Educational Studies 308: Cities, Suburbs, and Schools seminar
Fall 2012 syllabus – see also syllabi from prior years
Wednesdays 1:15-3:55pm, McCook 309, Trinity College (CT)
Associate Professor Jack Dougherty (email), McCook 302; phone 860-297-2296
See my office hours and instructions for making appointments
Teaching Assistant Fionnuala Darby-Hudgens (email); phone 860-886-3588
TA drop-in hours on Fridays 2:30-3:30pm at Peter B’s cafe, Trinity Library
Course description: Our theme this semester is Barriers and Bridges in Housing and Education. This upper-level undergraduate seminar operates as a team research workshop. We closely examine a noteworthy study on some aspect of cities, suburbs, and schooling in the United States, then design and conduct a small-scale parallel study to test whether the author’s claims apply to the metropolitan Hartford area. Students develop three types of research skills: historical (interpreting archival source materials), qualitative (analyzing oral interviews or observational field notes), and quantitative (generating descriptive statistics and GIS computer maps from large datasets). In addition, the seminar builds students’ experience with tools for digital scholarship. For the community learning experience, the seminar partners with local organizations to develop a research study, present our findings, and discuss their significance.
Requirement: Each student must bring a laptop computer (not a tablet) to run web-based writing, mapping, and data tools in class. Contact me if you need help to borrow one.
Prerequisite: Ed 200 or the Cities Program or permission of instructor. (Cross-listed with American Studies and Public Policy & Law.) Enrollment limited to 20.
Schedule of classes and assignments:
While the overall workload will not change, minor updates will appear below in red. See links for class resources available online, though some require Trinity network access (see Connecting from off-campus with VPN). Other readings are available for purchase.
Wed Sept 5 Introduction
Syllabus, assignments, advice on how to succeed, public writing & student privacy, prior syllabi and course evaluations, and acknowledgements
Students: Why are you enrolled in this seminar, and what do you hope to learn?
In class:
Play an assigned role in the Home (and School) Buying Simulation (Word document)
How to make appointments in Google Calendar (free account) for Jack’s office hours
How to save web pages & notes to Evernote (free account)
How to create your own Trinity Commons or WordPress.com website (free)
Exercise 1: Create your own website (see above) and share your web address on this Google Form. Next, write at least a 250-word post that describes your results and reflections on the home buying simulation (category: simulation) and how we might improve it for the Web, due by the end of Friday Sept 7th.
Wed Sept 12 Historical roots of housing segregation
Note: all readings and assignments listed below are to be completed BEFORE seminar
Read: Douglas Massey and Nancy Denton, American Apartheid: Segregation and the Making of the Underclass. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1993, ch. 2-4.
View: Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 3: The House We Live In. California Newsreel, 2003, available at http://internet2.trincoll.edu/StreamManager/MyFlix.aspx
Read online: Jack Dougherty and colleagues, “Preview Chapter,” On The Line: How schooling, housing, and civil rights shaped Hartford and its suburbs. Web-book preview edition. Hartford, CT: Trinity College, Fall 2011, http://OnTheLine.trincoll.edu.
On the site above, explore these “Maps Created with UConn MAGIC”:
- Racial change in the Hartford area, 1910-2010
- Home Value Index in the Hartford region, 1910-2010*
- Federal Home Owners’ Loan Corporation ‘Redlining’ Map, Hartford, 1937
- Race Restrictive Covenants in Property Deeds, Hartford area, 1940s
- Neighborhood Change in Connecticut, 1934 to present
- School District Boundary Comparison Viewer
Before class: Post at least one thoughtful comment on any section of On The Line.
Additional resource: Federal Housing Administration. Underwriting Manual; Underwriting Analysis Under Title II, Section 203 of the National Housing Act., 1934. http://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/002137289.
