Sociology and Education

Back to Education Policy & Social Analysis

Department of Education Policy & Social Analysis

Program Description

The sociological examination of education has a long tradition at Teachers College, a graduate school with a strong commitment to social justice. Our Sociology and Education program, one of the oldest and most revered such programs in the nation, provides a curriculum that centers on the examination of educational and social inequality as it prepares graduate students to analyze evidence of its sources.

The curriculum emphasizes the social context of schools in both cities and suburbs; the organization and structure of schooling; and the intersection of race, ethnicity, social class and gender with educational policies and practices. Students are trained in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Hands-on research opportunities are available on a wide range of projects, including those examining racial segregation, urban gentrification, conditions of New York City Public Schools, and school organization.

The program faculty for the Sociology and Education Program includes sociologists from several other programs at the College as well as other nearby academic institutions. Faculty strengths are in sociology of education generally, but also in organizational studies, the sociology of teachers and teaching, stratification, racial inequality, critical race theory and urban sociology. They are actively engaged in the analysis and evaluation of educational policies and programs designed to serve educationally disadvantaged populations.

Come to our program to find your sociological imagination and apply that deep understanding of the connection between day-to-day experiences and the wider social context of schools to meaningful change in the field of education. Our program prepares change agents to challenge the inequality within our schools through a deep understanding of its social, political and economic causes.

The program in Sociology and Education also offers a specialization in Educational Policy for students in the M.A. and Ed.M. programs. For more information on this concentration, which is open to students throughout Teachers College, please contact Professor Amy Stuart Wells.

Degree Programs

The graduate program in Sociology and Education offers four degree programs: the M.A., the Ed.M., the Ed.D., and the Ph.D. Each program is designed to meet the needs of students with a particular combination of prior experience and career objectives. The M.A., Ed.M., and Ed.D. programs may be completed on a part-time basis with classes offered in the evening hours. The Ph.D. program requires full-time study. Although students from all of the degree programs in sociology and education are prepared to assume positions in education institutions, the program does not offer professional certification for teaching or school/district leadership. Certification programs are available in other departments at Teachers College.

Master of Arts

The Master of Arts program in sociology and education provides an introduction to the application of sociological perspectives to contemporary education issues. The program provides coverage of the core principles and methods of sociology as they are applied to research and analysis. An optional Policy Concentration enables students to focus more closely on the design and effects of education policies. Students completing this program are prepared to assume positions as general analysts in a variety of organizations devoted to applied educational research, policy making, advocacy, consulting, and direct educational service.

Master of Education

The Master of Education in sociology and education is an advanced master’s degree typically pursued by students who already possess a master’s degree in a substantive area of education or by students without a prior master’s degree who want an opportunity to combine study in sociology and education with another area in education. The program involves study of sociological perspectives and methods in the context of contemporary education issues. Through an optional Policy Concentration, students can examine a variety of education policy questions in more depth. Current substantive areas that can be combined with study in sociology and policy include evaluation and institutional analysis, human development, technology, curriculum, administration, and foundations. Students completing this program are prepared to assume positions as specialists in a variety of organizations devoted to applied educational research, policy making, advocacy, consulting, and management of educational activities.

Doctor of Philosophy

The Doctor of Philosophy in Education (Ph.D.) program is designed for students with a strong background and interest in the discipline of sociology and its application to education. The Ph.D. is a highly specialized degree that requires full-time study and substantial coursework to be done at Teachers College, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University, or through the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium, which provides for cross-registration among member institutions. Students completing this program are prepared to assume positions in college and university programs focused on sociological research in the field of education.

Doctor of Education

The Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) program is designed to provide broad training in the social sciences, education, and education policy. The program prepares students for positions in teaching, research, and policy through interdisciplinary study grounded in the sociological perspective. All coursework is available at Teachers College, and both part-time and full-time study is possible. Students completing this program are prepared to assume positions in college and university programs in education as well as leadership positions in a variety of organizations devoted to applied education research, policy making, advocacy, consulting, and management of educational activities.

