PLEASE PRINT THIS SYLLABUS FOR YOUR REFERENCE.

Course ED 670
Issues of Peace, Social Justice, and Educational Reform

Chaminade University of Honolulu			On-line WebCT course Winter 2006 								(3 Credits)

Instructor
Dr. Julia C. Myers, Adjunct Professor
Phone: 478-1356 (for emergencies only, please.)
E-mail: julia.myers@adjunct.chaminade.edu

Texts
The following five books are required. Students may purchase the books in the Chaminade bookstore. 

1.	The Challenge to Care in Schools (Nel Noddings) ISBN 0-8077-31773
2.	The Courage to Teach (Parker J. Palmer) ISBN 0-7879-1058-9
3.	The Human Side of School Change (Robert Evans) ISBN0-7879-5611-2
4.	God, Society, and the Human Person, The Basics of Catholic Social Teaching (Edward T. Mechmann) ISBN 0-8189-0886-6
5.	The Soul of Education (Rachael Kessler) ISBN 0-87120-373-1

Students should download and read the following files from WebCT. The files have been placed in the Course Content area. 

•	Characteristics of Marianist Education
•	A Marianist Multicultural Approach to Education in America Today

Course Description 
Focus on issues of positive and negative peace, social justice and cultural change with implications for educational structures and classroom practice as they apply to establishing a more just society.

Rationale
It is important for educators to explore and to understand the paradigm shifts occurring today that are redefining teaching and learning for the 21st century. The paradigm shifts in question refer to transformative change rather than simply reforming existing societal and educational structures. The underlying assumption is that long-term transformation toward a more and just compassionate society is accomplished through cultural change, celebrated and institutionalized in social, political and educational structures.

The exploration of educational structures is intended to identify and to address issues of structural violence in society, in general, and in schools in particular. This exploration leads naturally to the discovery of educational strategies that embody the ideals of a just society. Therefore, this course will focus on analyzing issues of social justice and human dignity as they pertain to schools.

Course Goal 
The goal of this course is to introduce educators to factors of peace and social justice that impact the many efforts being made at all levels of society to enact meaningful educational change.

COURSE OBJECTIVES
1.	To help students become aware of different educational paradigms and the relationship to reform and transformation.  HTSB 5A, 6E, 9G
2.	To explore the concepts of peace, social justice, culture and educational transformation relating to individuals, and institutions (particularly schools).  HTSB 2E, 3B, 3E, 5A, 6B, 7C, 8D
3.	To examine educational curriculums that model issues of peace, social justice and educational transformation.  HTSB 2F, 3B, 4F, 5D, 6F, 7E, 7G, 9G
4.	To provide and opportunity to investigate a theory of social justice that is consistent with the Marianist philosophy. HTSB 1E, 2A, 2C, 3B-C, 3F, 4C-, 5E, 6E, 7F, 9H

Student Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the course students will demonstrate their ability to:
1.	explain the difference between reform and transformation as they analyze current educational issues,
2.	articulate an operative theory of social justice that includes an understanding of both the dignity and worth of the individual, and of the individual’s responsibility imposed by the needs of the common good.
3.	identify the issues of social justice that educators face in school environments,
4.	develop curricula that address issues of social justice and human dignity.

Computer Requirements
•	All students will need to be able to access the Internet. If students need to do this from a Chaminade computer, and they do not have a Chaminade account with a user-id and password, they will need to fill out paperwork available at the Chaminade Computer Lab. Otherwise it is assumed that the student can access the Internet from their home or school computer.
•	Everyone will need an email address.

Course Requirements
Successful completion of this course will require students to demonstrate an understanding of issues of peace, social justice, and educational reform through participation in on-line discussions with reflection papers and response papers, exploration of integrating these issues into classroom practice, and preparation of a major research paper on a related issue. Students are expected to submit their work on time.  Under special circumstances, late submissions may receive partial credit; however, students should notify the instructor in advance if assignments cannot be completed by the given deadlines.
1. WebCT Reflection/discussion papers by each student. 
Due on MONDAYS by 11:55 PM Hawaii time
Students will write a reflection paper based on the assigned readings and post it to WebCT under the weekly discussions area for their Learning Group. (Refer to Learning Groups below.)

