Describe the demographics of your school district and compare them to the demographics of the county or city in which it resides. 

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Social Forces and Issues Shaping Curriculum Planning

Due Week 4 and worth 300 points

Research the student population and neighborhood demographics of your immediate area such as your county or city and the demographics of your state. Look at the most recent election results, especially for school board and elected state officials, and see what their opinions are about education. Especially note if your area is either aligned with your larger state or differs from your larger state.

Student population description includes age, cultural diversity, family situation, academic achievement levels, and general attitudes toward school. Neighborhood refers to geographic setting, income levels, physical surroundings, and crime/safety challenges. Access demographic information from your district, city, county, and/or state Websites. Cite the URLs for this information in your paper.

Assume you are leading a team of administrators, parents, students, and teachers to plan curricula that includes the grade and subject you have been using to answer your discussion questions. Determine the top five social forces that you want to address. Describe three key issues of each social force, recommend a method to address the issues, and discuss the benefits expected. You can apply your paper to just the one grade and subject or broaden it to a grade range such as K-2, 3-5, middle school, etc. Or, you can expand the grade range of your subject such as elementary science or middle school ELA.

Write a 6-8 page paper in which you:

  1. Describe the demographics of your school district and compare them to the demographics of the county or city in which it resides.
  2. Compare your local demographics to your state demographics, including recent election results, and note any major education issues that came up during the most recent election.
  3. Describe the top five social forces that you want to address through curriculum planning.
    1. Explain why you think these are the top five.
    2. Explain why you think curriculum planning will help address these social forces.
  4. Describe three key issues for each social force.
    1. Recommend a method to address the issue.
    2. Discuss the benefits expected.

Your assignment must:

  • Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
  • Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.
  • Use references to support your claims, including quotes, facts, and illustrations from the articles in the text and at least three (3) other outside scholarly sources published in the two years.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

  • Analyze current and future curriculum leadership issues of K-12 schools and/or students.
  • Identify explicit expectations for high-quality education.
  • Use technology and information resources to research issues in curriculum policy and leadership.
  • Write clearly and concisely about curriculum policy and leadership using proper writing mechanics

Identify and describe a resource (either community or web-based) for the parents to use to continue their learning at home.

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The Final Project will illustrate how family-centered programs, theories, and concepts support the early childhood classroom and the child’s family. The family-centered approach asserts that family involvement is important for a young child’s cognitive and social development. The Final Project, which will be presented via PowerPoint, will address the following scenario:

You are the director of a preschool program that serves children ages three to five. You are giving a presentation to teachers and parents to encourage partnerships in the education of the whole child. The objective of your presentation is to encourage adaptive skills and to facilitate strategies in which to maximize these abilities that can be taught in the classroom and extended at home. Address the following points:

  1. Self-help skills.
  2. Pro-social skills.
  3. Self-regulation skills.

For each of the three skill-sets:

  1. Explain the desired skills and how they relate to the classroom and home.
  2. Identify and discuss two to three strategies for teaching the skill-set to children in the classroom.
  3. Explain how you will help parents to utilize the strategies to reinforce the desired ability at home.
  4. Identify and describe a resource (either community or web-based) for the parents to use to continue their learning at home.

The PowerPoint presentation must be 18 to 20 slides in length, not including title and reference slides. You are encouraged to creatively address the material by including graphics, visuals, charts, graphs, and/or sound. Slides should be designed to clearly and concisely address the material. The PowerPoint presentation must be formatted according to APA style (i.e., include the title and reference slides and citations within each slide when appropriate.) The notes section of the PowerPoint must be utilized to expand on your presented points. The notes section should also include any additional information necessary to explain or show your point of view.  You must also use at least two scholarly sources in addition to the course text and include at least four community resources (with websites included)

Describe at least two resources currently available in your area for someone needing special services related to your chosen aspect of diversity.

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The final assignment for this course is a Research Paper. The purpose of the Research Paper is for you to culminate the learning achieved in the course.

Focus of the Research Paper
For your Research Paper, select one aspect of cultural diversity from the following list that you would like to study:
* (For improved memory and increased awareness, remember the mnemonic, GARREACS.)

