New York University-Steinhardt
School of Culture, Education and Human Development
Department of Teaching and Learning
Childhood Undergraduate Program
Spring 2015 – Syllabus
Integrated Curricula in Children’s Literature, the Arts, and Technology
in Childhood Ed
CHDED-UE 1144 - Sections 001 & 002
Wednesdays 4:55 - 7:25pm
194 Mercer Street, Rm. 204 & 205
Cynthia R. Copeland, Rm 205 (001)
[email protected]
646.331.6102
Office by appointment
Denise Janssen, Rm 204 (002)
[email protected]
347.724.2650
Office by appointment
Overview of Courses in the Undergraduate Childhood Program
Your journey to becoming an elementary school teacher continues during the spring semester of your
junior and senior year. As in the fall, the methods courses you are now taking in the Undergraduate
Childhood/ Childhood Special Education Program (UC/CSEP) are all connected. The coursework and
assignments are designed to help you deepen your thinking about: yourself in your evolving role as a
teacher; the students you will teach; their parents and the community in which they live; and, the
content to be taught to students in grades one to six. In keeping with the mission of the UC/CSEP, “our
goal is to prepare competent and confident teachers who will use theory and research to continually
refine their teaching practices for the purpose of contributing to a more just society.” To that end, you
have been learning about the pedagogy of teaching by engaging in a variety of assignments and class
activities on and away from campus. You will continue to do individual as well as small group work and
show evidence of mastery of that work through such measures as writing reflection papers, conducting
case or child studies, participating in class discussions, poster sessions and presentations, conducting
interviews with teachers and children, posting Wiki responses, developing lesson plans, adapting and
designing curricula, taking final exams or pop quizzes and/or creating brochures or PowerPoint
presentations that explain concepts you have learned. Instructors will continue to make every effort to
coordinate the assignments and their due dates.
In the junior year, a theme across your courses continues to be the role of assessment in teaching and
learning. While you are Integrating Seminar will help you to make connections between your course
work and field experience, in each of your other spring courses – Math, Literacy, Special Education,
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 1
Science and Health – you will explore the theme of assessment from varied perspectives.
In the senior year, themes across your courses remain an ongoing process of reflection on personal
philosophy, commitment to equitable education and an understanding of the history of education in
urban environments. In addition, a focus on the integration and adaptability of the content taught in the
elementary school to meet the needs of diverse learners is addressed. Time will be spent developing the
tools that bring learning to life for children as well as your engaging in activities which put you in the role
of teacher as researcher, teacher as lifelong learner. In each of your other spring courses – Language and
Reading, Special Education and Integrated Curricula in Children’s Literature, the Arts and Technology –
you will explore those themes from varied perspectives.
Development of your professional teaching portfolio bridges your junior and senior years. This spring,
you will have an opportunity to continue developing your portfolio using the materials you have been
collecting since first semester of your junior year. In your Senior Integrating Seminar, you will have
additional opportunities that further prepare you for your job search experience.
By integrating educational theory and classroom practice, your coursework in our Program will enable
you to develop critical skills and understandings necessary to becoming an effective teacher.
Purpose/Description of the Course
CHDED-UE 1144, Integrated Curricula in Children’s Literature, the Arts, and Technology
in Childhood Education, will provide students an opportunity to further explore the integration of
different academic disciplines into the elementary-level social studies curricula. Specifically we will
consider the integration of the arts, digital technologies, and children’s literature.
Goals
Through this course students will:
●
develop an understanding and awareness of various technologies to integrate into the
classroom/curriculum;
●
continue to examine and implement social justice approaches to teaching;
●
explore, identify, integrate appropriate children’s literature that include/address themes of
multicultural education and social change;
●
develop an ability to approach and use art in the classroom as a vehicle for learning, expression
and social change.
Structure
Building on the social justice-multicultural framework that was introduced in the fall, we will go through
a series of experiences that expose students to various skills and materials through thematically
organized content. This semester our primary thematic focus is Brooklyn: Past, Present & Future and The
Art of the Story. With Brooklyn as our focus we will experience different arts (e.g., portraiture, collage,
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 2
theater, poetry/spoken word), digital technologies (e.g., digital storytelling, using classroom web pages,
and digital resources), and forms of children’s literature (non-fiction, poetry, historical fiction). Course
sessions will involve a mixture of lecture, class discussion, guest speakers, and workshops focused on
different art forms, digital tools, and literature. The course will culminate with a final curricular project
that will be presented at a curriculum fair at the end of the semester.