Degrees

Group by Degree Type

Master of Arts
- Sociology and Education
  Master of Arts
  
  Points/Credits: 33
  
  Entry Terms: Summer/Fall
  
  Degree Requirements
  Degree Requirements
  
  Master of Arts Degree in the Program in Sociology and Education – minimum of 33 points
  
  Requirements for the M.A. program without the education policy option:
  
  I. Core Courses (minimum 15 points)
  
  A. Foundational Coursework in Social Analysis of Education (6 points)
  
  EDPS 4021 Sociology of Education (3)
  
  EDPS 4620 Introductory Colloquium in Sociology and Education (3)
  
  EDPS 5503 Classical Social Theory (3)
  
  EDPS 5199 Contemporary Social Theory (3)
  
  B. Education and Social Inequality (minimum 3 points)
  
  EDPS 4022 Sociology of Urban Education (3)
  
  EDPP 5045 Race, Ethnicity and US Educational Policy (3)
  
  EDPS 4024 Social Stratification and Education (3)
  
  EDPS 4032 Gender, Difference and Curriculum (3)
  
  C&T 4032 Gender, Difference and Curriculum (3)
  
  EDPS 5053 Race, Gender and Education (3)
  
  EDPS 4199 Race, Culture, and Educational Inequality (3)
  
  ITSF 4060 Latinos in Urban Schools (3)
  
  EDP 4023 Reimagining Education (3) (may be used either for Education and Social Inequality or Education and Social Change, but not both)
  
  C. Education and Social Organization (minimum 3 points)
  
  EDPS 4029 Sociology of Schools (3)
  
  EDPS 4030 Sociology of Organizations (3)
  
  EDPS 5022 Sociology of Education Systems3)
  
  EDPS 4034 Organizing Schools for Diversity (3)
  
  EDPA 6030 Institutional Theory: Sociological Perspectives on Institutional Change in Education (3)
  
  EDPS 5005 Sociology of Teaching and Leadership in Education (3)
  
  ITSF 5023 Family as Educator (3)
  
  ITSF 5026 Family and Television (3)
  
  ITSF 5120 Education in Community Settings (3)
  
  ITSF 5035 Social Analysis of International Large-Scale Assessments (3)
  
  HUDK 4031 Sociology of Evaluation (3)
  
  C&T 4004: School Change (3)
  
  D. Education and Social Change (minimum 3 points)
  
  EDPS 4000 Education and Public Policy (3)
  
  EDPS 4028 Sociology of the Life Course (3)
  
  EDPS 5050 Ideology, Racial Politics, and Public Policy: Sociology of Knowledge (3)
  
  HUDK 4011 Sociology of Online Learning (3)
  
  HUDK 5621 Technology and Society (3)
  
  ITSF 5031 Education and Sustainable Development (3)
  
  EDP 4023 Reimagining Education (3) (may be used either for Education and Social Inequality or Education and Social Change, but not both)
  
  II. Research Methods (9 points)
  
  A. Quantitative Research Methods (3 points)
  
  EDPA 4002 Data Analysis for Policy & Decision Making I (3)
  
  HUDM 4122 Probability and Statistical Inference (3)
  
  B. Qualitative Research Methods (3 points)
  
  EDPS 5057 Qualitative Methods for Education Policy and Social Analysis (3)
  
  ITSF 5000 Methods of Inquiry: Ethnography and Participant Observation (3)
  
  C&T 5502 Introduction to Qualitative Research in Curriculum and Teaching (3)
  
  ITSF 4092 Qualitative Research and Evaluation in International Education (3)
  
  ITSF 5001 Ethnography and Participant Observation (3)
  
  C. Advanced Research Methods (3 points)
  
  EDPA 5002 Data Analysis for Policy & Decision Making II (3)
  
  HUDM 5122 Applied Regression Analysis (3)
  
  EDPA 4050 Logic & Design of Research in Educational Policy & Social Analysis (3)
  
  EDPS 5646 Evaluation of Educational and Social Programs (3)
  
  ORL 5522 Evaluation Methods I (3)
  
