San Diego State University--School of Teacher Education--Fall Semester 2013
TE 954 (3). Humanistic and Social Aspects of Teaching. Teacher competencies as they relate
to values, awareness, self-concept, rights and responsibilities.
Professor Emeritus: Kathleen Faith Mikitka-Gomez, Ph.D.
SDSU Office: EBA 205A
Office Hours: Electronic and SDSU Meetings TBA By appointment
Email: kmikitka@mail.sdsu.edu
SDSU Office Phone: 619-594-6493/Cell Phone: 619-892-1806
Email and voicemail usually checked at least once daily except holidays
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------COURSE OVERVIEW
The California Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP) provide the curricular framework
for SDSU’s accredited teacher credential programs. The teacher education program builds on the
experiences, knowledge, and personality we bring to it. We bring a specialized knowledge of our
subject matter and dispositions shaped by a variety of factors. A student orientation profile (formative
assessment) provides a baseline for the detailing and launching of this course. One of the major goals of
the professor is to assist credential students in developing the Teaching Performance Expectations (TPE)
of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and preparing for the Teaching Performance
Assessments (in-depth Teaching Events) required for a California Teaching Credential.
Single subject credential candidates prepare to teach in schools that have multiple socio-economic,
cross cultural and language variables. We will explore these variables and critical issues in education in
this wider context in which students are engaged in the teaching and learning process. We interact with
class colleagues/peers, administrators, teachers, parents, others in the community, and most importantly
with students. Therefore, another major goal of the professor is to assist in the exploration and
clarification of attitudes toward, and readiness for teaching with awareness of responsibilities
and rights of the profession. These attitudes evolve throughout teaching careers and the need for
reflective self-awareness and practice is an on-going part of professional growth.
REQUIRED Course Materials
Check the SDSU School of Teacher Education website* or the California Commission
on Teacher Education website** to download the following documents and have this
information ready for a handy reference:
Credential Program Handbook (available on-line), San Diego State University,
School of Teacher Education website (look under current students)*.
>California Standards for the Teaching Profession (including TPE).
California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. **
>California State curriculum framework and standards document (s) for your subject matter.**
Purchase the following texts:
>Infantino, R. & Wilke, R. (2009). Tough Choices for Teachers: Ethical Challenges in Today’s
Schools and Classrooms. New York: Rowan & Littlefield.
>Nelson, J. L.; Palonsky, S. & McCarthy, M.R. (2013). Critical Issues in Education,
Eighth Edition. New York: McGraw Hill.
>Tauber, R. T. & Mester, C. S. (2007). Acting Lessons for Teachers: Using Performance Skills
in the Classroom, 2nd Edition. Westport, CT: Praeger.
>Urban, H. (2008). Lessons from the Classroom: 20 Things Good Teachers Do. CA: Great Lessons Press.
halurban@halurban.com
Additional Selected References Used by the Instructor
Berger, R. (2003). An Ethic of Excellence: Building a Culture of Craftsmanship with
Students.
Relevant current events. Current events media are an integral part of this course.
Knowledge Base. The required texts and other references used by the instructor provide
cognitive, affective, and psychomotor foundations of education applicable in effective
school settings. These include emphases on professional ethics, standards based curricula
designed for diverse learners, differentiated instruction, collaboration, reflective practice,
and the use of technology to enhance and support learning and teaching.
Learning Foundations Outcomes. Students will be able to identify perpetual and current
education issues in the American and global society; apply elements of critical and creative
thinking to analyze/discuss controversies; discover and propose integrative opportunities
and possibilities for moving our education systems and world society in positive directions.
Academic and Professional Competencies
During and upon completion of this course students must demonstrate they are able to:
1.
recognize dispositions and strategies that contribute to establishing a class and
school climate conducive to learning and teaching
2.
recall and document professional perspectives drawn from cultural, historical,
philosophical, psychological, and sociological educational literature
3.
analyze character, ethical, and legal issues in current educational environments and
prepare for addressing and handling them
4.
refer to national/state and world educational goals, curriculum and professional
standards, exemplary school practices
5.
discover, develop and use teaching performance skills and strategies, community
resources, school site and district resources, electronic resources and other
technologies to facilitate and enrich the educational process
General Expectations of Class Members and the Professor:
Respect each other, the classroom environment, and the academic integrity of the university.
Act and react in a professional manner with professional dispositions.
Read. Keep up-to-date with reading assignments before the start of the class due date.
Learn and enjoy the teacher preparation process, and SMILE :>)
Assessment Components and Standards: Grade Level Choice and Commitment Options
A “Grade Level Commitment Form’ must be submitted to the professor no later than the end of
the third week of SDSU classes. The professor will provide the form in an email/via our class
Blackboard. Possible reasons why you might select a less time demanding grade level option:
employment schedule, child care/family matters, social life, or other personal factors that
impinge on time available for participation in learning activities beyond the bare essential
academic foundations available in text reading assignments (C grade). This option requires that
you have good reading comprehension and study habits for test taking. Skim reading the text
probably will not be enough to earn you a C. You will need to read and study the content.
Taking notes, underlining text, making outlines, flash cards, etc. are useful study strategies.
