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Green Sheet: CEPC 05/06-3
At the October faculty meeting CEPC will move the approval of the following new courses:
Education 246: English Language Learners: Issues in Education
Catalog Description:
This course focuses on issues surrounding first and second language acquisition in children and adults. It examines socio-cultural, linguistic, and psychological factors that affect language learning, cultural identity and school performance, highlighting political influences on the education of linguistic minorities. This is a theory and foundations course required for students seeking MN teaching licensure in ESL; it is also relevant for students who wish to teach English as a foreign language abroad.
Rationale:
The primary function of this course is to provide a theoretical foundation for the K-12 English as a Second Language (ESL) teaching license. The course aligns with St. Olaf’s mission of providing a global perspective within a liberal arts context. ED 246 would provide a good background for students planning to teach English abroad. In addition, because of the exponentially increasing linguistic diversity in American public schools, the course will be very helpful to students who plan to join Teach for America and for those seeking to become classroom teachers in any discipline.
The Education Department plans to reduce one or more course sections of undersubscribed courses, so the addition of this course will have no effect on staffing.
Media Studies 360: Topics in Media
Catalog Description:
This course provides a capstone to the concentration. Taught as a seminar, it investigates critical and specialized issues in media from multiple and often competing perspectives. Topics change regularly and address a wide range of media-related concerns. Sample topics include media culture, race and media, media use and child development, and the social and political utility of video documentaries. Prerequisite: Media Studies 160 or permission of instructor. Offered Spring Semester.
Rationale:
The Media Studies program currently includes two courses: Media 160: Mass Media, and Media 260: Media and Contemporary Culture. The addition of this Level-III course will yield an enriched Media Studies program. It also provides additional opportunities for interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary teaching and learning on media related subjects, since faculty from a variety of departments and programs may periodically offer this course in their areas of interest and expertise.
This course is part of a proposed restructuring of the Media Studies program. It requires no net change of FTE to the college.
