Identity, Culture and the Classroom

Professor: Michael Sadowski  

Course Number: MAT ED512 B

CRN Number: 10671

Class cap: 14

Credits: 2

Schedule/Location:

  Wed       3:30 PM - 4:50 PM Olin 302

Distributional Area:

SA  Social Analysis  D+J Difference and Justice

This course examines the myriad factors that influence adolescent identity development, particularly as these have an effect on students’ learning, interaction, and engagement in school. Drawing on various readings in psychology, ethnography, and education research, the course places special emphasis on power dynamics in American society with regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, class, immigration, ability, and other factors. We consider such questions as: “How might an adolescent’s identity development be influenced by one or more of these factors?” “What experiences with these cultural forces do students bring to school, and how might these experiences affect their learning?” “How do school cultures mirror and/or reinforce the power structures and attitudes that exist around these issues in the larger society?” The purpose of the course is not to come up with fixed answers to these questions; rather, it is to help participants ask informed and essential questions about how these issues might play out in schools, in society, and in individual adolescents’ lives.  This course is cross-listed with the MAT program for 3+2 students.

LGBTQ+ Issues in US Education

Professor: Michael Sadowski  

Course Number: HR 358

CRN Number: 10672

Class cap: 15

Credits: 2

Schedule/Location:

    Fri   11:50 AM - 1:10 PM Reem Kayden Center 101

Distributional Area:

SA  Social Analysis  D+J Difference and Justice

Crosslists: Gender and Sexuality Studies

This course will examine both the history and contemporary landscape of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and related (LGBTQ+) issues in U.S. education, with an emphasis on recent "Don't Say Gay" and anti-trans legislation at the state level. Students will explore the legal, political, pedagogical, and empirical questions that have been central to this field over the last three decades, such as: What are the rights of LGBTQ+ students and educators, and what are the obstacles to their being realized? What strategies have been successful in advocacy for more LGBTQ+ positive schools, and what lessons do they hold for future change? What do LGBTQ+ supportive school environments look like, and what does research tell us about their effectiveness? Although K–12 schooling will be the primary focus of the class, we will also examine the landscape of higher education vis-à-vis LGBTQ+ issues. As a final project, students will present an “educational change plan,” in which they envision how they might contribute to positive change in an area related to this relatively nascent field.