  HBSS 6100 Program Evaluation (3)
  
  CUSSW T6416 Program Evaluation in Social Services (at Columbia School of Social Work) (3)
  
  EDPS 5020 Survey Research Methods (3)
  
  EDPE 6022 Econometric Methods for Policy Research and Program Evaluation (3)
  
  EDPA 6002 Quantitative Methods for Evaluating Education Policies and Programs (3)
  
  A&HL 4014 Discourse Analysis (3)
  
  ITSF 5040 Mixed Methods for Disciplined Inquiry (3)
  
  III. Electives/Concentration (6-9 points)
  
  IV. Culminating Integrative Experience (0-3 points)
  
  Master’s comprehensive examination (0), or
  
  Master’s integrative project and EDPS 6021 Master’s Integrative Project in Sociology and Education (1 point in the fall and 2 points in the spring, for a total of 3 points)
  
  Additional requirements for the M.A. program with the policy concentration:
  
  Choose one course from each of the following four categories:
  
  I. Foundational Studies in Education Policy
  
  EDPS 4000 Education and Public Policy
  
  AH&H 5063 Seminar: U.S. Education Policy in Historic Perspective
  
  II. Policy Analysis
  
  EDPA 5645 Craft of Policy Analysis
  
  EDPA 4047 Politics and Public Policy
  
  EDPA 4048 Education Policy Analysis & Implementation
  
  EDPE 4050 Economics of Education
  
  III. Program Evaluation
  
  EDPS 5646 Evaluation of Educational and Social Programs
  
  ORL 5522 Evaluation Methods I
  
  HBSS 6100 Program Evaluation
  
  CUSSW T6416 Program Evaluation in Social Services (at Columbia School of Social Work)
  
  EDPE 6022 Econometric Methods for Policy Research and Program Evaluation
  
  EDPA 6002 Quantitative Methods for Evaluating Education Policies and Programs
  
  IV. Topics in Education and Social Policy
  
  EDP 4023 Reimagining Education
  
  EDP 4036 Anti-Racist Curriculum, Pedagogy and Leadership Practices
  
  EDP 5001 and EDP 5031 CPRL Seminar and Practicum in Public Sector Structural Improvement
  
  EDPA 4013 Education Policy and the Management of Instruction
  
  EDPA 4017 Topics in Higher Education Law
  
  EDPA 4025 Higher Education Policy
  
  EDPA 4033 Comprehensive Educational Opportunity
  
  EDPA 4046 School Finance Policy and Practice
  
  EDPA 4086 Law and Education: Regulation, Religion, Free Speech and Safety
  
  EDPA 4899 Federal Policy Institute
  
  EDPA 5016 Educational Equality: The Rule of Law
  
  EDPA 5023 Policymaking for Effective High School to College Transition
  
  EDPA 5086 Educational Policymaking and the Courts
  
  EDPA 5880 School Law Institute
  
  EDPA 6013 Early Childhood Development and Education
  
  EDPA 6027 International Perspectives on Early Childhood Policy
  
  EDPA 4503 Schools, Courts, and Civic Participation
  
  EDPE 4055 Resource Allocation in EducationEDPE 4058 Economics of Higher Education
  
  EDPE 4155 Evaluating Educational Privatization and School Choice
  
  EDPE 4051 Education and Economic Development
  
  EDPP 5041 Politics of Centralization and Decentralization
  
  EDPP 5045 Race, Ethnicity and US Educational Policy
  
  C&T 4615 Young Children, Families and Social Policy
  
  C&T 5050 Education Policy: Prologue to the Future
  
  C&T 5074 Curriculum and Teaching Policy
  
  HBSS 4112 Social Policy and Prevention
  
  ITSF 4060 Latinos in Urban Schools
  
  ITSF 4098 Education Development Policies in China
  
  ITSF 4160 Human Rights Education in Africa: Politics, Policies and Pedagogies
  
  ITSF 5006 International Education Policy Studies
  
  ITSF 5035 Social Analysis of International Large-Scale Assessments
  
  ITSF 5031 Education and Sustainable Development
  
  *Please note that all master's students must complete a culminating experience.
Master of Education
- Sociology and Education
  Master of Education
  
