GED2847

Difference, equity and education: issues of gender, ethnicity and class

Not offered in 1999

Dr G Tsolidis and Professor F Rizvi

12 points - 3 hours per week - Clayton

Objectives Upon successful completion of this subject, students should have developed an understanding of the ways in which 'difference' has been conceptualised in recent educational thinking; have considered some of the ways in which issues of gender, class and ethnicity, and their intersections, have been addressed in recent feminist, poststructuralist and postcolonial theories; have assessed the impact of these theories in framing recent educational policies and practices, particularly in relation to the question of how the values of difference and equity could be reconciled.

Synopsis Recent feminist, postcolonial and poststructuralist theories have drawn attention to the complexities of thinking about difference and equity. This subject deals with some of these complexities, especially as they relate to issues of educational policy and practice. It is designed to introduce students to some of the basic elements of feminist, postcolonial and poststructuralist theories so that they are able to assess the ways in which issues of gender, ethnicity and class, and their intersections, impact on curriculum, pedagogy and administration in educational settings. With this theoretical background, students will be encouraged to examine concepts such as 'transformative curriculum', 'access and equity' and 'inclusive curriculum'; educational policies such as gender equity, multiculturalism and anti-racism; and programs such as the disadvantaged schools program. This subject provides an ideal preparation for GED2805 (Gender and education) offered in second semester.

Assessment Research papers (6000 words): 100%

Recommended texts

Gore J The struggle for pedagogies: Critical and feminist discourses as regimes of truth Routledge, 1993
Troyna B Racism, education and the state Open U P , 1993

Back to the 1999 Education Handbook