Fall 2025 - EDUC 100W OL04
Selected Questions and Issues in Education (3)
Class Number: 5318
Delivery Method: Online
Overview
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
An introduction to a small but representative sample of basic questions and issues in education. Students will examine questions relating to: the concept or idea of education; learning and the learner; teaching and the teacher; and more generally, the broader contexts of education. This course also introduces students to different ways of exploring educational questions and issues from philosophical and critical analysis, to historical and cross-cultural studies, to empirical research. Cannot be taken for credit by students with credit for 300 and 400 level education courses. Writing/Breadth-Humanities.
COURSE DETAILS:
This course invites students to think broadly about education, but particularly focus on the ways that Indigenous and Equity issues are framed and interrogated within the field of education. This focus will be framed through a lens of inquiry and will be explored predominantly throught the process of writing.
The course is a fully asynchronous online. However, there are deadlines for submitted work and online discussion to enable you to both pace your work and develop a sense of community with the other students in the class.
COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:
- Become aware of, and inquire into, relevant topics as they pertain to education: social justice, Indigeneity, environmental & ecological learning, etc.
- Engage in relational learning through meaningful and respectful conversation on complex and sensitive topics.
- Reflect on personal experiences of learning and how they relate to the above topics.
- Gain practice and support in various forms of writing: critical analysis, personal reflection, narrative.
Grading
- Reading Responses 30%
- Online Discussion Participation 25%
- Online Discussion Facilitation 20%
- Reflective Analysis Paper 25%
NOTES:
There is no midterm or final exam.
All assignments must be completed to be granted course credit.
As an instructor, I am fully aware of the rise of AI intelligence and its implication for your learning and my teaching. I am not fully against the use of AI for learning if the context of its use facilitates your intellectual growth. However, I am opposed to students using it as an unethical learning tool (i.e. students submitting an assignment that is AI-generated for assessment). In the case that a student is suspected of violating academic integrity principles using an AI tool, and I will proceed with the formal procedure as set out by SFU's Academic Integrity Office.
Materials
REQUIRED READING:
Sensoy, O. & DiAngelo, R. (2017). Is everyone really equal? An introduction to key concepts in social justice education (2nd edition). New York: NY: Teachers College Press.
Davidson, S.F. & Davidson, R. (2018). Potlatch as pedagogy: Learning as ceremony. Portage & Main Press.
Other readings will be available on Canvas.
REQUIRED READING NOTES:
Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.
To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit:
- SFU’s Academic Integrity Policy: S10-01 Policy
- SFU’s Academic Integrity website, which includes helpful videos and tips in plain language: Academic Integrity at SFU
RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION
Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.