  Points/Credits: 60
  
  Entry Terms: Summer/Fall
  
  Degree Requirements
  Degree Requirements
  
  Ed.M. Degree in the Program in Sociology and Education – minimum of 60 points
  
  Requirements for the Ed.M. program without the education policy option:
  
  I. Core Courses (Minimum of 15 points)
  
  A. Foundational Coursework in Social Analysis of Education (minimum 6 points)
  
  EDPS 4021 Sociology of Education (3)
  
  EDPS 4620 Introductory Colloquium in Sociology and Education (3)
  
  EDPS 5503 Classical Social Theory (3)
  
  B. Education and Social Inequality (minimum 3 points)
  
  EDPS 4022 Sociology of Urban Education (3)
  
  EDPP 5045 Race, Ethnicity and US Educational Policy (3)
  
  EDPS 4024 Social Stratification and Education (3)
  
  EDPS 4032 Gender, Difference and Curriculum (3)
  
  C&T 4032 Gender, Difference and Curriculum (3)
  
  EDPS 5053 Race, Gender, and Education (3)
  
  ITSF 4060 Latinos in Urban Schools (3)
  
  EDP 4023 Reimagining Education (may be used either for Education and Social Inequality or Education and Social Change, but not both) (3)
  
  C. Education and Social Organization (minimum 3 points)
  
  EDPS 4029 Sociology of Schools (3)
  
  EDPS 4030 Sociology of Organizations (3)
  
  EDPS 5022 Sociology of Education Systems (3)
  
  EDPS 4034 Organizing Schools for Diversity (3)
  
  EDPA 6030 Institutional Theory: Sociological Perspectives on Institutional Change in Education (3)
  
  EDPS 5005 Sociology of Teaching and Leadership in Education (3)
  
  ITSF 5023 Family as Educator (3)
  
  ITSF 5026 Family and Television (3)
  
  ITSF 5120 Education in Community Settings (3)
  
  HUDK 4031 Sociology of Evaluation (3)
  
  ITSF 5035 Social Analysis of International Large-Scale Assessments (3)
  
  C&T 4004: School Change (3)
  
  D. Education and Social Change (minimum 3 points)
  
  EDPS 4000 Education and Public Policy (3)
  
  EDPS 4028 Sociology of the Life Course (3)
  
  EDPS 5050 Sociology of Knowledge (3)
  
  HUDK 4011 Sociology of Online Learning (3)
  
  HUDK 5621 Technology and Society (3)
  
  ITSF 5031 Education and Sustainable Development (3)
  
  EDP 4023 Reimagining Education (may be used either for Education and Social Inequality or Education and Social Change, but not both) (3)
  
  II. Research Methods (12 points)
  
  A. Quantitative Research Methods (6 points)
  
  EDPA 4002 Data Analysis for Policy & Decision Making I (3)
  
  HUDM 4122 Probability and Statistical Inference (3)
  
  EDPA 5002 Data Analysis for Policy & Decision Making II (3)
  
  HUDM 5122 Applied Regression Analysis (3)
  
  B. Qualitative Research Methods (3 points)
  
  EDPS 5057 Qualitative Methods for Education Policy and Social Analysis (3)
  
  ITSF 5000 Methods of Inquiry: Ethnography and Participant Observation (3)
  
  C&T 5502 Introduction to Qualitative Research in Curriculum and Teaching (3)
  
  C. Advanced Research Methods (3 points)
  
  EDPA 4050 Logic & Design of Research in Educational Policy & Social Analysis (3)
  
  EDPS 5646 Evaluation of Educational and Social Programs (3)
  
  ORL 5522 Evaluation Methods I (3)
  
  HBSS 6100 Program Evaluation (3)
  
  EDPE 6022 Econometric Methods for Policy Research and Program Evaluation (3)
  
  EDPA 6002 Quantitative Methods for Evaluating Education Policies and Programs (3)
  
