Courses offered in the past four years. Courses offered currently are as noted.

Course Description

English Language in Global Context
In this course we will discuss and write about the dominance of English in the global landscape. Course readings and films offer an interdisciplinary approach to the topic. We will begin the course with a geographic and historical overview of World Englishes and then will examine the impact of English language dominance on individuals and societies, emphasizing themes such as migration, globalization, education, and identity. Throughout the course, we will explore the relevance of these issues to educators, linguists, and policy-makers around the world.

Terms Taught

Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Spring 2025

Requirements

CMP, SOC

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Course Description

Introduction to TESOL
In this course we will study theories and practices relevant to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) in the U.S. and abroad. We will examine curricular resources used with adolescent and adult learners, and practice developing materials applicable to a variety of classroom settings. We will also discuss critical issues in the field, such as linguistic prejudice, language maintenance, and social justice pedagogy. Class sessions are largely hands-on, and include student teaching demonstrations with peer feedback. Opportunities for community engagement are also available. The final project is a portfolio that includes a personal philosophy of teaching. (Not open to students who have taken LNGT/EDST 1003)

Terms Taught

Winter 2022, Winter 2023, Winter 2024, Winter 2025

Requirements

WTR

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Course Description

Mathematics for Teachers
What mathematical knowledge should elementary and secondary teachers have in the 21st century? Participants in this course will strengthen and deepen their own mathematical understanding in a student-centered workshop setting. We will investigate the number system, operations, algebraic thinking, measurement, data, and functions, and consider the attributes of quantitative literacy. We will also study recent research that describes specialized mathematical content knowledge for teaching. (Students looking for a course in elementary school teaching methods should consider EDST 0315 instead.) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2021

Requirements

DED

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Course Description

Unlearning Colonial Habits
In this course we will explore habits of knowing and being (epistemologies and ontologies) that are legacies of settler colonialism and examine whether “unlearning” such habits expands the possibilities of a liberal arts education. To provide time for contemplative practices and place-based seminars, 12 contact hours will be held on Saturday September 17 and Sunday September 18, 2022, prior to the start of fall semester (six hours daily). The remaining six contact hours will comprise three, two-hour seminars during the first half of fall semester. Readings and practices will be drawn from the writings of Bayo Akomolafe, Karen Barad, Beth Berila, Cheryl Harris, Laura Rendon, Toni Morrison, Tharon Weighill, Kenny Xu and others. Sophomores Only. (This is a half credit course)

Terms Taught

Fall 2022

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Course Description

Education in the USA
What are schools for? What makes education in a democracy unique? What counts as evidence of that uniqueness? What roles do schools play in educating citizens in a democracy for a democracy? In this course, we will engage these questions while investigating education as a social, cultural, political, and economic process. We will develop new understandings of current policy disputes regarding a broad range or educational issues by examining the familiar through different ideological and disciplinary lenses. 3 hrs. lect./1 hr. disc.

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025

Requirements

AMR, SOC

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Course Description

Conflict Transformation: Mindfulness Skills as Educational Praxis
This course will introduce students to a variety of approaches to conflict transformation (CT) using skills-based practices from the fields of mindfulness and contemplative education. Conflict, as a personal or collective act of disruption, will be examined as a driver for social/political and individual change. We will examine this work through the theoretical lens of social justice and liberatory educational philosophies. Using these frameworks, we will also explore mindfulness-based skills as tools for engaged inquiry, including: identifying shifting conceptual frameworks and mindful states and employing embodied practices as learning praxis.

Terms Taught

Spring 2024, Spring 2025

Requirements

SOC

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Course Description

Writing to Heal
This writing-intensive course examines writing as a catalyst for healing after loss or grief. In a workshop focused on student writing, we will analyze fiction, drama, poetry, and creative nonfiction as a basis for discussions. To this end, we will read creative non-fiction, memoir, and novels. Assignments for this course will include formal analytical essays, creative work (published online), and oral presentations.

