ED 350: Education in American Society
Fall 2014
Tuesday/Thursday 11:00am-12:15pm
Engineering 423
Scot Danforth
sdanforth@mail.sdsu.edu
Cathy Close
cczclose@san.rr.com
Course Overview:
The purpose of this course is to gain a thoughtful and informed understanding of current issues
and challenges facing the American public schools. The course will investigate the following
questions:
1. What are the most pressing challenges or dilemmas confronting the American public
schools today?
2. What are the different perspectives (positions, stances, opinions) taken in regard to those
challenges?
3. How does a thoughtful examination of the most pressing issues of the day provide insight
into the variety of political and social purposes sought by the public schools?
4. How does that examination help us to understand what the public schools mean
politically and socially to American society?
Required Text:
Critical Issues in Education: Dialogues and Dialectics (2012, 8th edition, McGraw-Hill)
by Jack L. Nelson, Stuart Palonsky, & Mary Rose McCarthy
Assignments and Grades

Attendance and Participation. All students are expected to come to class fully prepared
and participate in class activities. Attendance will be taken. Grade Value: 20%
Each student will be assigned to a team to complete the following:
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2 DEBATES – compete in two class debates on educational issues. Dates TBA. Grade
value: 15% each, 30% total.
2 COMEDY performances – Comedy skits about educational issues. Dates TBA. Grade
value: 15% each, 30% total.
PUBLIC MEDIA ARTIFACTS – For each topic*, each Team should bring and be
prepared to publically present/explain one piece of current, public media that is directly
related to the topic. Artifacts may come from any public source of news and information,
including newpapers, magazines, television, websites, etc. Be fully prepared to take about
3 to 5 minutes displaying and explaining this piece of media. If your piece of media is
electronic, please bring something on paper (i.e, paper printout of webpage) to turn in to
the instructor so you can get credit. Grade Value: 15%
*Due on COMEDY performance days for all groups that did NOT participate in Debate
or Comedy skit for that topic. Teams that participated in the Debate or the Comedy
performance for that topic are excused from this assignment..

A
AB+
B
B-
Teammate Performance Evaluation – Since so much of your work in this class occurs in
your Team, a significant portion of your grade represents your contribution to your
Team’s success. Your will be rated by your teammate(s). All students are expected to
complete the Teammate Performance Evaluation on Blackboard prior to the last class.
Grade Value: 10%
95-100 points
91-94 points
88-90 points
83-87 points
80-82 points
C+
C
CD
F
78-79 points
73-77 points
70-72 points
60-69 points
59 or fewer points
Class Meetings
Date
August 26
Reading
Course Introduction
Activities
August 28
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
September 2
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
September 4
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
September 9
Chapter 2 Family Choice in Education
September 16
Debate
Position 1: Team A
Position 2: Team B
Chapter 2 Family Choice in Education Comedy: Teams C & D
Public Media Artifacts
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
September 18
Chapter 3 Financing Schools
September 23
Chapter 3 Financing Schools
September 11
Debate
Position 1: Team E
Position 2: Team F
Comedy: Teams G & H
September 25
September 30
Public Media Artifacts
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
October 7
Chapter 4 Privatization,
Debate
Commercialization, & the Business of
Position 1: Team C
School
Position 2: Team D
Chapter 4 Privatization,
Comedy: Teams A & B
Commercialization, & the Business of
Public Media Artifacts
School
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
October 9
Chapter 5 Religion & Public Schools
October 2
October 14
October 16
October 21
October 23
October 28
Debate
Position 1: Team G
Position 2: Team H
Chapter 5 Religion & Public Schools
Comedy: Teams E & F
Public Media Artifacts
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
Chapter 7 New Immigrants & The
Debate
Schools
Position 1: Team A
Position 2: Team B
Chapter 7 New Immigrants & The
Comedy: Teams C & D
Schools
Public Media Artifacts
October 30
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
November 4
Chapter 8 Standards-based Reform
November 6
No Class – Veterans Day
November 11
Chapter 8 Standards-based Reform
November 13
Comedy: Teams G & H
Public Media Artifacts
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
November 18
Chapter 9 The Academic Achievement
Gap
November 20
Chapter 9 The Academic Achievement
Gap
November 25
Debate
Position 1: Team E
Position 2: Team F
Debate
Position 1: Team C
Position 2: Team D
Comedy: Teams A & B
Public Media Artifacts
No Class – Thanksgiving
November 27
No Class – Thanksgiving
December 2
Research Day. Come to class. You will have time to meet with your Teams.
December 4
Chapter 15 Inclusion & Disability
December 9
Chapter 15 Inclusion & Disability
December 11
Final class – wrap up/celebration
Debate
Position 1: Team G
Position 2: Team H
Comedy: Teams E & F
Public Media Artifacts
Debate
The purpose of this activity is to demonstrate that you are highly knowledgeable and articulate
about an important educational issue.
For each debate, we have two teams (Positions 1 & 2 for each chapter) competing in a game of
logic, evidence, and persuasion.