  CUSSW T6416 Program Evaluation in Social Services (at Columbia School of Social Work) (3)
  
  EDPS 5020 Survey Research Methods (3)
  
  III. Electives/Concentration (30-33 points)
  
  IV. Culminating Integrative Experience (0-3 points)
  
  Master’s comprehensive examination (0), or
  
  Master’s integrative project and EDPS 6021 Master’s Integrative Project in Sociology and Education (1 point in the fall and 2 points in the spring, for a total of 3 points)
  
  Additional requirements for the Ed.M. program with the policy concentration:
  
  Choose one course from each of the following four categories:
  
  I. Foundational Studies in Education Policy
  
  EDPS 4000 Education and Public Policy
  
  A&HH 5063 Seminar: U.S. Education Policy in Historic Perspective
  
  II. Policy Analysis
  
  EDPA 5645 Craft of Policy Analysis
  
  EDPA 4047 Politics and Public Policy
  
  EDPA 4048 Education Policy Analysis & Implementation
  
  EDPE 4050 Economics of Education
  
  III. Program Evaluation
  
  EDPS 5646 Evaluation of Educational and Social Programs
  
  ORL 5522 Evaluation Methods I
  
  HBSS 6100 Program Evaluation
  
  CUSSW T6416 Program Evaluation in Social Services (at Columbia School of Social Work)
  
  EDPE 6022 Econometric Methods for Policy Research and Program Evaluation
  
  EPDA 6002 Quantitative Methods for Evaluating Policies and Programs
  
  IV. Topics in Education and Social Policy
  
  EDP 4023 Reimagining Education
  
  EDP 4036 Anti-Racist Curriculum, Pedagogy and Leadership Practices
  
  EDP 5001 and EDP 5031 CPRL Seminar and Practicum in Public Sector Structural Improvement
  
  EDPA 4013 Education Policy and the Management of Instruction
  
  EDPA 4017 Topics in Higher Education Law
  
  EDPA 4025 Higher Education Policy
  
  EDPA 4033 Comprehensive Educational Opportunity
  
  EDPA 4046 School Finance Policy and Practice
  
  EDPA 4086 Law and Education: Regulation, Religion, Free Speech and Safety
  
  EDPA 4899 Federal Policy Institute
  
  EDPA 5016 Educational Equality: The Rule of Law
  
  EDPA 5023 Policymaking for Effective High School to College Transition
  
  EDPA 5086 Educational Policymaking and the Courts
  
  EDPA 5880 School Law Institute
  
  EDPA 6013 Early Childhood Development and Education
  
  EDPA 6027 International Perspectives on Early Childhood Policy
  
  EDPA 4503 Schools, Courts, and Civic Participation
  
  EDPE 4055 Resource Allocation in Education
  
  EDPE 4058 Economics of Higher Education
  
  EDPE 4155 Evaluating Educational Privatization and School Choice
  
  EDPE 4051 Education and Economic Development
  
  EDPP 5041 Politics of Centralization and Decentralization
  
  EDPP 5045 Race, Ethnicity and US Educational Policy
  
  C&T 4615 Young Children, Families and Social Policy
  
  C&T 5050 Education Policy: Prologue to the Future
  
  C&T 5074 Curriculum and Teaching Policy
  
  HBSS 4112 Social Policy and Prevention
  
  ITSF 4060 Latinos in Urban Schools
  
  ITSF 4098 Education Development Policies in China
  
  ITSF 4160 Human Rights Education in Africa: Politics, Policies and Pedagogies
  
  ITSF 5006 International Education Policy Studies
  
  ITSF 5031 Education and Sustainable Development
  
  *Please note that all master's students must complete a culminating experience.
Doctor of Education
- Sociology and Education
  Doctor of Education
  
  Points/Credits: 90
  
  Entry Terms: Fall Only
  
  Degree Requirements
  
  Degree Requirements
  
  The coursework for the Ed.D., which totals a minimum of 90 points, has seven components: basic social research design and methods, advanced social research design and methods, social theory, core coursework in the sociology of education, seminars and colloquia, coursework in the social context of teaching and learning, and elective courses. All of the required coursework is offered at Teachers College.
  