These reflection/discussion papers are to be 2-3 pages in length. Students are advised to type their papers on their computer, spell check and grammar check their work, and then copy their text and paste it into each week’s discussion message in the body of the message. Although, WebCT can accept attached files, the professor prefers that all students copy/paste their work for these reflection/discussion papers into the body of the discussion messages on WebCT. That way it will not matter if students are using different word processing software to write their papers.

2. WebCT Response/discussion papers by each student. Each student will respond to the other students’ reflection papers, in their Learning Group.

Due on THURSDAYS by 11:55 PM Hawaii time

Students will participate in WebCT discussions related to assigned readings. Students are to post their responses to their Learning Groups’ reflection papers in the Discussion messages part of WebCT). All students are expected to log into WebCT twice a week to read each other’s reflections and to respond to each other’s reflection papers. A response paper is expected to be at least one page in length with a robust paragraph in response to each member of the group. An example follows. The student responding would type his or her name at the beginning of the response. That would be followed by separate paragraphs beginning with the group member’s name the student is responding to. This means that all group members must make every effort to post their reflection paper on time, so that all group members will have ample time to read, and then respond to each of the group members in this manner.  

Refer to the Sample Response Paper below:

Your Name – response to group #

Student A:xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx.     
xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx.

Student B:xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx.
xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx.

Student C:xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx.
xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx.

Student D:xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxx. xxxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx. xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx.
xxxxxxxx.Xxxxxxxx  xxxxxxxxx.xxxx.

Note:  The xxxx represent the text the responding group member types in. The Student A, Student B, Student C, Student D, etc., represent where the responding group member types in the name of the group member’s reflection that he or she is responding to.  Each group member has to respond to each of other group members, in the format shown above.

3.	Children’s Literature Assignment

Each student will write a reflection paper about one children’s literature book that could be used to integrate issues of peace in education and/or social justice into our 21st century classrooms. These papers are expected to be 2-3 pages in length and contain the following information:

•	Book title
•	Author
•	ISBN
•	A synopsis of the book
•	A detailed rationale of why this book is appropriate for integrating issues of peace in education and/or social justice into our 21st century classrooms.

Examples of books:
•	Charlotte’s Web (friendship)
•	And the Doorbell Rang (sharing cookies in equal shares with friends)
•	The Giver (compassion and empathy)

Students will post Children’s Literature discussions in their Learning Groups. Refer to the schedule for when things are due. All members of the Learning Groups will respond and discuss the use of the books and the lesson plans that their group recommended. Please use the same format for the response to the Children’s Literature assignment, as shown in the Sample Response paper in this syllabus. 

4.	Lesson Plan Assignment

Each student will develop a lesson plan that incorporates issues of peace and/or social justice into the classroom. This lesson plan should contain the following items: 
•	Aim:  A short description of overall purpose of the lesson, including audience and the topic. 
•	Rationale:  Paragraph describing why aim is worth achieving.  
•	Goals and objectives: A list of the learning outcomes expected from participation in the lesson. This section includes a discussion of how the lesson incorporates issues of peace and social justice.
•	Audience and pre-requisites: Describes who the lesson is for and the prior knowledge, skills, and attitudes of those learners likely to be successful with the lesson. 
•	Description of subject-matter:  A designation of what area of content, facts, and arena of endeavor that the lesson deals with.  (This is a further elaboration of the "topic" description in the Aim.) 
•	Instructional plan:  Describes the activities the learners are going to engage in, and the sequence of those activities.  Also describes what the TEACHER is to do in order to facilitate those activities. 
•	Materials:  Lists materials necessary for successful teaching of the lesson. Includes a list of web pages. Often, the web site will NOT be the only materials needed by the students. They may need books, tables, paper, chalkboards, calculators, and other tools. Also includes the actual materials (worksheets and web pages) prepared by the teacher, any special requirements for classroom setup and supplies, and a list of any specific hardware and software requirements. 
•	Plans for assessment and evaluation:  Includes plan for assessing learning and evaluating the lesson. May include description of a model project, sample exam questions, or other elements of assessment.  
5.	Research Paper 