In class:
Abbreviated lecture from On The Line, and connection with Wesleyan course
Facilitating class discussion: led by Fionnuala, examples created with Jack
Presentation of additional maps not covered in discussion above
Compare portrayal of housing barriers across formats: text, film, web
Discuss housing barriers caused by private action vs. public policy
Assign slots for facilitating reading discussions for remainder of semester
Submit your best result from home-buying simulation and compare outcomes
How to adjust settings in your personal blog: header, theme, plugins, spam, CC
How to categorize your posts (and why your homework is incomplete without it)
How to capture a screenshot with Mac or Windows commands, or Skitch (free account)
How to insert a visual image, including caption with source information, in WordPress
Exercise 2: Explain and illustrate what “exclusionary zoning” means to a general audience on the web. Draw upon next week’s readings and any additional textual sources, plus any type of visual imagery (be creative). Submit at least 300 words of text and at least one or more visual image, with all sources credited, as WordPress post (category=zoning), due by the end of Monday September 17th.
Mon Sept 17 Optional Event: Lecture by sociologist Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, 4:15pm, Washington Room at Trinity
Wed Sept 19 Past and present housing barriers in Connecticut
Read: Jason Reece, et al., People, Place, and Opportunity: Mapping Communities of Opportunity in Connecticut: A Report Commissioned By the Connecticut Fair Housing Center (Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, The Ohio State University, 2009), http://kirwaninstitute.osu.edu/connecticut-opportunity-mapping-initiative-results-and-resource-materials/. *new link*
Read online: see additional color maps (not in black & white copy) at the link above
Discussion leaders: Richelle and Gen (if you wish to post any questions before seminar, category=facilitating and email the link to class via Moodle)
Read: Robert Harvey Whitten. West Hartford Zoning: Report to the Zoning Commission on the Zoning of West Hartford. West Hartford, Conn: Zoning Commission, 1924 (courtesy of the Connecticut State Library), specifically pages 6-8, 10-13.
Additional resources: MAGIC University of Connecticut Libraries. “Zoning Maps of West Hartford, Connecticut, 1924 to present,” 2012, http://magic.lib.uconn.edu/otl/dualcontrol_zoning_westhartford.html.
Town of Bloomfield, Connecticut. Planning and Zoning Department, 2012, http://bloomfieldct.org/Plugs/Planning.aspx. See links for Zoning Regulations (especially definitions and bulk requirements on pages 37-42) and Zoning Map.
In class:
Discussion of People, Place & Opportunity report, led by facilitators
Compare housing barriers by race and/or social class; racial change map
Presentation on exclusionary zoning by Fionnuala
Compare “exclusionary zoning” in WordPress exercises vs. Wikipedia entry
Compare portrayal of housing barriers across formats: text, film, web
How to format WordPress posts using the Visual and HTML tabs
Review and sign the Trinity-CFHC confidential agreement
Assign reading (to come on Moodle) and arrange transport for class at CFHC
Submit your best result from home-buying simulation and compare results
How to capture and automatically cite sources with Zotero (free)
How to search literature with Trinity Library guides & Google Scholar
How to research The Hartford Courant newspaper, 1764-present
Tell me your Google username so that we may share a class document
How to collaboratively edit a Google Document or Spreadsheet (free account)
How to backup & share files from your hard drive with Dropbox.com (free)
Exercise 3: Conduct a literature search on any topic in the course so far and save at least four different types of sources (book, journal article, The Hartford Courant newspaper, website) into Zotero. Write a 1-2 paragraph WordPress post (category=citations) that explains why you selected each source, and cite each one using any academic citation method, such as Chicago-style footnotes or MLA/APA-style inline citations. Although this exercise focuses primarily on proper citations, use this opportunity to research a topic related to the upcoming Essay 1 assignment. Due Friday September 21st.
Wed Sept 26 A first-hand view of housing discrimination in Connecticut
Read: Connecticut Fair Housing Center, summary handout, 2012.
Download from Moodle to your hard drive and review: CFHC housing discrimination tester reports (3 large files, plus Google Document listing your assigned cases)
Seminar visit to Connecticut Fair Housing Center
Meet 1:15pm in McCook-LSC parking lot, with drivers: Pauline, Kerry, Brigit
Seminar begins at 1:30pm at CFHC, street address: 221 Main Street, 4th floor
But visitors enter via back door in parking lot on John Street
See Google Maps directions and street view of back entrance
In seminar:
Introduction to CT Fair Housing Center by staff member Claudia Dresser (’10 IDP)
Presentation on CT fair housing law and testing procedures
Discussion with CFHC volunteer tester
Workshop on thematic coding of testing data
Exercise 4: Write notes & quotes about your 3 assigned CFHC test cases in the shared Google Document, then enter data in CFHC thematic coding Google Spreadsheet (links to both are in Moodle and require Google username sign-in). Complete your 1st case by Friday September 28th, and finish your 3rd case by the end of Monday, October 1st.
