RELATED COURSES

Research-Related Courses

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SOC 496: Educational Practice & Policy in the Local Context (Spring 2024)

This is a hands-on course in which students will apply social scientific research skills to support the Madison Metropolitan School District to address relevant problems of practice the District confronts. The course will be co-led by two Directors of the Madison Education Partnership: Eric Grodsky, Professor of Sociology and Educational Policy Studies, and Beth Vaade, Senior Executive Director of Research, Assessment & Improvement for the Madison Metropolitan School District.

Students will work in small teams on projects that we define early in the semester in consultation with our District partners. All students will develop skills in synthesizing and presenting information for an audience of policymakers, using visual displays, producing accessible and engaging slide presentations, and writing executive summaries. Each team will also collaborate to produce a 15-25 page full report that may include reviews of relevant literature and/or empirical analyses of original or secondary data.