Communication 335 - Media and Education

We live in a nation that marks education as a sign of, and route to, success. This course provides an overview of the American education system, its structure and how it is represented in and by the mainstream media. We will address the following questions: What is the purpose of education? Education is often constructed as "the solution;" what is potentially solved through education? How do we understand and make sense of education including, but not limited to, public, private, homeschool, and higher education? What message of education is constructed by the mainstream media? How do current events around education shape our understanding of our own communities as well as the larger world? Through analysis of classic educational philosophies, through contemporary work, we explore the complex reality of formal and informal schooling, teaching, and learning, with a focus on how this is depicted by the media. This course has a required civic engagement component where students will work with and on behalf of young people in the community and across Massachusetts.

Open to Senior and Junior Communication majors only. PreReq:COMM 121 or 122 This course was formerly numbered as COMM 397AR. If you have already taken COMM 397AR you cannot take this course.