•	Each student will conduct research on an area of Issues of Peace, Social Justice, or Educational Reform that is of interest to him or her.
•	Topics should be selected by week 6, and should be sent to the instructor for approval.
•	Possible topics for research papers:
•	Bullying
•	Gender bias issues
•	Constructivism 
•	Multicultural education
•	Character education
•	Service learning
•	Each student will write a paper based on the area he or she selected. 
•	Papers are to be written in APA format. The paper is to be 8 to 10 pages long and include citations in the body of the paper and a separate Reference Page.
•	Each paper must reference at least 5 sources. Sources may be on-line references and/or from professional journals such as the Reading Teacher, published by the International Reading Association (IRA) or Educational Leadership published by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD).
•	Each student will post his or her Research Paper to their group via attachment. 
•	Each student member of the group will read each group members’ research paper and respond to it. Please use the same format for the response to the Research Paper assignment, as shown in the Sample Response paper in this syllabus. 

Below are some useful search engines for conducting on-line research:
•	Copernic http://www.copernic.com/en/index.html  
•	ERIC http://www.askeric.org/Eric/ 
•	Yahooligans www.yahooligans.com
•	Google www.google.com
•	ASCD www.ascd.org

Learning Groups
Students will be placed into a learning group by the professor during the first week.  

•	Each learning group may have between 3-5 members
•	The professor will notify the students via WebCT email of their Learning Group number (1, 2, or 3, etc.) for the purpose of the class Learning Group Discussions on WebCT.
o	In WebCT, click on Mail
o	Click on Inbox
o	Click on the message ED 670 Group Numbers

Each week on MONDAY, students must go to the Discussions folder of WebCT.
•	Click on Main
•	It will expand to display 10 weeks of discussion sessions that the professor has set up for the course
•	Click on the green triangle next to the folder for your group (for example, Grp 1 – Reflection). It will expand to show the message posted by the professor.
•	Click on the weekly message from the professor. 
•	Read the message. It will include the reading(s) upon which you should write your reflection.  
•	Write your 2 page reflection paper using word processing software, such as Microsoft Word. Spell check and grammar check your work please.
•	Post your reflection by clicking on Reply for the message posted by the professor, copying and pasting your reflection in the message box, and then clicking on Post.  
•	Wait 3 days. On THURSDAY, log into WebCT again.
•	Everyone in Group 1 should read each person’s reflection and respond to them within a single page of responses, as described above.
•	Again, students may write their responses in word processing software, spell check and grammar check their work, and then copy/paste their text into the body of the reply message.

Please make sure you post your reflections and responses in their group appropriate folders.

On Week 9, the discussions will conclude. 

On the Friday after students have posted their responses to their group’s research papers, please access and print the Course and Instructor Evaluation. It is located in the Course Contents Area of WebCT. Students should fill out the Course Evaluation and mail it to Chaminade University of Honolulu. The address is included in the Course and Instructor Evaluation. 

Total Points for this course

Week 1
•	Introductions			`					5 points

Week 2
•	Children’s Literature Assignment				         	5 points
o	Response Paper Children’s Literature			5 points

Week 3
•	Reflection Paper Noddings	‘					5 points
o	Response Paper Noddings’ book				5 points

Week 4
•	Reflection Paper Palmer’s book  					5 points
o	Response Paper Palmer’s book  				5 points

Week 5
•	Lesson Plan Assignment						5 points	
o	Response to Lesson Plan   				5 points

Week 6
•	Reflection Paper Evans’ book 					5 points
o	Response Paper Evans’ book 				5 points

Week 7
•	Reflection Paper on Marianist readings 				5 points
o	Response Paper on Marianist readings			5 points

Week 8
•	Reflection Paper Kessler’s book					5 points
o	Response Paper Kessler’s book				5 points

Week 9
•	Research Paper (APA format)				         15 points
o	Response to Research Papers				5 points

Week 10
•	Course Reflection						         	5 points

								        Total: 100 points

	GRADING CRITERIA
	Rubrics for reflections, responses, and other assignments can be found in the Course Content folder.

