SOC X95E SOC 395E Topics in Seminars in Education 3 Hours
3 Lecture Hours 0 Lab Hours
In-depth theoretical and policy discussions designed to give students intensive exposure to specific issues in education. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.
Pre/Corequisites: Graduate standing.
Grading: Student Option
Repeatable for credit: May be repeated for credit when the topics vary.
Academic Level: Doctoral
Topic 1: Sociology of Education. Provides an overview of the field of sociology of education. Examines the ways in which schools reproduce, reinforce, and challenge the prevailing social, economic, and political relationships in society. Includes discussions of why people go to schools, who has access, and the effects of schools on individuals, communities, and society. May be counted toward either the education specialization or the work, occupations, and organizations specialization.
Topic 2: Poverty, Race, and Schools. Focuses on children's academic outcomes within the contexts of poverty, race, and schools in K-12 education. Includes an assessment of a number of student groups in an effort to understand why some children have higher quality schooling experiences than others. Considers the roles of teachers and parents in affecting children's academic outcomes, with primary emphasis placed on their importance in elementary and middle school. May be counted toward either the education specialization or the race and ethnicity specialization. Sociology 396L (Topic: Poverty, Race, and Schools) and 395E (Topic 2) may not both be counted.
Topic 3: High School and Transition to Adulthood. Focuses on how education is related to adolescents' transition to adulthood in modern society. Examines the structure of schooling and the life course stages of adolescence and early adulthood, societal stratification, and intergenerational mobility. May be counted toward either the education specialization or the family specialization. Sociology 395E (Topic 3) and 396L (Topic: High School and Transition to Adulthood) may not both be counted.
Topic 4: International Issues in Education. Introduction to key theoretical and empirical work on education and social stratification from an international perspective. Focuses on studies of school access, educational attainment and achievement, and inequality of educational opportunity in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Includes discussion of comparative and case study readings that explore specific themes such as education and social mobility, gender, race and ethnicity, and school contexts. May be counted toward the education specialization.
Topic 5: Social Contexts of Education. Explores school as a social context by delving into the informal processes of education, such as socialization and the organization of social relations. Includes discussion of the school as a site of social relations, social psychological influences on educational trajectories, and the social psychological consequences of educational experiences. May be counted toward the education specialization. Sociology 396L (Topic: Social Context of Education) and 395E (Topic 5) may not both be counted.