List of Possible Topics
Early Education
• What is the difference between education and schooling?
• How do young children learn?
• Who decides what is best for young children?
• Should we push for universal pre-kindergarten?
o When does schooling start?
o Should everyone have to do this?
o What should kids be learning at this time?
K-12 Schools
• Why should we consider a re-set?
o What was wrong with schools before and then during the pandemic?
• Who decides what is taught, how it is taught, and for what purpose in schools?
• Should culturally and linguistically diverse curriculum and instruction be required?
• Do individual choices take away from a collective school system for others?
o Do choices lead to privatization, competition, and the marketization of schools?
o What are the strengths and limitations of school choice for individuals and communities?
o Do many choices affect the quality or regulation of schools?
o Is competition among schools helpful or hurtful for students, families, and communities?
• Does school choice distance individuals from one another in our society?
Post-secondary or Higher Education
• Who decides how labor is divided in our society?
• Who gets to make decisions about institutions of higher education?
• How do we fund public education?
• What is the role of higher education in free speech and debate?
• How do we understand campus security?
• What is the California master plan and why is that important or not?
o Does the different purpose for each option of post-secondary schooling create or perpetuate inequity? Or do the multiple purposes allow for more access and equity?
o Do we need universal post-secondary schooling (free admission paid by public fundings for everyone)
o What is the quality of education/schooling in each of the options?
Note: You are also encouraged to explore a topic that may not be listed but was perhaps mentioned in class.
Should you have an idea for a project that is not listed here, first run it by our instructional team for support.
Requirements:
• present the debate in the form of a question
• your final project must include
o introduction/overview of the issue
o what is the issue (summarize the big ideas)
o why did it resonate? feel free to add a personal story and/or connection if applicable
o Consider a potential audience for your project (peers, younger students, policymakers, educators, families of students, etc.)
• your stance, position, or opinion
o whether it is in agreement or disagreement with a particular side
o or a qualification outlining the nuanced position you take
• an analysis of the issue
o the arguments, concerns, and/or relevant complications
o what we know from research and scholarship about this issue
o take care when attending to the logic or organization of your ideas
o citations or references to at least 3 readings/viewings/listening from assigned from the course
o citations or references to at least 2 other relevant sources indicating a deepening of your knowledge around this topic. Consider Home – News – Research Guides at UCLA Library
o other sources may include interviews with people
• a conclusion
o may include any further wonderings, questions, complications, or concerns
o may include ideas for future dreaming and possibilities