Assign Essay 1: Have barriers to housing in the Hartford area changed over time, and if so, how? Authors may focus on any themes they wish, as long as they include both historical evidence (from any primary sources on the syllabus or otherwise) and qualitative evidence (from the CFHC thematic coding). Submit in blind-review format by the end of Monday, October 8th. (Jack’s next chapter on this topic for On The Line will be due the same day.)
Wed Oct 3
Read: Jack Dougherty, et al., “School Choice in Suburbia: Test Scores, Race, and Housing Markets,” American Journal of Education 115, no. 4 (2009): 523-48.
Read: Christina Ramsay, Cintli Sanchez, Jesse Wanzer, and the Educ 308 Seminar, Shopping for Homes and Schools: A Qualitative Study of West Hartford, Connecticut (Hartford, CT: Cities, Suburbs, and Schools Project at Trinity College, 2006).
Discussion leaders (category=facilitating): Joey, Victoria
In class:
Facilitate readings on shopping for private homes and public schools
Compare CFHC note-taking and clean up thematic coding (via Moodle)
Short break
Review essay 1 guidelines (due by end of Monday Oct 8th)
How to explore patterns and write claims about CFHC data (via Moodle)
Overview of additional historical sources to consider for essay 1, such as:
Rotberg, Robert. “Where Can a Negro Live?: A Study of Housing Discrimination In Hartford (Series Part 2).” The Hartford Courant (1923-1986). Hartford, Conn., United States, August 20, 1956. http://search.proquest.com/hnphartfordcourant/docview/563758028/abstract/1398D6B457C6A50A28/1?accountid=14405.
“Social Barrier Against Negro Seen In Integrated Home Areas.” The Hartford Courant (1923-1986). Hartford, Conn., United States, February 7, 1957. http://search.proquest.com/hnphartfordcourant/docview/563981093/abstract/1398DD1282E6D35D351/1?accountid=14405.
Ross, James. “Bloomfield Officials Lead Fight To Keep Town’s Housing Open.” The Hartford Courant (1923-1986), February 24, 1974. http://search.proquest.com/hnphartfordcourant/docview/552112941/1398DE0313CC9FA77A/1?accountid=14405.
Ross, James. “Realty Agents Blamed for Shift In Bloomfield’s Racial Pattern.” The Hartford Courant (1923-1986). Hartford, Conn., United States, February 24, 1974. http://search.proquest.com/hnphartfordcourant/docview/552114953/abstract/1398DDDDD694F3EA00F/1?accountid=14405.
Bixby, Lyn, Vada Crosby, Brant Houston, Jeffrey Williams, and Larry Williams. “Some Real Estate Agents Discriminate Against Black Home Buyers (Two Connecticuts Series).” The Hartford Courant, May 21, 1989. Temporary URL: https://www.dropbox.com/s/elny1swl6jt866q/19890521HC_HousingDiscrimination.pdf
Fionnuala is available Sunday, October 7th on Google+ to assist with any Essay 1 challenges. Time is available from 10:00am – 1:40pm, and again 8:20pm – 9:20pm. You must sign up for a time on this Google Document. If you have never used Google+ or would like suggestions on how to share your written work with Fionnuala read her “How to Use Google+ Hangout” blog post.
Wed Oct 10 The Sheff Movement for integrated schooling
Read: Susan Eaton, The Children of Room E4 (Algonquin Press, 2007), pages 1-68.