Terms Taught

Fall 2024

Requirements

CW, LIT

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Course Description

Environmental Education
In this interdisciplinary course students will learn foundational principles and practices in environmental education. Topics include ecological citizenship, environmental literacy, place-based education, learning theories, nature pedagogy, school gardens, and forest schools. Most class sessions will be held outdoors, where students will apply and extend their learning, develop lessons, and practice teaching. This course is appropriate for students interested in outdoor environmental education in formal or non-formal settings with any age between early childhood and high school. Field experiences with community partners occur outside of class. Approval Required (EDST 0115) 3hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2024

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Course Description

Sophomore Seminar in the Liberal Arts
The current pandemic, and all the questions it brings to the fore about what we value in a college experience, make this an ideal moment to consider the meaning and purpose of your liberal arts education. At the heart of this exploration will be a question posed by physicist Arthur Zajonc: “How do we find our own authentic way to an undivided life where meaning and purpose are tightly interwoven with intellect and action, where compassion and care are infused with insight and knowledge?” We will examine how, at this pivotal moment of decision making, you can understand your college career as an act of “cultivating humanity” and how you can meaningfully challenge yourself to take ownership of your intellectual and personal development. Through interdisciplinary and multicultural exploration, drawing from education studies and philosophical, religious, and literary texts, we will engage our course questions by way of student-led discussion, written reflection, and personal, experiential learning practices. In this way we will examine how a liberal arts education might foster the cultivation of an ‘undivided’ life, “the good life”, a life well-lived. (The course is open to sophomores and second semester first-year students. Juniors by permission only.)

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024

Requirements

CMP

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Course Description

Global Perspectives on Literature for Youth
Literature in translation, post-colonial English literature, and the literature of immigrants are a growing part of literature available to American children. We will examine literature from Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia originally written in English or in translation. What makes international literature distinct from multicultural literature? Do these literary traditions bridge cultural gaps? What issues arise in translating for children? What is the phenomenon of "Americanization?" What are the implicit and explicit cultural and/or ethnic expectations regarding authorship and criticism in international literature? In this class we will examine these questions through the lens of literature for children.

Terms Taught

Spring 2022

Requirements

CMP, LIT

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Course Description

Understanding Educational Testing
Achievement testing is now a cornerstone of education policy. It is also complex and routinely misunderstood by educators, policymakers, and the media. In this course students will use statistical methods to explore and address testing issues that arise in both policy and practice. We will examine the uses and abuses of educational assessment. We will examine and interrogate trends and group differences in achievement. And we will broaden our understanding of essential concepts of measurement, such as reliability, validity, and bias, by analyzing both large and small datasets. Prior experience with the statistical package “R” is not required, as learning this package will be part of the course. 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023

Requirements

DED, SOC

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Course Description

Culturally Relevant and Sustaining Pedagogies
Gloria Ladson-Billings’ foundation work on culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) rests on these core propositions—students must experience academic success; students must gain cultural competence in relation to their own culture and at least one other culture; and students must develop a critical consciousness. In this class we will examine CRP and other liberatory pedagogies such as Culturally Sustaining (Paris, 2012); Reality Pedagogy (Emdin, 2016), Abolitionist Teaching (Love, 2019) each of which “seek to open up possibilities,” so that students can bring their “whole self into the classroom and into the world.” (Ladson-Billings, 2021). This is a required course for all students seeking a Vermont teaching licensure. (EDST 0115) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

AMR, CMP, SOC

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Course Description

Educational Psychology: Learning in Schools
In this course we will expand our understanding of learning and teaching while exploring principles, issues, and research in educational psychology. We will examine learning theories, complex cognitive processes, cognitive and emotional development, and motivation, and apply these constructs to effective instruction, the design of optimal learning environments, assessment of student learning, and teaching in diverse classrooms. (EDST 0115) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

SOC

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Course Description

Educational Psychology: Learning in the Community
In this course we will expand our understanding of learning and teaching while engaging with the local school community, including professionals and stakeholders who support K-12 students in various roles. We will examine curriculum theory, teaching theories, and practices that support social-emotional as well as proficiency-based learning, trauma-informed teaching, and the use of personalized learning plans to support student growth and development. In this way, students will continue to understand and develop effective instructional practices, the design of optimal learning environments, meaningful assessment tools, and effective and engaging teaching strategies for diverse, inclusive, innovative, student-focused classrooms. (EDST 0237; Restricted to EDST Majors, and others by permission) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025

Requirements

SOC

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Course Description

The Non-Native Speaker in a Multilingual World
In this course we will address linguistic, educational, and ideological dimensions of the non-native speaker identity and multilingual societies. What does it mean to be a non-native speaker? Why is this linguistic identity considered by some to be a stigma and by others to be a privilege? How do societies succeed in and fail at integrating speakers of different languages? In which ways do language policies and educational practices in the United States and around the world reflect linguistic and social realities? 3 hrs. lect./disc.