  Basic social research design and methods (12 points) involves coursework in research design, probability and statistics, applied regression analysis, and qualitative research methods. Courses in advanced social research design and methods (minimum 6 points) build on these basic courses in the quantitative and/ or qualitative domains. Social theory courses (3 points) draw from sociology and other social sciences. Ed.D. students also pursue a minimum of 15 points in core classes in the sociology of education and 6 points in seminars and colloquia designed to prepare students for dissertation research. The balance of the 90-point minimum is earned through elective courses selected in collaboration with the student's advisor.
  
  Policy Studies Concentration in the Sociology and Education Program is available.
Doctor of Philosophy
- Sociology and Education
  Doctor of Philosophy
  
  Points/Credits: 75
  
  Entry Terms: Fall Only
  
  Degree Requirements
  
  Degree Requirements
  
  The coursework for the Ph.D., which totals a minimum of 75 points, has seven components: social theory, basic social research design and methods, advanced social research design and methods, foundational coursework in sociology, core coursework in the sociology of education, seminars and colloquia, and elective courses. The required coursework is offered at Teachers College and in the Sociology Department in Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. With advisor permission, students may pursue courses in other professional schools at the University or through the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium.
  
  (Please refer to the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium section of this bulletin for participating schools.)
  
  Social theory (6 points) includes coursework in classical and contemporary sociological theory.
  
  Basic social research design and methods (12 points) involves coursework in research design, probability and statistics, applied regression analysis, and qualitative research methods. Courses in advanced social research design and methods (minimum 6 points) build on these basic courses in the quantitative and/ or qualitative domains. Students also enroll in at least one 3-point course offered by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia or a Consortium institution in each of the areas of social stratification/ inequality, social organization, and social change.
  
  Ph.D. students also pursue a minimum of 12 points in core classes in the sociology of education and 6 points in seminars and colloquia designed to prepare students for dissertation research. The balance of the 75-point minimum is earned through elective courses selected in collaboration with the student’s advisor.
  
  Policy Studies Concentration in the Sociology and Education Program is available.
Advanced Certificate
- Reimagining Education
  Advanced Certificate
  
  Points/Credits: 10
  
  Entry Terms: Summer Only
  
  Degree Requirements
  Degree Requirements
  
  The Teachers College, Columbia University Reimagining Education for a Racially Just Society Advanced Certificate Program provides foundational skills and strategies for educators, policy makers and advocates to foster racial equality in schools. This 10-credit program provides flexible professional development while serving as a bridge to further graduate education, including a Master of Education or a doctoral degree program. The coursework is designed and taught by Teachers College faculty—leading experts on a wide array of issues related to racism within the field of education—from multiple departments who will share their unique multidisciplinary expertise.
  
  Program Coursework
  
  Summer Course
  
  Three Credits: In person, as part of the four-day Reimagining Education Summer Institute (choose one)
  
  Reimagining Education for Teaching and Learning in Diverse Schools
  
  Reimagining Education: Equity, Race, and Pedagogical Practices
  
  Reimagining Education for Social Change: Public Pedagogy in the Digital Age
  
  Fall Course
  
  Three Credits: Online
  
  Understanding Race Education: From Racial Hierarchy to Racial Literacy
  
  Spring Course
  
  Three Credits: Online
  
  Anti-Racist Curriculum, Pedagogy, Leadership and Policy
  
  Summer Course
  
  One Credit: Online or in person
  
  Capstone Project*
  
  *Upon completion, participants are encouraged to attend and present their work at the Reimagining Education Summer Institute at no cost.