Materials
● For articles, go to our wiki: http://multiculturalperspectivesfour.wikispaces.com/
● Books
○ Tillage, L. (2000) Leon’s Story New York: Square Fish
○ Seefeldt, C., et al. (2010) Social Studies for the Preschool/Primary Child, Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Pearson
○
●
Additional works of children’s literature will be selected through literature groups later in
the semester.
Recommended
○ Boal, Augusto. Theater of the Oppressed
○ Freire, Paolo. Pedagogy of the Oppressed
○ Perlstein D.H. Justice, justice: School politics and the eclipse of liberalism
○ Podair, J. The Strike That Changed New York: Blacks, Whites, and the Ocean HillBrownsville Crisis
○ Snyder-Grenier, Ellen. Brooklyn! An Illustrated History
○
Read NY State Tech Ed. Standards
http://www.p12.nysed.gov/ciai/mst/pub/mststa1_2.pdf
○
New York State P-12 Common Core Learning Standards for English Language
Arts & Literacy
○
English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and
Technical Subjects - Appendix A - Research Supporting Key Elements of the Standards;
Glossary of Key Terms
Note: During the semester, some additional readings and handouts will be provided as PDFs that
will be available through the class wiki. Students will be notified in this instance.
Field Requirement/Field Trips
The course does not have any assignments specifically connected to your field placements (student
teaching). There will , however, be one field trip scheduled during class session (Trip to Brooklyn Public
Library) and there will be assignments based on the trip. .
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 3
Course Requirements
The requirements germane to successful completion of this course are discussed below.
● Attendance: Each session includes collaborative building of concepts and knowledge. It is
crucial that you attend all sessions. In the event that an unavoidable absence occurs, you
must inform your course instructor in advance. For any class missed, you must speak with
three class members and write a summary of what happened in your absence on the class
wiki. You must also email any assignments to your instructor on their correct due datenot the day you return to class.
○ If you miss more than 2 classes for any (excused or unexcused) reason, your grade
will be lowered by no less than one grade level.
7.5
●
Class Participation: Our work this semester will continue to require an atmosphere of
mutual respect and understanding. Students should be able and willing to answer
questions, contribute positively to class discussions, and listen openly to the experiences
and ideas of others (see Class Norms). Successful participants make an honest effort to
understand issues and viewpoints of others. Some assignments will be group projects and
your accountability to the group is essential. This will include creating a collective timeline
of Brooklyn on our wikipage (more information will follow)
7.5
●
Wiki Discussion: On most weeks you will be expected to participate in a discussion on our
wiki page. Discussions will be based on a prompt that follows up on readings, activities,
and/or class discussions. You are responsible for posting your own response to the
prompt, and then you are to make comments/engage in discussion with at least two other
colleagues. Postings and discussions must be completed by noon one week after the
discussion prompt is assigned.
15
●
Children’s Literature Circles: Following literature circle work you experienced in your
junior year, your final project groups will select one piece of nonfiction and one piece of
fiction for children that is relevant to your final project topic. Group members will allocate
roles and responsibilities amongst themselves. Literature Circle Group discussions will be
held on the wiki. In addition groups will be responsible for integrating these two texts into
your final projects (more information on this task will follow)
15
●
Mid-term Research Paper: A 3-5 page research paper that discusses a theme/topic related
to your final project
20
●
Digital Story: Revisiting our Racial-Cultural autobiography, one of the digital media tools
we will be exploring this semester is the Digital Story. To conclude this learning experience
you will revisit, and build from, and re-present your autobiography from the fall through
digital story. Included in this presentation will be a discussion about your journey on
becoming a teacher.
10
●
Final Curriculum Project: In groups, you will design a multicultural social studies curricular
project that is focused on our Brooklyn theme, and integrates the arts, digital technologies
and children’s literature. More details about this will be shared in a few weeks.
25
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 4
Total
100
Grading Policy / Grading Rubrics
Each assignment will be assessed using a rubric created by the two instructors. Rubrics will be posted in
the weeks prior to the due date of different assignments.