Read: “Sheff Case Timeline (1989-2008)” The Sheff Movement website, http://www.sheffmovement.org/aboutsheffvoneill.shtml
In class:
Anonymous student feedback on challenges & success of the writing process
Discuss anonymous excerpts from essay 1 with instructor’s blind-review comments
Presentation on Race & Education in Connecticut: Historical overview & policy questions
Overview of CSS-related digitized documents, oral interviews, and video resources:
- Trinity College Digital Repository, CSS Project (archival documents, interviews, publications, videos)
- Sheff Movement, Timeline (with 1996 ruling, 2008 settlement) and Resources (including 2003 settlement)
- Connecticut History Online, Hartford CT Flickr photo stream (with many images shared from the collection of Hartford History Center, Hartford Public Library)
- On The Line web-book, interactive maps and digital resources
Guest: Clarissa Ceglio (Trinity MA, ’05), editor at ConnecticutHistory.org (3pm)
Assign Essay 2: Compose an entry for submission to ConnecticutHistory.org on a topic covered in our seminar.
- Draft1 due by the end of Monday October 15th, on shared Google Document
- Post constructive comments on 2 designated essays before seminar on Wed Oct 17th;
- Draft2 due by the end of Monday October 22nd, on WordPress
Wed Oct 17 School integration: from the courtroom to the classroom
Read: Susan Eaton, The Children of Room E4 (Algonquin Press, 2007), remainder of book.
Discussion leaders (category=facilitating): Amanda, Mary, Kerry
In seminar:
Process current feedback on ConnecticutHistory.org submissions
How to insert links, images and videos on WordPress at Trinity
Post-seminar, additional background resources:
Dougherty’s Educ 300 presentation, The Evolution of School Desegregation Law
CT Office of Legislative Reference Research Report, “Education Cost Sharing Formula,” February 2012, http://www.cga.ct.gov/2012/rpt/2012-R-0101.htm
Thursday, October 18 at 5:30pm Sheff Movement is hosting an event at the Hartford Public Library. This event is free and open to the public.
Wed Oct 24 Sheff remedies and voluntary desegregation policy
Read: Jack Dougherty, Jesse Wanzer ’08, and Christina Ramsay ’09. “Sheff v. O’Neill: Weak Desegregation Remedies and Strong Disincentives in Connecticut, 1996-2008.” In From the Courtroom to the Classroom: The Shifting Landscape of School Desegregation, edited by Claire Smrekar and Ellen Goldring, 103–127. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press, 2009. http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/cssp_papers/3/.
Read (see also color images online): Jack Dougherty, Jesse Wanzer ’08, and Christina Ramsay ’09. Missing the Goal: A Visual Guide to Sheff V. O’Neill School Desegregation: June 2007. Hartford, Connecticut and Storrs, Connecticut: The Cities, Suburbs and Schools research project at Trinity College and the University of Connecticut Center for Education Policy Analysis, 2007. http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/cssp_papers/6/.
Read: Sheff v O’Neill, Stipulation and Proposed Order, Connecticut Superior Court, April 4, 2008, available from The Sheff Movement website, http://www.sheffmovement.org/pdf/SheffPhaseIIStipandOrder.pdf
Discussion leaders (category=facilitating): Nicole, Brigit
Virtual Guest (tentatively 3:15pm): Phil Tegeler, executive director of the Poverty & Race Research Action Center, and member of The Sheff Movement
In class:
Quick free-write on challenges and successes about essay 2 writing process
Prepare interview questions on Sheff remedy for Phil Tegeler
How to create and embed Microsoft Excel or Google Spreadsheet charts in WordPress
Exercise 5 How to lie with statistics: Copy the data points from Dougherty et al. “Sheff v O’Neill: Weak Desegregation Remedies,” Figure 5.1, p. 111, into a spreadsheet (Excel or Google). Create a line chart (not bar chart) to portray the data at two extremes, one showing significant progress and the other showing minor progress. Place both charts in a WordPress post (category=charts) and explain how they differ and how you created them. Due by the end of Friday, October 26th
Thurs Oct 25th 4:00-4:45pm join Fionnuala and Jack for a Google+ video chat with students and faculty doing digital scholarship at Hamilton College, where Jack will be participating in the online discussion. If you plan to join us, register for a free Google+ account, and click on my Google+ profile to add me to your circles. Just before the event, log onto your Google+ page and look for an invitation from me to join our “hangout” video conference session.
