Education
Education is a central organizing activity of most societies, and the institutions created around education take many forms across the world. The courses in the Education pre-professional area ask questions that run to the core of understanding cultures and societies:
- What is the purpose of education, and how do societies educate their people through both formal institutions (most typically schools) and other types of socialization?
- What are the interrelationships between schools and other cultural institutions?
- How does education both mirror and shape the societies that create it?
- How do schools engage with issues of equity, social justice, educational “rights,” and civic responsibilities?
- Why do schools so often sit at the center of cultural controversies?
The pre-professional courses in Education engage students in the investigation of the history and sociology of education, educational policy and research, and a comparative study of educational practices in a variety of national and international perspectives. Specifically, there is a focus on urban education across the globe: in complex, multicultural settings how do societies engage in the education and schooling of diverse groups of people?
Education pre-professional courses are appropriate for students considering careers and/or further study in education, including teaching, education leadership, policymaking, non-profit work, domestic and international NGO work, government positions in education, the Peace Corps and other international development work, or graduate school in areas such as law, business, policy, or the social sciences.