Statement for Students with Special Needs
Any student attending NYU who needs an accommodation due to a chronic, psychological, visual,
mobility and/or learning disability, or is Deaf or Hard of Hearing should register with the Moses Center
for Students with Disabilities at 212 998-4980, 240 Greene Street, www.nyu.edu/csd
Statement of Academic Integrity
The following is adapted from the NYU Steinhardt Student’s Guide (p. 24) and from the Policies and
Procedures of the NYU Expository Writing Program (available from
http://www.nyu.edu/cas/ewp/html/policies___procedures.html):
The relationship between students and faculty is the keystone of the educational experience in the
Steinhardt School at New York University. This relationship takes an honor code for granted. Mutual
trust, respect, and responsibility are foundational requirements. Thus, how you learn is as important as
what you learn. A University education aims not only to produce high quality scholars but also to
cultivate honorable citizens.
Academic integrity is the guiding principle for all that you do; from taking exams, making oral
presentations, to writing term papers. It requires that you recognize and acknowledge information
derived from others, and take credit only for ideas and work that are yours. You violate the principle of
academic integrity when you:
• cheat on an exam;
• submit the same work for two or more different courses without the knowledge and the permission of
all professors involved;
• receive help on a take-home examination that calls for independent work;
• “collaborate" with other students who then submit the same paper under their individual names;
• give permission to another student to use your work for a class; and,
• plagiarize.
Plagiarism, one of the gravest forms of academic dishonesty in university life, whether intended or not, is
academic fraud. In a community of scholars, whose members are teaching, learning, and discovering knowledge,
plagiarism cannot be tolerated. Plagiarism is failure to properly assign authorship to a paper, a document, an oral
presentation, a musical score, and/or other materials, which are not your original work.
You plagiarize when, without proper attribution, you do any of the following:
• Copy verbatim from a book, an article, or other media;
• Download documents from the Internet;
• Purchase documents;
• Report from others’ oral work;
• Paraphrase or restate someone else’s facts, analysis, and/or conclusions; and,
• Copy directly from a classmate or allow a classmate to copy from you.
For a very helpful self-test on what constitutes plagiarism, please visit
http://www.indiana.edu/~istd/practice.html.
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 5
Course Schedule: Readings and Assignments
January 28/ Class 1: Welcome Back!
Both Sections Meet Together
Review syllabus
Remaining presentations
Group Dynamics discussion
Discuss the Final & Brookipedia Project
What do we know about Brooklyn?
February 4/Class 2: What is Creativity? & Tweet Books
Meet in Assigned Rooms
Assignment(s) Due:
● Wiki Discussion
● Bring 5 to 10 images of winter (printed/cut out)
● Bring 5-10 images of Brooklyn (printer/cut out)
● Bring in old magazines
Readings Due:
Read Chapter 1 "What is Creativity" from Starko, A.J. Creativity in the Classroom: Schools of Curious
Delight. Studies in Curriculum Theory. Taylor & Francis, 2012.
http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/25199_Chapter_1_Creativity_A_Gift_for_the_Gifted.pdf
February 11/Class 3: Organizing Integrated Studies/Self Portraits & the Art of Romare Bearden & Ezra
Jack Keats
Meet in Assigned Rooms
Assignment(s) Due:
● Wiki Discussion
Readings Due:
●
Read from the Blueprint for Visual Arts (Art ed Standards)
http://schools.nyc.gov/offices/teachlearn/arts/blueprint.html
○ In Blueprint for Visual Arts read pages 10 -28 & 45-52
●
Revisit Seefeldt (Chapter 2)
●
Find, read and bring a resource on Romare Bearden and Ezra Jack Keats, and be
prepared to discuss who they are, what they did, what inspired them, etc.
February 18/Class 4: Exploring Brooklyn Past & Present (Trip to Bklyn. Pub. Lib)
Meet at the Brooklyn Public Library 10 Grand Army Plaza, New York, NY 11225
(718) 230-2100
Assignment(s) Due:
● Wiki Discussion
● Bring photo ID and a bill with your NYS resident address if you want to get a BPL card to check
out books
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 6
Readings Due:
● Impact of Public Libraries on Students and lifelong learners (At least skim for salient points)
● http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/nyla/nycc_public_library_brief.pdf
● Visit Brooklyn Public Library Web site www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org
February 25/Class 5: All Things Digital - Integrating Technology in the Classroom w/ Jennifer Donsky
from Columbia Grammar School, Manhattan
Both Sections Meet Together
Assignment(s) Due:
● Wiki Discussion
● Wiki Activity: Post an image of an artifact you found during the trip to the BKPL. Then describe
the artifact (including time period and its use) and then discuss why you selected the piece and how
you might use it in your unit of study (final project).
