2001). Cultural diversity and education: Foundations, curriculum and teaching
(4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Banks, J. A., & McGee Banks, C. A. (2003). Handbook of Research on Multicultural
Education (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Brown, H. (2001). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy.
(2nd ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman.
Diaz, C., Massialas, B., & Kanthopoulos, J. (1999). Global perspectives for educators.
Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Feagin, J.R. (2000). Racist America: Roots, current realities, and future reparations. New
York: Routlege.
Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind. New York: Basic Books.
Gardner, H. (1996, Apr.). Multiple intelligences: Myths and messages. International Schools
Journal, 15(2), 8-22.
Hall, E. T. (1976). Beyond Culture. New York: Doubleday.
Hall, E. T. (2000). Context and meaning. In L. A. Samovar & R. E. Porter (Eds.),
Intercultural Communication: A Reader, 9th ed. (pp. 34-43). Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth Publishing Co
Ogbu, J. U. (1990). Cultural model, identity, and literacy. In J.W. Stigler, R. A. Shweder,
& G, Herdt (Eds.), Cultural psychology: Essays on comparative human development
(pp. 520-541). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Ogbu, J. U. (1992). Understanding cultural diversity and learning. Educational Researcher,
21(8), 5-14.
Parrillo, V. N. (2006). Strangers to these shores (8th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Pierce, C. (1970). Offensive mechanisms. In F.B. Barbour (Ed.), The black seventies (pp.
265-282). Boston: Porter Sargent.
Pierce (1974). Psychiatric problems of the black minority. In S. Arieti (Ed.), American
handbook of psychiatry (pp. 512-523). New York: Basic Books.
Pierce, C. (1975). The mundane extreme environment and its effect on learning. In S.G.
Brainard (Ed.), Learning disabilities: Issues and recommendations for research (p.
xx). Washington, DC: National Institute of Education, Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare.
Pierce, C. (1980). Social trace contaminants: Subtle indicators of racism in TV. In S. B.
Withey & R.P. Abeles (Eds.), Television and social behavior: Beyond violence and
children (pp. 249-257). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Pierce, C. (1989). Unity in diversity: Thirty-three years of stress. In G. L. Berry & J. K.
Asamen (Eds.), Black students: Psychosocial issues and academic achievement (pp.
296-312). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Pierce, C. (1995). Stress analogs of racism and sexism: Terrorism, torture, and disaster. In
C. V. Willie, P. P. Rieker, B. M. Kramer, & B. S. Brown (Eds.), Mental health, racism,
and sexism (pp. 277-293). Pittsburg: University of Pittsburg Press.
Plous, S. (Ed.). (2002). Understanding prejudice and discrimination. Boston: McGraw Hill.
Smith, W. A., Yosso, T. J. & Solórzano, D. G. (2006). Challenging racial battle fatigue on
historically white campuses: A critical race examination of race-related stress. In C.
A. Stanley (Ed.), Faculty of color: Teaching in predominately white colleges and
universities (pp. 299-327). Bolton, MA: Anker Publishing Company, Inc.
Stanley, C.A. (2006) Faculty of color. Teaching in predominantly white colleges and
Universities. Boston: Anker Publishing
West, C. (1993) Race matters. Boston: Beacon Press.