IN520 Issues in Comparative and International Education

I. Catalog Description and Credit Hours of Course:

A cross-national examination of various historical, political, economic, cultural, and social issues affecting education in selected countries throughout the world. (3)

II. Prerequisite(s): IN510 or graduate standing

III. Purposes or objectives of the course:

A. Identify and analyze key historical elements that have created the current conditions for schooling across cultures.

B. Identify and analyze circumstances and environmental factors that have lead to education being used as an instrument of political change in selected societies.

C. Identify and analyze trends in public school expenditures and the financing of education across cultures.

D. Analyze the impact of educational development assistance across cultures.

E. Identify and analyze cultural and social factors that have created the current conditions for schooling across cultures.

F. Identify and analyze key elements in the way women are schooled across cultures.

IV. Expectations of the students:

           Attend class regularly, read assigned texts, prepare papers for class discussions and activities, participate in class discussions, write a research paper, contribute to the course content by suggesting and clarifying relevant issues and topics for further study,  perform satisfactorily on exams.  In addition to the regular assignments, graduate students will also complete a term research project.

 V.  Course outline:                                                                                                                     

                A.            Educational development in historical context  (6)

                                 1.             1960s
                     2.             1970s
                     3.             1980s
                     4.             1990s

                 B.            Education as an instrument of political change  (9)

                                 1.             Latin America
                     2.             Middle East
                     3.             East Asia

                 C.            Education and economic growth  (6)                                                          

                                 1.             Financing education
                     2.             Trends in public educational expenditures
                     3.             Impact of inflation and currency devaluation

                 D.            Socio-cultural contexts of education  (12)

                                 1.             Modernization
                     2.             Population growth; migration and urbanization
                     3.             Conditions and learning needs in rural areas
                     4.             Quality indicators: environment, health
                     5.             Cultural beliefs and attitudes

                 F.             Education of girls (6)

                                 1.             Access, persistence, achievement
                     2.             Gender socialization
                     3.             Girls' work; boys' work

                 G.            International cooperation  (3)

                                 1.             Education development assistance: tied aid, multilateral aid
                     2.             Exchanges of students, scholars, academics

                H.            Exams    (3)

VI:  Textbook:

           Mebrahtu, T., Crossley, M.; Johnson, D. (2000). Globalization, educational transformation, and societies in transition. Wallingford , UK : Symposium Books.  

VII:  Basis for student evaluation:

            Students will be evaluated on the quality of their performance on exams, papers, and classroom activities.  Graduate students will also be evaluated on depth of critical analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of the problem developed for the term project, and the subsequent generation of possible solutions to the problem within a realistic context of schooling in diverse societies.

VIII:        Knowledge base:

HISTORICAL:

Hanson, J.W. and Brembeck, C.S. (1966). Education and the development of nations.  New York : Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.

Harbison, F.H. (1973). Human resources as the wealth of nations. New York : Oxford University Press.

Simmons, J. (Ed.) (1980). The education dilemma: Policy issues for developing countries in the 1980s. New York : Pergamon.

POLITICAL:

Lisovskaya, E., Karpov, V. (1999). New ideologies in postcommunist Russian textbooks. Comparative Education Review, 43:4.

Talbani, A.(1996). Pedagogy, power, and discourse: Transformation of Islamic education. Comparative Education Review, 40:1.

Torney-Purta, J. (2000). Comparative perspectives on political socialization and civic education. Comparative Education Review, 44:1.

ECONOMIC:

Buchmann, C., Brakewood, D. (2000). Labor structures and school enrollments in developing societies. Comparative Education Review, 44:2.

World Bank. (2000). World development report. Washington , DC : World Bank.

CULTURAL AND SOCIAL:

McGovern, S.M. (2000). Reclaiming education: Knowledge practices and indigenous communities. Comparative Education Review, 44:4.

Zou, Y., Trueba, E.(1998). Ethnic identity and power: Cultural contexts of political action in school and society. Albany : State University of New York Press.

WOMEN'S EDUCATION:

Kane, E. (1996). Gender, culture, and learning.  Washington , DC : USAID.

Prather, C. (1991). Educating girls: Strategies to increase access, persistence, and achievement. Washington , DC : USAID.

Stevens, D. (1999). Girls and schooling in developing countries. International Journal of Educational Development, 20:1.

THEORETICAL:

Peters, M. (1998). Naming the multiple: Poststructuralism in education. Westport , CT : Bergin & Garvey.

Popkewitz, T.S., Brennan, M. (1998). Foucault's challenge: Discourse, knowledge, and power in education. New York : Teachers College Press.

Stronach, I. , Maclure, M. (1997). Educational research undone: The postmodern embrace. Buckingham , UK : Open University Press.

JOURNALS:        Comparative Education
                   Comparative Education Review
                   International Journal of Educational Development

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