ED-608 New York City's Youth: A Historical Perspective

3 Credits

New York City's neighborhoods and institutions serve as a lens through which to examine how educators, social activists, artists, and policy makers frame, debate and negotiate racial,economic and social inequalities among the city's youth. The course challenges the deficit model approach to addressing inequality and in doing so questions assumptions about the purposes of education within the context of an ongoing struggle for democratic rights and opportunities. Through an institutional study of a school and its neighborhood, students explore youth, family, and community assets, leadership and agency. Students analyze and synthesize evidence, take into account different viewpoints and perspectives, and apply their findings to professional practice. Students engage in 30 hours of fieldwork at various NYC schools to connect readings and discussion to the policies and institutional systems that impact the day-to-day life of schools.