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2021

Requirements

CMP, SOC

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Course Description

How Languages are Learned: Theories and Implications
In this course we will develop a nuanced understanding of the cognitive, social, and educational factors that enable humans to acquire second languages. What is the difference between first and second language acquisition? How can instruction and curriculum be optimized to help learners? How are languages acquired in naturalistic settings? What is the impact of technology on language education? How do ideologies impact bilingual education in the United States and beyond? 3 hrs. lect./disc.

Terms Taught

Fall 2021

Requirements

CMP, SOC

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Course Description

Make Room: Teaching August Wilson
August Wilson has been hailed as “Theater's Poet of Black America,” yet many students have little exposure to this theatrical and literary giant. In this course we will explore Wilson’s "Century Cycle" a collection of 10 plays-each set in a distinct decade- that portray African American experiences in the twentieth century. We will take an interdisciplinary approach to reading, analyzing, staging (where possible), and understanding Wilson’s work. We will explore key influences on Wilson’s work including the blues, The Black Arts Movement, visual artist Romare Bearden, essayist and fiction writer Jorge Luis Borges, and playwright/poet Amiri Baraka among others. We also will engage with visiting artists, scholars, teachers, and community members as we consider Wilson's impact and the importance of teaching and studying his work. 3 hr. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2024

Requirements

AMR, ART, LIT

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Course Description

Models of Inclusive Education
In K-12 education, the term "inclusion" is often reduced to where students with apparent disabilities learn within schools. In this course, we will challenge the segregation of students with disabilities in schools while expanding notions of inclusion such that students' multiple identities are incorporated into learning. Students will be introduced and provided opportunities to design lessons using a Universal Design for Learning framework. We will utilize DisCrit (Disability Studies and Critical Race Theory) as a theoretical tool to explore how ableism and racism stand in the way of equitable education for many students while exploring theories, methods, and approaches to disrupt such marginalization and lead to inclusive antiracist educational practices. (EDST 0115 or SOAN 0215 or SOCI 0215 or AMST 0105).

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024

Requirements

AMR, SOC

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Course Description

Reading & Writing the World: Teaching Literacy and Social Studies in the Elementary School
In this course, we examine what it means to be literate in the 21st century and ways in which all students can be empowered by the texts and teaching they encounter in schools. Students will develop their ability to enact literacy instruction based on current research about how children learn to read and write. We will take a critical look at texts—fiction, nonfiction, and historical—to consider the ways that texts read and write the world, develop abilities to select texts that empower all learners, and analyze retellings of historical events/persons to take into account multiple perspectives. Many class sessions occur onsite at a local elementary school to provide consistent practice and supportive feedback on authentic components of teaching (transportation provided). In addition to class sessions, students will complete field experiences in a K-6 classroom in the Middlebury area to see the workings of an entire class.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Winter 2024, Winter 2025

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Course Description

Elementary Science Methods
In this course we will investigate children’s scientific understanding and how to design learning experiences to advance their understanding. Working closely with practicing elementary school teachers, students will spend time each week in local schools, observing science instruction, conducting assessments, lesson planning, and teaching standards-based lessons. Students will learn to use a claim/evidence/reasoning framework to develop children’s scientific explanations. We will also study recent research in science education and the engineering and design process. Students will gain an understanding of how to plan, implement, and assess science instruction through seminars. Students will also continue to work on their Vermont licensure portfolio. [Open to EDST Elementary Licensure candidates only]. (Approval Required)

Terms Taught

Winter 2021, Winter 2022, Winter 2023, Fall 2023

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Course Description

Elementary Math Methods
In this course we will approach mathematics as the construction of ideas rather than the memorization of facts and rules. We will investigate children’s mathematical reasoning, how to construct learning experiences to advance conceptual development, and how a social justice stance enables math to be a source of empowerment for children. Many class sessions occur at a local elementary school (transportation provided) so students can ground their thinking about course topics within a school, and consistently practice and receive feedback on authentic components of teaching. Students will also complete field experiences in a local K-6 classroom and Vermont licensure requirements. (EDST 0306) 3 hrs. lect./1 hrs. disc

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024

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Course Description

Children & the Arts: Teaching Movement & Arts Integration in the Classroom
This course will examine the integration of the arts and kinesthetic learning in elementary curriculum. Students will teach standards-based lessons that include the literary, dance, theatre and visual arts. Activities will include art projects, sketch journals, reading assignments, and the exploration of community and teaching resources. Students will gain an understanding of the important role the arts integration and hands-on learning can play in the development and implementation of the curriculum.