“C” or “CR” Grade Level: Reading Assignments Comprehension and Retention Progress Assessments
Earn at least 75 of 100 (75% standard) total points accumulated from progress assessments and the
final exam assessment on content from class texts. Each of the four assessments is worth 25 points.
Sample review assessment items are provided the week before each progress assessment date
and before the final assessment date. Please see the progress assessment dates and corresponding reading
assignments on the class schedule. For each progress assessment and the final exam assessment you will
need to provide a ParSCORE scantron (Red Form No. F-289) for objective items and an Examination
Blue Book (11x8.5 with 8 sheets) for essay items: these are available at the SDSU Aztec Bookstore.
You will also need to bring a No. 2 sharp pencil with good eraser (for marking the ParSCORE Test
Form) and a pen (for writing essay items in Examination Blue Book).
“B” Grade Level Requirements: adds Collaborative and Independent In-Class/Electronic Activities
Meet the 75% standard or better for the “C” grade level. Participate in all collaborative in-class
activities/discussions and all Electronic Experiences. Activity/discussion prompts in the form of
questions and response items will be drawn from the assigned readings on the class schedule and current
events relevant to class content. Attendance in class is required for participating in face-to-face in-class
assignments, discussions and collaborative activities. These activities extend beyond class text reading.
“A” Grade Level: adds an “Individual Discovery Education Activity” (IDEA) resulting in the
establishment of a Professional Development Portfolio (PDP)
Meet the 75 points benchmark standard or better for the “C” grade level. Participate in all
electronic activities/discussions and in-class collaborative activities/discussions for the “B”
grade level. Engage in an “Individual Discovery Education Activity” (IDEA) using a
dialectic/integrative process (drawn from class readings and supplemental notes with a focus on
ethics and character development strategies) resulting in a hands-on Professional Development
Portfolio. Guidelines for the portfolio will be posted in our BlackBoard class documents. The
Professional Development Portfolio initiative must be unique for this class and not a “double
dip” including an assignment/s prepared for another class (e.g., technology, literacy, content
methods, etc.). The professor will provide a checklist of requirements and standards for the PDP
that supports individual interests, and communicate with individuals about this. The outcome of
this activity is due the beginning of the last class scheduled before the final exam assessment
date (see this noted on the class meetings calendar schedule, following this section).
Class meeting times on Mondays at SDSU, AH 1120, 7-9:40 PM
or electronic blended learning experiences (EE yellow highlighting) as scheduled below.
August/September 2013
INTRODUCTION to Humanistic and Social Aspects of Teaching
Part I: Critical Issues, Critical Thinking & Teacher Performance Skills
8/26
1. ORIENTATION TO OUR CLASS AND MEET THE CLASSMATES
Welcome and Collaboration: Who are we, and why are we here?
Formative Assessment Profiles: Backgrounds, Interests, and Historical Perspectives
Class Syllabus, Topics, Assessments, Schedule, Expectations
Frameworks for Creative and Critical Thinking, Foundations for Classroom Performance Skills
Read pp. v. through p. 86 in Nelson, et. al. & ALL of Tauber & Mester.
9/2
2. Labor Day Holiday-complete all reading assignments before class begins next week.
SDSU
This includes pp. v.-86 in Nelson and ALL of Tauber & Mester.
Closed
DROP/ADD Classes DEADLINE: Monday, September 9
9/9
3. Results of formative assessments
Engaging in Discussion: How do we make the best use of our time and texts?
Preparation for Electronic Experiences
9/16
4. Electronic Experiences TBA
EE
Reading assignments TBA
9/23
5. Prepare for PA 1
9/30
6. Progress Assessment (PA) 1: based on all assigned reading in Nelson, et. al. &Tauber & Mester
October 2013
Part II: Ethics and Ethical Thinking in the Teaching Profession, “Dispositions,” What Should Be Taught?
10/7
7. Read “Tough Choices” Book Review and all of Infantino and Wilke BEFORE CLASS BEGINS
Introduction to “ethical thinking” frameworks, collaborative “ethical thinking teams”
10/14
8. Electronic Experience Posted in BlackBoard
EE
Case Studies Assigned from Infantino & Wilke
Reading assignments TBA
10/121 9. Ethics Cases Team Assignments
Reading assignments TBA
10/28
10. Progress Assessment 2: All assigned readings in Nelson et. al. Part 2 plus Infantino & Wilke
November 2013
Part III: School Environment
11/4
11. Engaging face to face in class, hands on collaborative activity with texts
Read ALL of Urban BEFORE class begins this evening.
11/11
SDSU
Closed
11/18
EE
11/25
12. Veterans Day Holiday-SDSU Closed
Readings to be assigned for this week.
13. Electronic Experience Posted in BlackBoard
Reading assignments TBA
Start “Wrapping Up” Individual “A” Initiatives this week or sooner
14. Progress Assessment 3: Urban & Nelson assigned readings
Continue “wrapping up” Initiatives
December 2013
Part IV: Grand Finale
12/2
15. Individual Progress Consultations with the Professor: Face to Face or Ear to Ear
Times TBA this week,
12/9
12/16
16. PDP IDEAs Due (A Grade)
Odds and Ends
Prepare for final assessment
17. Final Exam Progress Assessment: 7 to 9 P.M. ATTENDANCE REQUIRED
Format TBD based on results of progress assessments to date.