75086 - Education Systems and Policies

Learning outcomes

The course enables students to: – be familiar with the structure of education systems in the developed world; – recognize the goals of knowledge transmission, socialization, and selection typically pursued by education systems; – be knowledgeable about sociological theories dealing with education; – understand selection mechanisms enacted via education systems; – identify the interests of the various stake-holders involved in educational activities; – grasp the key features of the comparative approach to the study of teaching and learning processes; – apply a set of tools for analyzing educational policies (as pertains, for example, to social inequality) and thus interpret them, convey their chief characteristics and assess their outcomes.

Course contents

The course enables students to:

- be familiar with the structure of education systems in the developed world;

- recognize the goals of knowledge transmission, socialization, and selection typically pursued by education systems;

- be knowledgeable about sociological theories dealing with education;

- understand selection mechanisms enacted via education systems;

- identify the interests of the various stake-holders involved in educational activities;

- grasp the key features of the comparative approach to the study of teaching and learning processes;

- apply a set of tools for analyzing educational policies (as pertains, for example, to social inequality) and thus interpret them, convey their chief characteristics and assess their outcomes.

Readings/Bibliography

The main reference text is:

Brint, Steven, School and Societies, Stanford Social Sciences, 2nd ed. 2006.

For the final exam, non-attending students will also have to answer questions pertaining to ONE text chosen from among the following:

- Le Donné, N., P. Fraser & G. Bousquet, Teaching Strategies for Instructional Quality, OECD Education Working Papers, No. 148, OECD Publishing, Paris
(http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/5jln1hlsr0lr-en)

- OECD, Education Policy Outlook 2015: Making Reforms Happen, Paris, OECD, 2015: Chapters 1-6
(http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/download/9115011e.pdf?expires=1508244049&id=id&accname=ocid195206&checksum=B54A07C142439B2497749914981769CC).

- OECD, Trends Shaping Education 2016, Paris, OECD, 2016
(http://www.oecd.org/edu/trends-shaping-education-22187049.htm || http://www.snte.org.mx/pdf/5.TrendsShapingEducation2016.pdf)

 

Teaching methods

Face-to-face lessons and periodic exercises, including student presentations.

Assessment methods

The exam is administered in exclusively written form. The only valid mark is the one achieved in the most recent attempt to pass the exam. A candidate who doesn't participate in an exam for which he/she has registered cannot participate in the following exam session.

Students who attend regularly (no more than *3* absences) may decide to deliver an oral presentation, in class, or a written paper on a topic agreed upon with the professor. In this case, the final mark will be based on an evaluation of the presentation or paper and a final written exam involving three chapters drawn from the Brint text (and *not* on other otherwise mandatory readings).

Office hours

See the website of Giancarlo Gasperoni