Terms Taught

Winter 2022, Winter 2023

Requirements

ART, WTR

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Course Description

Field Experience in Secondary Education and Special Education
In this course we will examine secondary teaching and special education at the middle school level. In this seminar we will explore, through selected readings and case studies, the policy and pedagogy of special education for students with learning disabilities. Further topics in middle/secondary education will be addressed. Required for students seeking a major in secondary education. (Pass/Fail) (Open to EDST Secondary Licensure candidates only)

Terms Taught

Winter 2021, Winter 2023, Winter 2024, Winter 2025

Requirements

non-standard grade, WTR

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Course Description

Education and Social Policy
School choice programs like charter and magnet schools are dramatically altering the educational landscape in the United States. In this course we will examine the premise that we can overcome the challenges of children living in poor neighborhoods by severing the traditional link between neighborhoods and schools and by providing access to extralocal high-quality schools. But who gets to exercise such choice? Does school choice result in better educational outcomes? We will also explore the relationship between school and neighborhood inequality. How do these two contexts work together to reproduce, intensify, or ameliorate spatial and educational inequities? (formerly SOAN/SOCI 0351) 3 hrs. lect./disc.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2024

Requirements

AMR, NOR, SOC

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Course Description

International and Cross Cultural Education
Who gets to own knowledge? Who can acquire it? How do we construct advantage and disadvantage? Comparative and international education examines the intersection of culture and education and the ways they are inextricably related through history, politics, and literature. In this course we will explore major concepts, trends, and methodologies across disciplines, focusing on the effects of globalization, the maintenance and dissolution of borders, the commodification of knowledge, the social creation of meaning, and the consequences of those constructions. We will examine global educational traditions and realities on the ground in case studies of Western and developing nations.

Terms Taught

Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2023

Requirements

CMP, SOC

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Course Description

Student Teaching in the Elementary School
A semester-long practicum in a local elementary school under the direct supervision of an experienced cooperating teacher. (Corequisite: EDST 0410) (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

non-standard grade

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Course Description

Student Teaching in Elementary School
See EDST 0405. (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

non-standard grade

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Course Description

Student Teaching in the Elementary School
See EDST 0405. (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

non-standard grade

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Course Description

Student Teaching Seminar
Concurrent with student teaching, this course is designed to provide guidance in curriculum development and its implementation in the classroom, and to explore issues related to the teaching process and the profession. Students will construct a Teaching Licensure Portfolio as well as exchange ideas about their student teaching experiences. Topics including technology, classroom management, special education, and assessment will be featured. The Vermont Framework of Standards and Learning Opportunities, the five Standards for Vermont Educators, the Principles for Vermont Educators, and ROPA-R will guide the development of the Teacher Licensure Portfolio. (Corequisite: EDST 0405, EDST 0406, EDST 0407 or EDST 0415, EDST 0416 EDST 0417) (Approval required) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

CW

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Course Description

Student Teaching in the Middle School/High School
A semester-long practicum in a local middle or high school under the direct supervision of an experienced cooperating teacher. (Corequisite: EDST 0410) (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

non-standard grade

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Course Description

Student Teaching in the Middle School/High School
See EDST 0415. (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

non-standard grade

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Course Description

Student Teaching in the Middle School/High School
See EDST 0415. (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

Requirements

non-standard grade

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Course Description

Senior Seminar in Education Studies
In this capstone seminar for General Education minors, students will engage, analyze, and offer solutions to real world problems in the current landscape of education. We will read extensively in the field, consider multiple research methods and approaches, and enlist community experts. Working across disciplines and collaboratively, students will create final projects that integrate and apply what they have learned in their coursework, developing and enhancing skills for creative problem solving and leadership in the field. Final projects will vary; all students will make oral presentations. (three of five required courses for the general EDST minor.) 3 hrs. Sem.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025

Requirements

SOC

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Course Description

Independent Project
(Approval Required)

