EDUC101 Education and Society

An examination of the political, social and cultural dimensions of contemporary educational practice.

Education serves a vital role in society and is often at the heart of public debate. This paper will introduces you to key social, cultural, historical, and political debates related to education in Aotearoa New Zealand. Through lectures, workshops, and readings, the paper provides students with provocations and tools to develop a critical and informed understanding of the complex and multiple roles of education in society. In particular, you will consider:

1. Who should be educated, why, and who decides?
2. How is education organised, developed, and debated in Aotearoa New Zealand?
3. How does education respond to societal issues and work to include or exclude children and young people (based on culture, gender, sexuality, disability, and class)?

Such critical understandings are a huge asset for everyone, especially if you are considering working as, or with, educators in the future.

Paper title	Education and Society
Paper code	EDUC101
Subject	Education
EFTS	0.15
Points	18 points
Teaching period(s)	Semester 2 (On campus) Semester 2 (On campus)
Domestic Tuition Fees (NZD)	$929.55
International Tuition Fees	Tuition Fees for international students are elsewhere on this website.

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Schedule C

Arts and Music

Contact

Dr Sylvia Robertson (Lecturer in Education Studies): sylvia.robertson@otago.ac.nz

Teaching staff

Paper Co-ordinator: Dr Sylvia Robertson
Other staff: To be confirmed

Paper Structure

The paper is structured around the following questions

1. How have changing understandings of children and young people shaped education?
2. How is education organised, developed, and debated in Aotearoa New Zealand?
3. How does education respond to societal issues and work to include/exclude children and young people?

Students will explore answers to these questions and develop informed positions in relation to key debates by

• Attending and actively engaging in the lectures (1 hour/week) and workshops (2 hours/week)
• Collaborating with peers in workshops to explore, formulate, debate, and evaluate course material from different points of view
• Completing the weekly readings and making connections with lectures and workshops
• Demonstrating depth of understanding of the course material via two written assignments and a final exam

Textbooks

Textbooks are not required for this paper. Instead, the weekly readings (journal articles and book chapters) will be available online via eReserve and/or the Robertson Library course reserve.

Graduate Attributes Emphasised

Global perspective, Interdisciplinary perspective, Scholarship, Communication, Critical thinking, Cultural understanding, Ethics, Information literacy, Research, Self-motivation, Teamwork.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes.

Learning Outcomes

Students completing the course will be expected to be able to:

1. Understand and critically evaluate the changing nature of education systems in Aotearoa New Zealand
2. Explain the significance of education using a variety of competing ideas and models
3. Demonstrate understanding of educational developments related to te reo me ngā tikanga Māori
4. Examine the problematic and taken-for-granted aspects of schools and the educative process
5. Develop a critical awareness of the relationship between education, culture and society

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