Faculty

Faculty
- Aaron M Pallas Arthur I. Gates Professor of Sociology and Education
- Carolyn J. Riehl Associate Professor of Sociology & Education Policy
- Amy Stuart Wells Professor of Sociology and Education
Adjunct Faculty
- Eleni Demos Natsiopoulou Adjunct Assistant Professor
- Joseph Derrick Nelson Adjunct Assistant Professor
- Basil Anthony Smikle Adjunct Assistant Professor
- Joan Kass Stamler Adjunct Assistant Professor
Instructors
- Jessica R Brathwaite Senior Research Associate I
- Abbey Elizabeth Keener Interim Research Assistant
- Jeannie Kim EPSA Post Doctoral Fellow

Courses

EDPP 5045 - Race, Ethnicity, and U.S. Educational Policy

Examination of the impact of race and ethnicity on the formation and implementation of policies such as desegregation, affirmative action, bilingual education, and choice.
EDPS 4000 - Education and public policy

Examination of the federal role in K-12 education policy over the course of the 20th century and its impact on states and districts.
EDPS 4021 - Sociology of education

A broad analysis of education using basic sociological concepts, including schools as organizations, socialization, stratification, and ethnic relations.
EDPS 4022 - Sociology of urban education

This course encourages students to think critically about the social, economic and political context of urban education. Topics include housing policies, gentrification, racial and socio-economic segregation, school closures, privatization and school choice
EDPS 4024 - Social stratification and education

An examination of the link between education and social inequality in Western societies, questioning whether schools are a mechanism of social mobility, enabling poor and disadvantaged children to get ahead in life, or whether schools perpetuate the hardships faced by poor and minority populations. Topics include the importance of quantity and quality of schooling for adult success; the ways in which race/ethnicity, sex, and social class background structure students educational experiences; the role of tracking and ability grouping within schools; and the link between schooling and the economy.
EDPS 4027 - Sociology of classrooms

An examination of sociological research on the structure and operation of classrooms. Particular attention to the processes of stratification, socialization, legitimation, and social organization.
EDPS 4028 - Sociology of the life course

Sociologists define the life course of individuals by when, and in what order, people assume key social roles, such as becoming an adult or moving from the workforce to retirement. This course looks at the sociology of the life course. Focusing on how historical and societal factors combine with the personal characteristics of individuals to produce unique life course patterns.
EDPS 4029 - Sociology of schools

An examination of sociological research on the structure and operation of schools. Particular attention to the processes of socialization, stratification, and legitimation as well as social organization and the sociology of school curriculum.
EDPS 4030 - Sociology of organizations

Introduction to concepts, theories, and research in the sociology of organizations and the related interdisciplinary field of organization studies, as they apply to schools and other organizational settings in education. Topics covered will include internal organizational dynamics, organizations and their environments, organizations as contexts for human identity and agency, and organizational learning and improvement.
EDPS 4032 - Gender, difference and curriculum

A study of the extent and causes of gender inequality in society and the ways in which schools work both to reduce and exacerbate inequality.
EDPS 4620 - Introductory colloquium in sociology of education

Permission required. Intensive readings and discussions of basic literature in sociology of education, with attention to common issues and research strategies.
EDPS 4903 - Research and independent study

Permission required.
EDPS 5005 - Sociology of teaching and leadership in education

This course covers four broad topics of interest to sociologists of education, as well as to other education practitioners, researchers, and policy makers: (1) how the occupations of teaching and leadership are socially organized within schools and school systems; (2) how the work of teaching and leadership in schools and school systems is affected by, and in turn affects, social forces in the larger social environment; (3) the social dynamics of diversity in teaching and leadership; and (4) the impact of teachers and leaders on school outcomes. The course will explore how the knowledge base about the sociology of teaching and leadership has evolved – how the research questions have changed over time, what the body of theory and empirical evidence looks like, including the methods used to study teaching and leadership, and what the cutting-edge knowledge frontiers are.
EDPS 5020 - Survey research methods

Relationship between research problem and study design, choice of population, sampling methods, instrument construction, interviewing, data processing, and analysis.
EDPS 5022 - Sociology of education systems

Analysis of local and national education systems through application of sociological perspectives and organization theory, with special attention to problems of equity, effectiveness, and the embeddedness of education systems in their larger contexts.
EDPS 5050 - Ideology, Racial Politics, and Public Policy: Sociology of Knowledge