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Winter 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Winter 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Winter 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Winter 2025, Spring 2025

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Course Description

Independent Study - Secondary Methods
This course is for students who are pursuing a VT teaching license in a Secondary content area. Students are required to commit to a school placement under the guidance and supervision of a certified, secondary VT teacher. The content of the course will be developed collaboratively by the EDST professor overseeing the independent student, the VT secondary teacher who is overseeing the school placement, and the student. Regular meetings involving all three will take place throughout the semester. The exact meeting schedule will be determined on a case by case basis. Students will complete assignments that address the requirements of the VT Educator Portfolio. (EDST0115, EDST0215 and relevant courses in Psychology). By Approval only. Interested students must meet with the Director of Education Studies.

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025

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Course Description

Make Room: Teaching August Wilson
August Wilson has been hailed as “Theater's Poet of Black America,” yet many students have little exposure to this literary giant. In this course we will explore Wilson’s impressive cycle of 10 plays illustrating 20th century African-American experiences. We will take an interdisciplinary approach to reading, analyzing, and understanding Wilson’s work, exploring such influences as the blues, visual artist Romare Bearden, and playwright/poet Amiri Baraka. We will also use Critical Race Theory as an analytical tool for understanding Wilson’s significance within the larger context of race relations. The course will culminate with workshops at local schools and staged readings of Wilson’s work.

Terms Taught

Winter 2021

Requirements

AMR, ART, LIT, NOR, WTR

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Course Description

Educational Change and Teachers Strike
From West Virginia to Chicago, teachers – the country’s largest sector of unionized workers – are striking. What are strikes and why do teachers use them? What do they mean for schools and communities? In this course we will examine teachers’ strikes as a way to understand the collisions of race, class, gender, and the state in education. Focusing on episodes of intense friction and controversy, this course will chart liberal, radical, and conservative tendencies in labor and educational history. Using theoretical, historical and contemporary texts about the politics of labor and education, students will critically examine the possibilities and limits for teachers’ organizing.

Terms Taught

Winter 2021

Requirements

AMR, NOR, SOC, WTR

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Course Description

Social Justice and Evolutionary Spirituality
In this “course” we will explore whether we can create intellectually dynamic spaces of regeneration and renewal while enrolled at an historically White supremacist institution. There are two central texts for our inquiry: (1) Radical Dharma: Talking Race, Love and Liberation (2016), by The Reverend Angel Kyodo Williams, Lama Rod Owens and Jasmine Syedullah, Ph.D.; and (2) American Awakening: Evolutionary Spirituality, Non-Duality & Free Thinking in the Tradition of American Philosophy (2020) by the spiritual philosopher, Jeff Carreira. Class meetings will involve contemplative practices, writing workshops and students will share in the leading of our seminar-based discussions.

Terms Taught

Winter 2021, Winter 2022

Requirements

CW, PHL, WTR

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Course Description

School Lunches
In this course we will chew through critical analysis on the production and consumption of school lunches. We will examine how diverse actors—state and national governments, big corporations, food service companies, celebrity chefs, community activists, and concerned parents—battle over what lands on the cafeteria tray. Using readings from the social sciences as well as food documentaries, we will explore how initiatives like school gardens and cooking classes shape child development and socialization. The laboratory component of this class will look beyond the U.S. context by making and eating meals served up to students around the world. Food preparation and consumption practices will be adjusted, as necessary, to comply with COVID restriction guidelines.(There will be a $50 lab fee for this course to cover the cost of ingredients needed for making school lunches from around the globe.)

Terms Taught

Winter 2022

Requirements

WTR

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Course Description

Introduction to Meditation
Basic sitting and walking meditation will be taught and intensively practiced. We will use the breath to foster relaxed attention and to gain perspective on our restless minds. Emphasis will be on using these techniques in daily life and academic endeavors. We will read texts from the contemporary American, Tibetan and Zen Buddhist traditions, but the meditation will be employed in nonsectarian fashion applicable to any belief system. Truth should be verified by one’s experience. Students will write papers and give presentations. No meditation experience necessary.

John Huddleston retired from the Studio Art Program in 2017. For the last eight years he also taught mindfulness courses at the college./

Terms Taught

Winter 2023, Winter 2024, Winter 2025

Requirements

NOA, PHL, WTR

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