Member of the Division of Social Studies
Jean Ketter, Chair, Paul Hutchison, Martha Voyles
The education department seeks to develop each student's ability to analyze problems in education, to evaluate proposed solutions, and to act as teachers or citizens in ethical ways that further equity in the schools. The introductory courses (EDU 101, EDU 210-215) are designed for all students. Students pursuing licensure will major in an academic discipline. They must earn a grade of C or higher in all required education courses. All education courses prepare students for secondary licensure (grades 5 - 12), and students who meet the requirements receive an Iowa license when all requirements are completed. The Iowa license is portable and will transfer to most states.
Student seeking licensure at Grinnell College must apply to enter the Practitioner Preparation Program. This should be done no later than the deadline for declaring a major, usually in the second semester of the second year.
Candidates must be approved by the Committee on Teacher Education. Applications for both the program and Student Teaching Handbook are available on the department website.
Licensure can be attained in the following areas:
American history, anthropology, biology, chemistry, economics, English, Russian, Spanish, sociology, and world history. Student seeking licensure should consult members of the department about these requirements as early as possible. Requirements for each license are listed under endorsements on the department web page.
Students seeking licensure must have taken courses in all divisions and a course in mathematics, in humanities, in American history or government, and coursework in both a biological and physical science.
For all areas of licensure, the foundation courses are Education 101, 21x (there are several courses to choose from), 221, and 250. All require observation or research in the Grinnell public schools, an experience that aims to integrates theory and practice. In the upper-level courses, students apply theory and methods of instruction to specific disciplines. Each licensure sequence includes a 14-week experience in student teaching, which may be done in Grinnell or nearby public schools.
Student seeking licensure at Grinnell College should plan to take nine semesters to do so. The College will forgive the ninth-semester tuition provided students meet the conditions described in Section 4 of the catalog.
Students may request permission from the department to complete the requirements for licensure in eight semesters by indicating their ability to complete a major and obtain a strong liberal arts background in seven semesters. Students must also indicate that extracurricular commitments will not interfere with 14 weeks of full-time teaching. Students who choose this option should know that the 12 hours of course credit for student teaching will not count toward their graduation credits.
All course prerequisites for the Professional Semester (student teaching) must be completed within the five years immediately preceding the Professional Semester.
The Grinnell College Teacher Education Program for secondary licensure is approved by the Iowa State Department of Education.
Grinnell Requirements for Licensure
Secondary Licensure
- Educational and Professional Requirements 32 credits*
- Education 101 Educational Principles in a Pluralistic Society 4 credits
- Four credits chosen from one of the following: 4 credits
- Education 210 Perspectives on Educational Issues
- Education 211 The Politics of Educational Assessment
- Education 212 Critical Pedagogy and School Reform
- Education 213 Critical Issues in Second Language Acquisition
- Education 214 Nature of Science and Science Teaching
- Education 215 Reading and Writing Youth Culture
- Education 221 Educational Psychology 4 credits
- Education 250 Differentiating Instruction for All Learners 4 credits
- Education 469 Laboratory Practice and Practicum in Secondary Teaching 12 credits
- Education 34x Education Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning 4 credits
- An approved major, including courses required for licensure
- An approved course in each: American history, humanities, and mathematics; coursework in both a biological and a physical science; and demonstrated proficiency in writing
- An action research project based on student teaching
* Note: Certain licenses and dual licensure may require more than 32 credits.
101 Educational Principles in a Pluralistic Society (Fall or Spring) 4 credits
Focus on the discussion of key concepts in multicultural/nonsexist elementary and secondary educational theory and practice, and the foundation of educational principles in the United States. Ten hours of observation in schools required for all seeking licensure. Required for Iowa teacher certification. Prerequisite: none. STAFF.
210 Perspectives on Educational Issues* (Fall) 4 credits
An examination of topical educational issues from historical, legal, and political perspectives with an emphasis on analysis and evaluation of historical and current approaches to defining and achieving education goals in the United States. Topics include aims of education, finance and governance of schools, alternative models of schooling, and justice concerns in schools. Eight hours of field experience in 5 - 12 public school setting. Prerequisite: Education 101. STAFF.