Reading(s) Due:
• Hathorn, P. 2005 “Using Digital Storytelling as a Literacy Tool for the Inner City Middle School
Youth”
http://stu.westga.edu/~jsherwo1/mysite11/Resource/7585_DigitalStory_jsh.pdf
● Serriere, S.C. (2010). “Carpet Time Democracy; Digital Photography and Social Consciousness in
the Early Childhood Classroom.” In The Social Studies. 101, p. 60 – 68.
http://bit.ly/1H7BMvE
• Start Reading Seefeldt, Chapter Three - “Resources for Learning” to finish for next week
March 4th/Class 6: The Digital Story Teller: Kiri Davis, filmmaker, A Girl Like Me and Our Lives Matter
PSA
Sections together, 2nd half of class
Assignment Due:
● Post 3 images related to your Brookipedia Page
● Have your TWO historical/cultural Brooklyn events posted on the timeline
Readings Due:
● Report on the State of the Arts: A Plan to Boost Arts Education in New York City Schools, from
the Office of the New York City Comptroller, Scott Stringer, Bureau of Policy and Research, April
2014
http://comptroller.nyc.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/State_of_the_Arts.pdf
• Seefeldt, Chapter Three - “Resources for Learning”
• Introducing Storyboarding: http://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/teacher-resources/usingstoryboards-in-education/
March 11/Class 7: Literature Circles, Literature and Art/Brookipedia
Meet in Assigned Rooms
Assignment Due:
Wiki Post
Readings Due:
● Leon’s Story
● Daniels, H. 2002. "Expository Text in Literature Circles." Voices from the Middle, 9, 4
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 7
●
http://www.childcarequarterly.com/pdf/spring04_printmak.pdf
March 18/No Class: NYU Spring Break
Assignments Due:
● Create an Animoto video promoting your artifact. In the recording, include where you found
it, what it is and why it’s important. Be as creative as you can be in telling your story about
your artifact.
● Work on Research Paper
Readings Due:
● Hathorn, P. 2005. “Using Digital Storytelling as a Literacy Tool for the Inner City Middle School
Youth.” The Charter Schools Resource Journal, Vol. 1 No. 1 Winter 2005 http://www.ehhs.cmich.edu/~tcsrj/phathorn.pdf
● Visit Center for Digital Storytelling (CDS), (http://www.storycenter.org/)
March 25/Class 8: Visit from Performance Artist, Una A. Osato|Final Project Planning
Both Sections Meet together
Assignment(s) Due:
● Wiki Discussion
● Research Brooklyn Topical Essay
April 1/Class 9: Brooklyn Children’s Book Illustrators/Authors, Sophie Blackall and Nina Crews
Both Sections Meet Together
Sophie Blackall, Nina Crews
Assignment(s) Due:
● Wiki Discussion
● Literature Circle Discussion
● Identify and read materials on at least one of the illustrators on tonight’s panel
● Brookipedia digital essay (draft)
April 8/Class 10: Theater of the Oppressed with Alex Santiago-Jirau, Director of Education @ NYU’s
New York Theatre Workshop (DOE Spring Break April 3-10))
Assignment(s) Due:
Wiki Discussion
Readings Due:
● Cockrell, Karen et al., Theater of the Oppressed as a Self-Study Process: Understanding
Ourselves as Actors in Teacher Education Classrooms
● Obituary, Augusto Boal, creator of Theater of the oppressed
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/09/theater/09boal.html?pagewanted=all
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 8
April 15/ Class 11: Brooklyn & School Conflicts /Final Project Planning
Assignment(s) Due:
Meet with project groups
Assignments Due
Brookipedia Essay
Readings Due:
● Podair, J. 2001. The Ocean Hill-Brownsville Crisis: New York’s Antigone
● Identify and read articles that touch upon contemporary issues that are part of the legacy of
Ocean Hill Brownsville
April 22/Class 12: Final Project Planning
Meet with project groups
Assignments Due
● Digital Stories
April 29/Class 13: Senior Final Project Curriculum Fair
Room TBD, but likely, off-site
Assignment(s) Due:
● Copy of curriculum project, posted on wiki
● Materials for Curriculum Fair
May 6/Class 14: Digital Story Presentations and Senior Celebration
Location TBA
May 18 Steinhardt School Baccalaureate Ceremony, Madison Square Garden
May 20: NYU COMMENCEMENT (YAY!!) Yankee Stadium
Spring 2015 – Syllabus - CHDED-UE 1144 p. 9