Neither Jack nor Fionnuala will not be available for office hours on Friday, Oct 26th
Wed Oct 31 Public School Choice
Read: Jack Dougherty, Diane Zannoni, Maham Chowhan ’10, Courteney Coyne ’10, Benjamin Dawson ’11, Tehani Guruge ’11, and Begaeta Nukic ’11. “School Information, Parental Decisions, and the Digital Divide: The SmartChoices Project in Hartford, Connecticut.” In Making School Choice Work For All, by Gary Orfield and Erica Frankenberg. Berkeley: University of California Press, forthcoming. (See Moodle if your photocopy was incomplete)
Discussion leaders (category=facilitating): Hollyn, Pauline
Guest: Rahsaan Yearwood, Director of Programs, Achieve Hartford (2-2:30pm)
In class:
updated How to create thematic maps with Google Fusion Tables
Read excerpt: Monmonier, Mark. How to Lie with Maps, Second Edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996, pp. 39-42.
Exercise 6 How to lie with maps: Using the Connecticut district-level racial data in the how-to tutorial above, create two maps that interpret the same data in different ways. One map should emphasize sharp racial divisions, while the other map should emphasize widespread racial diversity. Write a 1-2 paragraph post that explains how and why they are different, and embed both maps in a WordPress post (category=maps), due by the end of Monday, November 5th. Update: While students are still allowed to insert static map photos or screenshots for this assignment, I have updated the instructions for embedding interactive maps and encourage you to try it.
Wed Nov 7 What We Know (and Don’t Know) about Choice and Achievement
Read: Bifulco, Robert, Casey D Cobb, and Courtney Bell. “Can Interdistrict Choice Boost Student Achievement? The Case of Connecticut’s Interdistrict Magnet School Program.” Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 31, no. 4 (2009): 323–345. http://epa.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/31/4/323. (subscription required)
Eaton, Susan. “The Pull of Magnets.” The Nation, May 27, 2010. http://www.thenation.com/article/pull-magnets.
Winterbottom, Nancy. “Hollowing Out City Schools: It’s Wrong to Blame Teachers and ‘Failing Schools,’ When Flight to Magnet and Charter Schools Leaves Neediest Students Behind (op-ed Essay).” Hartford Courant, March 14, 2010. http://articles.courant.com/2010-03-14/news/hc-winterbottom-teachers-accoun.artmar14_1_choice-schools-charter-vulnerable-students.
Sheff Movement. “Regional Magnet Schools and Open Choice Post Impressive Achievement Results!” October 19, 2012. http://www.sheffmovement.org/pdf/Magnet_and_Open_Choice_achievement_data_2012.pdf.
Megan, Kathleen. “Hartford Students In Regional Magnets And ‘Open Choice’ Outperform Kids In City Schools.” Courant.com, October 25, 2012. http://www.courant.com/news/education/hc-magnet-school-scores-20121025,0,5325784.story.
Also read online: Thomas, Jacqueline Rabe, and Keith Phaneuf. “Efforts to Desegregate, Expand School Choice a Challenge with Looming Deficits.” CT Mirror, November 2, 2012. http://www.ctmirror.org/story/18020/reducing-racial-isolation-hartford-region.
In class:
Assign Essay 3: What do (and don’t) we know about school choice and student achievement in Hartford? Submit in blind-review format by the end of Monday, November 12th.
How to write an effective op-ed essay
Magnet school simulation – see images from our class: A – B – C – D – E – F
How to read school choice research, with additional resources:
Shulman, James Lawrence, and William G Bowen. The Game of Life: College Sports and Educational Values. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 2001, pp. 42-43 (on selection versus treatment effects).
Bangser, Michael. Evaluating the Impact of Interventions That Promote Successful Transitions from High School. National High School Center, August 2008. http://www.betterhighschools.org/pubs/documents/ResearchBrief_ImpactofInterventions_073108.pdf (pp. 1-2 on gross effects versus net outcomes).
Fionnuala is available Saturday, November 10th on Google+ to assist with any Essay 3 challenges. Time is available from 9:00am – 1:20pm. You must sign up for a time on this Google Document. If you have never used Google+ or would like suggestions on how to share your written work with Fionnuala read her “How to Use Google+ Hangout” blog post.