Grading
90 – 100 = A
80 – 89 = B
70 – 79 = C 		not usable towards graduation credit
60 – 69 = D 		not usable towards graduation credit
68 and below = F 	not usable towards graduation credit

Course Atmosphere
This is an on-line participatory course. Not only is participation mandatory, but the more you do, the more you will learn. Participation in Learning Group and class discussions, the reflection papers/response papers, mini-papers, and the research paper and presentation should demonstrate students’ understanding of Issues of Peace, Social Justice, and Educational Reform. 

course Policies

Attendance/Participation
Students are expected to log in several times each week to a Chaminade WebCT course and participate in the weekly on-line discussions related to assigned readings, and other topics. Reflection Papers should be posted to WebCT for the correct weekly discussions (by Learning Group) by 11:55 PM on MONDAY of each week. And, the Response papers should be posted to WebCT for the correct weekly discussions (by Learning Group) by 11:55 PM on THURSDAY of each week.

In addition to writing and responding to the Reflection and Response papers, students need to log in to view discussions that will assuredly take place as a result of reading each others’ response papers, within your Learning Groups.

Incompletes
Incomplete may be given if the student is unable to complete a portion of the work due to circumstances beyond their control.  The student and the instructor must sign the incomplete contract. It will specify when the work must be completed. Usually the work must be completed in 90 days. If it is not, then the incomplete will revert to the grade that the student would have earned that is specified on the incomplete contact.

Academic Honesty
Plagiarism is a serious offense.  Plagiarism is the offering of work of another as one’s own and may include but is not limited to the following:
•	Complete or partial copying directly from a published or unpublished source without proper acknowledgment to the author. Minor changes in wording or syntax are not sufficient to avoid charges of plagiarism. Proper acknowledgment of the soured of the text is always mandatory.
•	Paraphrasing the work of another without proper author acknowledgement.
•	Submitting as one’s own original work (however freely given or purchased) the original exam, research paper, manuscript, report, computer file or other assignment that has been prepared by another individual.

Classroom Deportment (Please refer to the Student Handbook).

Freedom of Expression (Please refer to the Student Handbook):
•	Students are free to express different opinions and views than those presented in the course but these diverse views must be grounded in research. Students are required to know the material presented in the class whether or not they agree with the specific bodies of knowledge set forth in the course.
•	Students are expected to maintain academic standards set forth on the course syllabus.

Course Schedule
Reflection papers are due to be posted to WebCT by 11:55 PM on MONDAY of each week that the class meets. Response papers are due to be posted to WebCT by 11:55 PM on THURSDAY of each week that the class meets. Late submissions will receive partial credit.  

Week 1 Part 1 DUE Monday 1/9/06

Email your name, phone number, and email address to the professor as soon as you register for the WebCT course.

The professor will then assign a group number to each of the Learning Groups and send a WebCT email to inform group members which group number they are in for purposes of our WebCT Discussions.

As soon as you know the group number you have been assigned, then proceed to WebCT Discussions folders entitled, Introductions & Week 1.  

Week 1 Part 2 DUE Monday 1/9/06

Post your introduction in the discussion folder entitled “Introductions.”  Within your introduction, include the following: 

1.	Name
2.	Where you live
3.	Your teaching experience, including where and what you are currently teaching if applicable.
4.	What you enjoy doing.
5.	The most interesting place you’ve been.
6.	An explanation of what you would like to learn from this class OR why you believe it is important to integrate issues of peace and social justice into the classroom.

You may also attach a picture of yourself, your family, or the most interesting place you’ve been. 

After you post your message, click on the UPDATE LISTING button at the top of the Discussions Page. That will allow you to see that what you just posted has indeed been posted.

Note:  Although you may post responses to your groupmates’ introductions, responses are not required this week.
________________________________________________________________

Week 2 Part 1 

Read The Challenge to Care in Schools (Noddings) Chapters 1-6.

Week 2 Part 2 DUE Monday 1/16/06

Choose one Children’s Literature book you like and write your Children’s Literature reflection paper. Post it to your week 1 discussion group (based on your Learning Group’s number). 

Three days later log into WebCT and write response papers to your group members’ Children’s Literature papers. DUE THURSDAY 1/19/06.

Week 3  

Read The Challenge to Care in Schools (Noddings) Chapters 7-12.
Write your reflection paper to this book. DUE MONDAY 1/23/06.

Three days later log into WebCT and write response papers to your group members’ reflection papers. DUE THURSDAY 1/26/06.

Week 4 

Read The Courage to Teach (Palmer). 
Write your reflection paper to this book. DUE MONDAY 1/30/06.

Three days later log into WebCT and write response papers to your group members’ reflection papers. DUE THURSDAY 2/2/06.

