EDUC212

This course will explore the meaning of educational reform in the United States, both from a historical and philosophical perspective and in the context of contemporary educational policy. Students will begin the course by studying the progressive educational reform movement of the early twentieth century. They will look at ways in which progressive education initiatives, including the open education movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, have been challenged by proponents of standardization in schools. Charter schools, magnet schools, school vouchers, and No Child Left Behind also will be examined in order to better understand how the notion of educational reform is one that can be viewed from a wide variety of perspectives and within multiple contexts.