Wed Nov 14 Designing web essays, Copyright, and Open Access
Read final web essays and guest evaluations from last year (focus on any 2 essays of your choice, and EVERYONE read the last essay by Fionnuala and Mary)
Read online: Jack Dougherty and Candace Simpson. “Who Owns Oral History? A Creative Commons Solution.” In Oral History in the Digital Age, edited by Doug Boyd, Steve Cohen, Brad Rakerd, and Dean Rehberger. Washington, DC: Institute of Library and Museum Services, 2012. http://ohda.matrix.msu.edu/2012/06/a-creative-commons-solution/.
In class:
Reflections and sample introductions from op-ed essay 3 assignment
Explain web-essay assignment stages; community partner memo
Student comments & critique of last year’s web-essays
Fionnuala’s reflections on web-essay process
Seminar brainstorming on Ideas GDoc page
Key points on Copyright and Fair Use (from Stanford University Libraries), and Creative Commons licensing
Exercise 7: Begin web-essay assignment with 1-sentence topic due on Ideas GDoc page by Friday Nov 16th; add link here to your 1-page GDoc proposal by Sunday, November 18th; schedule a 20-minute web writing conference (solo, or duo if working with partner) with seminar instructor for Mon Nov 19th or Tues Nov 20th, via calendar link or email
Exercise 8: Web-essay draft on WordPress (category=essay2012) due before seminar on Wednesday, November 28th.
Assign: Web-essay final draft on WordPress (category=essay2012), due by the end of Friday, Nov 30th; the instructor will circulate for commentary by guest evaluators and public on the morning of Dec 1st.
Wed Nov 21 Thanksgiving break — no class
Wed Nov 28 Web-essay draft feedback and workshop
In seminar: Constructive feedback and workshop on web-essay drafts
Follow-up: New tutorials for fine-tuning your web-essays
How to co-author with WordPress
How to feature pull-quotes in WordPress
How to create and share a basic Google Map
Fionnuala will not be available for office hours on Friday, Nov 30th
Wed Dec 5 Finding Common Ground & Course Wrap-Up
Read: Philip Tegeler, ed. Finding Common Ground: Coordinating Housing and Education Policy to Promote Integration. Washington, DC: Poverty & Race Research Action Council, 2011. http://www.prrac.org/pubs.php.
In seminar:
Reconnecting our 2 themes — housing and schooling — with Finding Common Ground
Why were housing issues dropped from the original 1989 Sheff education lawsuit?
Excerpt from Jack Dougherty, “Conflicting Questions: Why Historians and Policymakers Miscommunicate on Urban Education,” in Clio at the Table: Using History to Inform and Improve Education Policy, ed. Kenneth Wong and Robert Rothman (New York: Peter Lang, 2009), 251–62, http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/cssp_papers/4/.
Web-essay process: Reflections on challenges and successes; Discuss feedback in-progress from guest evaluators; Scores to be sent by guest evaluator coordinators by Fri Dec 7th; Opportunity to revise for extra credit by Friday Dec 14th. If you choose this option:
- create a NEW post under category=essay2012, insert a link at top to “see an earlier version of this essay” (pointing back to your old post)
- when copying & pasting any content from the old to the new post, click on the HTML tab in the WordPress editor
- un-categorize your OLD post (but do not delete it), and insert a link at the top to “see the most up-to-date version of this essay” (pointing to your new post)
Complete online evaluation of peer (and TA) contributions to seminar by the end of Wednesday, Dec 5th (worth 5 points)
Assign Exercise 9-10: Choose to write on one of the following options, in place of a final exam, due on WordPress by end of Monday Dec 17th (worth 4 points):
- Op-ed essay regarding one policy issue raised Finding Common Ground, written for Hartford-area readers (similar format & criteria as essay 3, between 750-1000 words, WordPress category = wrapup)
- Reflective essay that links your personal observations back to at least one appropriate syllabus reading, based on attending Saturday Dec 15th school choice fair (at Trinity’s Field House, anytime 8:30am-noon) and/or Sheff Movement meeting (in Tansill conference room, Ferris Athletic Center, 9:30-11am). Write about what you experience, how you make sense of it in connection to our course, and what questions remain unanswered in your minds. (About 750-1000 words, category=wrapup).
- Schedule meeting with instructor to discuss your ConnecticutHistory.org entry, then revise for submission to the editor, using same guidelines for Essay2 (but create a new post under new category=history2)