211 The Politics of Educational Assessment* (Spring) 4 credits
The course will begin with an examination of the purposes and limits of assessment and discussions of the ethical use of standardized tests. We will examine the concept of meritocracy as a guiding principle of the American education system and will trace the historical development of standardized measurements of intelligence and aptitude as tools used to track students and determine eligibility for further schooling. We will include an analysis of the current debate on the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (No Child Left Behind) and its goal of addressing inequities in education through the use of standardized curriculum and assessments. Eight hours of field experience in 5 - 12 public school setting. Prerequisite: Education 101. KETTER.
212 Critical Pedagogy and School Reform* (Fall) 4 credits+
This course is a study of critical pedagogy from its roots in Marxism and the Frankfurt School through current-day theoretical connections (postmodernism, critical theory, critical feminism, and critical race theory) and their relevance to American public education. We will examine the dual character of schools that helps to explain some difficulties of school reform; that is, the democratic promise of schooling on the one hand, and its institutional service to a society based on race, class, and gender privilege on the other. Eight hours of field experience in 5 - 12 public school setting. Prerequisite: Education 101. STAFF.
213 Critical Issues in Second Language Acquisition* (Spring) 4 credits+
This course will focus on issues critical to the acquisition of a second language. It will examine the historical, theoretical, and pedagogical foundations of language teaching in the United States. Of particular interest will be the relationships among language, literacy, and culture, and their influences on both teaching and learning across the curriculum. Special attention will be given to the instructional needs of ESL/bilingual students and to the creation of classroom environments that foster multilingualism. Eight hours of field experience in 5 - 12 public school setting. Prerequisite: Education 101. STAFF.
214 Nature of Science and Science Teaching (Spring) 4 credits
This course will begin by considering the nature of science from a variety of perspectives, including official publications from professional science organizations, ethnographies of science laboratories and workplaces, and prominent critiques of science. Ideas about the nature of science will be used to analyze various science curricula and instructional strategies. Students will have the opportunity to focus on the discipline and level that is of most interest to them. Eight hours of field experience in 5 - 12 public school setting. Prerequisite: Education 101. HUTCHISON.
215 Reading and Writing Youth Culture* (Spring) 4 credits+
This course examines contrasts in the construction of adolescence in texts written about, for, and by adolescents. We will pay particular attention to how historical and current cultural constructions of adolescence reinscribe or challenge mainstream conceptions of adolescents as members of social-political groups (as raced, classed, and gendered, for example). We will focus on one site of youth culture, the school, to examine how various school practices (such as athletics, school dances, clubs, pedagogical approaches) reinforce or challenge dominant notions of adolescence. Prerequisite: Education 101. LYCKE, KETTER.
221 Educational Psychology (Spring) 4 credits
The application of principles of development and theories of learning from birth to 18 years. The study of interaction in the teaching-learning process. Topics include motivation, individual differences, evaluation of achievement, and learning styles. Two hours per week spent in Grinnell public schools. Course requires 24 hours observing/teaching in 5 - 12 class room. Prerequisite: Education 101 and second-year standing. HUTCHISON.
250 Differentiating Instruction for All Students (Fall) 4 credits+
This course aims to help future teachers develop ethical and effective approaches for meeting all students' learning needs, using a critical model of inclusion based on a disability studies framework. The course will center on two key activities: a case study with a student at the middle or high school, and the peer lessons developed using approaches that help all students learn more effectively. The case study will require that students spend a minimum of 24 hours in the school observing, tutoring, and talking with the focus student. In the course, students will develop research skills to improve their own teaching and will analyze how particular students learn, how teachers adapt instruction to meet a wide range of student learning needs, and how schools organize curricular paths for students. Prerequisite: Education 101 and 221. KETTER.
34X Education Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning (Spring) 4 credits
Each discipline-specific course will examine the theory and research on student learning and effective instruction in the designated discipline. Courses require 14 hours of observational teaching in 5 - 12 setting. All courses include regularly scheduled classes and a lab session. Prerequisite: Education 101, 221, and senior standing.
- 341 Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning in Language Arts and Reading
- 342 Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning in Second Language Acquisition
- 343 Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning in the Social Sciences
- 344 Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning in Quantitative Literacy
- 345 Research and Methods in Teaching and Learning in the Sciences
469 Laboratory Practice and Practicum in Secondary Teaching (Fall) 12 credits
Students assume responsibility for classes in a junior or senior high school under close supervision. Each student is observed and tutored by a secondary-education faculty member and a cooperating teacher from the public school. A weekly seminar is held. Prerequisite: Education 101, and 210 or 211, and 221, 250, 315, and 34x. STAFF.
|
