Web Exercises

Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.

Web Exercise #1:  Progressive Education

  1. Visit Alfie Kohn’s article, Progressive Education: Why it’s Hard to Beat, but Also Hard to Find, at: http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/progressive.htm
  2. Read the complete article.
  3. Write Kohn’s reasons why progressivism is hard to beat as an educational philosophy by writing what he says it is and what it is not.  Then, write why he feels it is so rare.
  4. Now, reflect on your own K-12 educational experiences.  Do you feel you experienced a progressive education?  If so, why?  If not, explain how yours differed from John Dewey’s framework.  Would you choose to change your experiences knowing what you now understand about progressivism?

Web Exercise #2:  Gender Bias in Education

  1. Visit the National Women’s History Museum at: http://www.nwhm.org/online-exhibits/education/Biographies.htm
  2. You can use the links at the top to read brief summaries about the history of the education of women in the 1700s, 1800s, and 1900s.  There is also a link for biographies and a timeline.
  3. Our authors mentioned Emma Willard, but textbooks are famous for leaving women out of historical accounts.  Select one of the women to conduct further research.  Write about her contributions and efforts to provide educational equality to female students.  Write about the sacrifices she made to make those efforts.  
  4. Visit the National Coalition for Women & Girls in Education at: http://www.ncwge.org/
  5. Then click on the link on the left side titled “Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.” Next, download the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math chapter of the NCWGE’s Title IX at 40 report using the link at the top of the page.
  6. Read about the low percentage of women graduating from STEM programs.  Write your opinion about the equality of education for women based on the data provided about women in STEM professions.  Give your opinions on what teachers can do to become more proactive in closing the gender gap in this area.