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The goal
of this course is to examine race and ethnicity in American education and their
relationships with both the broader role of schooling and education in American
society and such dimensions of social inequality as gender and class. Major
topics in the course include, among others, immigration, educational and
socioeconomic inequality, family structure, and social policy initiatives. The
readings for the course bring a range of perspectives to these issues, including
sociological, historical, cultural, legal, and economic. Class
activities will vary from day to day, ranging from lectures to open discussions
to panel discussions to student presentations. Students will be active participants in
the course. You are encouraged and expected to ask questions, raise issues,
and otherwise contribute to classroom discussion.
For the class to work effectively, all of the reading must be done on time. The reading load will vary somewhat from week to week, but regardless of the volume you should read everything carefully and critically. For the course to work, you need to read and think seriously about what you’ve been reading. Please note that the syllabus is always subject to change depending on the size and composition of the class. Your grade will be based on several short written (3-5 pages) assignments, a term paper, an oral presentation of your paper, and your overall participation. I will accept serious attempts to rewrite papers with no penalty. I will explain all of this more fully in class. Please turn your assignments in on time. I encourage you to submit all of your papers electronically. Your research paper should be presented in a style suitable for submission to a scholarly journal. It should follow the general format and structure of a research paper in your field, including a title page, abstract, and bibliography. We will also reserve a time for you to present your paper to the class. The papers should be critical and analytical, searching for points of contention or agreement among different authors, identifying crucial theoretical and empirical points, and discussing the broader implications. A one‑page proposal of your research paper is due on September 19th. I will talk about all of this more in class.
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