Week 5 Part 1

Read The Human Side of School Change (Evans) Chapters 1 – 8

Week 5 Part 2

Develop and submit your lesson plan that incorporates issues of peace and/or social justice into the classroom.  DUE MONDAY 2/6/06.

Three days later log into WebCT and write response papers to your group members’ lesson plans. DUE THURSDAY 2/9/06.

SUGGESTION TO STUDENTS:
•	Please begin to work on your APA formatted Research Paper. 
•	You should submit your proposed topic (via WebCT email) for approval this week.
•	Please plan ahead. It takes time to conduct research, and write an 8-10 page paper.
•	If for any reason, you foresee not being able to deliver your research on time, you must notify the professor by email or telephone before the due date. 
•	Late submissions will receive reduced points.
Week 6

Read The Human Side of School Change (Evans) Chapters 9-14
Write your reflection paper to this book. DUE MONDAY 2/13/06.

Three days later log into WebCT and write response papers to your group members’ reflection papers. DUE THURSDAY 2/16/06.
________________________________________________________________

Week 7 

It is important for students to know that the topic of Marianist Education will be included on the comprehensive exam for M.Ed. candidates. So, while it is a small portion of this course, students need to be familiar with this week’s readings in preparation for the comprehensive exam, as part of the requirements for being awarded a M.Ed. degree from Chaminade University of Honolulu.

Read the following and then write your reflection paper for week 7:

•	Book: God, Society, and the Human Person The Basics of Catholic Social Teaching by Mechmann:
•	Chapter 1 Numbers: 4, 5, & 6 and
•	Chapter 2: Letters: A, B, C, D, E, f, G, H, I, & J

Students should download and also read the following files from WebCT. The files have been placed in the Course Content area. These readings are ALL part of the week 7 reading assignment for the reflection and response papers:

•	Article: Characteristics of Marianist Education (On WebCT in Course Contents Area)
•	Article A Marianist Multicultural Approach to Education in America Today (On WebCT in Course Contents Area)
•	What it means to be a Catholic and Marianist Institution (On WebCT in Course Contents Area)

You should visit the following web sites and read the information there as well. They are listed in the file Web Sites Marianist Social Justice and Education Reform (On WebCT in the Course Contents Area) and can be accessed directly through the links folder:

•	Catholic Social Teaching Office for Social Justice Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. http://www.osjspm.org/cst/  Especially useful: Click on the link for MAJOR THEMES.
•	Brief Introduction to Catholic Social Teaching http://www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au/content/pdf/cst_intro.pdf
•	Social Justice – A Basic Introduction http://www.ecatholic2000.com/sj/socjust.shtml#Prayer
•	Feel free to visit and read the other links in the file Web Sites Marianist Social Justice and Education Reform.
As you write your Reflection Paper to these readings, keep the following questions in mind:
•	How has Catholic Social Teaching influenced development of Marianist characteristics?
•	How do Marianist characteristics make a Marianist education unique?
Write your reflection paper to these reading assignments. DUE MONDAY 2/20/06.

Three days later log into WebCT and write response papers to your group members’ reflection papers. DUE THURSDAY 2/23/06.

Week 8

Read The Soul of Education (Kessler).
Write your reflection paper to this book and post it to your Discussion Group. DUE MONDAY 2/27/06.

Three days later, log back into WebCT and read your group members’ reflections and write your response to those reflections. DUE THURSDAY 3/2/06.
________________________________________________________________

Week 9 

Post your research paper to your group. DUE MONDAY 3/6/06.

Everyone in the Learning Group must read each other’s research papers and write responses to those papers.  DUE THURSDAY 3/09/06.
________________________________________________________________

Week 10  

For your final reflection, please complete the following statements:
1.	The most beneficial parts of this course were...
2.	The course could be improved by...
3.	One way I will integrate what I have learned from this course into my teaching is by...  DUE MONDAY 3/13/06. 

After you have posted your reflection, Download the Course Evaluation which may be found in the Course Content area of WebCT. Please print the file and fill it in. Then mail the hard copy filled in form to:

Chaminade University of Honolulu
Education Division
3140 Waialae Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96816

Thank you for your participation in our course.
_______________________________________________________________
Syllabus may be adjusted to meet the needs of the class.