Meanderings on core values:

I define my professional role at the university with three basic concepts that engulf many educational beliefs and traits. One concept is the importance of community in education. I engage in building communities that permit discourse, the exchange of ideas, and an opportunity for a more thoughtful way of life. “Community building for social agency and action” is my ultimate goal, and this conception does not call merely for the reflection of society but, instead, calls for schools to draw the best of society and for individuals to act for the good of the society. Secondly, I immerse myself in experience. I see the concept of experience not as a mere activity but as an opportunity to reflect upon actions. Thus, “reflection upon experience” becomes a key motif and a way of life for me. Finally, I engage in the “adventure of ideas.” This involves inquiry, imagination, “being with adventurous company,” exploration, and open-ended curiosity. Such adventures, however, do not remain in the hypothetical. Ideas are knowledge only when applied. This explains my decision to devote my career to education, an applied social science. These three concepts–community building for social agency and action; reflection upon experience; adventure of ideas– lead, I believe, to a love for learning and compassion for others in what ultimately allows one to become a good teacher and a “good human being.”

EDFN 300; Schools in Communities

Catalog description: “Social, political, and historical aspects of diverse educational institutions in American culture with an emphasis on families, schools, and communities.”

Statement of course goals and objectives
Schools in Communities introduces students to three "arenas" of education–the worlds of teacher, student, and society–and, in so doing, underscores the “integrity, intellectual spirit, justice, and stewardship” dispositions defined by the College of Education’s Professional Educators as Leaders model. Students come to understand the multicultural, social, and political influences on a professional educator’s work and reconfirm their call to service to the field of education. The course embraces the College of Education dispositions while also reflecting its own constructed values of curiosity, courage, compassion, and civility.

Objectives: EDFN 300 is guided by general conceptions from USC’s Carolina Core:
Multicultural Understanding: Students will draw upon sociological and historical perspectives to examine the relationships between modern societies and their historical roots and to explore diverse cultural identities and societal issues.
Effective, Engaged, and Persuasive Communication: Students will learn professional terminology in order to communicate ideas clearly for a variety of audiences and will begin imagining themselves as public spokespersons, stewards, for the educational system in the United States.
Values, Ethics, and Social Responsibility: Students will continue to develop a set of fundamental beliefs and social and personal values that serve as a foundation for a conception of teacher and educator.

Required texts
Craig Kridel (2009). Classic Edition Sources: Education. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Theresa Perry, Robert Moses, et. al. (2010) Quality Education as a Constitutional Right. Boston: Beacon Press.

EDFN 749; School in Modern Society

This course is constantly changing according to current developments.

EDRM 842: Educational Biography

I hope to offer EDRM 842 in 2012 or 2013. I encourage those individuals who are interested in educational biography to join the AERA Biographical and Documentary Research Special Interest Group and to review their Researchers' Bookshelf.

Bulletin description: The examination of educational biography as a form of educational research and scholarship.

Course Description: Educational Biography presents a survey of seminal writings pertaining to the area of biography, educational biography, and educational narrative. The purpose of EDRM 842 is to provide doctoral candidates with knowledge and skills in biographical, non-empirical research and to portray biography–autobiographical narrative as a form of research and scholarship.

• identify fundamental characteristics of historical, non-empirical research and scholarship;
• identify examples and methods of educational biography;
• identify classic methodological issues and concerns of educational biography;
• demonstrate certain archival techniques for the preparation of an educational biography

• Kridel, C. (Ed.) (1998). Writing Educational Biography. New York: Garland.
• Oates, S.B. (Ed.) (1986). Biography as High Adventure. Amherst, MA: The University of Massachusetts Press.
• Oates, S. B. (1982). Let the Trumpet Sound. New York: Mentor Books.

• DeSalvo, L. (1996). Vertigo. New York: Dutton.
• Williams, J. (1991). Style. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Barzun, J. & Graff, H.F. (1977). The Modern Researcher. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.