The two teams should prepare by reading the chapter AND gathering any additional
information and evidence that you can. If you are not experts on your topic, you will be
scorched in the Debate.
o Prepare your initial Constructive Argument.
o Make a list of possible Cross-Examination questions.
The Debate audience will .
o Vote to name the Winner of the Debate.
o Hint: In order to be fair to your classmates who are debating, everyone must read
the chapter before class. If you read, you are an informed citizen who has some
understanding of the issues and can make a fair evaluation of the performance of
your classmates.
o Before the next class session, complete the Debate Evaluation Rubrics (located on
Blackboard) to evaluate the performance of each team.
The format for each Debate:
1. Position 1: Constructive argument – Give your best points of argument supported by
evidence. (6 minutes)
2. Position 2: Cross-examine Position 1 – Q and A. Ask questions that challenge the main
points of argument. Position 1 responds to questions. (4 minutes)
3. Position 2: Constructive argument – Give your best points of argument supported by
evidence. (6 minutes)
4. Position 1: Cross-examine Position 2 – Q and A. Ask questions that challenge the main
points of argument. Position 2 responds to questions. (4 minutes)
5. Position 1: Rebuttal – Make arguments to rebut statements made by Position 2. (4
minutes)
6. Position 2: Rebuttal – Make arguments to rebut statements made by Position 1. (4
minutes)
Comedy Skit
The purpose of this activity is to facilitate meaningful and unusual insight into important
educational issues through humor. You employ the “Comedy skit” format of COMEDY to turn
educational issues inside out, upside down, and topsy turvy, thereby opening up new insights and
sensibilities.
The format for Comedy:


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Each performing team must be well-informed. Read the chapter and any additional
information and evidence that you can. Humor employing parody and irony requires
intelligence!
Performing teams must practice before class. Your preparation (or lack thereof) will
show.
Each performing team will have three to five minutes to present a single “Comedy skit”
in the genre of Saturday Night Live, Monty Python, Chappelle’s Show, Key and Peele,
etc. The skit must focus on the educational issues of that week’s reading material.
After the performance, the performing team will engage in Q and A with the audience
(classmates) about how the issues were illuminated in the skit.
At the end of class, the audience will vote to choose a Winner of best Comedy skit
performance of the week.
Before the next class session, all classmates will complete the Comedy Evaluation Rubric
(located on Blackboard) to evaluate the quality of each Comedy Skit.
Teammate Performance Evaluation
Team members are accountable to one another. They have a responsibility to devote the
necessary time and energy to the team’s work so that the group can produce high quality
products. If a team member upholds this responsibility, that person should be rewarded with the
appropriate high grade. Conversely, if a team member fails in this responsibility, that person’s
grade for group activities should suffer.
The purpose of this Evaluation is to allow each member of the Team to privately give the
instructors feedback about how well each group member contributed to the group’s shared
efforts. This information is then used by the instructors in giving grades for the course. This
information will be held in confidence by the instructors.
Please fill out one Evaluation (located on Blackboard) for each member of your Team by
December 13.
Teammate Evaluation Rubric
Your name:
Team member you are evaluating:
Criteria
Participation: Teammate attended and participated
in all meetings of the Team. Teammate was a
positive and supportive collaborator who helped the
team produce high quality work.
Preparation: Teammate was fully prepared (e.g.
reading, examining issues, learning lines for skits)
for all Team meetings and performances.
Total X/10
1
(lowest)
2
3
4
5
(highest)