Multicultural and Philosophical Foundations of Education

General Description
The aim of the course is to enable students to acquire the background and skills necessary to adjust their teaching techniques and strategies to promote academic success for all students in the culturally diverse classroom. This course will address issues that develop sensitivity and skills for effective cross-cultural practices. Multicultural and ultiethnic education and issues will be explored from a comparative education perspective.

Each student will be assigned a placement, in a learning assistant role, for up to one full day per week at a local primary or secondary school on the basis of the age-range they plan to teach. Students will be expected to maintain a learning log which will be evaluated at the end of the semester and contribute to the final grade. The learning log will enable the student to record their experiences, reflect on the skills and techniques they have used and observed and critically assess their experience. Students will be expected to integrate course material with classroom experience.

Students are expected to contribute to class discussions and will be encouraged to discuss their observations and experiences in the classroom/school.

Course Objectives
1. Academic Excellence, Critical Inquiry and Reflection

• Attainment of good understanding of theories of development and learning
• Appreciation of the historical, philosophical and sociological factors driving educational reform
• Ability to compare how and why the goals of primary and secondary education differ
• Experiential understanding of the characteristics of effective teachers
• Appreciate the influence teachers have on students' outcomes; how teachers and schools contribute to and perpetuate stereotyping and discrimination and how diversity impacts on learning
• Consideration of the relevance in different countries/cultural settings of the aims listed below:
  • enhancing student motivation
  • focusing student attention
  • decreasing classroom management problems

2. Community and service

• Exploration of the connection between the school/classroom and the community
• Assessment of the links between your assigned school and the local community

3. Ethics, Values and Diversity
Ability to consider and address the following questions:

• what legal, ethical and professional responsibilities are expected of a classroom teacher?
• what are the central issues in ethics in education?
• what is multicultural education? What is international education?
• what are the factors that cause minority students to receive lower-quality education?
• what are the effects of gender bias resulting from linguistic bias and stereotyping?
• what are the challenges of working with language diverse students?
• is full inclusion of disabled students possible and desirable?
• how can teaching practices promote multicultural education and understanding?
• how effectively does your assigned school promote inclusiveness and multicultural understanding?

Course requirements and grading
Active, thoughtful participation in all classes; (10%)
2 short essays (15% each)
Portfolio that includes: (60%: Learning Log (20%; Final Report 40%)

1. Learning Log: detailing your reflections on your placement experience and specifically how your knowledge, beliefs, skills and dispositions were challenged/changed; incorporate your understanding of your experience and course readings; Your learning Log should include: a) your personal educational philosophy; b) a reflection on the change in your knowledge and dispositions of multicultural education as a result of your placement; c) knowledge of multicultural education learned over the course of the semester; d) the applicability of this knowledge for your own teaching;
2. Final Report which will be submitted and form the basis of a class presentation. It should include the following information:

• Description of the neighborhood school is located
• Mission statement
• How is the administration of the school organized
• How many students attend; class sizes, age ranges, etc.
• Describe the school website and the info it contains
• What service(s) does the school perform for the community
• What is the approach to providing a culturally relevant classroom
• To what extent does the Head teacher and staff seem aware of the culturally specific background of students and integrate it into practice—provide evidence
Conduct an interview with either a teacher or parent of a student to learn more about the school; this structure and analysis of the interview is an important component of this final essay
• Record reflections on your experience both professionally and personally and answer some of the following questions, for example, what are some of the challenges you face in teaching and working with these students? What are you learning about student needs, and what are your challenges in addressing these needs? How are your attitudes and knowledge changing as you work with them? Incorporate these reflections into your final report.
• Finally, incorporate what you have learnt from class discussions about your experiences and those of other students in different schools—are there similarities and differences? What works and doesn't work?

General Reading
J. Ahier, B. Cosin & M. Hales (eds), Diversity and Change: Education, Policy and Selection (Routledge/)Open University, 1996)
Peter Clough & Jenny Corbett, Theories of Inclusive Education (Sage, 2000)
Neal Glasgow, Sarah McNary & Cathy Hicks, What Successful Teachers Do in Diverse Classrooms: 71 Research-based classroom strategies for New and veteran Teachers (Sage: 2006)
Mary Hayden, Jeff Thompson & Jack Levy, Handbook of Research in International Education (Sage, 2006)
James W. Noll. (ed), Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Controversial Educational Issues (12th edition), The Dushkin Publishing Group, Inc., 2002.
Ozmon & Craver, Philosophical Foundations of Education (7th edition) (Prentice-Hall)
Gavin Reid, Learning Styles and Inclusion, (Sage,2005)
J. Snowman, & R. F. Biehler, Psychology Applied to Teaching (9th Edition) (Houghton, 2000)
Margy Whalley, Involving Parents in their Children's Learning (Sage, 2000)