  • Gender
  • Age
  • Race
  • Religion
  • Ethnicity
  • Ability
  • Class
  • Sexual Orientation

Once you have chosen one aspect of cultural diversity to study in depth, prepare a Research Paper with the following components:

  • Summarize the pertinent historical, political, social, economic and cultural factors related to your chosen aspect of diversity.
  • Consider and summarize any relevant developmental theory models related to your chosen aspect of diversity.
  • In regard to your chosen aspect of diversity, identify and evaluate the relevant laws or programs that have either helped or restricted access to care and support.
  • Evaluate how your chosen aspect of diversity, in combination with two other aspects of diversity, can lead to increased needs or issues. For example, if someone is female, African American, and lesbian, will there be additional challenges? Select any combination of 3 aspects of diversity to discuss.
  • Describe at least two resources currently available in your area for someone needing special services related to your chosen aspect of diversity.
  • Explain how your personal characteristics will either complement or conflict with this diversity issue. Consider your own biases and prejudices or those of your family of origin.
  • Discuss relevant concerns, cautions or insights necessary for you to be a culturally competent human service professional.

Writing the Research Paper
The Research Paper:

  • Must be eight- to ten double-spaced pages in length, and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
  • Must include a title page with the following:
    • Title of paper
    • Student’s name
    • Course name and number
    • Instructor’s name
    • Date submitted
  • Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement.
  • Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.
  • Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.
  • Must use at least seven scholarly sources.
  • Must document all sources in APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
  • Must include a separate reference page, formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

Explain at least two short-term and long-term consequences for students who have little/no access to technology.

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Prior to beginning work on this assignment, read the assigned chapter in Introduction to education: Choosing to teach by Krogh. Chapter 7 addresses the changing role of the educator as a result of 21st-century skills and technology. This chapter will also examine various classroom models for the changing role of teachers and students in addition to the advantages and disadvantages of technology in the classroom.

In addition, reading The Power of Technology will help you to understand how technology helps educators manage and lead learning with precision. Viewing Active learning – Technology in the classroom will help you to discover ways in which technology is being utililzed in the classroom from elementary to college.

In your paper,

  • Define Digital Divide and analyze three factors which contribute to it.
  • Explain at least two short-term and long-term consequences for students who have little/no access to technology.
  • Describe the role teachers play in narrowing the digital divide among students.
  • Examine strategies teachers can use to minimize the digital divide both inside and outside of the classroom.

While technology has its benefits, not all students have the same kind of access to current hardware and software. This difference in the “haves” vs. the “have-nots” is what we call the digital divide, which emphasizes that, while all students have equal access to attend schools, their education is not equitable.

Introductory Paragraph: Begin with an attention getter—a powerful statement, an intriguing question, or a general overview of the challenges faced those plagued by the digital divide. Develop your ideas and end your introductory paragraph with a thesis using the Thesis Generator (Links to an external site.) found in the Ashford Writing Center.  Convey how we can minimize or narrow the digital divide. This thesis should then be supported in the body of your paper.

Body Paragraphs: (Refer to the Body Paragraphs (Links to an external site.) resource found in the Ashford Writing Center.)

  • Definition of Digital Divide: Explain the term digital divide in your own words and at least three specific factors that contribute to it. Refer to Chapter 7.4 of your text to support your views.
  • Consequences of Digital Divide: Explain at least two negative consequences for students in the classroom who suffer as a result of the digital divide. Consider both short and long term effects for those students who do not have any or consistent access to technology.
  • Teacher Role: Describe the role teachers play in narrowing the digital divide among students. Provide two or three examples of how the teacher can minimize the extent of the digital divide both in and outside the classroom.
  • Conclusion Paragraph: Return to your most important points from your paper and how they have combined to form your belief about narrowing the digital divide. Emphasize your thesis statement again and bring your paper to a powerful close by leaving the reader with more to ponder or consider. Do not simply restate the introductory paragraph here; the conclusion should reframe your thoughts in a different way.

You have several options in completing this task:

  1. Write a two- to three-page paper (not including title page or reference page).
  2. Develop a PowerPoint presentation using the How To Make a PowerPoint Presentation (Links to an external site.) resource found in the Ashford Writing Center.
  3. Utilize a digital tool such as Prezi, Voicethread, Knovia that is 8-10 slides long (does not include title page slide or reference page slide).

If choosing options b or c, it is strongly encouraged that you provide audio support.

You must include a title page, reference page, introduction and conclusion regardless of which option you choose. Reference Chapter 7 of the course text and at least one additional, scholarly source using the Ashford library. You may find the Introduction to APA (Links to an external site.) resource helpful, found in the Ashford Writing Center.  Refer to the Week 4 Template for additional support.