The sociology of knowledge analyzes the process by which "reality" becomes constructed within a social context. With a focus on education and social welfare policies, this class will explore the "reality" of public policies with real material consequences and how this reality has been constructed around a set of assumptions defining the "problems" that need to be solved. This course helps students step back from a focus on "implementing" educational reform and examine instead how such a reform movement became the focus.
EDPS 5053 - Race, Gender and Education

This course examines how racial discrimination in American education intersects with gender norms and stereotypes in ways that shape everyday school life, particularly how educational policies at the school, district, and federal level either perpetuate or transform these dynamic intersections. After exploring personal histories of race, gender, and schooling through memoir, the course begins with a theoretical and conceptual overview of race, gender, and sex, and the history of race and patriarchy in the U.S. context. Popular culture and discourse, as well as key issues and debates in the field are taken up thereafter, with a focus on race and gender equality/access in urban school settings, and gender dynamics in relation to racial bias, class privilege, and sexuality (e.g., LGBTQIA issues). The goal of the course is to reconsider what constitutes effective schooling for all students across social and cultural contexts.
EDPS 5057 - Qualitative methods for education policy and social research

This course is designed to assist students in conceptualizing and designing research projects – for Master’s Theses or Doctoral Dissertations – that examine, interrogate and evaluate public policies in the fields of education and social welfare through methodological approaches we commonly think of as qualitative. The curriculum emphasizes the benefits and limitations of qualitative methods for studying particular policy issues and programs with the goal of defining when a qualitative approach is most helpful. We will explore qualitative case studies as a research design as well as several different data collection methods employed by qualitative researchers, including interviews, observations, ethnography, and document analysis. The class also addresses what sort of research questions can best be answered through qualitative data collection, and how qualitative researchers can frame their inquiry in a manner that speaks to public policy debates and issues. Furthermore, the course will require students to appreciate the significance and meaning of a more contextual approach to education policy analysis. This course, therefore, fulfills the qualitative research methods requirement for the Sociology and Education Program and other programs across the EPSA Department.
EDPS 5503 - Classical Social Theory

This class is an introduction to classical sociological theory. The epistemological foundations of sociological inquiry as well as its core concepts and methods will be examined. Problems and concepts to be covered will include alienation, class, legitimation, power, anomie, exploitation, culture, ideology, development, and individuation. The texts to be examined will be mainly from the three ‘founders’ of sociology: Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. In addition, theorists who worked within the classical sociological tradition and who have played a significant role in shaping contemporary social theory will also be studied; such theorists may include: Friedrich Engels, Marcel Mauss, George Simmel, Sigmund Freud, and Norbert Elias.
EDPS 5620 - Advanced colloquium in sociology of education

This course is designed to enhance student knowledge of social theory in sociological research. Particular attention is devoted to deductive models of explanation and their use in the construction of theory and its application as a basis for empirical inquiry.
EDPS 5646 - Evaluation of educational and social programs

An introduction to the evaluation of social and educational programs. Topics include evaluation to inform program conceptualization and design; measuring program implementation; impact assessment, including randomized experiments; cost-effectiveness analysis; and the social and political context of program evaluation.
EDPS 6021 - Master's integrative project in sociology and education

Students wishing to complete a master's integrative project instead of taking the master's exam will design a study, provide a relevant literature review of theory and research, collect and analyze data, and write a comprehensive report of their work.
EDPS 6525 - Seminar in sociology of education

A seminar for doctoral students to further their professional development and to prepare for doctoral research.
EDPS 6903 - Research and independent study

Permission required.
EDPS 7503 - Dissertation seminar

Permission required. Required of doctoral students in the semester following successful completion of certification examinations.
EDPS 8903 - Dissertation advisement

Individual advisement on doctoral dissertations. Fee to equal 3 points at current tuition rate for each term. For requirements, see section in catalog on Registration for Ed.D./Ph.D. degrees.

Sociology and Education | Education Policy & Social Analysis